Wreccers (W)Elworthy of victory

The Wrecclesham Owls continued their outstanding start to the season with a fine 6 wicket victory over an in-form Chiddingfold side.

The mighty Wreccers knew this was a crucial encounter as Chiddingfold were sitting in second place prior to the start of the match and had won 7 of their last 8 fixtures.

There were a few changes from the side that had steered the Owls to a vital victory a week earlier at Headley, with century maker James Wright and Chris 'top of the averages' Windeat unavailable, whilst milestone man Graeme Larby was missing also.

With the late late withdrawal of Andy Collins adding to the Owls woe, Wrecclesham stalwarts Steve Houghton and Peter O Sullivan were on hand to help out and Oli 'Bondi Beach' Caston returned from holiday to bolster the side.

With the overnight rain potentially offering something for the bowlers early on and the promise of a decent batting track once it had dried out the toss was as crucial as ever and fortunately skipper Boniface made it 7 wins from 9 and chose to bowl.

Once again the Wrecclesham openers failed to find a breakthrough and despite Spooner keeping this pretty tight and not having a great deal of luck Chiddingfold, largely down to a fine 50 from Fisher, found themselves 58 for no wicket after 17 overs which put them in a strong position to post a competitive target.

The introduction of Elworthy was no reflection on Spooner who had bowled a decent opening spell but this proved to be the catalyst for Wrecclesham and in combination with the ever accurate Caston the pair helped Wreccelsham to get a foothold in the game at a crucial stage.

In a ten over spell Wrecclesham ripped the heart out of the Chiddingfold innings picking up 5 wickets for just 43 runs, which on a quick outfield with a short boundary was a fine effort.

Despite a late rally instigated by Taylor and Chittenden (who was caught behind by a sensational diving catch by Phil 'the cat' Caine, who was excellent throughout conceding, only 2 byes all innings) the Chiddingfold innings was halted on 182 by Spooner who at the death bowled a canny late spell of 2 overs for a mere 6 runs picking up a wicket in the process, which was sure to infuriate Dan Vasey, who took the catch!

A decent effort by both sides as Chiddingfold made a defendable target and the Wreccers had something realistic to chase on a good batting track, which at one stage looked questionable.

After the tea interval the fine weather continued and it looked like an evenly poised match was set up for the supporters, including Kate and Spooner Jnr who was scouting out his potential new club mates ahead of the creation of next years second XI.

With time of the essence, the in-form Spooner and bowling machine Elworthy strode out with confidence that they could put a dent into the Chiddingfold total.

However Chiddingfold were soon celebrating a prize scalp after Chris 'was top of the averages' Spooner pulled to square leg and the chance was snaffled.

Skipper Boniface came in at 3 and with some decent form behind him in recent weeks made his usual steady start, holding up an end while Elworthy took the attack to Chiddingfold scoring a hugely important and aggressive 50 in just 14 scoring shots.

By the time Elworthy departed, finally being stumped off the bowling of Walker, the score had moved onto 91 from 14 overs which meant the Owls were well up with the run rate and given the knowledge that if they survived the remaining 30 overs a victory was virtually assured, the pressure was massively eased.

Dave Vasey came in and being a left hander, disrupted the leg spin action of the young Walker, blasting a couple of 4's and a sweetly struck 6 over the mid wicket boundary.

However after a mix up between Vasey and Boniface the elder statesman was run out after slipping on his way back to the crease.

This bought in Neal 'Hammy' Harris at a crucial stage and he stood up to the pressure exceptionally well putting on a valuable 43 helping the Wreccers to within 43 of victory with 6 wickets in hand.

Harris was eventually out cutting a low chance to second slip for a well played 23.

Dan Vasey, who had a mixed day so far, bowling a little inconsistently compared to his usual economical stuff and also dropping a catch which is a rare sight given his usual safe hands.

However he proved his worth with a savage innings of 37 not out which took the game away from Chiddingfold in 7 run filled overs along with Boniface who ended his anchor role with a steady 31 not out.

In the end a comfortable victory but to chase down 183 in less than 29 overs should not be underestimated as for the second time in 2 weeks a large target was chased down with relative ease to showcase the improvement the Owls have made in the last year.

A vital victory which sees the Wreccers move clear at the top of the table and favourites to clinch promotion back to Div III but no one at the club is under any illusions that anything is decided as there is still a long way to go.

Match Report & Afterword By Joe Boniface

Afterword

It was a thoroughly enjoyable match, not only because we managed a win against a good side but because the game was played in the right spirit and the Chiddingfold guys were a great bunch of lads who I truly hope get promoted (with us of course!).

An excellent performance from the boys and especially well done to Jonny for a great display, you are now officially an all rounder!

A quick mention to Steve, a superb catch, and Mr O Sullivan who came in at very late notice and fielded admirably.

Well done Wreccers and bring on next week.

Up the Owls!