2011 Season

07/05/2011 v. Hailsham (h) Won by 5 Wickets Hailsham 199-9 Pev 202-5

New Skipper, New Beginning?

Pev began their 2011 season with

14/05/2011 v. Robertsbridge (a) Lost by 91 Runs R'Bridge 260-9 Dec Pev 169 ao

Turkeys at Christmas?

Robertsbridge returned to this league, and as is normal in these situations, Pevensey did them the honour of letting them widdle over us on a cloudy away day. Honours were even early on, as GC and the Nugget bowled accurately and without luck, and the score at 14 overs when they both came off was an evens 50-1, with the preposterously short Robertsbridge boundaries unpeppered by batsman accustomed to getting on with it. Sadly the change bowling offered the chance to re-dress this balance, as father and son Collins and Collins put together a 194 run partnership. Opinions differ as to the quality of some of the stroke play (who said slog?), but you can't argue with the weight of runs disappearing back over your head. This platform meant that the collapse that followed was only useful for Pev point getting, as although GC burgled 7-75, and Robertsbridge lost 8 wickets for just 51 runs, they could afford to after the early carnage. 260-9. But! what better way to chase down a large total than to be 27-4 off the first 7 overs. Oh dear. They may have had the luck with catches going to hand rather than in the gaps, but batsmen got over-excited at the prospects of a short boundary and gifted them the game. The middle order put up a fight - Pocknell 27, Hole 33, and Pedroza a dashingly handsome 43* - but we limped, farted and hiccoughed our way to a fairly rubbish 169ao, somehow picking up 14 points from a rather limp-wristed showing.

21/05/2011 v. St Peters (h) Match Drawn Pev 190 St Peters 163-8

Pedro Fires But St Peters Dowse Flames

Pev tbc

 

28/05/2011 v. Crowborough (a) Won by 4 Wickets C'Borough 178 ao Pev 182-6

Peanut Smuggling

Crowborough offers a magnitude of challenges, with decent opposition, it's own weather patterns and cold showers, but Pev overcame all this for their first 30 pointer of the season. This all looked exceedingly unlikely as we bowled first and allowed Crowborough to get to 96-0, through a combination of luckless bowling, rubbish bowling and the perennial favourite, being crap at catching. All this changed in a captaincy masterstroke, as Plum introduced Nick Lewis into the attack. A Pedro run out began the tumble, before 4 wickets (two good, two look-in-the-books) from the veteran swinger reduced Crowborough to 134-6. A few streaky fours eeked them to a reasonable score before Simon Owen (3-25) returned to mop up the tail and we were left to chase 178 off 50 overs.

The second captaincy masterstroke of the day accounted for Plumley himself, as he nurdled one onto his stumps off the opening spinner, and we were 0-1 off the first 2 overs. But cold weather affects people differently, and Gravy's inherent northerness kicked in with applied patience and power as he set to the task. Wallis and he put on 48 before a shooter was toe-ended behind, but Chris Dyer, awoken from one of several naps joined his fellow prop forward, and these two steadied nerves with a dough(t)y partnership of 75 featuring sturdy boundaries and some good walking between the wickets. Dyer's narcolepsy came back to haunt him as he was caught behind for 23, but the lower order all had enough gumption to see us home. Temple gamely slogged 16, Pedro 11, Gravy departed for 65, and Holey clubbed 36*, including another match sealing huge straight six, in what he described as "the coldest conditions this side of the great freeze of 1903", and hurrahs were shared all round.

04/06/2011 v. Herstmonceux (h) Lost by 4 Wickets Pev 160 ao Ceux 161-6

The Mourning After...

Following a magnificent night the evening before to celebrate the Wallis wedding, Pev continued the friendly verve by handing promoted Herstmonceux a victory. Batting first through a haze of good will and boozey eyeballs, Plumley (38) and Wallis (30) applied themselves stoutly, clumping fours and stumbling singles to good effect in an opening partnership of 68. This should have set us up for a score of 200, but the lower order (on this day, everyone from 3 downwards) popped and fizzled out, losing the last 7 wickets for 92 runs. Not good. 160ao.

For a while this looked ample, as Simon Owen flung thunderbolts from the pavilion end, rattling stumps all over the place, and keeping the opposition cowering in cider the pavilion. Supported by GC he had Herstmonceux 29-4, and it all looked rosé once more. Ah, ce la vie, it was not to last. Nugget has to rest some time, and with GC breaking his hand making a pigs ear of a caught and bowled, the Ceux regained the initiative with a 77 run partnership for the 4 wicket. A. Holt slogged and smeared it to all parts for 51, and our walnuts were pickled.

Simon, toes audibly breaking, was re-introduced and picked up 2 more, but there was still time for a 40 run partnership of chips, squirts, edges and dinks that took them home, the ball dropping tantalisingly everywhere other than a fielder. We probably woulnd't have caught it anyway. Opener G. Watson batted through heroically for 47*, Simon earned another free lunch with figures of 15-1-55-6, and everyone else was pants. On the plus side, tea was awesome.

11/06/2011 v. Buxted Park (a) Lost by 74 Runs Buxted 173-7 Pev 99 ao

WARNING: This match report is liable to collapse...

Another weak showing of a batting performance from Pevensey left us with the wrong end of a sound thrashing at promotion hopefuls Buxted Park. With the Plumley contingent having a week off, debutant outdoors Skipper Martyn Tideswell elected to bowl first on a slow seamer. Simon Owen continued his inability to not get wickets, and removed two, whilst GC bowled steady line and length from the pavilion end, in a short spell, that became a medium spell, until eventually he bowled through the whole innings taking 4-80. Chris Dyer took a sharp catch before bowling a pile of dross, but wily leg breaks from Phil Billby kept Buxted in check. At 114-6 the game was very much in our favour, but some frantic yet effective running from their lower order took them to 174-7 off 50 overs. Also worth a mention is some spritely keeping from stand-in grabber Dave Temple, and Filby's first catch since 1992 - a feat he enjoyed so much he took two more in the innings. Well done bowlers.

Our innings had a similar feel to the Robertsbridge/St. Peters/Herstmonceux games - any collapse Sri Lanka can do, we can be worser. 14-1, 14-2, 25-3, 36-4, 38-5, 46-6, 53-7. Wallis got a good ball, but a lot of people just missed straight ones in a batting display more collapsable than an Ikea deckchair. Gravy batted throughout the entire innings for a proper old fashioned captain's knock of 49*, so maybe can be forgiven for running Filby out, and GC tried his hardest with a broken hand to scrap a draw using up 32 painful deliveries at number 11, but the inevitable happened after 39.5 overs. Craig Olive once again enjoyed his visit from Pevensey, taking 6-49 off 20 overs as we were all out for 99. Crap, Crap and more Crap. Still! on a positive note the new kit looks resplendent, and Yvonne Corbishley gets thanked for scoring, but that's about it.

2011 Eastbourne Knockout Trophy Final (18 overs)

14/06/2011 v. Willingdon at The Saffrons Won by 5 Runs Pev 123-6 Dons 118-7

No More The Bridesmaid!

Sat atop the world, in a bubble of delicious victory, Pevensey CC celebrated their barn storming cup final win against local rivals Willingdon.

Winning the toss and batting first on a picture postcard warm sunny evening, Pev were clinically efficient in setting a competitive total. Effective mini-partnerships developed throughout, glued together by a massively important 62 from Jon T Plumley. In a game where every run counts, all the batsmen did a fine job; an exquisite cover drive from Tideswell, quick running from Wallis, consecutive last over 4's from Pedroza - it all adds up. Even losing 3 for 1 in the middle of the innings didn't slow us down, as the Willingdon bowlers and fielders seemed to lose focus. Extras kept the board ticking over - 19 wides in all were a huge bonus, compared to our 1, and although the going was never easy, Plumley's innings had all the hall marks - big straight drives, pushes for galloped singles, and one sensational six carved over point, that got the crowd on its feet. 123 for 6 was job well done.

Holding our nerve was the key - Owen and Corbishley once again got things off to a great start, getting Willingdon behind the rate from the off as well as picking up wickets; the first 6 overs brought 35 runs and 2 wickets, one each. The middle overs were entrusted to Hole and Adams, and although nothing was given away, it was getting close. Willingdon seemed content to wait for the bad ball, without forcing things too much, and whittled their task down to needing 41 from 30 balls, with 7 wickets in hand. The pavilion sounded like they thought they'd won, and something special was needed. Two big go-down-in-Pevensey-history overs turned the game our way. In 12 magic balls, Willingdon scored only 7 runs and lost 3 wickets - one for Adams, two for Owen. And the fielding! Swooping on singles were Lewis, Hole and Stevens close to the bat, and patrolling the ropes, Corbishley, Tideswell and Dyer - every little helps. Wallis pulled the strings like a puppet master, and when 16 were needed from the last 5 balls, it was all over. It was more than fitting that the final ball of the game plopped safely into Plum's hands at deep mid-wicket, to spark ecstatic scenes.

What's left to say? Hooray for the mighty pev, and fair play to Willingdon for losing graciously - shields were passed round, beers were handed out, and every player in the three rounds got a massive slap on the back for getting the first competition win for 35 long years.