Well we have had some close games this season but this one takes the biscuit – our first ever tie!

And to achieve it against Enfield at Lincoln Road makes it all the more memorable.

The afternoon did not get off to the greatest of starts as the rain began to fall just as all of the players started arriving at the ground.

However, with his new found optimism and the help of the Rain Today website Bloater declared that the rain would be gone by three o’clock and although the sceptics among us thought we should all head home for Sunday lunch he was indeed proved right as the covers came off just before 3pm.

With the game now reduced to 30 overs per side, Captain Downing asked Enfield to bat and with Stephen especially bowling extremely well the Enfield openers made a cautious but solid start.

The run rate began to increase as the wide and bad balls were despatched to the boundary and it wasn’t until the introduction of Rahul that the break though was finally made with Nick taking a good catch. Enfield started to turn the screw and the runs again started to flow but just as the other  opener looked set for a century Stephen pouched a skier at deep mid-on, off of Jim and the game began to change.

Coxy bowled a tight 3 over spell which enabled the other bowlers to pick up the wickets around him, with Stephen taking a great caught and bowled plus another wicket courtesy of a good running catch by Nick.  Jim and Rahul then picked up another 3 wickets between them and the Enfield innings finally closed with the score at 151 for 7.

Tea was a nice affair and as the sun came out to dry the outfield Rosaneri hopes were high with just a tad over 5 runs an over required for victory.

Mr. Bell and Big Mike opened the innings as normal and the former drove the first ball of the innings to the cover point boundary.  A great start got even better when Mr. Bell also took a liking to Rosaneri loanee Jack Shewring’s bowling dispatching his first ball for 4 and then the second for a humongous six into the tennis courts!

Jack would have his revenge though as three balls later he clipped the top of the bails and Mr. Bell was gone for an entertaining 15.

Marcus came and went LBW and Adam then found quick runs hard to come by but stuck around to make a precious 17 against some good bowling.  Kurt, like Adam, struggled and was eventually undone by the young leg spinner.  And Andy, Coxy and Rahul were also returned to the hutch via good pace and leg spin bowling.  With Jack breaking Rosaneri hearts by capturing the prized wicket of the Fonz.

As the action unfolded at the other end Big Mike gradually picked up the pace of his innings by running quick singles and squeezing away the odd four after many of his earlier shots had gone straight to the well placed fielders and eventually he recorded his sixth half century for the Club.

But at 115 for 7 with only 3 overs left  the ‘Pinks’ looked doomed, even more so when Nick unselfishly run himself out going for a very tight second run.

And so Jim, after promoting himself above Stephen, joined Big Mike at the crease with the watching Rosaneri faithful praying for a miracle.

That miracle almost happened as 13 were taken from the 28^th over and then 11 from the 29^th.

And so we came to the last over with 13 needed for a historic Rosaneri victory.

Big Mike stunned his teammates by smashing the leg spinners’ first ball for six!  The next four balls brought another four runs which left three required off of the finally ball for victory.

Jim was on strike, Mike discarded most of his batting gear, the crowd held its breath, the fielders patrolled the outfield as if their lives depended upon it, the bowler ran in, Big Mike set off like a cheetah, Jim smashed the ball into the off side, they ran one, they came back for the second but the ball came into the wicket keepers hands and the breathless last over was complete and the match finished in an exhilarating tie.