Normandy snatch win off the final over

Another case of heartache vs Normandy. This was the fate that befell Ashtead in Round 12 of the Surrey Championship Premier League, as their visitors claimed a 69 run victory with just 4 balls to spare.

Ashtead lost the toss (that’s only 3 won from 11), and were asked to field first, on a pitch that would assist the bowlers, but looked good to bat on early doors. And so it proved, despite John Vaughan-Davies claiming an early scalp. Oli Batchelor went ballistic from ball 1, and was ably assisted by opposition skipper Howard Grice. 51-1 from 13 overs.

The entry of Gary Wilson into the attack brought immediate dividends, as Batchelor fell to a smart boundary catch for 46. Then Matt Friedlander struck, trapping Grice LBW for 20. Normandy were now 70-3, and under pressure.

However, the next breakthrough proved hard to come by, despite a sewn-on run out chance not given, and some missed chances in the field. Normandy’s overseas player, Jamie Gibson, and county junior Chris Jones, constructed a handy partnership. The pair put on 50 for the fourth wicket, and both played through to lunch. 122-3 off 30.

Following the break, Warwick Symcox and Tom Homes piled on the pressure, with some tight bowling, and Homes was eventually rewarded with the wicket of Gibson, bowled by 37. Another 7 tight overs, and Symcox had his reward, Ben Frost departing for 6.

Deighton then brought himself into the attack, and immediately picked up his first wicket, Young caught Young for 14. Runs, however, flowed faster when he was bowling, and Normandy soon reached 187-6 with 10 overs remaining.

Jones, now on 54, lost his wicket to Homes, and the floodgates opened. Both Deighton and Homes shared the remaining scalps, and Normandy were eventually bowled out for 211 in 62 overs. Homes and Deighton both finished with 3 wickets to their name.

58 overs for the Stags, and a fast scoring rate early on was tarnished by the loss of Guy Harper for 1 and Gary Wilson for 4. However, aside from these early blows, pace bowling proved ineffective and the spinners were brought in – the aforementioned Jones and Vignesh Venkateswaran. Another scalp was made before tea, but the bowlers had nothing to do with it. A batting mix-up, and some smart fielding, saw Stewart Cameron fall for 18.

While Michael Sanderson and Paul Harrison saw the Stags through to the tea interval, but then both fell immediately afterwards. At 58-5, the game seemed up, so some fight remained. A pair of wickets fell 10 overs later, as both Conor Young and John Vaughan-Davies fell by the wayside.

Friedlander led the remaining fight, such as it was, and dragged the game out for another 15 overs before holing out in the deep for 34. This left Tom Homes and Tom Deighton to bat out the final 12 overs of the game. This they almost did, but Homes edged Venkateswaran to slip on the second ball of the final over to seal the deal for the visitors.

Ashtead remain 7th due to results around them, but with the teams below rapidly closing in. The next league game, the final 120 over match of the campaign, sees Ashtead travel to fellow promotees East Molesey. Molesey lie 9th in the table, but coming off a good win against Wimbledon. Ashtead won the 50 over game by a single wicket in the final over, when the sides met in early May.

However, the next game for the Stags comes on Sunday, as they play Sunbury in the semi-final of the T20 cup. Join us then.