Castle Rising take their catches to beat Castle Acre

Catches are like Sellotape. When they stick, everything sticks. When you get to the crinkly bit at the end, however, nothing sticks and nothing goes where you want it to.

Castle Acre got the crinkly bit in Level One of the Norfolk Cricket League on Saturday and there has never been a truer adage than ‘catches win matches’.

It was dark. It was cold and it was wet. They could have been at home toasting marshmallows.

It was a bad day for catching a cricket ball and Castle Acre dropped seven of them during the game.

The only exception was wicket keeper Jason Fryett who took one catch nonchalantly and made a stumping so fast that he made a small sonic boom around the wicket.

“Welcome back Steve” said a fielder as Steve’s first ball bounced six times.

His second ball bounced five times.

Steve was a bit out of practice but was improving fast.

His last ball didn’t bounce at all. He was economical though.

Both sets of opening bowlers kept a tight rein and batsmen struggled to glimpse the ball through the murk.

For Rising, they kept their heads down and Paul Hudson, Stuart Olley, Ollie Denton and Jamie White all made contributions.

Then came a remarkable innings from Robert Wilson.

The pitch was soft and slow.

Not to Wilson it wasn’t, it was hard and fast to him and he thrashed the ball all over the field.

After a while he was dropped a few times which helped but it was a fine innings.

Highlights of Rising’s innings included, according to the umpire’s signal, four byes through extra cover, which would be a highlight of anyone’s innings.

Commended too was an inside edge through the batsman’s legs which so surprised the fielder that it went through his legs too.

Rising reached 166 in the agreed 30 overs.

Acre were always going to struggle against that total and a good opening spell from Matt Taylor and Vish Betta ensured this.

But Eliot Whiting’s half-century was a gutsy response.

He also caused Rising to field two third men. Or is that mans?

Rising caught a number of good catches and one magnificent leaping salmon one.

Acre reached 122 and gained 10 points in reply to Rising’s 166 and 26 points.

Other scores

Sunday friendly: Castle Rising 154 all out (44.1ov: Simon Bailey 13, Vishaka Bettadahalli Lokesh 51, Matt Taylor 42, Pratish Lukose 13) lost to Royal Strikers CC, Peterborough 155-4 (39ov: Alfie Thomas 1-9, Ajoy John 1-25, Mathew Thomas 1-20, Lokesh 1-29) by 6 wickets.