OUTCASTS BEATEN AT SCOTHERN

By Glen Sands

After weeks of frustration due to the wet conditions around the county, Outcasts finally managed to play a game of cricket on Saturday but they were left even more frustrated  as they came so close to beating last season's Lincs League Division One Champions Scothern in a low scoring thriller at the Lincolnshire village.
Outcasts were invited to bat first by the home side and soon found themselves one down as Richard Wroot played a Johnrabble delivery into his stumps having scored five with the total on ten. Opener Oliver Coulman and Scott Buttrick , both products of the youth policy at Hirsts Priory then batted well , taking the total past the half century mark with a display of sensible shot selection and good patience on an understandably slow trackbut Scothern then brought on their ace in the pack Richard Johnson with his special brand of flighted deliveries and the balance of power began to swing. Master Coulman was stumped by the quick silver Steve Bett having made 25 and he was soon to be followed by his father Mark who was well caught by Sam Naughton ,again off Johnson for just two making the score 59 for 3. Buttrick was joined by Andy Lawson and they took the total to 91 before the former was stumped by Bett for 33  giving Johnson his fourth victim then the same combination accounted for Andy Torr and the collapse appeared to be well and truely on. Skipper Russ Fletcher was really unluck to be stumped when the ball cannoneonto the timber off Bett's pads then Jason Whiteley was out to a terrific shin high catch by John Drabble as the score slumped to 99 for 7. Tom Sharpe added a couple before he was Bett's fourth stumping of the innings then Lawson , who had struck two towering sixes in his score of 25 , was caught by Parsley off home skipper Ian Brown and the tail was mopped u by Johnson when he caught and bowled Graeme Fletcher for one , leaving Outcasts on 106 all out , the Isle side losing their last seven wickets for fifteen runs in a spectacular slump !
To their credit they were not down hearted and they came out after tea with a positive attitude which almost saw them pull off an unlikely win. Tom Sharpe and Jonathan Wroot bowled well from the start and both picked up LBW decisions to remove Nathan Pearse and Sam Naughton for three and naught respectively as cothern were reduced to 23 for 2. Opener Harvey was next to go , well caught by wicket keeper Richard Wroot off Sharpe for 19 then Mark Coulman took a splendid tumbling catch to send the attacking Jason Smith back to the pavilion for 17 earning Wroot his second wicket of the innings. If Coulman's catch was good then Scott Buttrick's diving one handed effort to remove number five baman Drabble was out of this world and a pulse of belief began to surge through the Outcasts ranks following his super human leap. Keeper Wroot pulled off another tremendous diving catch off Parsley toake the total 68 for 6 but that brought man of the match Richard Johnson to the crease and it was he who kept his nerve to guide his team home in a real nail biter of a finish. John Drabble was caught by Oliver Coulman off old guard Jason Whiteley for six with the score on 86 then Jon Wroot returned to the attack and instantly  bowled  captain Brown for three to make it 98 for 8 which meant Scothern still required nine to win with just two wickets in hand. Whiteley picked up his third wicket of the innings when bowling Callum Pearse with the total standing at 99 but that man Johnson and his wicket keeping partner Ste Bett held things together to see Scothern home , Johnson stroking the ball through the covers to go to 30 not out and twenty valuable points in their quest to repeat last seasons heroics. Jonathan Wroot finished with outstanding figures of 3 for 15 from ten very tight overs whilst Whiteley and Sharpe  also took three wickets as Outcasts came so close to what would have been a terrific start to their 2012 campaign but it was not to be, leaving them to rue their batting collapse earlier in the game.
Scothern will look to pick up another twenty points on Saturday when entertaining relegated Horncastle whilst Outcasts are on their travels again , heading to Holton le Clay in search of a win that so tantalisingly eluded the on their opening gambit of the season.