June 2019
On a warm sunny evening, with spectators watching on, the captains of the Alscot X1 and Yelo X1 strode out to the excellent looking wicket at Alscot Park. On winning the toss , Alscot skipper, James Holman-West, nominated to bat. On went the bails and off went the team into the T20 friendly match.
A decent crowd had gathered to enjoy the sun, the game and more so, the social aspect of the evening. To everyone's favour, cold beers and drinks were available at a very reasonable price and BBQ beef burgers were flame grilled on site. Who wouldn't enjoy that!
Alscot X1 began brightly, putting in an opening 50 before Adam Suthorn retired having reached his 30 run allowance. The Yelo bowlers tried very hard and were a tad unlucky as the field let them down, missing the opportunity to collect catches that came their way. Alscot, after hitting numerous boundaries and a couple of glorious 6's, by Alscot's secret weapon, Harry Harvey, amassed an impressive 159-6 off their allocation.
Yelo, headed by Max Sheldrake, needing 8 runs per over were, indeed, set a stiff task. It didn't help when they lost their opener on the second ball. Nevertheless, Yelo batted gamely and reached a creditable 114 before the close of innings.
Players and spectators, including staff and local businesses, residents and associates, enjoyed the evening in this quintessential English setting. It became quite apparent that the focus of the event was indeed a friendly - when asked, very few of the players noticed or registered that Alscot X1 had won for the second consecutive year!
The friendly match is an annual event that helps to raise funds and awareness of the club. Stratford Cricket Club's senior team, Bards, have played at Alscot for in excess of 20 years and they are grateful for much needed funds, as they are new members and supporters. This year, supporters of the game raised £675, which brings the total raised to £7,630.
Click to scroll the photographs.
