At 47 for 8 against a strong Clontarf bowling attack, the game looked up for the U13As. Wilhelm, it almost goes without saying, reached retirement with 33, but only Oliver J-C offered him real support, as Malahide wickets fell to good bowling, careless running and ill-chosen shots. Cue a critical ninth-wicket partnership between Mathew (19) and Ellis (10*) who restored sanity and respectability with intelligent and resourceful batting.
Even so, 86 looked a difficult total to defend, but the boys took the field determined to do so. Opening bowlers, Oliver J-C and Wilhelm, kept runs tight and then Mathew, Josh, Michael, Zohaib and Oliver M exercised a stranglehold on the Clontarf batting. Michael (3-5), Wilhelm (2-14) and Mathew (1-8) took the wickets assisted by catches from Oliver J-C, Oliver M, Josh and Mathew and a run out by Oliver J-C. It was another excellent exhibition of fielding, not least by Daniel who stopped at least 4 boundaries at extra cover, Finn who showed exactly how to get body behind the ball and the ever-reliable Jack orchestrating things from behind the stumps. Malahide restricted Clontarf to just over 3 an over to win by 20 runs, a remarkable performance.
The team has really worked hard to ensure the season ended with two wins on the final weekend. The results read won 6, lost 6, but a more important statistic for the team, the U13 squad and the future is that during the season over 20 boys and one girl played for the A team.
I’d like to thank my fellow U13 managers, Robert and Kym, for their advice and assistance and to Ann, Kirsty and Robert for scoring. The team couldn’t have functioned without the support of the parents. I was delighted to see that at most games each player had a least one parent giving encouragement from the boundary and, in the long run, that will be the most treasured average for kids and adults alike.
Well done to all on a season full of excellent individual and team performances and fond memories. Rest up this winter and come back to Malahide CC for more cricket next year.
Neil