Morden lost the toss, fielded first and the game ended in a tie.
P.Clarke 15-2-46-1 J.Goddard 12-1-34-0 P.Smith 13-1-76-2 I.Tyne 4-0-22-0
Name How Out Bowler R B M 4 6 P.Bodman Hannah 5 17 30 1 J.Goddard st.Hilton Langley 46 52 61 7 P.Clarke Hancock 82 86 103 14 1 J.Davidson Hancock 0 5 4 S.Alexander ct.Hilton Hancock 0 10 18 A.Lewis lbw Hancock 0 4 2 N.Brooker st.Hilton Hannah 27 45 74 4 K.Bromley Hancock 0 2 2 M.Coote Hannah 10 11 13 2 I.Tyne run out 0 4 8 P.Smith not out 0 0 2 Extras (b.4,w.9,nb.6,lb.3) 22 Total all out (38.5 overs) 192
FOW 1-29, 2-98, 3-99, 4-115, 5-115, 6-172, 7-172, 8-187, 9-192
The first meeting ever between these two clubs ended in high drama, as Neil Brooker was stumped from the penultimate ball of the match to leave the scores tied. This was only the 4th time that this has happened in the 680 game history of Morden Parish CC and the first since 1980.
The facilities at Roehampton lived up to expectations. There was a beautiful pitch, sight screens, a boundary rope, fancy scoreboard, ice cold drinks during the innings, a new ball for each innings and even sunny weather to complete the scene.
The home side chose to bat and made a slow start. 38-1 off 17 overs. Phil Clarke trapped an opener lbw in the opinion of Ian Tyne's father who was umpiring at his former place of work. After this, Phil and John continued to bowl continued to bowl economically. The next wicket however fell in Peter Smith's 3rd over. Phil Bodman took the catch at the second or third attempt at short fine leg to remove the other opener for 40, two balls after dropping him in the same position. After 26 overs, it was 70-2, but then the acceleration started. The 100 came up in the 30th over and the 150 in the 39th. The only wicket in this period was a catch by Ian Tyne at extra cover from Peter's bowling. Some big hits followed in the final few overs and 192-4 was reached from 44 overs. The declaration heralded a well deserved tea for the Parish fielders. The last wicket to fall had been a run out with the no.3 falling for 51, thanks to a good throw from Ian.
When Morden batted, John Goddard was chosen to be Phil's new opening partner. His recent good form continued with a fine 46 from 52 balls including 7 fours. Phil Bodman was out early, but John and Phil added 69 for the 2nd wicket which is the highest score for the 2nd wicket so far this season. Unfortunately, John's departure heralded a collapse as James, Steve and Ahmed all went for 0. At 115-5, Neil Brooker came in. The Parish needed 78 from 17 overs to win and the young man played the innings of his life, adding 57 with Phil during the next 12 overs. Phil was also a star, making 82 off 96 deliveries including 11 fours and 1 six. It was his highest ever score and his 3rd fifty for the club, coming off just 40 balls and taking only 44 minutes. He passed 500 runs for the Parish and became the 5th person to pass 100 runs for the season. When Phil departed, Karl made 0, but Matt Coote made a quick 10. This was his 2nd best score ever and meant that the Parish needed 6 to win with 12 balls remaining and 2 wickets in hand. Ian Tyne came in with Neil still there on 23 having survived a very controversial run out six overs earlier. It seemed that the only person in the ground who thought that Neil was not run out was the umpire, Ahmed Lewis, but as the umpire's decision is final, Neil carried on and showed tremendous composure in the circumstances.
Two runs came from the penultimate over and Neil was on strike for the last over. 4 were needed for the win. The tension was incredible now. All four results were still possible and the Parish players thought they were on the verge of a rare victory. This was enhanced when Neil hit the first ball for 2, and after a dot ball, Neil produced another shot worthy of 2. However, Ian Tyne was unable to make his ground to complete the second and was run out for 0. The scores were now level! So Peter Smith strode to the crease with 3 balls remaining and Neil still on strike. Neil came down the wicket to the next ball in a death or glory bid to hit the winning run, but missed the ball and was stumped. The umpire, Ahmed, was not satisfied with this however and told the already celebrating fielders that his decision was 'not out.' A large crowd had gathered by this stage, as spectators came to watch from other matches which had already finished. The atmosphere was electric as every incident was jeered or cheered. The next ball saw a repeat performance, except this time, Ahmed raised his finger and Neil was finally out having batted for 74 minutes. He made 27 including 4 fours from 45 balls and it was his best score for the club. He was mobbed by his team mates at the end, for he had shown maturity beyond his 14 years and had made a major contribution towards achieving a tie for the Parish, with 192 all out being the 3rd highest score the Parish have made whilst batting 2nd.