Tuddenham Win in Tight Finish

H&CHCC 197 FOR 8 IN 40 OVERS

T Wood 72, W Bryant 27, G Walton 20 Not Out.

Tuddenham 198 for 7

J Armstrong 3 for 51


Tuddenham won the toss and decided to put in Hartest & Coldham Hall CC with Tom Wood & Davidi Hodge opening the batting.

They got off to a slow start with no runs in the first three overs but slowly and sensibly got to grips with the wicket the first home game of the season prepared by P Richards and the ground staff.

A fifty partnership was going well until in the seventeenth over Hodge fell to a dubious LBW decision for 22 with the score on 57.

Roberts fresh from his fifty of last week came into bat and started brightly and moved the score onto 77 when he was bowled for 10.

B Atkinson came and went quickly never looked settled but Captain Bryant came to the crease and hit a very quick 27 including two sixes but going for the third saw his demise but the total had moved onto 128 in the 28th over setting up the team to move to a higher rate in the last twelve overs.

Tom Wood by this time had passed a very good fifty and moved the score on well and was the lynch pin of the Hartest & Coldham innings but with trying to move the score on he succumbed to a caught and bowled chance which saw him leave the arena scoring a superb 72 including 3 sixes and 11 fours.

With Tuddenham well into the bottom order and overs running out J Armstrong and Macilwaine both left cheaply Moriarty was holding the innings together trying to command the strike however much improved G Walton not only gave him great support also led the way with some fine strikes and carried on in the vein when Moriarty fell trying a second run and was ran out for 17.

Walton however kept the score ticking over and with the close of the innings had moved the final score onto 197 for 8 and being undefeated on 20 with new debutant Corlett not out 1.

After tea saw J Armstrong open the bowling on his debut and he bowled very well taking the first three wickets leaving Tuddenham 45 for three where it looked like Hartest and Coldham were on the road to there first victory of the season but D Cross and G Debling put on a partnership of 85 runs and when man of the match Wood came on to break the partnership to get the wicket of Debling for 33 damage had been done and game on as the total was 137.

Cross was in majestic form with strong hitting there was the one chance he gave towards the end of the game which possibly was the last chance for Hartest and Coldham but was dropped and although the home team battled on bravely taking another two wickets there was a feeling of inevitability that Tuddenham had enough in the tank to see it thorough to which they did in the 39th over leaving Cross not out on a match winning 99 not out.

Two games into the season and no wins but effort and spirit are there in abundance but in both games so far one player has taken the game away from Hartest and Coldham who in both games could so easily have won but the common denominator was dropped catches.

The season is still new and some new players have come in and done well but with two more home games coming up Hartest and Coldham must get some steel in there performances and win the next two home games otherwise it could be a very long season indeed.

Markie the Webmaster