The weather won in the end but a trip to the beautiful setting of Great Canfield is always a highlight on the Rosaneri cricketing calendar.
The match only lasted into 9.1 overs of the great Canfield reply but you could tell an enthralling match would have ensued.
The day started with Big Mike losing the toss and the ‘Pinks’ were inserted in bowler friendly conditions.
Slaps opened with BM and a cautious start was made in testing conditions.
Double disaster struck in the 6th over when Slaps inexplicitly ran himself out going for a very tight second run and then Big Mike chipped one back to the bowler and the ‘Pinks’ found themselves 2 down with only 13 on the board.
The two new RCC batsmen, Arthur and Kurt, then went about watchfully rebuilding the innings until another run out, with Arthur this time suicidally losing his wicket after making a well made 24.
Kurt departed shortly after for 14 (which included a huge straight 6) to the main GCCC bowler who would end up with five Rosaneri wickets.
Marcus and Nick also departed to the same bowler with no addition to the score and at 53 for 6 things were looking bleak.
Mat steadied the ship, with Rahul, but with the score on 77 he was bowled by the dreaded double (if not triple) bouncer.
It wasn’t until Jim joined Rahul that the Rosaneri innings got going. After a stern mid-wicket talking to from Rahul, Jim went on to patiently put together a quality innings of 31 which included three fours and a six. But it was Rahul who once again was the star of the show with a brilliant innings of exactly 50 which was made up of stout defence and exhilarating hitting including two fours and three huge sixes.
Their 77 run partnership came to an end after they both fell in the 36th over and it was left to Cuz and Jack to take the score up to 165, in a match which had been reduced to 38 overs after a hail storm!
So at tea, with the bountiful sandwiches and homemade cake going down very well, the game was in the balance with both teams hoping that the weather would hold to see who would take the spoils of victory.
Unfortunately the rains came shortly after Jack had just reduced our hosts to 31 for 1 and the pitch was deemed to wet to continue.
And so it was an unfortunate end to another fantastic trip into rural Essex.