Winning the toss on a pitch that cut up with every ball, St Ouen skipper Richard Gomersall said afterwards that his decision to bat first was the key to their win.’Winning the toss was crucial,’ he said.
‘I knew that anything we got over 100 would put them under pressure and when Paul Horton and Mark Tribe came together, they helped to turn it around.’After that, on a pitch which was very uneven, our bowlers just had to put it on the spot and let the pitch do the rest.
This has made our season for us.
I’m overjoyed.’Man of the match Tribe made 51, Horton 38, before he turned his arm over to take two for two in five overs including four maidens.On another day and on a different pitch a score of 135 for 8 would have been easy pickings for Sporting Club but as their captain, Tony Carlyon explained: ‘The top end of the wicket was horrendous.
It was continually deteriorating.
Their aim was to take wickets at one end and keep us pinned down at the other.’He was speaking after he had been caught, topping the ball, off the bowling of Craig Douglas for a gutsy 20.There was still a formidable array of middle order batsmen to come, but they were to capitulate with four wickets falling for only six runs.
And despite a hard hitting 21 by Mark Bailey before he was caught and bowled by ex-team mate Horton, Karl Moyse’s reappearance at the other end saw the removal of Jewell first ball and Dodti two balls later.The game was over with Sporting Club on 96 all out in 34.3 overs compared to St Ouen’s 135 for 8, a much higher total than might have been expected when the westerners were at one stage 35 for four.For although opener Martin Amy looked very positive as he dispatched three boundaries off the opening Sporting Club attack of Nick Jewell and Mark Reynolds he then sliced the ball off Jewell to Ben Silva at point.This brought St Ouen’s captain Gomersall in with Dave Clark who were pinned down to seven runs in 12 overs before both men, and then Douglas, departed with the score on 35.After that the match was turned on its head when Tribe and Paul Horton came together.ExcellentHorton was removed for his excellent 38 by ex-St Ouen all-rounder Dave Morfee when he was caught at short extra cover by Trevor Rousseau.
Tribe (51) then took on Horton’s role before being removed by Jewell, caught behind by Simon Short, with one ball remaining.It was a big enough score for St Ouen to defend, and although Sporting Club’s Matt Hague and Steve Carlyon took 17 runs off the first two overs, Grant Phillips nipped one off the seam to take the edge of Hague’s bat in his second over and, moving smartly to his right, Clark took the catch in front of first slip.
Karl Moyse them removed the other opener in the seventh over as they applied the pressure.
Horton was introduced and removed Dave Morfee for ten in a four-over spell conceding just two runs.Ben Silva and Tony Carlyon stayed at the crease a while longer but St Ouen were fired up by now and after Carlyon went for 20, Short (0), Paul Carberry (5) and Silva (10) followed in quick succession.St Ouen duly won, but if the overall bowling figures were true of any county player, they would all get into the England side.For St Ouen Horton took 2 for 2, Moyse took 3 for 17, Phillips took 2 for 38 and Gomersall, leading by example, 2 for 23.For Sporting Club Hague took 2 for 30, Steve Carlyon 2 for 25 and Morfee 2 for 24.
