2012 Season Match Reports

Lavant vs Lynchmere, 1st September

Lavant eventually held out for a draw in a match that could have gone either way at Lynchmere. Electing to bat, Lynchmere found it difficult to get the ball away against Stross, who sprayed it around in lively fashion, and Nichols who removed both openers with his seam and swing variations. Charman and Moore rebuilt carefully, adding 64 for the third wicket, before Banks made the breakthrough, snaring Moore for 23. Two wickets from Brooker, including Charman for 44, left Lynchmere on 95 for 5 with only 20 minutes to tea, but a late flurry from Mitchell (26 not out) and Tyler got them up to 149.

Lavant found scoring equally difficult, but made a solid start, adding 47 for the first wicket so that 101 were required off the 20 overs with 9 wickets in hand. However Lynchmere kept it tight and when Cain caught and bowled Stevens (51) and Brooker (36) perished miscuing a big drive the asking rate had risen above 7. Thereafter Lavant kept chasing but wickets tumbled and Portsmouth and Nichols, batting with a runner, had to see out the last 7 balls, leaving Lavant 128 for 9. Moore claimed 4 for 19.

Lavant vs Lynchmere, 18th August

Man of the match Stevens scores 73 Not Out, takes three wickets, two catches and provides the tea as Lavant beat Lynchmere. Lavant and Lynchmere had both been let down by their opposition so in a quickly rearranged game Lavant and Lynchmere played on the hottest day of the year at Lavant; this made up for their cancelled match in rain soaked May. Lavant won the toss and had no hesitation in batting first and despite the loss of an early wicket Lavant quickly began to score freely. Stevens, batting at number 4, began to score all around the wicket, depositing some huge sixes into the fields. Stevens was supported by the other Lavant batsmen which allowed skipper Wignall to declare on 196 twenty minutes before the scheduled tea interval. This extra twenty minutes proved vital as Lavant set about winning the game. Nicholls removed both openers in his first match for several weeks and then the slow left arm spin of Hall made inroads into the Lynchmere batting. A terrible run out mix up gifted Lavant the wicket of Lynchmere’s skipper and Stevens bowling from his favourite end cleaned up the Lynchmere tail with two overs to spare and Lynchmere ended on 115 all out.

Lavant vs Twelfth Men, 12th August

Lavant beat Twelfth Man b y five wickets in a low scoring game. The previous two matches against Twelfth Man had ended in draws so skipper Wignall had no hesitation in asking Twelfth Man to bat first in the belief that Lavant, in their current form, could chase down a total despite some key players being unavailable for this match. Twelfth Man started brightly but lost wickets at regular intervals with no partnerships being built. Lavant held all their catches with Stevens taking two wickets and holding three catches being the pick of the attack. Once Banks had claimed three wickets for no runs the Twelfth Man innings was in disarray and they closed on 68 all out and a very early tea was taken. Lavant again didn’t manage to make a good start losing two early wickets which could have been a third if Burford hadn’t been dropped before he and Carroll took the game away from Twelfth Man. Both batsmen perished in the space of a few balls and it was left to Banks to polish off the winning runs with two boundaries through mid wicket to give Lavant a win by 5 wickets

Lavant vs Boxgrove, 4th August

Centurion Brooker and Rawnsley’s 5 wickets overpower Boxgrove. The return match of the local derby between Lavant and Boxgrove was played at Boxgrove following the draw in the away game at Lavant earlier this summer. Both Boxgrove and Lavant dropped catches and the outcome of the match could have been completely different if those catches had been taken, proving yet again the old adage that catches win matches. Lavant batted first and the two openers negotiated the lively opening spell with the new ball. At the fall of the first wicket Brooker started his epic innings and carried his bat reaching 109 not out. Boxgrove didn’t help their cause dropping Brooker four times on the way to his century. All of the other Lavant batsmen supported Brooker and Lavant’s innings closed on 209 at tea with Banks hitting 23 not out in record time. Boxgrove clearly decided from the outset that they were not going to chase down this total and had decided to play for another draw. Chamberlain as usual was obdurate, crafting a well earned 34 as Lavant set about their task of winning the game. Stevens bowled well with little support from his fielders, but first change bowler, Rawnsley, at the other end and took control of the game and had an inspired spell of 5 for 16. Banks, Stevens and Burford cleaned up the Boxgrove tail and Lavant won by 122 runs. Over drinks in the Anglesey Arms both teams agreed that it had been another good game between the local sides with high expectations for the fixtures nest summer.

Lavant vs Tillington, 29th July

Thunder, rain and Tillington overpower Lavant. What started as a bright summer’s afternoon with a hard grassy pitch with a lot of life quickly turned into a game of attrition and soaking wet conditions as the bad weather took hold and swept over the high Sussex Downs around Tillington. Lavant lost the toss and were asked to bat and almost immediately the Tillington bowlers were on top as the ball climbed off a length into the rib cages of Lavant’s opening pair. None of the Lavant batsmen managed to build an innings and as the rain came the players were on and off the field till finally an early excellent tea was taken in the hope that the weather would clear. After more than an hour’s delay Lavant continued their innings on sodden, slippery strip and were eventually all out for 93. Tillington lost two early wickets but this was all Lavant could manage as Cowell made batting look easy, dispatching the ball to all parts of the ground and racing to 61 in under 16 overs to give Tillington an eight wicket win just as the rain again came in from the west to end a damp game of cricket.

Lavant vs Hadley Wood Green, 21st July

Conditions were the winner when Lavant entertained tourists Hadley Wood Green in a one-sided draw. With both sides desperate to play some cricket a slightly longer than usual game was agreed. The tourists eschewed the normal convention of batting first on a very slow, but otherwise well-behaved track. Once adjusted to the lack of pace, which allowed batsmen to play almost anything off the pitch, Lavant prospered, with all the top order making runs as they racked up 207-3. Steve Brooker amassed a masterful 90 not out and for the visitors, youngster Josh Steele bowled with a maturity way beyond his years to claim the best figures of 1-25 from 7 overs.

After tea it became almost immediately apparent that the tourists’ ambitions did not extend beyond survival. Lavant’s six bowlers went through the gears, but the conditions made taking wickets largely a matter of waiting for batsmen to make mistakes. The wily Banks winkled three out, but Henman carried his bat for 27 over 43 overs – an unusual feat of concentration – and the tourists finished on 71 for 7 wickets.

Lavant vs Salthill, 1st July

A man-of-the-match, all-round performance by Mark Stevens saw Lavant to a 5 wicket win over Salthill. Asked to bat first, Salthill took time to adjust their game to the Lavant conditions as Stevens removed four of the top five for just 15 runs in 8 overs. Nichols chipped in with two more wickets to leave Salthill on 42 for 6. However, Johnson (33) with King and then Holder (20) patiently added 91 as Lavant used seven bowlers, finally dismissing Salthill for 137.

Although the required run-rate looked modest, stroke making was never easy. Tidy bowling from Holder (2 for 7) and King (2 for 18), well supported in the field, applied the pressure and Lavant lost both openers for 20. Brooker and Stevens then put together the critical partnership, adding 76 before Brooker was bowled for 33 and Nichols followed immediately for a duck. Stevens pressed on until a freak missed caught and bowled chance at the other end ran him out backing up for 48. Salthill sensed an opportunity but Carroll, playing positively and with freedom, struck a crisp unbeaten 26 to see Lavant home with an over to spare.

Lavant vs Steep, 17th June

Lavant travelled to Steep for the first time and came away with a 5 wicket win in a 35-over game. Steep chose to bat and began steadily against some accurate bowling from Rawnsley and Nichols.  Knight, in particular, played some sumptuous straight drives, before being bowled by Rawnsley in the ninth over for 28 when the score was 34. Thereafter, Steep were never able to put together a decisive partnership despite looking solid. Stevens came into the attack to claim 3-16, Rawnsley took 3-29 and Nichols conceded just 12 runs from his 7 overs. Smith led the resistance with a fine 33 before being caught on the boundary by Stevens off Hall in the 31st over.

Set to chase 112, identical to the target they had notably failed to reach the previous week, Lavant began cautiously and lost Stevens early on. The cricket became attritional as P Burford and Brooker played circumspectly before Burford was lbw for 14 with the score on 37 in the fifteenth over. Brooker and Banks then put together the match-winning partnership, adding 59 before Banks was bowled for 32. Brooker saw Lavant home with 8 balls to spare to finish on 50 not out.

Lavant vs DACD, 9th June

Lavant gift DACD a win with a miserable batting performance. Lavant’s first away game of the season was against DACD in Rowlands Castle. DACD batted first and scored slowly against Lavant’s accurate bowling attack and good fielding. Brooker and Hall, the first change bowlers broke the opening partnership and thereafter DACD wickets fell at regular intervals with no batsmen able to reach double figures until Wyatt scored a brisk 19 runs before being the eighth DACD batsmen to be bowled as their innings closed on 111. Lavant at this stage fancied their chances of knocking off the runs after tea. What followed was an abject display of batting in the words of Lavant’s skipper as wickets were gifted to DACD, two catches offered from batsmen chasing wide balls, two needless run outs and two stumpings and Lavant’s innings was in disarray. Banks was the only batsman to reach double figures as Lavant collapsed in a heap for only 61 runs with one of their worst batting performances for many years.

Lavant vs Boxgrove, 2nd June

Lavant and Boxgrove’s attempt to get the Jubilee weekend off to an entertaining start petered out in a tame draw. Asked to bat first, Lavant lost Stevens early, but the familiar pairing of Peter Burford and Brooker then added 96 in 20 overs before Brooker fell just short of his half-century. Burford pressed on to reach 74, with support from brother David (19) and Rawnsley (27), enabling Lavant to declare on 191-6 and take tea early. Langton was the pick of Boxgrove’s seven bowlers with 3-30 from 10 overs.

Boxgrove started brightly with Thorpe looking in ominously good touch, but Stevens extracted some extra lift to have him caught in the gully by Brooker for 27. Skipper Holl followed in the next over, lbw to Rawnsley, and once the usually obdurate Chamberlain played on to Howick for 0 with the score at 56, Boxgrove’s ambition died. Thereafter Lavant rotated their bowlers, but lacked the penetration or ingenuity to prise out their opponents, who finished on 130-5, with Howick and Rawnsley taking 2 wickets apiece.

Lavant vs Hawks, 26th May

Banks takes 6 wickets again in a match this season. Lavant’s opening partnership collapsed again after an improvement the previous week. Brooker steadied the innings with support from Dale and Burford until one suicidal call too many saw Brooker run out at the non striker’s end. There was a mini collapse in the Lavant middle order until Rawnsley and Banks set a defendable target of 162 at tea. Hawks quickly set after the runs with the ball being hit very hard to all parts of the ground with countless retrievals from the adjacent field. Hawks scored nearly 100 for the first wicket and were in control until two well taken catches by Sands and a needless run out saw the game change and Rawnsley and Banks raced through the Hawks lower order to win the match by 20 runs and four overs to spare.

Lavant vs Westbourne, 20th May

Westbourne’s pitch was still recovering from the earlier torrential rain so the venue was switched to Lavant for the first time that these two clubs have played against each other for many years. Lavant batted first and made a slow but steady start to their innings. Brooker came in at number three and accelerated the run rate scoring a well deserved fifty supported by Burford. Both wickets fell followed by a mini Lavant collapse before Rawnsley and Banks took the score to 184 at tea. Westbourne started their reply slowly with some good fielding by Lavant to restrict the flow of runs. Both of Westbourne’s openers increased the tempo and runs started to flow freely. The run chase was on and with two of Westbourne’s batsmen each scoring more than fifty they passed Lavant’s total for the loss of two wickets with two overs to spare.

Lavant vs Hawkley, 13th May

Lavant’s Hero Banks takes 6 for 15 and scores 18 Not Out. It was the first game of the season for Lavant and Hawkley and it showed as all the players, from both sides, found it hard to score runs on a damp and soggy Lavant strip which resulted in a very low scoring game. Lavant’s skipper Wignall won the toss and invited Hawley to bat. Hawkley’s first two wickets fell cheaply. With Rawnsley tiring after four overs Lavant’s Banks took control of the match with an inspired spell of 6 for 15 including a one handed return catch from a very firmly hit on drive from Hudson. Stevens, Rawnsley and Hall cleaned up the other Hawley wickets for their final total of 45. Lavant started badly with their first three wickets falling for two runs. Elphick steadied the innings with Stevens but both fell to their first ball after tea and it was up to Banks and Burford to complete the task with Banks hitting the winning runs with a six over deep square leg. A ten over beer match followed and Banks continued his innings and batted throughout for Lavant’s total of 55. Hawley in reply started strongly in their run chase but ended three short on 52. Despite the low scoring match it was a good afternoon of village cricket with all 22 players delighted to playing cricket for the first time this season.

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