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Played at Woodford Green
Report by Hassan Khan (captain)

 This was Old Fallopians' first Sunday fixture of 2017. On a placid pitch showing little sign of swing or seam and a slope from left to right, Woodford Green got off to a flying start. With myself (Hassan) and Israr having little impact, a complete change produced good results. Leggie Farhad bowled superbly with good changes of pace (3-31) and was backed up well by offie Steve Hamilton (2-23), who persisted with a leg stump line that cramped the Woodford sloggers.

Defying age as well as the heat, Tim & John bowled 16 overs in tandem. Thus Woodford were kept to a relatively manageable 261. Crucially, they batted only 35 of the allocated 40 overs, thanks to 2 tail-end wickets in 2 balls from Azaz and all our bowlers being complemented by the sharp wicketkeeping of Rich Hay.

A competitive total looked insurmountable after early wickets were lost, particularly that of 2016 centurion Rich Hay for just 16. When yours truly joined Azaz, things were looking precarious but together we batted sensibly to take the total up to 150. A second mini-collapse ensued and Woodford smelled blood.

Steve Hamilton, suffering cramps from his superb bowling effort, limped to the crease. A low in-swinger thundered into his pads - LBW and Tim, masterful exponent of the cross-batted forward defence [ahem! ... ‘misplaced’ might be a fairer description – TC], joined Azaz ... cue cartwheeling off stump! Still 70 needed to win.

With a meek OFCC defeat looking certain, this cricket match now metamorphosed into a Homeric epic. Azaz became Achilles, slaying the complacent Woodford bowlers to all parts; with all their players around the boundary, except bowler and wickekeeper, Azaz's arrow-like placement continued to pierce the field.

For support he had John Shaw, initially viewed by the Woodford bowlers as a Trojan Horse [pantomime horse? -TC], but later on providing vital resistance, his muscular forearms toned after 30 years of carrying the OFCC kit bag!!

Alas, time and tide wait for no man...with scores level John, by now looking older than Zeus, hurled his sinewy frame for the winning run.... the gargantuan frame of Woodford's keeper Nathan started moving towards me at square leg, like a giant boulder, as I cried: "NOT OUT"!

At this point the Woodford captain pulled 3 stumps out of the ground and conceded the match. After a few moments of confusion, the OFCC realised they had won and celebrated. Azaz's peerless 171 not out had sealed a great victory for us.

Clipped away: Abdul Aziz flicks the ball through the field                                 Photo: Tim Castle

More pictures from the game here...

Woodford Wonders: (L-R standing) Ali Naqvi, John Shaw, Azaz Khalil, Steve Hamilton, (L-R kneeling) Tim Castle, Farhad Waqar, Hassan Khan, Israr Khalil. (Not shown: Abdul Aziz, Rich Hay)

More pictures from the game here...

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