The Philanderers v I Zingari, Sunday 6th September at Exning Park

As far as end of season fixtures go this must rate as one of the best. Two strong teams slugging it out in near perfect conditions. The Exning ground and pitch had returned to a largely wholesome green colour having resembled an arid desert-like landscape less than two weeks earlier.

I Zingari chose to bat upon winning the toss. Sherwin, in for his traditional annual appearance, bustled in from one end whilst Davidson provided good movement from the other. It was Sherwin who made the early breakthrough inducing a mistake from one of the IZ openers with the score on 8, Chandraker taking a good catch at cover.

Bowling changes came in the form of Hammond first and then Harrison, the young left arm spinner. The former chipped in with two wickets and the latter finished with three, having bowled with great control.

Hoddinott and Tomlin were the stars for IZ, putting on 149 for the fifth wicket. Dean picked up two wickets towards the end of the IZ innings and the persistent Davidson one. There was another good catch from Chandraker and a wobbly one from Pearson, all resulting in IZ declaring on 268 for 9, with Tomlin remaining not out on 103.

The Phillies' reply started in true Gill style with the tall right hander clubbing three quick boundaries before falling on 13. Young Harrison made a steady 32 but it was Hammond and Lockie who set up a fabulous win for the Phillies with 105 and 58 respectively. A vital 30 not out from Sherwin ensured that the home side got over the line with a four-wicket victory and overs to spare.

This was a superb game of cricket played in an excellent spirit on a beautiful ground. Lunch and tea were both splendid. A big thank you to both umpires and both scorers.

From a Phillies' point of view there are some special mentions. Cillian Harrison's all round performance augurs well for him and the sides that he will undoubtedly grace in years to come. Alex Lockie kept wicket really well in far from straight forward conditions and was one of the two architects of a stunning victory. And finally, Will Hammond's century was as sublime as it was crucial - great to have you back Will!

It is likely that this will have been your correspondent's last game. If that turns out to be the case there will be the very fondest memories to take into retirement.

Gerald Coteman

From Rwanda to Exning, Hammond the centurion finally out for 105.

The victorious Philanderers team, minus the hygienic Coteman who was in the shower, and Gill who was on his way to the tin mines in Cornwall. Regular readers will also notice Pimblett in full uniform.