FREW Park hosted a battle of the ages on Tuesday, as the touring English Over 70’s cricket team visited the Blue Lake city to face off against a combined South Australia and Victoria Country Over 70’s side.
With four Mount Gambier players in the squad, vice captain Gary Ashby, Colin Hutchesson, Noel Stratman and Frank Cronin were all among the action on the day.
Played in a one-day format, the 40-over clash saw England take to the crease in the first innings, where it posted a credible 144 runs.
This was a score the local team was unable to overcome, falling just short when it picked up the bat in the afternoon, finishing with a total of 132 to be defeated by the international side.
However, this narrow defeat was not without its highlights, as Hamilton’s Jim Jenkins recorded the highest score for the day with a solid 47 runs.
Trevor Knowles and Robert Ogden opened for the English and amassed 55 runs between them before Knowles was run out with 30 of his own.
With Ogden electing to retire, two fresh batsmen took to the crease as Michael Swain and Jeff Baxter picked up their bats.
The duo added a further 30 runs to the total before Swain (4) was bowled by Graham Freshwater, with Billy Smith rising to take his place.
When Baxter was caught on 24 runs, Smith retired on 16, seeing the English 4/118 with six overs remaining.
Graham Corke and Barry Hart were the next in to bat, with the latter caught out for three, while Corke was stumped on 15.
Mickey Allen and Chris Lowe were then called in and recorded 10 and 14 runs each respectively before finishing the 40 overs with a team total of 144.
With the ball, Hamilton’s Phil Forsythe was in fine form and claimed two wickets for the home team, while Freshwater also bagged two scalps.
John Williams rounded out the wickets with one to his name.
The South East team went into the second innings with their target in sight and were off to a steady start.
Ashby opened the batting alongside Ian Gibson, with the two reaching 24 runs before the latter was bowled by England’s Peter Betteley.
Ashby was then joined by Hamilton player and team captain Les Payne at the crease.
However, Ashby was soon caught out for 15 runs, seeing the South East 2/37.
This saw Jenkins pad up and put the locals back on track, with his eventual 47 runs seeing them with a chance to reach the English’s total.
Payne was bowled by the in-form Betteley for 10 runs, with Freshwater next to bat.
He accumulated 13 runs before retiring, while Jenkins was eventually caught and bowled by England’s Smith.
Ian Longmire (14) and John Costello (16) were the final pair at the crease and fought hard to reach the English’s total, which was within reach, but they fell agonisingly short at the conclusion of the 40 overs.
Betteley led the way with the ball for England, finishing with two wickets to his name, while Smith and Lowe claimed one each.
Ashby said the whole day was deemed as a success and the closeness of the match only added to the atmosphere at Mount Gambier’s iconic venue.
“The whole day went off absolutely magnificent,” he said.
“It was a very good game, very tight.
“The England players were very happy with the set up and how it was all conducted.”
With a number of spectators on the day, Ashby said many of them wished they were out on the pitch themselves.
Despite England’s eventual win, Ashby was pleased with the standard of game from both teams, particularly with ball in hand.
“The cricket itself I thought was a pretty good standard,” he said.
“I thought both sides bowled really well.
“The only complaint I would have had was the outfield at Frew Park was very slow.
“You had guys playing beautiful shots and getting one run.”
The next event on the agenda for local senior cricket will see the South East Coasters travel to Hamiton next week for a carnival from Monday to Wednesday.
They will play against Adelaide, Hamilton and Geelong teams over the three days of competition.
This will be followed by a carnival in Echuca at the end of the month.
For the English, the team is set to play at Geelong’s Kardina Park today for the sixth game in its tour, which started in Perth and will finish up on March 18 in Brisbane.
