2007 is drawing to a close and I thought it would be fitting on the website today if we looked back at the many highlights of last summer.

There is no particular order to the memories listed below, but hopefully they will make you smile and send you on a journey down memory lane.

• The Paul Sindrey catch against the Queens Head to win the match. At full stretch, he dived over the umpire to cling onto a spectacular catch just as the oppo were looking as if they could win.
• Mark Cox and his fielding bravery when he smashed into Mike Gatting’s development hoardings to save a run.
• Neil Tilley in his pomp blasting a majestic century in Derbyshire. The first ball of the innings was smashed straight through the covers for four.
• In the same match Neil Tilley dropping a simple catch and then blaming Robsie for giving him Delia Smith oven gloves to keep wicket with.
• Sheridan getting his head down and grafting for a team morale boosting 63 in the first match of the season against Tendring.
• That brilliant pre match pub lunch and banter in Tendring. To say the banter and build up were electric is an understatement.
• Andy Underwood and Jim Downing sharing a club record 132 run partnership against Edmonton. Andy went on to complete a brilliant maiden 100, and Jim went on to complete a maiden club 50.
• Nick Shewring’s two slip catches against Jack of Diamonds.
• The sensational tea in Derbyshire and the tea ladies sense of standards to keep local club children away from the biscuits until the players had completely finished.
• Sean emerging as an unlikely hero by batting beautifully on his club debut against Farnham.
• Sean in the state he was in at tea in Derbyshire after a torrid time in the field.
• Steve Shewring getting the ball to dance in a brilliant spell of bowling on the 1^st XI pitch at Botany Bay. He was very unlucky not to end up with a 5 wicket haul.
• Caught Tyrrell, Bowled Freeman to make the perfect fast bowlers wicket in an inspired spell of bowling by Mat. The spirit was amazingly high in this match, and at one point it looked like we could pull off a most unlikely victory.
• Jim dropping a relatively easy catch in the Edmonton game off Paul Sindrey and then to further Paul’s pain, Jim promptly threw the ball straight into his knackers. (If this moment had of been captured on video it would have definitely got £500 from You’ve Been Framed !)
• The Twenty/20 half century from Andy Underwood against Edmonton School Teachers.
• The brilliantly controlled victory against Harlow.
• Kevin Mully’s agricultural batting against Harlow. Kev’s innings also featured one of the greatest sporting gestures of all time, when he shook the hand of the lad that bowled him before leaving the field.
• The same match will always be remembered by the fact that the Rosaneri opening batsmen negotiated a tricky few overs before tea to go in without loss. This rare situation came about in order to enable the tea ladies to finish the spread. (Sheridan and Ben Underwood)
• The pea roller that dismissed Bloater against Tendring.
• The Sergio Garcia Spanish jig from Marcus and the after match banter in the evening sunshine against Farnham.
• Mat Freeman and Jim Downing sharing a 50 run last wicket partnership in Derbyshire to get within 2 runs of an unlikely victory.
• The Botany Bay post match laughter on the club house veranda when a Pits like car was spotted driving down a dirt track that ran parallel with The Ridgeway.
• Seeing the electronic scoreboard light up to let us know that we were privileged to be playing at Lincoln Road.
• The nervous anticipation of walking out as a team at Lincoln Road for the first time.
• Mr Bells brilliant stumping and aggressive appeal against a 12 year old in the Tendring match.

There are loads more memories that I didn’t have time to put into this article, but I think the message is clear. Cricket is brilliant fun, and although 2007 is virtually over we have 2008 just around the corner.