After the bitter disappointment of Middleton on 22nd May our 1st team bounced back with a powerful performance at Horntye Park yesterday. Kash should and will grab the headlines but there was so much more to admire about a strong team performance all held together by a 1st team skipper who had a brilliant day himself. Dan made some key decisions which worked out perfectly and made some excellent comments to keep his team simmering away. It was a near perfect display!

After winning the toss Dan made his first good decision to bat. The track looked a little green and slow but outfield nicely cut and speedy. Our blossoming opening pair of Nathan and Jake showed up again up top. This time it was Nathan who proved invaluable as he held up an end right through to the 35th over. For any young opening batsman looking on Nathan showed all the attributes needed for the task. He might of got lucky on two but he got his head down and chipped away for a brilliant inns of 62 off 104 balls. Nathan if you are reading, proud of you mate!

Danny I was going well on 13 but was adjudged to have got a nick on leg side sweep. He stood his ground but the finger went up and he had to go. The skipper himself got a jaffa from ex Sussex pro Harry Finch on 11. Until that point Phillips was looking to push the score with a couple of quick boundary’s. The inns gained engine room momentum with Kash 63 off 97 balls and 17 year old Bertie 25 off 24 balls. A very quick 48 partnership. With the Nomad tail trying to put the icing on a very good batting performance that man Harry Finch cleaned up for a well taken five for.

The Nomads rested on good score of 206 all out just 5 balls shy of the allotted.

In reply Nomads opened up with pace from one and in Nav and spin from the other in Adam. On a turning deck it was always going to be a spinners day. The decision to open with Adam was the first of great decisions by the skipper. O’Brien who looked to be ‘out of sorts’ with himself and his team mates for most of the day suddenly came alive. He took out the dangerous Finch for 5, Hoadley for a duck and Dilshan for another duck. In quick order he had ripped out the Hastings top order.

With Gillespie (29) and Scowen (37) rallying for Priory Dan made another call to bring on Bertie from the fire station end. With his first ball in the Sussex Premier League Gillespie top edged to the boundary where the brilliantly athletic Danny I took a safe catch. There was celebration all around ! Bertie went on to secure excellent figures of 2 for 27 off 10.

But it was Kash who couldn’t put a foot wrong on the day. Not only did he have to dash 70 yards to field and save a boundary he found line and length to take three very important wickets for just 30 runs.

There were some late nerves when Hastings legend John Morgan (45 n.o.) looked to be guiding his team ever closer. However Phillips had an answer to that as well. He calmly and surprising brought Nathan Poole on to bowl from the fire station end. Nathan bowled quite beautifully to create a number of dot balls and pressure. He also took a wicket.

Pace finally had its place in the sun went young Danny I took the final wicket. A win by 39 runs and 28 massive points in the bag.

We caught up with Kash and Bertie after the game. Kash said ‘ we hung around and tried to bat the overs and see where the partnership took us, it was a simple plan’ Asked if Kash could give the young man some advice Kash replied ‘ perhaps I need to take some advice from Bertie, I take my time to build an inns while these youngsters quickly come in and take the game away from the bowlers!’ We asked Bertie about his 1st wicket ‘it felt pretty good and it was great see Danny under the ball’ About the win Kash said ‘ A much needed victory’

Dan Phillips said ‘It was a really good win, Hastings are a very good team’ In terms of Nathan ‘ he hasn’t bowled for a while but we knew it was a spinners deck and he wanted a go. He performed very well’ As to his decisions ‘ its was good today sometimes things go for you and sometimes they don’t!

Bowman said ‘many thanks to Hastings for looking after us and good luck to them in the coming weeks. From a fans perspective it was a very good game of cricket with some exciting passages of play. Even sunny weather turned up! Nomads were deserved winners as they seemed to have all the bases covered and were able to continually come up with the big plays. Going forward there are a lot more runs to be had from the team. I challenge the team to be scoring over 250 next time out.

‘As for MOM while Nathan, Bertie and Adam ran him close the award goes to Kash Ibrahim who is proudly sponsored by Cooper and Son.‘

We move on to Three Bridges at the SCMG.