Henley’s 4th XI bounced back from defeat in their season opener with a comprehensive 139-run victory away to Boyne Hill 4ths. Stand-in captain Chris Ellison won the toss and elected to bat on a good-looking wicket, and Henley duly built a commanding total before a disciplined bowling display sealed the win.

Two early wickets fell thanks to sharp fielding from Theo Murphy, who caught Laurie Tate at gully and ran out Noah Perrone with a direct hit from short fine leg. With father-son combination Ankur and Rohan Nangpal bowling tightly and the ball nibbling around, Andy Chinn and Joshua Ellison steadied the ship with a patient partnership of 84 for the third wicket. After Chinn was stumped off Jalal Mohamed, Josh was joined by his father Chris, who had the pleasure of watching his son bring up a fifty – his second at senior level – in an innings full of attractive shots, with the timing of his late cuts especially eye-catching.

Josh was eventually bowled for 55, but by then Chris was cutting loose against a tiring attack and increasingly ragged fielding effort. Rosie Mills was caught for 5 attempting to accelerate, bringing her dad Adam to the crease. Mills senior took a little while to blow away the cobwebs in his first match for some time, but soon found his rhythm. Big shots from both elder statesmen drew gasps from the spectators, while the excellent running between the wickets drew a few heavier gasps from the batters.

Chris finished with a flourish, smashing two fours from the final two balls to reach an unbeaten century from just 53 deliveries, including 11 fours and 4 sixes. Adam ended on an excellent 44 not out from 31 balls as Henley posted 259 for 5 from their 40 overs.

Boyne Hill began their reply brightly, with PJ Singh punishing anything short. But Henley’s bowlers kept asking questions, and the breakthrough came on 51 when – having created several half-chances with his own bowling and not having had much luck – Harry Ellison took a catch off Adam Mills to remove Singh. A smart change of ends then saw left-armer Andy Chinn swing one in to rock back Yasir Hussein’s middle stump.

Adam Mills then sniffed blood – and not just that which was gushing from above his nose after a brave bit of fielding. Sporting a plaster across his hooter, he returned with renewed vigour and struck twice in quick succession. First, Chris Ellison covered great ground and held a full-length diving catch at midwicket to dismiss the Boyne Hill captain, Raghu, before debutant Alastair Taylor took a smart catch at cover to remove Duncan Shaw. Fine efforts both, though neither quite matched Andy Chinn’s catch off his own bowling to dismiss Tegh Chahal, taken with all the grace and ease of a prima ballerina.

The clatter of wickets continued when Adam Mills claimed his fourth, trapping Stephen Haynes LBW. A quieter spell followed as off-spinners Rosie Mills and Josh Ellison bowled in tandem with excellent control, Josh finishing with two wickets in an over, both bowled.

It was then over to the young leg-spin debutants Alastair Taylor and Jasper Day to hunt down the final two wickets. Some sensible resistance from the batters, worsening wet conditions and a slight dip in energy in the field – understandable enough with a side featuring three adults and eight juniors – allowed Boyne Hill a few more runs. But after the drinks break, Taylor put the icing on the cake of an excellent team performance, trapping Ankur Nangpal in front with one that straightened before ending the match with a beauty: a googly pitching around fourth or fifth stump and turning back through the gate to hit the top of off.

A fine team performance, with Henley’s young guns to the fore and the old hands playing their part too.