RCC 2s beat John Fisher

So, a momentous week for the world of particle physics ending with evidence for the ‘God particle' - the Higg's boson... Awesome! We were right all along; the standard model (electrons, protons, etc...) is actually a fair description of how matter is made up and the Higgs field is out there providing mass for everything in the universe.

Umpiring is never an easy business. Much like the pursuit of mankind's greatest accomplishment - the scientific method, umpiring involves an unenviable search for certainty amongst a gamut of conflicting theories, arguments and counter arguments. But most of all, umpires reach their conclusions just like scientists based on evidence, evidence, evidence!!!

Stephen Kent umpiring for the 2s last Saturday had a game that he can be quietly proud of. Calm, measured and unflappable out in the middle, even when teams are imploring the Thunder Gods in the sky (with an associated rain dance) to show that a ball would have hit the middle of middle, he is fairness personified. There are many unsung heroes at a cricket club who do a huge amount behind the scenes to enable play to go ahead (whatever the weather) and umpires are right up there with the best of them.

The 2s played well on Saturday. The varied bowling attack (a skipper's dream) with different types of slow bowlers and quicker bowlers, did well to get through John Fisher's batting order. Scott Downsborough (3 for 34) on debut for the 2s began nervously but managed to pick up three important wickets. When he did get it right, Downsborough put enough spin on the ball to show that he may become a potent weapon in the future. The catching was generally good. (Apart from a skied drop by the skipper that came down with snow on - the Australian catching method will be employed from now on.) An unforgettable grasp by Steve Miller at deep long on removed a particularly dangerous looking batsman. Said batter introduced himself to the crease with 6,4,4 and then a massive swipe into the air leaving Miller to not only wear the indentations on his chest, but to cling on for dear life and turn the match Roehampton's way. Andre Stevenson tidied everything up behind the stumps; taking the first club stumping of the season and not allowing a single bye past him during the innings. Awesome!

In response, a one-time-only appearance (before he returns home to Sri Lanka) from Ryan Livera (38) batting at the top of the order got RCC off to a flying start. It was a vital opening partnership between Livera and Ross Cameron (27) that quickly put 50 on the board and took the game further away from John Fisher. Without a combination of solidness and aggression at the start of the RCC innings John Fisher would have been given the opportunity to put some pressure on a batting order that has been known to be brittle. Thanks to Livera's hitting, RCC achieved a decent victory against a team who were at the start of the day third in the ladder.

There is still a long way to go in the season with the crucial July/August holiday season yet to come, but the 2s are back in the mix! It will be vital in the next few weeks to get some consistency in the level of performance and to make the most of this week's effort. With availability becoming variable as soon as the long holidays begin, do make yourself known to the club if you are keen and interested in playing. Well done to the all 11 players from Saturday, each and every one contributed and all are showing themselves to be vital parts of the whole RCC 2s machine. Nets Wednesday evening (weather permitting) and it would be awesome to see as many of the squad there as possible.

Cricket clubs like Science itself continually builds on the work of those that have gone before and it's unsung heroes. As Isaac Newton once said: ‘If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.' As the club continues to move further forward it is down to the shoulders of all of those unsung heroes involved in pitch preparation, organisation of the fixtures, colts development, fundraising, committee activities, club development, team selection and all the other hard work that goes on in the week at the club, before Saturday comes around. Most of all thanks to all the umpires and Kath Miller for one of the most awesome teas and homemade cakes I for one have tasted in a while - even if they had bosons in them.

Man of the match: R. Livera.
(report by Hemish Gunasekara)