2011 SEASON REVIEW

In the end, a third successive Home Counties Premier League Division 1 Championship proved elusive for Henley First XI, and by some distance as below par batting complemented a lack of a cutting edge in the bowing department. Add some indifferent fielding at times, key players missing a number of games and an unsettled batting order, and the reasons for fourth place, (W 6, D 5 , L 2 abandoned/cancelled),  78 points behind 2011 Champions High Wycombe (W 11, D 2, L 2, 2 abandoned/cancelled) are not hard to find.
There was however little indication that this would be the way of things in Week 1 of the season as Henley rolled over a ring rusty Tring Park by 8 wickets. A more realistic appraisal ensued the following week as Henley were powerless to stop Wycombe clocking up 333. In reply, Henley struggled with the bat and owed a draw to an unbeaten and clean hit 97 by Todd Ferguson, dogged resistance by Stewart Davison and the rain in that order. In Week 3, Falkland who came and went in 2011, were the visitors and Carl Crowe was back to take 4 wickets and steer Henley home to a 5 wicket victory. May ended with a rain affected winning draw at Welwyn where Dave Allaway was tantalisingly one short of what would otherwise have been an excellent century.
Henley’s unbeaten run continued the following week at home to Banbury where much as at Wycombe, they clung on for the draw, which again owed much to the hard hitting Ferguson and a dogged Davison. Thus it was that it was not until Week 6 that Henley sustained their first defeat of the season, this at the hands of Harpenden who, having survived in 2010 by the skin of their teeth, would end up in third spot just ahead of Henley in 2012. A strong middle order performance saw Henley post a respectable 230, all out, only for Harpenden, and Hertfordshire stalwarts Lamb and Frazer in particular, to chase it down with three overs to spare. With the Oxford game abandoned before Henley could reply to a modest 192, the Week 8 game, a second consecutive home match, was a walk in the park as Radlett capitulated for 71 which Henley knocked off two wickets down.
So far not so bad, and Henley were still in with a shout for the Championship. So what went wrong? In many respects the defeat at Bishop’s Stortford was a reflection of the season’s ills. Euan Brock, given free rein with his spin as he had been at Wycombe, returned magnificent figures of 7 – 72 off 21 overs, but the bowling department had little else to offer as Stortford ran up 239. True it was that but for Akram’s 120, it might have been a lot less, but all that said, 239 was far more than the home side merited. On paper, Henley’s batting prowess was perfectly capable of chasing this down but Michael Roberts and Peter Dean apart, Henley’s much vaunted batting order collapsed to a series of soft dismissals and defeat by 94 runs.
Week 10, and the start of the second half of the season witnessed an absorbing contest at eventual runners up Tring, who ran out winners with just two balls to spare. A three figure opening stand, a rare sight for the Henley faithful in 2011, gave Henley a sound start as they posted 225 in an innings reduced by several rain showers.  In reply, a meaty 70 from Tring skipper, Keith Dutch, aided and abetted by 68 from Payne set Tring on their way, but it was a fighting 48 from Sam Cherry that sealed the victory in a nail biting finish.  Another defeat maybe, but not the capitulation of the previous week.
With the return home fixture against Wycombe rained off in its entirety, Week 12’s away fixture at Falkland was a welcome return to winning ways as the home side struggled to 101 which Henley chased down with 7 wickets to spare.
The taste of victory was short lived when Welwyn Garden City came to town the following week.  With Hewitt (82) and Walker (99) in dominant form plus contributions from the supporting cast, Welwyn posted 317 and then proceeded to demonstrate the advantages of a real cutting edge in the bowling department by dismissing the home side for 211.
If Week 13 had been unlucky, fortunes reversed for the trip to Banbury. Rarely is a game in the Cherwell Valley unaffected by wind and rain and this was no exception. In autumnal conditions, another low key batting display, only Roberts went past 50, saw Henley post 203 which Banbury never looked like matching, all out for 121.
With Wycombe stretching their lead at the top, chasing them down looked ever more unlikely. However, Harpenden greatly assisted the Henley cause when they were annihilated at the Brakspear Ground in Week 15, managing just 51 which the home side knocked off in just 10 overs for the loss of two wickets. True a sultry, muggy and overcast morning suited skipper Bjorn Mordt down to the ground as his 6-18 bore witness, but Harpenden were abysmal and it was all over by 2.23pm. That was to be the last victory of the summer, all of which came against poor sides or sides playing badly as opposed to outplaying a good team playing well.
Any chances of remaining in the Championship hunt now lay in victory the following week at Oxford, but it was not to be. Posting a respectable if workmanlike 231-9 in 64 overs and unpleasant conditions, the rain stopped and the sun decided to come out when Oxford batted. Although the top order went cheaply, Henley had no answer to Nick Ferraby whose unbeaten 125, backed up by Perkin’s 64, sealed the win.
The weather did Henley no favours the following week at relegated Radlett. Chasing a modest 221 for victory, Roberts (41) and Barnes (85), Henley saw their innings further curtailed by rain showers from 44 to 37 overs and had to settle for the draw 38 runs short and with Ferguson and Davison at the crease and looking menacing.
The curtain came down with a home game against Bishop’s Stortford. Winning the toss, Stortford batted first and posted 266-9, only the spinners (Crowe 5-46 and Brock 2-83) making any real impression on the Stortford batting. Barnes (68) and McLean (77) led the charge, Mordt chipped in with 52 and the excitement mounted. But in the end, Henley ended 3 runs short of the win and had to content themselves with the draw and fourth spot, a point behind Harpenden.
Dave Barnes was the leading run scorer with 414 from 16 innings, closely followed by Michael Roberts with 405 from 12 innings whilst Todd Ferguson (279) led the averages with 34.88. And therein, in part, lies the reason for a less impressive season as no batman really reached the heights of which they are eminently capable or have achieved in the past. Both championship years were underpinned by far more runs.
On the bowling front, Bjorn Mordt was the leading wicket taker with 39 at an average of 20.74. In the course of the season, he would bowl a phenomenal 285 overs, invariably opening the bowling and on five occasions bowling 20 or more overs in a game. With Tom Lambert (24 wickets at 23.4) reducing his workload in 2011 to accommodate his back and a lack otherwise of regularly available, effective and consistent quick bowling, the Henley skipper had to shoulder an unduly heavy burden which will hopefully be alleviated by recruitment during this winter of a much needed fast bowling attack. 
In the spin department, Carl Crowe missed 4 games but was no less effective with 35 wickets at 19.94 and Euan Brock’s performances at Wycombe and Bishop’s Stortford showed that when given his chance, he is well capable of doing the job.
Player of the Year was deservedly keeper/batsman and coach, Todd Ferguson. His 31 catches and 3 stumpings put him at the top of the HCPCL Division 1 standings. His keeping would grace any First Class County and his contributions with the bat and on field presence were invaluable.
With Tom Lambert retiring from premier cricket, Jono McLean joining Radlett as Captain/Coach, Steve Naylor playing his cricket in his native North East in 2012 and other uncertainties as to availability in 2012, Henley face a period of transition in the coming season. As Richard Cockerill, the Leicester Tiger’s director of rugby recently observed, a winning culture can never be taken for granted –  “the longevity of being good is the hardest thing”. This will be the challenge that faces Henley in 2012.
Probably the success story of 2011 was the performance of the Second XI in retaining their place in Division 1 of the Thames Valley Cricket League and that but some margin. Indeed it is fair to say that if the Second XI had produced the form in the first half of the season that they did in the second half, they could well have been champions. When not playing for the Firsts, Skipper Peter Dean (504 runs at an average of 72) led from the front and there were notable contributions throughout the season from all who played with special mention going to Darren White as leading wicket taker (24 at 18.42) and skipper in Dean’s absence.
Elsewhere, Liam Dennison moulded the Third XI into a tight and happy unit that held its own in Division 3A of the TVCL and the Fourth XI ended the season on a strong note to retain their place in Division 7B.

AN EXCITING FINISH

Henley’s last game of the season home to Bishop’s Stortford played out into an exciting if rather frustrating finale as the home side ended just three runs short of victory and had to settle for the draw. With just eleven points to show for their endeavours and Harpenden defeating the 2011 champions High Wycombe, Henley have had to settle for fourth spot, just behind Harpenden but well clear of Oxford.
For once, skipper Bjorn Mordt lost the toss and in cool overcast conditions, Stortford elected to have a bat. Though both openers went relatively cheaply to Mordt, both they and the following batsmen showed a great enterprise and a willingness to go after the bowling and the score was soon rattling along.  Both openers gave Tom Lambert a torrid time a but even after they has been removed, MCC Young Cricketers Eddie Ballard and Dan Blacktopp gave Steve Naylor and Bjorn Mordt quite a working over . The arrival of spin in the form first of Carl Crowe and then Euan Brock was timely. Eventually, Blacktopp who lives dangerously as a batter, was caught behind, but Stortford went into lunch the happier at 151-3.
Any notion that the departure of Blacktopp would slow things down was soon dispelled as Stortford’s skipper Hughes joined Ballard for a 60 run partnership. Mordt brought himself back after lunch and Crowe tied down one end, but wickets eluded both Mordt and Naylor who returned for a couple more overs.
The return of the Brock/Crowe combination helped staunch the flow and wickets began to tumble. Hughes ploughed on, undefeated to the end and there was a plucky 23 from Smith but the lower order had little to offer and, Porter apart, were cleaned up by the spinners. Crowe was immense with 5 – 46 off 22 overs and Brock’s 2-42 off 10 overs was invaluable, but the perception was that once again, the Henley bowling had lacked a cutting edge and Stortford had been let away with more runs than they should have been.  
In reply, Michael Roberts was just getting into his stride with three fours in the third over off the youthful Porter when he was deceived by one which shot through at shin height and removed his off stump. This brought McLean to the middle and he and David Barnes put on 120 for the next wicket. McLean was back to his imperious best and Barnes too was strong all around the park. Stortford may not have been over-endowed in the bowling department and deployed three teenagers (Porter, Townsend and Ramsden)but, as a team, they stuck to their guns and fielded well and the bowlers applied themselves and were not overawed.
Barnes was eventually stumped and Naylor gave his wicket away first ball, but McLean carried on, ably supported by Mordt, both batsmen punishing the bad balls and taking the singles on offer as fields became increasingly defensive. Mordt passed his half century before being caught and bowled and the prospect of a cliff hanger finale loomed ever larger. But Lindop and Ramsden had other ideas, removing Stewart Davison, caught at long on, and snuffing out the threat of Crowe just as he looked as though he might see Henley home. With fielders now ringing the boundary, Henley needed 32 off the last three overs, then 25 off the last two then 13 off the last over. Todd Ferguson strove mightily but was bowled trying to hit Ramsden out of the ground again, Brock was run out and with four needed off the last ball, Lambert could only manage the single and that was the end of the challenge and the 2011 campaign.

DISAPPOINTMENT AT RAINY RADLETT

Henley’s trip to Radlett ended in a disappointing draw as the weather robbed the visitors of eight overs and with it, the realistic prospect of chasing down 221 for victory. As it was, Henley ended their innings 38 short with just 10 points to show for their labours.
A damp square meant a delayed start with play getting under way at 11.47am and the game reduced to 54/44 overs apiece. Skipper Bjorn Mordt’s unfailing ability to call the toss this season continued and Radlett found themselves put into bat in breezy and chilly conditions save when the sun poked its nose through an otherwise angry, cloudy sky.
Radlett were soon in trouble as Tom Lambert put in a fine opening spell to remove Paternott, unsurprisingly caught at slip as he swung his bat at just about every delivery, Sharma and Toor, both lbw, in short order, whilst Mordt removed Jenkins, the bowler diving athletically to take the catch. At 11-4, with the ball nipping about, a collapse looked on the cards, but skipper Shane Berger and Fraser Crawford staged a strong recovery with a 75 run partnership as the former knocked Mordt around the park and the latter took a shine to the bowling of Henley first team debutant Simon Wheeler. Raplacing Wheeler with Steve Naylor brought instant results in the form of Berger caught behind, but Crawford, now assisted by the diminutive but confident teenager Nish Selvakumar, pressed on as both now plundered Naylor and Carl Crowe.
Crowe stuck to his guns to remove Selvakumar, but the runs continued to flow and the replacement of Naylor with Brock proved a timely move. Though Brock would end up wickless, his was a tight spell and created pressure which Crowe exploited to prise out Crawford lbw and later Kazmi caught behind, much to the latter’s consternation. A couple of dropped catches did not assist the cause as Radlett crept past 200 and then notched up a few more for good measure before Crowe bowled Paynter and Mordt removed Patel, caught at cover by Naylor to leave Radlett all out in the 53rd over but with a defendable total which was probably 30 or so more than Henley would have liked. Going more defensive earlier might have helped but hindsight is a wonderful thing.
The over gained by Radlett’s early finish was lost to a rain shower and Henley started with 43 overs to chase down the required total. Lords heroes Michael Roberts and David Barnes made a cautious start before Roberts began to hit some stylish drives through cover and square of the wicket, and Barnes steadily warmed to his task with a similar array of pleasing shots. Just after 5pm, a heavy shower deprived Henley of another six overs and with less overs and the same number of runs to get them in (no Duckworth Lewis here) the gradient became steeper.
A hitherto untroubled 82 run partnership came to an end when Roberts tried to force a ball over long on only to find the fielder stationed there. Barnes marched on and a century beckoned but his accomplices perished at regular intervals as they tried to up the pace. Kabir Toor ended up with fine figures of 5-51 which owed more to the willingness of Naylor, Mordt and Crowe to go down the track to him and get stumped for their pains and Allaway to try his trademark swipe out of the ground shot and get bowled, than anything else. Barnes was the last to depart bowled by Toor and that was that, Todd Ferguson and Stewart Davison seeing Henley through to the draw but not before Davison had hit a mighty six down the ground to show what might have been had Henley had the overs in hand.  

FERRABY LEADS OXFORD HOME

It was back to earth for Henley last Saturday as they were outplayed by Oxford at Cowley in a game which yet again showcased Henley’s shortcomings this season. Whilst the visitors could claim that they had the worse of the conditions, the simple fact was that Oxford performed the basics more efficiently and applied themselves more diligently.
Winning the toss yet again, skipper Bjorn Mordt chose to bat and Henley were soon one down as Michael Roberts skied a rather lackadaisical attempted pull shot to Ferraby at mid on.  Having put in the hard yards to get a start, Dave Barnes flashed at one from Geeson-Brown and was bowled, bringing together the most durable (71 run) partnership of the day between Mordt and Jonno McLean. By now the brightish start had given way to cloud and a chill wind and, as the morning progressed, a persistent drizzle which, though insufficient to call a halt to proceedings, made playing and spectating alike an arduous experience. The fare in the middle was little better as Mordt and McLean ground out the runs, an essay in unshowy accumulation in an innings which never really exploded into life and which Henley never seemed able to take by the scruff of the neck on a pitch lacking pace and bounce. Credit though must go to the Oxford bowlers, Mendis and Ferraby in particular, who kept their visitors pinned down.
98-2 at lunch off 30 overs, Henley lost Mordt soon after the break, yorked by Ferraby, and soon after, McLean was given out lbw after a long deliberation by the umpire so bringing the curtain down on his highest score and first 50+ so far this season. Thereafter the innings pottered along and wickets fell at regular intervals. Steve Naylor tried to force the pace until he holed out at mid-on and Carl Crowe brought all his experience to bear to grind out a much needed 55 until he tried to swipe Ferraby over long on and was bowled. In the meantime, Stewart Davison was stumped, Todd Ferguson was run out pushing the ball to mid on and taking a slightly leisurely single, Dave Allaway swiped far too extravagantly and was bowled and Euan Brock and Tom Lambert were rather holding on in the 64th over as the drizzle became heavy enough to call a halt to proceeding s and to the Henley innings.
When the game resumed half an hour later in brighter and warmer conditions, the contrast with the earlier weather was mirrored in the teams’ innings. Set 232 to win off just 47 overs, Oxford weathered a sticky start as Tom Lambert dismissed the openers and later Laudat, caught at long on, after Laudat had rather gone after the bowler. But in reality that was it. Mordt, Lambert and Naylor held little fear for Ferraby and Perkin, Ferraby in particular who struck some mighty blows including a huge six onto the flat roof of the Rover Sports and Social Club (thus it is still named). And when Crowe and Brock were able to exert some control, the batsmen took the singles on offer and put away the balls that where there to be hit. To their credit, Henley fielded heroically but the bowling lacked a cutting edge and the batsmen motored towards the required total. Perkin perished in the 42nd over, Brock’s wicket maiden. Had Naylor held onto a catch to dismiss Ferraby in the 45th over, Henley might just have squeezed a draw, but it was not to be as Crosby (17 off 9 balls) finished things off to leave Ferraby with the stand out performance of the day, 125 not out which had followed figures of 3-81 off 20 overs.

HAPENEDEN ANHILLIATED

Henley’s home victory against Harpenden last weekend was more in the nature of a rout as the visitors were shot out for 51 in 35.2 overs. In reply it took just 9.5 overs for Henley to chase it down and it was all over by 2.23pm which is probably not far short of a record in the HCPCL.
All credit to Harpenden this summer; after avoiding relegation by the skin of their teeth last year, they have made a very reasonable fist of things this year and scoring substantial scores has regularly been within their compass. There has however been the odd aberration, 55 – 10 at home to Tring Park when Simon Stanway took 7-27, more recently 88 – 10 at Wycombe, and of course being dismissed for 75 in the T20 final against Oxford. So they have bit of previous in this regard.
After overnight and early morning rain, a sultry, muggy and overcast morning – in other words, classic bowling conditions at Henley - greeted the teams. It was certainly a toss to win and Henley skipper Bjorn Mordt’s prediction as to the toss of the coin proved accurate yet again. Unsurprisingly, he chose to insert the opposition and it was not long before mayhem ensued. Harpenden’s hero of the previous Saturday, Ricky Diamiano (136 not out against Oxford), looked keen to continue where he left off with a strident on drive for 4, but could only sky Mordt’s next delivery to mid-on where Stewart Davison collected a catch with a backward roll a gymnast would have been proud of. Warn smoked Tom Lambert through cover and point in successive balls only to see Lambert remove the bail atop of the off stump with a fine delivery that beat the batsman off the seam. 2-13 rapidly became 3-13 as Cooper, having survived a drop in the slips, was squared up and then caught behind in successive balls. The often dangerous Frazer managed one run before he was Lambert’s second victim of the day, snappily taken by Brock in the covers. There then followed the biggest Harpenden partnership of the day (13) before Lamb chased after one only to be caught behind. Spencer, one of Harpenden’s more durable batsmen (8 runs off 48 balls), was next to go, superbly taken by Todd Ferguson diving far to his right in front of first slip.
The ball was certainly swinging about and Mordt was in his element in such conditions, but that was no excuse for the casual nature of some of the dismissals, particularly, that of Bennett-Baggs, caught at gully by Brock off Mordt in a manner that suggested that he was offering catching practice. Washington (lbw) was Mordt’s fifth victim and with Tuck caught at slip by Crowe off Naylor at 12.46pm (42-9), it looked as though the visitors might be rolled up before lunch.
It was not to be however as Ryan and Mahoney took their side to lunch (43-9), then past Harpenden’s previous lowest score (47 v Potters Bar in 2007) and finally to 51 despite trying every which way to get out in the meantime.
The riposte was short lived and explosive. Dave Barnes looked like he would see the game out himself, feasting off Lamb for some succulent boundaries, only for Mahoney to trap him lbw. The Jonno McLean batting hoodoo continued, just a  couple of singles and an elegant boundary before he was beaten for pace and so it was left to a circumspect Michael Roberts and a bellicose Naylor to see things out, a run two and two meaty fours from the latter bringing down the curtain on a remarkable game.
Harpenden could claim to have had the worst of the conditions and Mordt was in his pomp, but that was no excuse for the careless manner in which at least half if not more of their wickets were given away.

HENLEY OVERCOME BANBURY

In the end, Henley ran out easy winners in a game the outcome of which was hard to call at the outset and which finally owed much to the vagaries of the pitch. Played in cold and blustery conditions which felt more like autumn than summer, spectating on the wide open and unsheltered spaces of Banbury’s White Post Road ground proved more of an endurance than an enjoyment.
Winning the toss yet again, skipper Bjorn Mordt opted to bat first and Henley got off to a sound start against a lightweight bowling attack, led by Kiwi seamer Evans, which lacked a cutting edge and presented a regular stream of bad balls for Michael Roberts and David Barnes to tuck away. All was well until Barnes, who had flirted with danger through and over the slips, finally nicked one that stuck in keeper Hawtin’s gloves.
As is the way of things at the moment, Jonno McLean’s batting hoodoo for Henley continued, trapped lbw early on yet again and it was not long before Mordt followed him back, bowled by a ball which came back miles off what was to prove an increasingly wayward and unpredictable deck. Roberts meanwhile pushed on, exploiting a field which was already defensive and which also fell into the trap of following the ball as Roberts brought up his 50 with a neat flicked four down to third man followed by a pulled four through mid wicket left vacant by reinforcing the slips. At lunch on 125-3, Henley had had the better of the morning but anything was possible.
And so it was as the next seven wickets tumbled for just 78 runs. Roberts was out shortly after the break, the diminutive Blanchard’s third victim of the day. With figures of 4-40, Blanchard would prove to be Banbury’s most effective seamer. Crowe and Naylor both got starts and looked set before Phillips bowled Naylor and Wright squared up and bowled Crowe, both batsmen the victims of unpredictable movement off the wicket as were to be Dave Allaway and Stewart Davison. At 157 for 7, with the ball doing all sorts off the wicket and at times turning square and the batsmen having difficulty laying a bat on it, 200 looked like it might be a good score.
But getting there was no easy task and owed much to a stand of 45 between Todd Ferguson and Euan Brock, the former reinforcing his reputation as a clean striker of a cricket ball and the latter producing an array of eye catching boundaries. They might have gone further had not Brock’s sheer bad luck with run-outs continued, the ball diverted onto his stumps as he backed up. Ferguson holed out to mid-off a run later and Banbury needed 204 for victory.
In reply, Banbury, who , only the last weekend, notched up over 300 runs, never looked in the hunt. Brock took a brilliant two handed diving catch at point to remove Shaw off the second Mordt delivery he faced, the often prolific Sabin was the subject of a strident lbw appeal given after a lengthy deliberation, whilst Haupt who, after a shaky start, had began to look as though it might be his day, swept Crowe and to Davison on the point boundary who, mindful of where the rope was, took it with both hands but hopping on one leg. With West not tarrying long, the middle order now remained the only hope for Banbury.
Runs remained hard to come by but with Henley having been dismissed on 53 overs, batting time was not the issue. For a while Tew and Ali held firm and consolidated, until Tew was caught behind and his replacement Blanchard trapped lbw soon after. Ali and skipper Hawtin dug in and a stalemate developed which was only broken when Ali went to sweep somewhat unnecessarily and riskily and paid the lbw price. A third lbw appeal in successive balls accounted for Wright, much to the disgust of Hawtin, a direct hit from Naylor ran out Smith and Hawtin’s defiant resistance was finally ended by Mordt’s fifth wicket of the day caught at slip by Crowe.
And so it was that after yet another low key batting display, with only one of Henley’s much vaunted batting line up getting anywhere near or past 50, trumped only by that of their host’s even lower key performance with the bat, Henley ran out clear winners and registered their fifth win of the a season.  Banbury may have missed the injured Luke Ryan, but compared to their visit in June to Henley when they scored 299 all out and Henley held on to draw by the skin of their teeth, they were a shadow of themselves.

NO JOY IN THE CUP

Henley’s interest in the Home Counties Premier Cricket League T20 Cup was ended last Sunday morning with semi-final defeat by the hosts and home side Oxford at the Roman Way Sports Ground in Cowley.
Winning the toss, Henley elected to bat first and got off to a decent start through Michael Robert s (38) and Graham Crawford (19), but Oxford bowled with line and length and in good areas and took the pace of the ball – which made boundaries hard to come by, a problem exacerbated by the huge boundaries on the ground.  Pick of the other Henley batsmen were Dave Allaway (18) and Ewan Brock (17). In the end Henley closed on 147-8 and the feeling was that that was some way below par.
In reply, Oxford got off to a fast start, rattling up 59 in the first six overs. It did not help that Nick Ferraby who would end up unbeaten on 65, survived a dropped catch and a fluffed stumping. Through the mid-part of the innings, both Steve Naylor and Bjorn Mordt took a leaf out of the Oxford book and took the pace off the ball and for a while there was a glimmer of hope,  though Oxford were noticeably better at finding the boundary than Henley had been, including some meaty sixes from Ferraby.
With 4 overs to go, Oxford needed 30 and all Henley had left was pace from Wheeler and Horne, Wheeler, who also caught the eye in the field, returned figures of 5 per over but Crosby smashed 16 off Horne and getting the required four from the last (Horne) over was but a formality.
So it was that Oxford (148 – 4) ran out the winners with four balls to spare and fairly steamrollered Harpenden in the final, scoring 140 and dismissing Harpenden (who had a semi-final bye against Welwyn Garden City) for 75 in the thirteenth over. Oxford are thus the third HCPCL to win this competition.  

WELWYN RULE THE ROOST

Any hopes that Henley would capitalise on the previous week’s win at Falkland and start to reel in High Wycombe were dashed last Saturday at the Brakspear Ground by defeat at the hands of a resurgent Welwyn Garden City in a game which served only to highlight Henley’s shortcomings in 2011.
Winning the toss, a beguilingly green-tinged wicket persuaded Henley skipper Bjorn Mordt to invite his Welwyn counterpart, Aaron Laraman, to bat. However, it was not long before the wicket revealed its true colours as a batsman friendly deck which Welwyn opener Jamie Hewitt bestrode like a colossus, feasting off and untroubled by the Henley bowling, despatching Steve Naylor and Tom Lambert in particular to all parts of the boundary. True Mordt had flattened Champion’s off peg in the sixth over but that was it until the twenty-second over when Naylor had Hill, who had hitherto provided Hewitt with strong support, caught behind and removed Southgate’s middle stump with the next ball.
Hewitt departed a while later, feeling rather hard done by, adjudged lbw, and expressing his views on the matter all too volubly and agriculturally as he went.  But any hopes that Henley might have fostered about a Welwyn collapse were dashed by a compelling 93 run partnership between Grant and Walker, followed by a 46 run partnership between Walker and Laraman. True it was that Henley pulled it back a bit, particularly though Carl Crowe and Graham Crawford, and it was unfortunate that Crowe’s efforts with the ball were brought to a premature end, courtesy of a strained calf. But over the 66 overs, there was little that Henley could or did do to staunch the flow as two solid partnerships took the game away from Henley. Walker, on 99, would miss out on what would have been a deserved and well crafted century thanks to an lbw decision off the last ball of the innings but the damage was done and, once again, Henley faced a mountain to climb with far fewer overs to do it in. And, once again, at key points in the Welwyn innings, catches had not been held.
It did not help that three balls into the first over, Michael Roberts went to flick a half volley over square leg, a shot be can execute in his sleep, only to pick out square leg. Jonno McLean’s absence abroad presented Stewart Davison with an early No. 3 bat opportunity which he took with both hands. With Davison taking the lead over the more experienced David Barnes, the pair put on 65 before Davison was clean bowled by Laraman who inflicted serious damage on the top-middle order albeit with the benefit of yet another tough lbw call which accounted for Naylor just as he was beginning to look dangerous and set. Barnes ground on but was eventually removed in the 32nd over by Laraman and Henley found themselves at an uncomfortable 116-5.
Crowe, batting with the assistance of a runner (Roberts) did not last long and Mordt was decidedly unhappy at his lbw decision just as he too was looking set and ready to push on. The hapless Euan Brock who had striven manfully for no reward with the ball, now found himself run out without facing a ball and on 145 – 8 with 16 overs remaining, Henley were staring at the abyss. For a while however, it looked as though they might make it through to a draw. Dave Allaway, atoning for the run out, formed an excellent partnership with Crawford who was extremely cool calm and collected under pressure, unfazed by everything Welwyn threw at him and hitting some eye catching shots in the process.
With 12 balls left, the great escape was on, but all-rounder Southgate, making up for his golden duck removed first Crawford lbw and then Lambert in successive balls and that was it. Henley could claim to be hard done by by a couple of lbw decisions but the same was true for Welwyn and across the board the fact was that the bowling department lacked a cutting edge and could not contain or demolish, not assisted by dropped catches, whilst the batting department did not play to the standard of their opponents or to the standards of which they are capable. By contrast Laraman bowled very well indeed and was amply supported and the better side prevailed on the day albeit that their on-field behaviour, bad language, over-dramatic appealing and hysterical celebration, leaves a lot to be desired. 
 
Toss:  Henley CC won the toss and decided to bowl

Highlights: J Hewitt 82, N Walker 99, A Laraman 4-39

FLAKLAND POSE FEW QUESTIONS

Henley ran out easy winners at Falkland last Saturday dismissing the home side for just 101 and taking the win with seven wickets to spare. Carl Crowe was in electric form, taking six of the nine Falkland wickets to fall (James Morris retired hurt) for just 16 runs in 15.5 overs. 
The heavy rain of the previous week had resulted in a decidedly damp wicket to play on and it was certainly a toss to win and insert the opposition which Henley skipper Bjorn Mordt duly did. The game was but three balls old when Tom Lambert shattered Challoner’s stumps. This brought Hampshire’s Hamza Riazuddin to the crease, soon joined by James Morris after Martin was caught at cover by Euan Brock. For a while it looked as though Morris and Riazuddin had it in them to build a solid partnership with Riazuddin combining care and watchfulness with flair and clean hitting. But when Morris pulled up, having strained his side, and was forced to leave the field and Riazuddin became Crowe’s first victim of the day, snappily caught behind by Todd Ferguson, the omens were not good.
Mordt, who bowled himself through the innings, and Crowe gradually began the turn the screw and at lunch Falkland were teetering on the brink at 80 – 5 with two new batsmen at the crease, Bolan having been caught sweeping at deep backward square by Stewart Davison and Pope trapped lbw, both Crowe victims.
After lunch the rot set in. Zafar was unhappy at being adjudged caught at silly mid-off by McLean, Gunter was trapped lbw by Mordt and Foster, who had shown some resistance, pulled the ball round to backward of square leg and into Michael Roberts’ grasp. Last man Khan survived his first ball before being bowled by Crowe and that was that and in truth, if a couple of chances had gone to hand, the target might have been even less.
Set 102 to win in 74 overs, Henley made relatively light work of it, getting the job done in just 30 overs.  Both openers reported that the wicket remained difficult to play on with the ball not quite coming on as it might. Roberts and Dave Barnes nevertheless put on 60 for the first wicket before Barnes edged a good length ball that moved off the seam through to the keeper. As his replacement McLean went for a golden duck trapped lbw, Falkland’s hopes were briefly revitalised. But the in-form Roberts marched on, particularly strong square of the wicket and off the back foot against both spin and seam. Dropped on 33, he should have closed out the game but went to pull a Riazuddin delivery only to nick it onto his stumps with 11 runs left to get.   
It was left to Brock and Mordt to see the game out and although Riazuddin and Gunter pinned them down a bit, it was really only a matter of time and in the end, albeit not without a bit of a struggle, the target was reached and with it, 25 much needed points and a not before time fourth win of the season.

TRING BY A WHISKER

For a second week running Henley came off second best in an absorbing contest which saw the home side, Tring, take victory with just two balls to spare. The verdant Chiltern Hills and Tring’s delightful ground and unique pavilion formed a perfect backdrop to this match which got underway 15 minutes late, the consequence of a short but intense shower which swept across the ground taking four overs off the total.
Having lost the toss, Henley were invited to bat, which suited their plans, and openers Michael Roberts and Dave Barnes set off at a rapid rate in bright and breezy conditions. Barnes in particular was especially strong square of the wicket early on, but Roberts soon caught him up, clattering Harper for 12 in a single over. Another nuisance value shower intervened and as the ball became softer and wetter, and with characteristically defensive fields being set from early on and throughout, runs became harder to come by on what was a pretty slow and lifeless wicket, lacking pace and bounce, which made it hard to manufacture shots.  At lunch, with 26  overs bowled, Henley were 84 without loss.
Scoring was no easier after lunch and in his last over, the youthful Deal had Barnes caught at mid off by Handscomb for 52, thus ending a 108 run stand. Yet again, the rain returned, this time in force and caused another delay, losing three quarters of an hour and yet more overs and during which the pitch was roped. This was to be the last rain break of the day, but Henley were now down to 57 overs and the need to up the rate of scoring was clear. Jonno McLean perished lbw trying to sweep Stanway and skipper Bjorn Mordt, positive from the off, gloved a Harper full toss through to the keeper. With Roberts once again hammering Harper, Tring skipper Keith Dutch brought himself on and Stanway swapped ends. This had the desired effect as Roberts failed to keep out a Stanway yorker and Dutch accounted for Carl Crowe who top-edged an attempted sweep to short fine leg.  Henley were 176-5 with just eight overs to go. Steve Naylor (44 runs from 46 balls)and Stewart Davison pushed things along with some heavy hitting and hard running until a mix up resulted in Davison being run out. Dave Allaway perished at long-off trying to hit Dutch out of the ground and Todd Ferguson had no time to get involved as Henley ended up on 225 with a feeling that another 30 – 40 runs would have been welcome.
 The day now brightened up and a drying breeze swept across the outfield as Tring began their reply. Handscomb once again went cheaply, bowled as he went to hoike Lambert to square leg and Tomlinson was caught at mid-wicket by Naylor. But Dutch and Michael Payne, with some effective and at times spectacularly agricultural striking of the ball which was hard to contain and stem, rode their luck and went to town for a 125 run partnership that included one smashed car window (Dutch) before Dutch (70 runs from 70 balls) holed out to Roberts at deep square. Tring now needed 71 runs off the next 12 overs.
Any thoughts that the demise of Dutch would bring down the shutters were dashed as Sam Cherry joined Payne and took up the challenge. A little scratchy at first, Cherry then proceeded to hit everything out of the screws and led the charge to victory. Payne went, brilliantly caught one-handed by Naylor off Crowe, who then bowled Pritchard. There were more acrobatics from Brock to catch Deal at cover, but all the while Cherry took the lead and though his colleagues kept coming and going, he stood firm and ran and hit hard. With eleven runs required off the last two overs, Mordt brought back Lambert who removed Harper, but with six balls to go, just four runs were needed. Cherry (48 runs from 38 balls) duly obliged, Tring squeezed home and the pavilion balcony erupted.
Henley could claim to have had the worst of the conditions and on days like that, it is always easier to chase; they fought hard and fielded brilliantly but at the end of the day it was just not enough against a Tring side that played a canny hand in the field, used the conditions and wicket well and then did not hang back when their time came with the bat. For the neutral and the partisan alike, a great game of cricket.
© Henley Cricket Club

Scorecard:
Result: Tring Park CC won by 3 wickets
Date: Sat 9th Jul 2011
Start Time: 11:00
Ground: Tring Park CC
Type: League : Division 1
Scoring: Standard
Toss: Tring Park CC - 1st XI won the toss and decided to bowl
Highlights: Michael Roberts 86 ; David Barnes 52 ; Keith Dutch 70 ; Michael Payne 68

Henley CC:

Michael Roberts    b Simon Stanway    86  
David Barnes     ct Peter Handscomb    b Jack Deal    52  
Jonno McLean    LBW b Simon Stanway    3  
Bjorn Mordt *    ct Robin Pritchard    b George Harper    12  
Steve Naylor   Not Out  44  
Carl Crowe    ct Richard Yates   b Keith Dutch    1
Stewart Davison    ro Simon Stanway   15  
David Allaway    ct Simon Stanway    b Keith Dutch    1  
Todd Ferguson +   Not Out  1  
Euan Brock    Did Not Bat     
Tom Lambert    Did Not Bat     
Extras  ( 8b 2lb )  10 
Total  (7 wickets, 57 overs)  225 

Fall Of Wickets
108-1 David Barnes (Michael Roberts-51*); 127-2 Jonno McLean (Michael Roberts-63*);
142-3 Bjorn Mordt (Michael Roberts-66*); 171-4 Michael Roberts (Steve Naylor-9*);
174-5 Carl Crowe (Steve Naylor-11*); 217-6 Stewart Davison (Steve Naylor-38*);
218-7 David Allaway (Steve Naylor-38*); -8 ;
-9 ; -10 ;
* = notout batsman,

Bowling:

Simon Stanway 28   3    104    2 
George Harper  15    1   57   1 
Jack Deal   7    0   18   1 
Keith Dutch    7   0   36  2 

Tring Park CC

Peter Handscomb   b Tom Lambert    5  
Leigh Tomlinson   ct Steve Naylor    b Bjorn Mordt    18  
Keith Dutch *    ct Michael Roberts    b Bjorn Mordt    70  
Michael Payne   ct Steve Naylor    b Carl Crowe   68  
Sam Cherry   Not Out  48  
Robin Pritchard +   b Carl Crowe    4 
Jack Deal    ct Euan Brock  b Carl Crowe    4  
George Harper    ct Todd Ferguson    b Tom Lambert    1  
Andy Dixon   Not Out  5 
Richard Yates    Did Not Bat     
Simon Stanway   Did Not Bat     
Extras  ( 1b 2lb )  3 
Total  (7 wickets, 45.4 overs)  226 

Fall Of Wickets
14-1 Peter Handscomb (Leigh Tomlinson-9*); 30-2 Leigh Tomlinson (Keith Dutch-7*);
155-3 Keith Dutch (Michael Payne-61*); 185-4 Michael Payne (Sam Cherry-22*);
195-5 Robin Pritchard (Sam Cherry-28*); 215-6 Jack Deal (Sam Cherry-44*);
216-7 George Harper (Sam Cherry-44*); -8 ;
-9 ; -10 ;
* = notout batsman,

Bowling:
Tom Lambert   9    1    41    2 
Bjorn Mordt   9    1    39    2 
Carl Crowe   13.4    0    73    3 
Euan Brock   14    0    70    0
 
Umpires: Jeremy Denton      Mick Southerton 
Scorers:    The Jugster      Linda Carter

 HENLEY COME A CROPPER AT BISHOPS STORTFORD

The green and pleasant surroundings of Bishops Stortford Cricket Club and a belter of a batting track failed to inspire Henley to a second consecutive victory which Henley needed to refresh their Championship challenge. Chasing a readily attainable 240 for victory off 56 overs, a combination of several tough umpiring decisions and a litany of soft dismissals condemned Henley to a 94 run defeat and just 6 points to show for it.
Having won the toss, the home support were rather surprised that Henley elected to field on what was a beautifully manicured square and outfield. Stortford openers Akram and Hughes warmed to their task and were soon rattling along. Akram in particular was particularly keen to get after the bowling, going down the track to Bjorn Mordt and smashing Steve Naylor for six back over his head in exuberant cavalier style and thereafter serially despatching the latter to the boundary, much to the bowler’s overt frustration.
But breaks in the game can disrupt concentration, and just after drinks at the end of the sixteenth over, Hughes went to turn a Naylor delivery to leg and instead got a leading edge which Roberts took at cover. But that was it until lunch as Akram, now joined by MCC Young Cricketer, Eddie Ballard, motored on. The introduction of spin though Euan Brock and Naylor taking the pace off the ball applied the brakes a bit but Akram kept up his hard hitting style and Stortford could claim the better of the morning session going into lunch at 139 – 1.
With Tom Lambert returning after lunch, the batsmen were initially pinned down but soon rediscovered their scoring touch until Ballard was snapped up by Brock at mid-wicket off Mordt, thus ending a 120 run partnership. More was to follow in the next over as Akram hit his least positive shot of the day off Brock to Mordt at short cover – a tame end to an otherwise entertaining knock of 120. Another MCC YC, Dan Blacktopp followed, lasting but four balls before holing out lamely and almost predictably to Stewart Davison at mid-off. 189 – 2 was now 190 – 4 and ushered in a collapse that saw the next six wickets fall for just 49 runs. Brock, bowling 21 overs, returned figures of 7 – 72 and well though he bowled, many of his victims would have been kicking themselves for trying to hit him out of the ground and getting caught for their pains, Michael Roberts in particular taking spectacular catch on the run at wide mid-wicket to dismiss Townsend, thereby atoning for a earlier drop.
With Stortford all out in the 64th over, Henley picked up two extra overs - more than enough for a side with Henley’s firepower to chase down 240. However, it was a day for not just one but two batting collapses. All started well enough until Pete Dean was unlucky to be adjudged lbw to the dogged Read who was to bend his back throughout the innings and bowl 23 overs for figures of 4 – 45. Initially he was well supported by the Porter at the other end who bowled with pace and purpose, accounting for McLean who was well taken by Lindop at second slip.  Lindop it was who replaced Porter’s pace with spin, snapping up Barnes caught and bowled. Naylor now joined Roberts and Henley lost wicket number 4 on the stroke of tea as Naylor rather wafted at a Lindop ball which bounced off the keeper’s gloves and into the hands of Smith at slip.
Worse was to follow soon after tea. If Dean’s lbw had been harsh, Roberts’ was doubly so on grounds of height not to mention hitting the ball, so bringing a premature end to a discerning and well constructed innings. Roberts’ dismissal with the score on 109 marked the end of both effective resistance and challenge and the beginning of an even more spectacular collapse as Mordt rather gave his wicket away, caught at mid-off making the same mistake with Lindop that Lindop and others had made with Brock, an injured Graham Crawford, batting with a runner, was trapped lbw, Todd Ferguson was caught at forward short leg, perhaps unluckily, and Brock was lbw. There was little that Davison and Lambert could do. Both resisted doggedly, Davison in particular despatching Porter to the boundary, though Lambert showed yet again that he is no mug with the bat. But with the upper and middle order having failed to make its expected mark, it was asking a lot of either of them to survive long enough to see out the overs and the end came in the 49th with Lambert trapped on his crease lbw. A youthful and relatively inexperienced home side justifiably celebrated taking a big scalp and their more experienced opponents were left to rue what should have been. 

Scorecard:
Henley win the toss and elected to bowl

Biships Stortford CC

Mohammed Rizwan Akram ct Bjorn Mordt  b Euan Brock    120
David Hughes *  ct Michael Roberts   b Steve Naylor    33
Eddie Ballard   ct Euan Brock  b Bjorn Mordt    29
Daniel Blacktopp +   ct Stewart Davison
b Euan Brock    0  
Alex Hearne   ct Graham Crawford   b Euan Brock    25
Johnnie Smith   ct Jonno McLean   b Euan Brock    11  
Anthony Brown   ct  b Bjorn Mordt   1 
Simon Lindop   ct Stewart Davison    b Euan Brock    3
Mark Townsend    ct Michael Roberts    b Euan Brock    3
Paul Reed   Not Out  5 
James Porter   ct Jonno McLean   b Euan Brock    2
Extras  ( 5lb 2nb )  7 
Total  ( all out , 64 overs)  239 

Bowling:
Tom Lambert  12   4   35   0 
Bjorn Mordt  20   1   68   2 
Steve Naylor   11   1    59    1 
Euan Brock   21    1    72    7 

Henley CC

Michael Roberts   LBW    b Paul Reed    50
Peter Dean   LBW    b Paul Reed    25
Jonno McLean    ct Simon Lindop     b James Porter   0  
David Barnes    ct Simon Lindop    b Simon Lindop    17
Steve Naylor    ct Johnnie Smith   b Simon Lindop    0
Bjorn Mordt *    ct James Porter   b Simon Lindop    6  
Graham Crawford    LBW    b Paul Reed    4
Todd Ferguson +    ct David Hughes    b Simon Lindop    0
Euan Brock   LBW   b Paul Reed    3
Stewart Davison    Not Out  16  
Tom Lambert   LBW   b James Porter   8
Extras  ( 4b 10lb 2nb )  16 
Total  ( all out , 48.5 overs)  145 
Fall Of Wickets

Bowling
 
James Porter   10.5   1    52    2 
Paul Reed   23    10    45    4 
Simon Lindop   15    4    34    4   0 

 HENLEY HANG ON FOR DRAW AGAINST BANBURY