The Cooks U11s travelled to Brixworth’s Dallas Burston Ground on a scorching May morning having had to change the fixture due to a car boot sale at Compton Park.
Having won the toss and opting to bowl first, Prasil and new boy Mohit took the new ball on the green track. The opening Brixworth pair managed to put on 24 for no loss and it was beginning to look like we may be chasing a big score.
What was really positive was the way the team collectively fought back with excellent fielding and backing up from all the team, something that they had worked hard on in practice on Friday!
The next Brixworth pair could only add 6 to the score, but also lost 3 wickets, which dropped the net score to 15 and the Cooks were well and truly back in the game. Both teams then played some nice cricket with runs and wickets falling as Brixworth finished on 64-5, a net score of 39 which was well within reach with some positive batting.
Although there will always be plenty to work on, I was really pleased with the way the side applied themselves in the field, even when some of the bowling went awry. In terms of the bowling, I’d like to mention them all:-
- Prasil – Only two wides this week and only two runs scored off the bat;
- Mohit – In his first game he struggled at first with no-balls but then got into his groove and the Brixworth Coach praised his comeback at the end;
- Aidan – Really coming on with his bowling and fielding, his bowling especially has developed from last season and he only bowled two wides in his two overs, bowling a good length;
- Luke – In his second game he only bowled one wide and is clearly practicing hard;
- Liam – Took 1-2 in three overs with no runs off the bat, moving the ball away from the batsmen;
- Jacob – No wides or runs off the bat in his two overs, a really good performance, just need to continue to use his momentum to propel the ball forwards;
- Jake – Took 4-4 in three overs with no extras conceded, with all four wickets bowled.
The downfall of the Cook’s innings was the inability to score enough runs off the bat. The boys and girls are becoming good at defending more consistently and now the next step is to take advantage of the bad balls and start scoring more frequently. Prasil, Mohit, Anya, Liam, Jake and Jacob were all not out, but there were not enough runs from the bat to compensate for the 3 wickets we lost.
However, we were still in the game with 9 required from the last over, but only one run was added and we lost by 8 runs. This is still a really positive performance as in the past as we have lost more heavily to the junior sides of the bigger clubs.
A lot to be proud of, and look forward to the upcoming games, and equally to practice as they are all working hard and enjoying the game.
Also thanks to Charlie for umpiring and helping the team and to Sid for scoring. See you all next week at Bugbrooke.