Cricketers CC vs Whalers CC: Richmond Green; Saturday 19th May 2018

A glorious summers day and a distinct buzz across London could only mean another Whalers game (not some pommy bloke marrying a yank), this time against the Cricketers in front of a packed house at Richmond Green. The teams assembled surprisingly promptly and with the Whalers short a couple and Cricketers with a couple extra, the Whale welcomed Geoff (of Australia), Steve and Rich as honorary Whalers for the day. With Geoff, a bowler, needing to depart early and the Whalers short on bowling it was agreed by Nick (as skipper for the day) that the Whalers would bowl first.

The honour of the new ball was conferred upon Geoff and Jiff, with Geoff starting with great line and length for a maiden first up. He was rewarded in his second over clean bowling an opener for the first wicket. At the other end Jiff was struggling for control with his second over yielding a number of full tosses which were dispatch appropriately by the other opener Grace who was now getting his eye in and looking dangerous. At this point a conversation ensued between Nick and Jiff, the exact details of which will doubtless be debated for decades by Whaler historians, the result being that Jiff was out of the attack after 2 overs after struggling to control the new ball because “it was too shiny”.

Will replaced Jiff and the run rate was brought back under control but wickets were not coming, after Geoff finished his 7 overs (going for just 18 runs and the one wicket) the Cricketers had moved on to 64. Steve (also filling in for us from the Cricketers) got the breakthrough in the 15^th over with the number 3 out caught for 34. Will having gone for a few in his last couple of overs, was replaced by Nick and with Steve copped some well hit shots from Grace and new man in Marsh. In the 19^th over just before drinks, what was looking like a dangerous partnership was broken when Marsh was caught at long off by Dean for a quick fire 17 off the bowling of Steve for his second wicket. After drinks numbers 5 and 6 followed in quick succession out bowled and lbw respectively to Steve in a double wicket maiden. His next and final over brought his 5^th wicket, with number 7, Stokes out for 8 after being well stumped by specialist wicket keeper Dave on his Whalers debut. Steve finished with 5-38 from his 7 overs.

Special replaced Steve and some uncharacteristic full tosses were dispatched brutally by Grace who brought up a very well made 100. Some late hitting of some wayward whalers bowling saw the Crickets pass 200 in the 32^nd over. Jiff was brought back for one final crack and bowled Grace for 123 off his inside edge. An innings appreciated by both sides and a couple of the more observant spectators and the only wicket to fall to a regular Whaler for the innings. The Cricketers finished 7/221 off their 35.

A quick change over and it was Dean and Al who went out to face the Cricketers attack. It was Wiggles who started and with good line and length bowling scoring was difficult. At the other end Dani started with a number of long hops and full tosses which the Whaler batsman struggled to put away. Al was out in the second over for a duck after spooning a full toss back to Dani for the first wicket. Roland then joined Dean and a partnership began to form with both batsman getting a couple of shots away (a few byes and wides helped as well) before Dean slapped a long hop straight to square leg and he was out for 8 with the score on 22. Roland was out sooner after, caught behind for 6 and Dani had his 3^rdwicket. Rich and Steve both of the Cricketers steadied the ship briefly but both were out in quick succession with Rich caught for 15 and Steve bowled for 2 and the Whalers were in trouble at 5/53 after 15 overs.

Will was joined in the middle by Jiff and with Will pushing singles and twos, it was Jiff who took up the attack plundering several 4s from wayward deliveries from the Cricketers change bowlers. Nick, who as next man in was telling the assembled crowed of his batting prowess after actually scoring runs last week, was soon put to the test after Will was caught for 14 ending a hopeful 44 run partnership for the 6^th wicket. Perhaps predictably, Nick’s golf swing didn’t live up to the hype and he was well caught in the gully for a 2^ndball duck. Enter Will’s mate Dave who made the trek from Wiltshire for the game. With Jiff still plundering 4s including some particularly nice straight hits which sent groups in the crowd scattering, Dave was able to sneak some quick singles and lofted a couple of 4s himself. Jiff brought up a well made 50 as the Whalers pushed towards 150. Dave was eventually out caught behind for 12 ending a very handy 40 run partnership with Jiff. Next in was a confident looking Special who’s forward defence was never in doubt. It was his 4 through cover though that particularly impressed the watching Whalers, even if it was the result of overthrows. With Special holding up an end, Jiff continued his plundering right to the end with a particularly impressive 6 over backward square leg in to a crowed of distracted female spectators. He made it to a very well-played 64 not out (50 of which came from boundaries), but the Whalers had left too much to do and the final score was 8/158 off our 35 overs.

The result then was victory to the Cricketers by 63 runs. A special thanks to the Cricketers for hosting in front of literally hundreds of people on Richmond Green and lending us Geoff, Rich and Steve, as well as to Will’s mate Dave for coming up to London from Wiltshire.

Cricketers 221-7 (35)

Whalers 158/8 (35)

Man of the Match – Jiff for his 64 Not Out (also his highest score)

Muppet Moment – Jiff for refusing to bowl after 2 over because the new ball was “too shiny”

Champagne Moment – Jiff for his 6 in to a crowd of people

Fine of the Day – Jiff

Whalers vs Quokkas – 13^th May 2018; King’s House Sports Ground

Having thawed out from the first game and ‘fresh’ from the tour, the Whalers gathered ready for their second home game of the season. After a bit of a delay, new captain Will was keen to bowl first on a pitch that looked like it was only going to get drier and flatter as the day wore on. Thanks to the oppo captain winning the toss and choosing to bat, the game seemed to be setting off on the right foot.

Nick opened the bowling with some tidy lines and encouraging pace, joined by Jack from the other end with some untidy lines to test new keeper Jiff. After edging behind off a no-ball, opener ‘Fruity’ waved at a wide one which flew to Pip in the gully. A spectacular catch was followed by an energetic celebration, and the Whalers were off to a good start. The Quokkas were clearly here to have a go at the bowling, and began to up the run rate before their second opener fell in similar fashion to the first, thanks to an excellent catch from Will. Evidently frustrated by these two early wickets, the Quokkas began to find the boundaries as Khalil and Russel came on. A quick-fire 35 for Satin was ended by some good pressure bowling from Khalil, but unfortunately this didn’t stem the flow of runs. The Quokkas fourth wicket partnership began to build, much to the frustration of the Whalers as they watched the ball just evade the fielders (either through good placement/luck or the occasional drop).

With the score on 97-3 at drinks, either side could have seized control. Fate evaded the Whale, as another couple of dropped catches aided the Quokkas continued quick scoring, despite the attempted slow-bowling-K-pairing (Kamal and Kieran). The sun (and lots of chasing in the field) was starting to take its toll on the Whalers, and the Quokkas quickly passed 200. Once ‘Baggy’ and ‘CMES’ had passed 100 and 50 respectively, it seemed it was going to take a heroic batting effort from the Whalers. CMES was bowled in the 34^th over, but the damage was done and the Quokkas finished on 251-4.

Tea was fairly sedate, and Al and Pip padded up, buoyed on by the prospect of being able to score some runs thanks to an opening position vacated by Dean (hopefully temporarily). Tight bowling from Dack and his opening partner kept the pressure on, and Pip’s departure in the third over felt ominous, rightly so as Will followed him back to the sidelines the next over, leaving the Whalers on 1-2 off two overs. Jiff, promoted to number 4 and excited by the opportunity to showcase his batting prowess, managed to find the rope before being bowled and returning after his predicted 4 or 5 balls. Khalil and Al steadied the ship and began to hit out, with some (almost) energetic running between the wickets.

At drinks things were looking less bad, with the Whalers on 69-3, and the Quokkas’ front-line bowlers had used all their overs. Al and Khalil kept the score ticking along until the 22^nd over when Al was caught for 38. Kieran’s Whalers batting debut brought 5 singles before being ended by some accurate bowling from ‘Fruity’. Nick and Khalil continued to push the runs, more in an effort to save face rather than save the game, before Nick slapped a return catch back to ‘Baggy’ for 22. Russel supported Khalil, who looked to tried to hit out but only managed to hit up and was caught for an excellent 54. With a few overs remaining, Russel and Jack gave it a go, but tired running and ballerina-esque batting from Jack meant the end was nigh. The Whalers finished on 157-7 and promptly found the bar to rehydrate and relive the multiple muppet candidates.

Champagne moment went to Pip for his catch (and celebration), Jiff took muppet moment for endless commenting on the ‘variable’ bounce, and Khalil’s took man of the match for his batting (but definitely not for his bowling).

Quokkas CC 251-4 (35)

Whalers CC 157-7 (35)

Quokkas win by 94 runs

Whalers CC vs Wenlock Arms CC; 29 April 2018; King’s House Sports Ground

It has become a bit of a Whalers tradition for the first game of the season to take place in sub-Arctic temperatures, and the 2018 season was no exception. A fine (in every sense of the word) selection of non-Whalers thermals, hoodies, down jackets and even scarves were on display as the team gathered at Kings House. New captain Jack lost the toss, and the Whalers were bowling.

 Khalil had a sabbatical for the 2017 season, but in his first game back showed he hadn’t lost his touch by firstly bagging the end with the wind / downhill, and then bowling a testing line and length. At the other end Dan’s approach was a bit more varied, but he took the first wicket with some dross which the batsman guided to Pip in the gully. Khalil soon bowled the other opener, and the next batsman was run out by Geoff, and at drinks it was all a bit sedate at 60ish for 3. And cold. Did I mention it was cold?

Jack and Geoff continued to keep a lid on the scoring, although their number 5 unleashed a few shots on his way to a top-scoring 35. And when the slow-bowling tandem of Special K and the other K (Kamal and Kieran) were unleashed, the scoring slowed further and the wickets suddenly began tumbling. Will took the first of two catches, Dean took another two (one after some juggling), and Kieran denied himself a debut 5-for by dropping one off his own bowling. Despite some late hitting, Wenlock Arms finished on 115-8 from their 35 overs, with Kieran finishing with 4-13.

Tea was indoors and warm, and so it was a reluctant and very well-wrapped up Whalers who trudged out to see Dean and Will take on the Wenlock bowling. On a slow pitch and with the potential for some early-season rustiness, early wickets could have made for a nervous afternoon. However, the opposition dropped Dean in the first over, and with both batsmen particularly harsh on anything short, we were off to a flyer. The bowling tightened up after that but we were still well ahead of the run rate, and Dean proceeded serenely to his first 50 of the season. Drinks were declined on the grounds it was too cold, and with the next men in looking less and less keen for the opportunity to pad their averages, it wasn’t until Will was triggered for 31 that the first wicket fell. A big six from Dean and another boundary to get him to 75* saw the Whalers home by 9 wickets with 12+ overs to spare. And the showers were hot, which was great.

With so much non-Whalers kit on display (you have all been warned), the fines committee got off to a flying start, with Al’s collection of new kit and Lords-branded gilet earning him fine of the day.

Muppet moment – Roland, for missing a run-out despite only standing a couple of feet away from the stumps, but appealing anyway. Not that it really mattered as it was the last ball of the innings

Champagne moment – Khalil bowling the opener, middle stump

Man of the match –  Kieran for figures of 4-13 from 7 overs on debut. Honourable mention for Dean for his 75* and two catches

Wenlock Arms – 115-8 from 35 overs (Kieran 4-13)

Whalers – 118-1 from 22.2 overs (Dean 75*, Will 31)

Excitement is mounting with just 2 weeks to go until the start of the season, and even some sunshine forecast for the week ahead!

The fixtures have now been added to the website – this includes a not previously published T20 against Clapham Inn (thanks to Channa for arranging). The game will be on a Friday night, a Whalers first I think – Friday 22 June in Regent’s Park. Please add this to your diaries.

Still time to order your Whalers kit for the start of the season – there is now a dedicated menu at the top of the website that links to our kit provider.

Please let the Captains know your availability if you haven’t already – we look forward to hosting Wenlock Arms CC for our first 2018 fixture.

Whalers v Wimbledon Corinthians; 9^th September 2017; Raynes Park Sports Ground

Whalers 257-7 (40 ovs) – Dean 152*

Wimbledon Corinthians 125 a.o. (34.5 ovs)

Whalers win by 132 runs

The highest ever individual score by a Whaler drove us home to a thumping win on the club’s final fixture of the season against Wimbledon Corinthians at Raynes Park. A win never really looked in doubt after the ever-prolific Dean amassed a huge 152 not out in a Whalers total of 257-7 off their 40 overs, but nonetheless, a fine bowling performance in wet conditions, spearheaded by Dan (5-21), helped make the margin and nature of the victory all the more pleasing.

Bright sunshine greeted the teams when Geoff, from New Zealand, went out to meet……Geoff from New Zealand for the toss. But with showers forecast for later on, it was perhaps a surprise that when Geoff from New Zealand lost the toss, Geoff from New Zealand asked the Whalers to bat first. Content with the decision, with a long batting line-up, Geoff asked Dean and Pip to open up and we were off.

The opening pair quickly found that the pitch was generally slow and springy with balls losing much of their pace especially if pitched short. Gentle spin from one end and a few wayward deliveries helped the Whalers get off to a flying start. Dean punished anything short and hit several sixes over mid-wicket in a bid to breathe new life into the Captain’s much-vaunted but slightly mythical “6s competition”. At the other end, Pip chipped in by helping see off the slightly more threatening left-arm pace bowlers and grabbing the odd boundary here and there while Dean cut loose. 30-0 after 4 overs became 52-0 after 6 and a strong platform was built. It wasn’t long before Dean passed 50 himself, and indeed it wasn’t until just before drinks, with the score on 104-0, that a change of bowling brought the breakthrough, with Corinthians’ Steve getting one to pop off a length that just grazed Pip’s gloves on the way through. Pip’s dismissal for 28 brought Roland to the crease, who started with a couple of confident-looking shots before being bowled by a swift delivery from the second of Corinthians’ left-armers, Jack. Stu came in but never really got comfortable and was bowled off his pads for a 12-ball duck, putting the Whalers on 138-2. Luke however, found some staying power and held up an end to guide Dean to his hundred, despite being dropped in quick succession playing the same shot by the same fielder, who had previously been injured in the nether regions (painful!) by a slightly more powerful shot that still should have been caught.

Luke however, survived and began to pick off many of the poor balls and keep out the good ones and combined with Dean to put on nearly another hundred runs plundered from the Corinthians’ change bowlers.

Heading into the last few overs, Dean reached his 150 with another huge 6, and having already offered to retire at 100, now offered again and this time, next man in, Al accepted. Dean was clapped off by both sides after a fantastic knock.

By this time, with the over rate not being impressive and with black clouds approaching, there was a general intent by both sides to hurry the innings to a close in order to take cover. Having waited some 14 overs as next man in, Al tried to continue the momentum in order to plunder late runs in the final overs, but was unluckily bowled off his pad for 2, and unfortunately, the Whalers innings fell away, with Will also falling for 2 and then a comic run-out between Dan and Jack on the last ball of the innings, where the pair, in a suicidal moment of positive intent, decided to run a 3^rd with the ball already in the wicketkeepers hands over the stumps!

Nevertheless, 257-7 was an extremely challenging scoreline, especially with the impending storm clouds looming overhead. The players hastily retreated to the pavilion as the hailstones began to lash down.

There was some debate as to whether or not the intense precipitation had left too much surface water to continue, but after a cursory inspection and an accumulation of rags and sawdust, it was decided to carry on as quickly as possible, given it was late in the day to be only half-way through. Jack and Dan opened up on a soggy but playable pitch. Both began well and Dan soon had the breakthrough with the No. 2 batsman turning a straight delivery to square leg where it was brilliantly held low down by Luke. At the other end, the other opener looked to start playing some shots and was able to dispatch a couple of length balls to the fence with some meaty hitting. Dan however, made a second breakthrough, via another stunning catch, this time from Roland to dismiss the No. 3 for 5. There followed some sawdust faff, involving a nest being constructed on the popping crease at one end and then Luke taking the sawdust to the wrong end of the pitch, which all added to the unusual nature of the game.

The number 4 was soon bowled, to give Dan his 3^rd wicket, while Geoff replaced Jack at the other end, and was fined on the spot by Stu and Pip behind the stumps for each delivery that he bowled in his cap, although I fear it could have been worse had the fines session correctly identified it as a non-Whalers cap.

Corinthians’ Number 1, Moore, was beginning to look like he might be at least a thorn in the Whalers side and continued to hit some lusty blows before taking on Dan once too often and skied a catch to Dean who took a well-held catch. The Corinthians’ keeper, in yellow pads, managed to help bring the sunshine out after the rain showers but could not breathe renewed life into their innings and slashed at one outside the off from Dan and was taken comfortably by Stu. Dan finished with 8 overs straight, 2 maidens, 5-21 in what on another day would have been a man-of-the-match performance.

With the score at 46-5, Dan was replaced by Kamal, while Will replaced Geoff. Both seemed to struggle to find their length at times, not helped by the slippery run up conditions, with Will bowling a little short and Kamal unusually bowling several full tosses. The Corinthians’ batsmen began to milk the bowling somewhat without ever really cutting loose, but their No. 6 Manish, was at least giving the chase a decent go and the pair put on 48 for the 6^th wicket. This was also not helped by a series of dropped catches from the Whalers, as concentration levels seemed to waiver. However, growing Corinthians’ confidence turned to over-confidence and No. 7 tried to dance down the pitch to Kamal and was bowled.

Manish moved to 50, but after that 6^th wicket stand was broken, the end seemed close. Geoff bowled the No.8 before Kamal induced Manish into one big shot too many, in a last vain attempt to regain some initiative, and was safely held by Pip at mid-on. Geoff finished matters off, taking the last two wickets in successive overs, including appropriately, his namesake, Geoff from New Zealand, LBW to finish with strong figures of 5.5 overs 1 maiden, 3-14. Corinthians all out for 125 and Whalers with a victory margin of 132 runs retired to the bar to celebrate with some of the many jugs earned on the day.

Overall, an excellent win, capped by an outstanding innings by Dean to achieve a new highest-ever Whalers individual score, and another successful, winning season. Bring on 2018!

Man of the Match: Dean – 152 not out (Whalers record), Honourable mention to Dan for 5-21

Champagne Moment: Luke’s low catch for the first wicket

Muppet Moment: Jack and Dan for Kamikaze run-out at the end of the innings