By Stephen Lees

CORNWALL CRICKET LEAGUE DIVISION FIVE EAST

Werrington 4 v Gunnislake

GUNNISLAKE were able to field a strong team for their August Bank Holiday weekend trip to Werrington, while the hosts were far from full strength with several unavailable higher up the club.

Werrington won the toss and chose to bat, opening with Nigel Dennis and Dan Inman. 

Dennis gave a sharp chance to slip in the second over, but survived. 

After the initial scare Werrington played steadily, but the run rate stayed stubbornly under three an over. 

Gunnislake captain Dinesh Thirupuvanarajah had a particularly miserly opening spell, his seven overs going for a meagre eight runs. Meanwhile Graeme Murray toiled valiantly uphill and into the wind, but also without success. 

The first breakthrough came in the 18th over when Dennis sliced James Boundy to point. 

Two more wickets quickly fell, including Tyler Jasper who was unluckily run out when Lee Roberts, attempting a caught and bowled, merely diverted the ball onto the stumps at the non-striker’s end.

This wicket brought Anthony Sachs to the crease and with Inman they began to repair the damage. The run rate was beginning to accelerate as the innings entered the final ten overs. But Mark Everett, coming on as second change in the 34th over struck with three quick wickets, including the dangerous Inman caught for an excellent 52. 

At the other end Murray was given a spell downhill, to devastating effect. He showed what straight full pitched bowling can do, with three victims clean bowled. 

In a trice the game had changed, Werrington’s batting had collapsed in a manner perhaps more reminiscent of Gunnislake. James Boundy took the final wicket in the thirty-ninth over as Werrington were all out for 136.

This was a modest total on a good wicket with a fast outfield, but Gunnislake have contrived to lose from this position before! 

The start did not go well, with two quick wickets, but also a series of no-balls as Inman struggled to find his bowling rhythm. 

Then calamity; star batsman Russ Holloway was given out. Watching colleagues thought he was adjudged caught after hitting the ball into the ground, but it was later revealed that the umpire gave a leg before wicket decision.

Another quick wicket left Gunnislake in trouble, but with Boundy and Murray at the crease there was still hope. Careful retrenchment might have been the order of the day, but Boundy and Murray had other ideas and took the attack to Werrington. Boundy pulled three sixes and Murray hit one well beyond the long-off boundary.

The score rattled along at over five an over, with Werrington’s depleted bowling attack coming in for some punishment. 

With victory in sight Boundy missed one, to be bowled two short of what would have been a well-deserved half century. Enter Billy Pitts: “stay with him and don’t get out”. Pits had not read the script: he smashed two cuts to the boundary and in less than 26 overs it was indeed over. Murray remained unbeaten on 40 and Gunnislake had ultimately won by a relatively comfortable four wickets. 

The win takes Gunnislake back to fourth in the table with only two matches left.

Nevertheless for a third season in a row the team are making progress.

Werrington 136 (D Inman 52, A Sachs 40; M Everett 3-17, G Murray 3-31). Gunnislake 140-6 (J Boundy 48, G Murray 40no; D Inman 3-48). Gunnislake (20 points) beat Werrington IV (6 points) by 4 wickets.

Scorecard: https://ccl.play-cricket.com/website/results/6289458 

Iconic Opticians Man of the Match: Graeme Murray, but with an honourable mention for James Boundy.