We won a bit of a bad-tempered game on Saturday against
@Mattsky 's clubs 3XI. It was all a bit uneccessary really and a part of the game which I really hate with people gobbing-off at each other.
Most of their team were actually a really nice bunch of lads, and a couple of our youngsters were definitely at fault for responding to the provocation, however it was a really bizarre day in many ways.
We turned up in the rain and the strip was nicely covered, the rain stopped and we all went to have a look. A chap whom we thought was the Captain seemed to take charge and decide we could mop it all up and that we all wanted to play and get a game on etc. So far so good, it turns out that he was the club chairman and the captain was in car park having a fag and not showing much interest. The chairman started mopping up the square, first with his hanky, then moved on to an old towel. He wouldn't let us near it in case we damaged his square. At this stage a couple of his teammates began to help but the rest stayed over by the pavilion smoking and showing no interest in getting involved.
Eventually we started and after a couple of overs a shower came down, we were prepared to play through, but the 'Chairmanator' came rushing out crying 'Health & safety' & 'I have a responsibility to the club' - there were a few howls of protest from our skipper, at which point their skipper started bellowing from a little shed on the boundary and getting a little aeriated about it all, but not actually emerging to discuss in any way. This all calmed down, and skipper comes in to bat and starts running up the middle of the pitch when taking singles. another couple of wickets fall and at each one (a run out and an LBW) he wails "he's given him out - I can't believe it!!!" - to evil glares from his own umpire. He then edges one and is dropped and gives our young keeper some verbals (which he deserved) them proceeds to stay in for 60 odd balls, largely shotless giving our keeper and slips chirp at random internals including chatty signals with his gloves. If any of them responded back he would explode, start swearing and wail about the 'spirit of the game'. He then fell over when running and was run out and after some debate he was called back (I wouldn't have). Exchanged a few verbals with his own umpires and things carried on in a similar vein when he was bowling, giving a bit of chat to our youngsters and not being able to cope with any back. The Chairmanator hit the cover off one to 1st slip and didn't walk and wasn;t given, he seemed to find something very interesting in the middle distance in the shocked silence after that decision.
Don't get me wrong, we won and were the better side, their skip did get a bit of chat after his bizarre behaviour, and I don't condone our youngsters getting involved - but it was his vesuvian explosions if anyone chatted back to him that were utterly bizarre - even his own players were telling him to shut up by the end.
After the game he wandered off without speaking to anyone and we left pretty briskly. I was last out of our dressing room and overheard a loud and lively post-mortem in their dressing room where most of his side seemed to be having a right go at him and telling him he needed to call down and shut up during the game. Many seemed to be telling him not to pick fights and not to have a go at his own umpires. I know there will be two sides to every story but for that guy to be a Captain and to wail on about the spirit of the game was mystifying.
They got 97 off 39 overs and we chased it down off about 22 I think - I bowled at the death which was novel but thrilling (apart from the Chairman
)
It was a very odd day at a very nice ground. 3XI warriors eh?
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Topic: Your 2016 Season (Read 277126 times)