Lichfield Nomads Cricket Club : Match Reports 2004

Poor fielding costs Nomads dear.
The Nomads slipped to their first defeat of the season after a lacklustre fielding display cost them dear. Cannock Wood posted 147 all out and the Nomads could only muster 86 for 9 after 40 overs. Neil Hemmings won the MVP. He took 3 wickets for 18. All three were clean bowled, middle stump, in a single over. He also picked up a sharp catch in the slips.

A promising start for the Nomads saw Heslington clean bowl opener Morgan for 4. The mood quickly changed as Nomads began to toil in the field. The outfield was very wet and in its usual April early season state post the end of the rugby season. Bromley offered at least three sharp chances that were spurned and he went on to play the dominant innings of the match. The Nomads ground fielding was also poor. Weir suffered an injury early on and couldn't run but soldiered on manfully. As luck would have it, the ball followed him everywhere. The fielders were often out of position or slow to react, as ones were turned into fours.

In contrast, Gardner was excellent behind the stumps and he took two sharp catches standing up first off Blackburn and then Pickering. The other notable fielding highlights being Hemmings catch to dismiss Griffiths and Forster's caught and bowled.

Bromley celebrated his 50 in fine style and had got to 70 as Cannock Wood reached 119 for 4 and were threatening to score 200 when the game turned. Pickering grabbed his first wicket for two years keeping Bromley off the strike, this probably unsettled Bromley who went first ball of Hemmings' next over clean bowled, middle stump, by a ball that moved in. Hemmings repeated the trick next ball clean bowling Sharp before removing Griffiths in similar fashion at the end of the same over.

The target seemed gettable despite the cold, gloomy conditions. But the Nomads never really got going in truth. Gardner and Heslington started in similar vein to last week and scored 22 off the first four overs, but with the score on 23, Heslington was caught for 10. Gardner top edged one off Griffiths and was caught for 14. Hussein was bowled by Powis for 6, It took a blinding catch off Sharp to remove Pinfield for 10 and Fearon was adjudged lbw for 0 off the pacy Powis. By now almost 6 an over was required and the Nomads were in damage limitation mode.

Hemmings and Forster both played entertaining innings. Hemmings was moving his feet well and had got to 13 before being stumped off the bowling of Sharp. Smith and Blackburn didn't trouble the scorer. Forster was not out 10 at the end after a doughty partnership with Pickering and the injured and by now very cold number 11 (Weir) was not needed as Nomads limped to 86 for 8 off the 40 overs.

This is probably the lowest score off the full 40 overs that the Nomads have ever posted.

All in all a disappointing result. Nomads bowled reasonably well but didn't take their chances when they came. The batting was unconvincing but 3 lbws (all ducks), 1 stumping and 3 caught tells a story of its own.  If the target had been 110 instead of 147 it is more than likely that the result would have been different.

Heslington 5-1-16-1, Hemmings 8-2-18-3
Forster 7-2-24-1,     Blackburn 7-1-22-3
Fearon 7.3-0-48-1,   Pickering 5-0-16-1

Samuel 8-4-14-1,  S. Griffiths 8-2-23-1
Sharp 8-0-19-4,    Powis  8-4-12-2
Bromley 4-3-1-0,  West 4-1-4-0