Thurrock CC Sun XI 270-5
Southend & EMT CC Sun XI 214-5
Mark O’Neill added a fine unbeaten hundred to his collection as Thurrock put visiting Southend to the sword and continued their fine form in the Essex Sunday League.
Southend won the toss and their decision to put Thurrock in seemed a sound one when Glen Ewing fell early for only 9. But Thurrock skipper Mark O’Neill strode to the crease top join Raj Shina and attain total dominance over proceedings. Southend had no answer to him as he flayed the ball to all parts, off back and front foot all round the ground, determined to make good on the disappointment of missing out on a ton the previous Sunday. Raj Shina played a fine supporting hand, keeping his end ticking over amid O’Neill’s fluid strokeplay.
The Thurrock opener was unfortunate not to follow his skipper to 50 when he was trapped in front on 43 by Chris Maher. Maher struck again, removing Groves (17) and adding a 3rd wicket soon after at the cost of just 29 from his allotted 8 overs. But Matt Hills settled in a supported his skipper as he continued to dismember the visitors bowling, adding a sensible and selfless 36 before being cleaned out be the returning Marc Robinson (2-38). O’Neill complete a fantastic hundred full of masterful strokes, and even then refused to surrender his wicket as the 40 overs ran out, leaving the field 122 not out.
In reply Thurrock did all their work early on. The left arm swing of Dan George yielding him a wicket with the new ball, but more importantly his five overs only went for a frugal 18 runs. When Matt Hills came on second change and promptly produced 3 overs 1-4, Southends task already seemed insurmountable. Mills did what he could at the top of the order with an aggressive 45, but he still had to watch as Wayne Simmons clattered two more blows against Southend in quick succession on his way to 2-40. Mills efforts were ended by Jay Shojahi (1-36) but that’s where the wickets ended.
Both sides settled into a lacklustre rhythm, both going through the motions. Thurrock’s bowling became less threatening and Sibbons and Maher were content to hoover up the runs on offer. In fact both managed to post half centuries as Southend crossed 200, but were never in any real danger of mounting a charge at victory. Sibbons 65 was well crafted, as was Maher’s 52, but ultimately not enough to stop Thurrock from running out comfortable winners.
Bishop Challinor 2nd XI 243ao
Thurrock CC 2nd XI 218ao
The fine batting track at Blackshots once again gave up a hatful of runs as Bishop Challinor arrived to take on Thurrock’s second string. Sadly for Thurrock though, Bishop Challinor came out on top in what was a closer game than the scores dictated.
The visitors won the toss and were always going to bat, a choice that Paul Gelder’s early caught and bowled couldn’t mar as McCarthy and Mudhoo piled on the early runs. A flat track, outfield like glass, and some indifferent bowling meant Challinor had three figures on the board in little time, and such were the condition that though McCarthy (35) and Mudhoo (40) fell before they could post half centuries, De Klerk (19) and Mahmud (14) were able to add handy cameos before Pershotam and Uderman took hold of proceedings.
The pair built a solid partnership that brought up the 200 for the visitors and yielded a 50 for Pershotam to set up a frantic finish. As the innings wound down, runs and wickets came thick and fast. Pershotam Perished to Raj Shina as he posted figures of 3-56, and the Udeman fell, the first of three wickets for Jack day as he mopped up the tail with a short, eventful, 3-22.
Thurrock reply strangely mirrored that of their visitor’s for a time. An early wicket was followed by a period of dominance for Thurrock’s opener Shina and the experience Colin Richardson. They weathered the new ball and seemed to set Thurrock into a strong position, even when Shina perished on 36 Ifty Ali blazed a typically cavalier 21 and Wayne Simmon’s joined Richardson to grind away at the total.
Indeed Thurrock seemed in a position of such dominance the shock when Mudhoo and Udeman pulled the rug out from under them was that much greater. Richardson had barely lowered his bat from celebrating 50 before Mudhoo sent him packing for 53, a score that may still have been a match-winning knock had Mudhoo then removed Simmons for 38 shortly after. Thurrock were reeling and Challinor sensed victory. In a flurry of wickets Mudhoo struck again to finish with 3-21 and opened the way for Udeman to heap misery onto Thurrock with a spell of 4-31 that left Thurrock dead a buried. Jordan Owen managed 15 at the death but the home team never recovered as Challinor coasted to victory.
Cosmopolitan 1st XI 234-8
Thurrock CC 1st XI 198ao
Thurrock could be excused for thinking some higher power held a grudge against them. In a struggling season, their bottom of the table clash with Cosmopolitan was decided in large part by a burning car on the M25.
Trapped in stationary traffic for over an hour, Thurrock arrived late at Cosmopolitan’s Fairlop to find the Home side having claimed the toss, elected to bat, and perhaps unsportingly, enforced the deduction of 12 overs from Thurrock’s innings.
Despite this Thurrock made a positive start as Cosmopolitan began their 45 overs. Imran Mohammed struck in the third over and curtailed Fulgence’s (32) aggressive start thanks to some indifferent running and sharp fielding. But then things began to slip away as A Paul and F Mathurin stabilised the home side. It was Paul who counterattacked first, strong through the legside and happy to flail at any supplied width and this released the pressure on Mathurin, who began to find more fluency through the covers. The pair brought up three figures and threatened to forge a mammoth partnership as Paul sailed past 50.
It was then Thurrock’s turn to wrest back control of the match. Andrew Hills settled for accuracy and patience on a track fast going soft, and Mathurin took liberties with a ball not quite short enough, departing for (42) when bowled pulling. Paul (65) then went after a drive only to find he’d handed a second wicket to Hills thanks to the safe hands of Ewing at long off. Cosmopolitan perhaps realised that their 12 over advantage may not be enough and frantically set off after late runs, resulting in a swift, eventful partnership between Michal Charles (34) and Nick Cancott (22). Their aggressive, sometimes suicidal, running pushed the home side past 200 before both fell along with a flurry of wickets in the final over.
Faced with just 33 overs in reply, Thurrock got off to a terrible start, losing both openers to Joseph Stanley in the first 4 overs. But again Thurrock turned things round. First, Umar Ayub (25) found the fence with crisp drives and pulls, building the visitors momentum. He fell trying smear a length ball through midwicket and missing, but Abdul Stanikzai and Matt Hills swiftly filled the breach.
With Hills’ sensible batting and opportunistic running, coupled with Stanikzai’s thunderous power, Thurrck’s slow start had build a heavy head of steam. They made three figures before Stanikzai took on the longest boundary and fell three yards short, becoming Smith’s 2nd victim. Smith’s spell, frugal in the circumstance, forced Thurrock to readjust their target for important batting points rather than the win. Ewing supplied a cameo of 20, and then Hills fell foul of the deteriorating track, popping up a stopping ball to midwicket on 29.
Imran Mohammed has the occasional habit of changing games in a few overs and he again supplied some lower order fireworks with a succession of mighty blows that reached, or cleared, the boundary. His 38 in the last few overs took Thurrock past 175, but they fell short of the 16 runs from the final two overs they needed for 200.
What the outcome would have been had fate not conspired against them, no one will know.
