One of the hallmarks of Bathampton cricket has always been the ability to laugh in the face of defeat. The home side is prone to making poor decisions and having lapses in judgement. But it knows that, in the end, we are all playing for the love of the game. Once again, last night at KES, this good-humour prevailed.

This was an absurdly high-scoring occasion. Notley finally found the 25 that had so far eluded him. McCauley, once more retired, had to be physically restrained, so desperate was he to resume his barrage at the end of the innings. However, tail-enders Yerbury and Wilf refused to yield. Not only that but they scampered some useful late runs. It was observed that these two may well have set a record for the greatest age-difference between Sloths at the crease (Wilf is, I believe, just 11 or 12 – Yerbury… I wouldn’t like to speculate…).

Like Tom before him, Luc kept looking for big scores post-25, valiantly conceding his wicket in the process. Evidently, others had done similar – since the Sloth total was a dizzying 158 – but I wasn’t there, so couldn’t comment. Newbie Paul did, however, report he’d been bowled first ball in his first innings for Bathampton. Now there’s a true Sloth in the making.

Amid the new-fangled fashion for correct batting and accurate bowling, it was refreshing to have Chairman Russ on hand to show some genuine flair. And genuinely frightening flairs. The old Franks bomb-drop was once more in evidence. And it was quite effective in upsetting the flow of Old Eds’ incendiary opener, Kit.

Fresh was on blistering form, giving Stump something to think about in the fading light. Luc, once again, gave cause for onlookers to question whether he had really not played cricket before this season. Not only did he bowl well but he was invaluable on the long boundary. There, he both saved runs and provided a continuous counterpoint to Stu’s motivational chuntering.

Pick of the crop, though, was Mr Yerbury. Taking two wickets for very few runs, Ric displayed his familiar knack for appearing innocuous but being devastating. He also held onto a vital catch in the deep. Others took wickets at rather greater expense, to-wit Messrs. Notley and McCauley.

Bathampton kept Es to around 6-an-over for the greater part of their innings. However, with 5 or so remaining, it was beginning to look as though they may prevail. Two batsmen were key to this looming upset. Both had retired, meaning that once Eds reached the end of their shortened batting line-up, these were available to finish the job.

As has been well-documented, by the end of these Tuesday encounters, the light – even on a clear evening – tends to fade, if not fail completely. Which is why, in recent games, some Sloths have been incensed by the late deployment of pace bowling. On this occasion, the main objective was to stem the runs. Quick bowling would not only be potentially dangerous but also tactically questionable. So, on came Fresh and McCauley.

Fortunately, as mentioned, the home team are a good-humoured bunch. That home team being Old Eds. Broadford kept on swinging the bat in the gloom and was happy to make 51. Kit did have a word, having  been struck by a sharply-rising ball at pace on the shoulder, but seemed otherwise unperturbed. And, in fairness, McCauley then reverted to spin.

In the end, Old Eds fell short by some 15-odd runs. It had been a valiant fight back and a cracking game. Perhaps Eds were victims of their own home rules. Had they stuck with no LBW and two overs per bowler, perhaps the outcome may have been different. Who knows? And who knows the following:

• • Now Yerbury has revealed that he can – after all – bat, will he be put up the order?
• • Can Mrs Russ be persuaded to run up lurid flair-inserts for the whole team?
• • Is Wilf now grounded, having humiliated his father with the bat?
• • Should pink balls (and, possibly, full-body armour) be made available to the team batting second?

I was going to end there but really can’t THINK OF A CONCLUSION…

Kofi Annan, fair-play correspondent, Slothful Times