With some good rain over the break, the grass had grown vigorously – and the clippings had then clumped after the mower went over the oval. Combined with the sandy patches, the ball just stuck when it went to ground.

West Coburg batted first, and with its slappers in full swing made a score of around 190 off its 20 overs.

Moonee Valley was a bit more sedate, finally falling about 30 runs short. But the outing taught us something – the value of controlled shots to gaps in the field, rather than the high-risk shots over the top.

We got more out of the game that we could take into our two-day efforts after the Christmas break. But the match was good value for the spectators, and potential danger to any passers-by as the ball went flying on a regular basis.


11/1/06