Olton's 3rd XI slumped to a disappointing defeat at Redditch on Saturday, collapsing to 85 all out after restricting the home side to 156.
Batting first on a slow, soggy pitch, Redditch relied heavily on skipper Nasser, who struck several sixes in his 65. Olton never lost control of the innings, however, thanks to deft captaincy from Phil Budd, backed up by committed bowling and enthusiastic fielding from a side packed with youngsters.
Chris Clarke was the pick of the attack, with 3 for 49, while George Wilkinson came back from a difficult first spell up the steep slope at the verdant - if sadly sightscreen free - High Duty Alloys sports ground to bowl a tight second burst downhill that included the prize wicket of Nasser.
Ken Paver bowled 10 overs on the trot up the hill early in the innings, finishing with 2 for 43. Calum Reilly stuck to his guns impressively despite some slogging to claim a deserved wicket, and Chris Joiner and Tom Cullen cleaned up an inexperienced Redditch tail.
Olton's reply began well, Budd and Wallis proceeding smoothly until Wallis fell lbw for 12. A clatter of wickets followed, before Andy “Sponge” Spowage briefly steadied the ship. When given out caught behind for 19, somewhat unluckily it appeared, he remained rooted to the crease in disbelief.
The remaining wickets fell rapidly, with only the evergreen Budd – bowled by a shooter after making a serene 33 – showing what was possible for the batsman prepared to apply himself and adapt his shotmaking to the vagaries of the pitch. Redditch seamer Mansfield finished with an extraordinary haul of 9 for 24 from 12.3 overs.
Olton were disappointed to have lost a game that appeared to be there for the taking, against a side that they had beaten convincingly earlier in the season.
The game also featured a Chris Broad-like splattering of the stumps by a disgruntled Redditch batsman that might have brought a quiet word from the match referee. In Olton's innings, meanwhile, Spowage's variant on the “I'm staying here till you change your mind” gambit was perfectly timed at just a few seconds short of outright dissent, and ultimately had all the impact of a raised eyebrow. One of the Redditch openers redressed his side's disciplinary balance by walking just as the umpire was about to give him not out (having failed to spot the edge onto the pad).
