Tag: VCC

By Ad Min

Tim Graham Memorial Charity Cricket Fair 18th June 2016

Tim Graham Memorial
Tim Graham Memorial

Comrades!

With a great man come great friends. Tim was one such man and as a result of his passing, his friends have conceived and designed a most fitting and beautiful celebration, the details of which are laid down here by Martin Stockman, his friend and VCC cricketer. Plans also created and overseen by our comrade commissars, Brandonovski and Ilyeva.

Last September we lost our wonderful friend Tim Graham. Tim loved life, loved friends, loved a party, loved music .. and loved cricket. We’ve put all this together to have a Memorial Fair on Saturday 18th June 2016 celebrating this charming man who brought so much colour, warmth and laughter to our lives. 

 

What: The Tim Graham Memorial Charity Cricket Fair

When: Noon Till Midnight 18th June 2016 (though coming all day not obligatory!)

Where: Sandon Strollers Cricket Club http://sandonstrollerscc.co.uk/ Roe Green Sandon, Herts SG9 0QG ..its about an hour’s drive from Central London.

Cost: £25 Adults, £10 Unwaged / Students, £0 Kids under 12.

HOW TO GET TICKETS:

(Must be bought in advance, preferably now!)

https://billetto.co.uk/tim-graham-memorial-charity-cricket-fair

What does Ticket Buy? A Traditional Tea (230pm-4pm) and Supper (7pm-9pm.)with a Hog Roast and fabulous Vegetarian Options. A glass of Prosecco served at 8pm. Live Music …a jazz band in afternoon and live band / disco in evening. Three Cricket matches. Other Games including Rounders, Tug’o’war, Yoga.

What doesn’t Ticket buy? There is a PAY bar from noon onwards run by Sandon CC. Fine Ales and Wines. We will also have a cocktail hour. You’ll need CASH for this. They do not have a card machine or contactless payments. Yes, hipsters and metrosexuals .. bring CASH

What about Charity? £10 of each ticket will go to the British Heart Foundation and the Wycombe General Intensive Care Ward.

Can I bring my own refreshments? Yes

What if it rains? For light rain / showers we have 2 Marquees. For heavy rain we have the local village hall. But it won’t rain. I think.

Don’t hesitate to contact Kate or myself if you have any queries. Finally please purchase tickets now – or soon- so we have cashflow to fund the various events …

By Ad Min

MATCH REPORT – VCC v SCC Sunday 21st June 2015

Coleshill
Coleshill

VCC win by 106 runs in timed game scoring 180 for 8 off 34 overs (1 retired, 10 players)
SCC all out for 74 off 26 overs

Comrades! Do not let the scorecard and result belittle the true winner here. It was the VCC.

However, coming a very close second was the wondrous nature of the game itself. Then, back in a distant third, came the SCC. But we are the intrinsic compost that feeds the roots of  cricket and helps it rise up to the lustrous heart of every true player. We are rich, dark and heavily composted, one and all. Enough of this shit, let us consider the game.

I won the toss, unusually being captain, and elected to field. I know so little about the game and the weather seemed quite warm, so my decision was not based on cricketing principals, but firmly on the side of using what zest we had when most required. I suppose I mean field without the fear of cake. Actually, I don’t know what I mean. Please shoot me.

Gandalff - fit and ready
Gandalff – fit and ready

I set a moderate field and opened with Hodderoff and Soldya. Pacey length versus wristy, lofty spin. Their top-notch openers were Stockman and Hooper (aka Hooperoff!). But the former was only their long enough to raise a few breaths before Analitch made a most splendid wicket catch off Hodderoff. Stunning. 2 scored and Stocko ambled back, patting gloves with Yorke, on his way out.

Hooper, ever the calm and gentlemanly socio-capitalist, was in a good way and set about paddling a 52 until retirement. Hodderoff and Soldya bowled 7 and 6 over spells. Change over came and Dacha (aka Dan Woodhouse) and myself (Yuri) came to the crease. Results were required to avoid that drooping feeling, and the Dacha-Yuri pair got Yorke – Yuri bowl, Dacha with a smashing catch at square leg. Lovely work. We bowled on. Dacha, maiden over, Yuri with modest economy too. BANG, Dacha’s 7th over and the stumps yield their cargo, Betteridge for 8. It would seem mad to pull Dacha now, but with 7 of 8 overs bowled, I wanted to hold something back for Dacha. My last 2 overs were maidens, nice way to close and 32 off 8 for 2.

In comes The Impaler, Vlad, Boringski (Charlie Richards!). Even Vlad himself, does not know what powers his inner id, but whatever it is, id’s blooming effective. First over and dubious LBW call not given due to bouncing confusion, then Ewing caught off Vlad for 1.

Note to Stocko regarding LBW rules – A valid delivery can have no more than two bounces, but it can bounce twice and be a fair delivery, an LBW is still possible.

LAW 24
…7. Ball bouncing more than twice or rolling along the ground

The umpire shall call and signal No ball if a ball which he considers to have been delivered, without having previously touched bat or person of the striker,
either (i) bounces more than twice
or (ii) rolls along the ground
before it reaches the popping crease.

ref: http://www.lords.org/mcc/laws-of-cricket/laws/law-24-no-ball/

Treasurer seeking guidance
Treasurer seeking guidance

But Vlad perseveres, last ball of over snicked away and caught, fine leg by Robski – great work. Hodderoff and Soldya were supporting vigorously from the other end, but Vlad took more blood. His last over and The Mighty Cobra was run-out. Vlad had cast such a bewitching spell over the Bewitcher, that he missed the fact that the ball hadn’t gone. I had stopped it but with no sense of panic as all seemed. But Cobra was not running and a tepid throw and a great Analitch fetch and plinkety plonk, the bails went clonk! (WHAT?!?)

Dacha had an over in hand – nothing special, just four balls and two wickets for none! Caught Nice and Ewing for 29 and 11. What a splendid comrade. His results were 18 for 3 off 8 and a maiden to boot! One final fielding memory – I have created a new field, I realised when I looked up quite late on and realised that we were formed in two neat rows running either side of the wicket, perhaps ten yards out each side. I have decided to name it something nice and easy, Yuri’s Rail-road. Let’s work this!

A note from Yuri: A chunk of time has passed since I started this blog – I am now in my late forties and fear that a surfeit of substances in my youth has made my memory appalling. So the batting summary will be less than accurate, amusing and valuable! But here is a scant report, none the less.

Vlad and Analitch did some good dotting at the top, Oli was in and out but we must do doffing of caps to newblood, Dacha (Dan Woodhouse) who provided what was for us, a sizeable knock of 21. Smattered with two 6s and a 4. Thank you, comrade. Soldya and Hodderoff deserve a mention too at 10 and 13. Good dotting from Robski, but all in all, not a great evening with the bat.

It was a great game though and the spirit of the game was well and truly consumed. Many thanks to Coleshill Cricket Club and the oppo, our beloved VCC. Also to Kevin and Malki who sailed in to our aid like valiant knights of yore, each wielding their bats as dragon slaying lances.

Comrarades, Do Svidaniya!

VCCvSCC_21June2015_SCCinnings
VCCvSCC_21June2015_SCCinnings
VCCvSCC_21June2015_VCCinnings
VCCvSCC_21June2015_VCCinnings

 

By Ad Min

MATCH REPORT – SCC v VCC 21st June 2104

20140621_193329
Scoreboard

VCC won by 33 Runs with 219 for 7
SCC at 186 runs for 9
40 over match

Comrades!

Blue skies and sunshine marked our journey over to Essex and Halstead CC. A lovely day and the longest too. Such fine weather and cricket too is enough to make a person very smug indeed. And Yuri here, was quite chuffed to couple that with a night off the twins and a stay at a local pub, The White Hart – so smug and happy! The VCC are old foes and of course, mostly old friends so it’s always nice to wheel out against them and enjoy a game of cricket.

They were into bat first and their hope was two sweat us down to the remnants of a team for our innings. But did they manage? did they indeed! Our commy steel is more weathered than that and with decades of booze behind us, we are picked enough to not feel the effects of the heat. Their opening bats, however, were quite hard to pin down. Our openers of Hodderoff and myself, Yuri, were being hit about a bit. The pitch was bouncy and anything short was being attacked and sent to the boundaries. Now, I would like to avail you with lots of details from their innings, but their score book was less than well kept, so I will rely on a few splendid memories.

Jontin (Now on the VCC side) was caught by Vlad from bowling by Busteroff. Marx-B caught and later bowled out Bee, Stocko and Shelley. A great bowling performance by the skipper and great leadership shown. Ripper and Atif both retired with 54 and 53 each, bravo! These scores set up the VCC for a most respectable end total. The other wickets were less expensive for us, Madders run out for 26 and Kankanamge caught and bowled by me! A series of flash frames is all I remember. But apparently, after the middle drive came back at me, I tipped left and secured the bowl – I myself am still somewhat impressed, eve though i have almost no memory of pocketing the ball at all!

20140621_201822
Matt barbecues his daughter on spatula

Other great actions in the field? Top marks to Sewelski for the enigmatic and balletic stop, roll, recover, roll and throw we have ever seen. We wondered when it may end but as ever with Sewelski, it aint over till the fat lady sings and she was in the pavilion guzzling egg mayo sandwiches. Standing beside Robski whilst he wicket kept impressed me! Robski now has hands like leather as he was stopping very fast balls from Busteroff. And the rest of us kept Robski guessing! Great work.

Top thanks and congrats to Matt (Marx-B’s brother in law). A man who is more accustomed to the rugby field than a wicket. He was kept very busy for us in the field – Thank you, comrade! And finally, great throwing in the field all around and especially from Busteroff and the Hodders.

Finally we got to tea and escaped the heat. A little about Halstead CC? Twizzleoff, son #2 of Captain Marx-b, is a regular player at Halstead. We can imagine him cutting a fine presence there, amongst the hedgerows and sheep of Essex. Poor sheep. Our roving fixture with the VCC has regularly been arranged by Marx and today’s was no exception. A lovely pitch and surroundings.

Our innings and we had a goodly total to reach. I remember several conversations throughout the match that had us predicting 130/140 score. We would have been proud still but little did we imagine scaling the heights we did. And how did we? Well, from the start it felt a little like an SCC match. We sadly lost Vladimir Boringski, Brandonovski and Sewelski for 8, 4 and 1. Although of course, fine dotting! Then the brothers’ Hodder, Sam and Tom were out there together. However, with Sam nursing an injury and Tom injuring a nurse, the expected double century came out to 12 and 4. But great boundaries.

Father and Son, Marx and Busteroff to the crease, please. What followed was a partnership of an hour and a quarter and and an addition to the tally of over eighty runs. Marx, careful and protective with spurts of adrenalin laced vigor. Busteroff, youthful, vigorous and moments of nail biting risk. But smashing. Busteroff taking 81 with twelve 4s and a 6. Marx on 42 with seven 4s to boot. Top work comrades.

New blood Matt survived eight balls brilliantly well. Congrats on a fine debut. Then Robski came in with the bit between his teeth. Jeepers, in a few balls he had take four 4s and created 21 runs for us before being bowled by Jontin. Good addition, Robski, thank you! The last two in were myself for 6 n/o and then Ilyeva. He had to survive three balls for us to be not all out. And guess what, he did! Beautiful work comrade commissar treasurer!

Comrades, we had a great game and achieved our highest score. We shall have a win one day, but what we did win was a moral victory in challenging our old foes to play up and not down, for if we had taken perhaps four stronger overs, we would have beaten them. The glory of the game is in the playing of it, the comradery of the teams and players and in the knowledge that sportsmanship was upheld.

Yuri

SCCvVCC2014_SCCInnings
SCC v VCC 2014 SCC Innings

 

 

 

SCCvVCC2014_VCCInnings
SCC v VCC 2014 VCC Innings