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ISIS CRICKET CLUB 2012 Ground: Queens College, Abingdon Road, Oxford |
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Last Update: 07/05/2012 © Keith Whiter, April 2003 k.whiter@elsevier.com |
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2010 AGM - Captain’s report (Olly Walter) |
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After 3 years out of the position of captain, I looked forward to this season with a mixture of mainly excitement but also a certain amount of trepidation.
Excitement – as it’s a lovely feeling turning up to Queens on match-day, knowing that you are the person who will be striding out to the middle to conduct the toss, and that you are the one to plan the cricketing soap opera that is about to happen: the setting of the field; who to bowl first; who would best serve as first change; who to bowl from which end. And so on and so on. In short, captaincy is an exciting (and extremely challenging) honour bestowed on you by your colleagues, but an honour all the same. Trepidation. Would I be any good a second time around? Would we go on a terrible run of losses early on? Would I be too slow to make crucial decisions, or worse still, not have the bottle to make difficult decisions? One thing captaincy teaches you is that you have to have a thick skin. It is a given fact that whatever decision you make, some will like it, some won’t. If you choose to bowl first, there will be those wishing they were batting. If you choose to bat, there will be those who feel that it was worth a bowl first-up. If you open with Bowlers A and B, Bowlers C and D may feel that you don’t consider them good enough opening bowlers.
Trepidation also due to the number of players that were going to be unavailable for large portions of the season. Even before a ball had been bowled, we were hit with the worrying news that KP and KW would miss significant portions of the season recovering from their health worries. I know I speak on everyone else’s behalf here when I say that we are all delighted that they are both back playing, and playing so well.
In addition to the Keiths, as the season progressed it would turn out that several others, through no fault of their own I might add, wouldn’t be able to play for Isis as much as they normally would– such as Rich A, Brendan, Richie R, Rich S, Dave L, Jakey, Joe, etc. These absences made the task of fulfilling a large fixture list all the more challenging, and made me realise that, though the will may be there, in blunt reality we do not have an infinite pool of players to call from. We are limited in our numbers like any other side; there are not millions of people knocking at the door to enter Isis CC; and as a club, if we are to continue to survive and stay strong, it is crucial we must all work really hard to help bring in new players and nurture them. Everyone should take some responsibility for the acquisition of new players, not just a chosen few.
Thanks There are a number of people that I would like to highlight who have been of particular help to me throughout the season: V.C’s – huge thanks to Jakey, Lester and Dave for doing such a good job in helping me with the team selection throughout the season. Everyone took their turn with the dreaded “book” without grumble or reluctance, and it was very much appreciated. Thanks also to their support as V.C’s on match day – help and advice is always appreciated as captain.
The committee: it would be wrong to single out any specific committee member for extra thanks, but Keith P, Keith W, Nick and Wib have been a tremendous source of help, advice and support throughout the season. A big thanks to all of you for your support to me as skipper.
Roy – I’d like to pay a special thanks to Roy. In a season where it has at times been extremely difficult to get a full team out for games with at times an “all hands to the pump” feel, Roy has time and again helped out with getting hold of players at short notice. Normally those who are young, athletic, and willing to run from here to Timbuctoo in the field as well! It’s been really good this season to see players like Anthony, Harry, Dominic and Luke play more and more, and get better and more enthusiastic as each game progresses, and long may it continue.
Special mention for exploits on the field Lester – Lester has batted really beautifully this season. With an average just a shade under 50, and 5 x 50’s, his presence at the top of the order has more often than not bought a real sense of stability, calmness and class to our batting performances. In my time at the club, I don’t think I have ever seen him bat better, and I know that his debut 100 is just round the corner. His ability to grind out an innings, perhaps when the usual shots are not coming off, has improved enormously, and it is fair to say his pull has been even more majestic than usual!
Keith W and Keith P – after their respective health scares, I was hugely impressed by both of their determination to get back on the field as soon as possible. It’s fair to say that it made a few captaincy decisions quite tricky especially when I know that both would ideally bowl all day if they could, but watching for example, KW’s beaming smile after he took his first wicket after his return was one of my personal highlights of the season. It’s really great to have Ponsford and Whiter back doing what they do so well – putting it on a length, time after time.
Luke – Luke is getting better and better the more he plays for Isis. His stats don’t yet reflect the promise and ability that he has, and I feel that next season has the potential to be a really big season for him. What impresses me most about Luke is the manner in which he plays the game: no situation seems to faze him, and even if he comes in with Isis tottering, he will play positively and aggressively, and crucially, always look to score runs and change the game, as opposed to simply making sure to not get out. His bowling is starting to become a real useful tool to our attack, as demonstrated in the final day win over Ipsden, and he is already one of the top fielders in the club.
Rich S – although he has not played as many games as last season, it is impossible for me to avoid mention of Rich’s class in the 5 matches he has played. With 514 runs at an average of 171, with 4 tonnes and a fifty in his 5 innings, when Rich has played this season, his batting has simply been breathtaking – a real joy to watch. All it needs now is for Joe to teach him how to play the reverse sweep properly and he would have every shot in the book.
Areas to improve Without wanting us to be known as sledgers, I’d like to see us more vocal and supportive of each other in the field next season: too often it is the same 2-3 voices you hear trying to gee up the troops, and this needs to be changed. Bowling isn’t easy, and bowlers cherish the support of their fielders, not just in the actual fielding of the ball, but in their encouragement and vocal support as well.
Fielding wise, everyone should be prepared to put their bodies on the line as much as possible. How many games do we lose and with hindsight think – “if we had kept them down to 15-20 runs less we would have won that”.
Batting-wise, every single one of us should be looking to improve – and no-one is spared this. We need to bat a little more with our heads next season and also, for everyone to take a bit more responsibility on their own shoulders. When each of us walks out to bat, rather than worrying about getting a first-baller, we should be asking ourselves – what is the match situation at this precise point in time? What should I be looking to do in my time at the crease? Am I there to hold an end up, or is it more important for me to get my partner on strike? How is the run-rate looking and do I need to try and pick up the pace? How many extra runs do I think we need for us to post a competitive total on this wicket? Good batting is as much about making decisions for the benefit of the team as it is in hitting the ball, and the best batsmen make the best decisions.
Three champagne moments Wytham away – 30th June 2010 In a classic 20/20, Wytham batted first and posted a daunting 163 for 1 off 20 overs. They hit straight and powerfully, they ran well, and they took advantage of our distrust of the dreadful Wytham outfield by pressurising our fielders at every opportunity, forcing mistakes and overthrows. We trudged off a gloomy, sulky and fed-up bunch of cricketers, and the Wytham boys were cock-a hoop with glee. Enter Jonathan Ponsford, in comfortably the finest batting performance he has produced for Isis. While I was content to pinch singles and hold up an end as his opening partner, JP proceeded to spank the Wytham attack to all parts of the ground in a brutal display of hitting similar to Viv Richards in his prime. Wytham’s jibes and chat, evident when we first walked out to bat, soon disappeared once they realised that JP meant serious business. With Naz providing able assistance after I departed, JP continued to bludgeon his way closer to the total and finally, saw us to victory. Although he finished on an agonising 97 not out, it was a sensational batting performance, powerful, skilful and yet extremely composed, and the beers in the pub afterwards tasted extremely sweet indeed.
OCC away – 25th July 2010 On a blisteringly hot July afternoon, OCC batted first and compiled 210, including a beautiful 50 from their county standard opener who had hit 137 playing for Oxfordshire the day before. This total is normally enough to win most games at our level, especially batting first. However, it soon turned out that keeping them to only 210 on what was a belter of a batting track, and crucially, by depriving their star batsmen of the strike for long periods, turned out to be the defining moment in the game. After removing the classy opener, as our bowling innings went on, we started to turn the screw. Jon Ponsford bowled with hostility, Nick W, Nick H and Joe with good control, and Ryan Newman bowled an impressive 8 over spell of left arm spin, picking up 4 wickets. OCC batsmen looked confused and what had threatened to be a score of 250+ was instead, 210. Isis replied with men around the bat and an opening bowler who was steaming in. However, fast bowling is of no use at all if it is wayward, and Lester and I quickly found ourselves being offered up plenty of fast long hops and full tosses to caress to the boundary. The opening partnership went on and on, with us both getting more and more confident and starting to play some really good cricket shots. After we passed 150, and I had got out to a googly that had utterly bamboozled me, Australian Jeff Stewart, on debut, continued the controlled hitting. With Lester marshalling the situation and ensuring that the run-rate was always on track, we ended up coasting home to victory by a whopping 9 wickets, Lester finishing on 80 not out. With cool heads, both in the batting, but also in the controlled bowling performance, the best team had won what was a fascinating and enthralling match.
Ipsden away – 19th September 2010 On the final game of the season, Isis and Ipsen served up their usual crackerjack contest. With Isis batting first, I was distraught to chop on to my stumps for a duck on my final innings of the season and gloomily trudged back to the pavilion. However Wib (15), Luke (24), Jakey (25) and a wonderful 50 from Allan East saw us post a pretty impressive 149 from 35 overs. Easty’s innings in particular was a gem and he thoroughly deserved a half-century. Never has the phrase runs on the board been so apt, as Ipsden went into complete meltdown in their attempted run chase. Nick Wyatt and Alf Symons opened the attack and both bowled superbly, putting the pressure on tight lines and lengths that saw the run-rate rise, whilst also taking 3 crucial wickets. The Blatchfords then showed what a devastating father/son combination they can be, with Luke taking an excellent 3-5 off 4 overs. With Joe also coming on to bowl and taking a wicket following a harrowing finger break earlier on in the season, Isis skittled Ipsden out for a paltry 45 all out.
In Conclusion So all in all, to sum up I would have to say that it was a challenging, though enjoyable season in which to captain. At times our performances were high-class, exciting and full of energy and great skill/athleticism in the field, and at times they were lethargic, frail and lacking in real fighting qualities which are crucial in cricket. We are at times a real Jekyll and Hyde side, and one thing that we must all try and improve on for next season is to become more consistent, especially in our fielding and our batting.
Thank you for your time and I hereby submit my captain’s report for 2010. |