THE FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT !

An Amazing Performance!   writes Rob Kusel

It was an amazing U18 performance in the final to cap a brilliant festival week. Chichester Priory were our opponents, well-known and firmly established as our chief festival rivals since U12 days, so an extra incentive, if any were needed, to bring home the festival trophy to Fulking! Our week began with frustration—an understatement for sure—when Arundel made no effort at all to chase the 250 we set them in 41 overs. The Blockathon we were forced to endure (81 for 5 off 41 overs) made the boys all the more determined to win the remaining three games, using their frustrations as fuel to propel them to their goal of a spot in the final. This was duly achieved by the barest of margins—by 0.1 NRR—with wins over Eastbourne, Felbridge, and Henfield. So, in the final, and for the 5th consecutive time, we lost the toss and were put into bat on a somewhat uneven-looking surface, which didn’t worry us. Runs on the board in a final are always the best currency!

Joe M and Felix V started positively until the former was taken neatly at slip, giving Chich the breakthrough. Felix started to find the boundary with increasing regularity, with Stan T matching him for pleasant stroke play until he was undone by a brute of a ball that took off on a length and edged to the keeper. Archie E joined Felix who had enjoyed a stroke of luck being dropped at mid-off, and both played an array of attacking shots all around the ground, delighting Nomads fans and silencing the hitherto chirpy Chich players. Felix (49) was bowled by a beauty, the only ball their left-arm spinner managed to turn all day, which brought in Lian F, who continued to attack with Archie, timing the ball particularly well on a tricky surface and propelling our total towards 200—certainly above par on that wicket—before being adjudged lbw for 47. Ollie H, an U13 player mature and composed beyond his years and a last-minute addition to the side, supported Archie brilliantly, playing some lovely shots of his own. Archie fell for an outstanding 84, the best I’ve seen him play for sure, and with late hitting from Will H, we reached an impressive 255 after 40 overs. Confidence was high at tea but there was no complacency, with lots of focus on finishing the job!

Both Felixes opened with an outstanding display of fast bowling. Felix M bowled Chich danger man Harry W out with the perfect inswinger, and Felix V’s pace was too much for numbers 2 and 3. At 15 for 3, Chich were seriously up against it. A slight recovery followed until a smart bit of fielding from Will H resulted in a run-out, making it 41 for 4, and then Zidane K swung one back in to bowl the new man first ball. Chich were really rocking at 5 down and going nowhere fast. At this stage, the run rate was about 8 per over, and Nomads could start to smell the faint scent of victory. Alex K came on and immediately ended what was threatening to become resistance with Sam M taking a steepler of a catch at mid-off. Then Sam came on to bowl and took care of their top scorer, with Lian taking a smart catch at slip. At 85 for 7, one could almost hear the sounds of cars starting and ‘larger than life’ ladies warming up their vocal cords. Alex finished it off with 3 quick wickets, and Nomads U18 had completed a comprehensive win.

MOTM award went to Felix M for his aggressive batting up front and seriously pacey 2 wicket opening burst, although Archie E was a close second.

It was a truly fantastic and enjoyable week with some outstanding performances, but, to refer unapologetically to the book of clichés, it really was a superb team effort with every player contributing. A quick shout-out to Jack Bunday, who scored a crucial 50 against Eastbourne, and Adam, who missed the final but had batted phenomenally all week. Best of luck to all the other age groups for their festival weeks. We really are spoiled for young talent at PNCC!