Bird and Bird

24th Jul 2018 - Alexandra Palace
Won by 44 runs - NRR = 2.2

This game was being eagerly anticipated by all - last year's fixture was a runs-fest, and a few CIPA players were in dire need of some runs to repair damaged egos from last week. The anticipation was heightened when Bird & Bird's captain emailed to ask whether it would be OK if they fielded with drinks.

The returning captain, Andy Spurr, won the toss (by default due to train delays) and elected to bat on a pitch resembling the M1 and an outfield in danger of spontaneous combustion.

The runs flowed very quickly, Bird & Bird's 13 fielders being somewhat hampered by the drinks in their non-throwing hand. Bruce Torrance scratched his way to another retirement, and surpassed the record for most runs in a season (with three games still to play).

Special mention goes to Rob Jackson who scored freely and never really looked like getting out - which is what he seems to do every nets session, but never quite manages to when it counts.

The score was well over 100 at the half way point, but the runs dried up thanks to the rotation of the bowlers returning to the openers. A highlight was Mark Dean clobbering a drive to the mid-off boundary, only to be spectacularly caught by a girl who had never played cricket before. A timely cameo from Chris Milton at the end helped CIPA to a rather healthy 182.

CIPA only had 10 players, and the gaps in the field started showing early on. We followed Bird & Bird's lead and rotated the bowling - giving all 9 fielders at least 2 overs. After the initial leakage of runs, things tightened up and Bird & Bird managed to play out the overs and scoring a very respectable 138.

I think this was the first game I had played in which everyone batted, and only one person (our wicket keeper) didn't bowl. An incredibly inclusive event, and enjoyed by all.

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