Effingham Fall At Final Hurdle

Sadly, Effingham U12/13s were unable to find the form they needed in their final indoor match of 2017 on Sunday. A loss to T20 meant that we finished 3^rd, with Weybridge Purple taking the title. It was interesting to see that Weybridge nearly slipped up against their B side. Teetering on 117-5, top run scorer Henry Francis, resumed his innings and smashed 72 not out, ensuring the win with an impressive overall total of 172-5. At least we can say we remained unbeaten against the champions; and even if we had beaten T20, Weybridge would have finished top with a superior run rate anyway.

Back to the T20 Academy game; we batted first and again struggled against their spin bowlers. Raymond managed 18, and Lucas struck the ball well against in his 17, but we lost regular wickets and only posted 106-5. T20 played cautiously and accumulated, helped by a few wide deliveries. That said, you couldn’t deny our commitment in the field, and there were a number great stops from each of the boys. T20 were no mugs with the bat, and when we thought we had a sniff of pegging them back after a wicket from Sam Spencer, the new batsman smashed two lovely 6s and that was that.

A disappointing finish, but overall it has been clear that the boys have really enjoyed the matches. There have been some great performances, perhaps more with the bat than the ball, and the fielding has been outstanding.

Darren Wing