A glorious Sunday afternoon at Midsomer Norton Cricket Club saw the inaugural game of cricket between two teams of players, with a varied range of cricketing abilities, representing local Methodist and Catholic congregations, designed to bring the two communities into closer fellowship.
The Catholics batted first and posted a competitive 153 from their 35 overs, the agreed rules seeing anyone who reached 25 unbeaten retiring to make way for another ‘bats-person’, and the allotted overs being completed no matter how many wickets fell – some batters coming back in for a second go. Due to the varied expertise of those doing the bowling, wides (of which there were many) conceded two runs with no extra ball being bowled, and a blind eye was turned unless the deliveries were way off target!
A large group of spectators then enjoyed the exceptional spread, which had been laid on at tea time (a big thank you to all involved with the preparation) during a leisurely 45 minute interval, before it was time for the Methodist side to go out and enjoy themselves with the bat.
The Methodists scored briskly to begin with, several batsmen retiring not out, before the Catholics regained some control, but in the end, the Methodists had enough time to score the winning runs with a couple of overs in hand, with all who wished to bat having had a go.
The game was played in a wonderful spirit; everyone involved enjoying themselves immensely, and the sight of some of the local clergy unleashing previously hidden cricketing talents was very entertaining for players and spectators alike.
The afternoon finished off with a barbecue – a thank you to all concerned with setting up the experimental fixture and a promise to do it all again next season.
Daniel Shearn