Tour Reports

Captain's Tour Report 2019

by Andrew Carson

The Western Tour 2019

Touring party: A. Carson and C. Carson (Tour Managers), T. Allen, B. Campion, E. Campion, R. Chalk, D. Ellis, K. Grey, R. Lawrence, A. Lawton, C. Lawton, A. Marshall, O. Marshall, T. Marshall, J. O’Gorman, M. Ogden, R. Parboo, S. Slabbert A. Sykes, N. Trivedi, E. Waker, S. Walsh, M Ogden and J. Wright

Frogs' Scorer: C. Quinn 

Tour entourage: K. Carson, H. Cawker, K. Gregg, Mr and Mrs J. Lawton, A. Marshall, S. Murray, L. Powell, G. Prain, K. Rodger (and Bruno).

Match results: W3 D1 L1 A1

Day 1 - Frogs vs East Woodhay CC

Frogs (won toss) 196-9 (40 overs) beat East Woodhay 136ao (35.2 overs) by 60 runs

The 2019 Frogs tour did not get off to the best of starts as the Wednesday before the opening fixture on the Sunday our opposition unfortunately had to pull out. However, a replacement fixture was found at East Woodhay Cricket Club who had also had their opposition unfortunately unable to raise a side. Big thanks must go to East Woodhay for hosting us at short notice for which we were very grateful.

Arriving at East Woodhay was a very picturesque setting on perhaps the best Bank Holiday Sunday I can remember with clear blue skies and temperatures reaching 28 degrees! Therefore as the Frogs arrived for the first day of tour and took in the surroundings, it was a relief that skipper Andrew Carson won the toss and elected to bat.

Andrew Lawton and Alex Sykes walked out to open the batting but Lawton was soon on his way back, BBQ’ed by his partner Sykes. Lawton turned the ball to the man on the 45 and Sykes called him through only to send him back, Lawton left short and run out for 2. Some accurate bowling from East Woodhay made scoring difficult for the Frogs and only Sykes managed to find the boundary early on. Chalk was bowled for 7 (citing a long day at the Headingley test match the day before!) and Bob Campion was caught for 5 to leave the Frogs 73-3, though soon after Sykes completed a well-made 50. He was joined by Eddie Campion (with Bob being Eddie’s father - both of them play their cricket at Eversley with Sykes) who hit some excellent shots before he was LBW for 9 at 100-4 after 22 overs. Chris Lawton joined Sykes and the two tried to push on the scoring but with the pitch offering some spin and in the face of some good East Woodhay bowling scoring was tough. Sykes was the aggressor in the partnership and was unfortunately dismissed just short of a well-deserved ton for 93, caught on the sweep at short fine leg.

With the Frogs 139-5 from 32 overs the remaining 8 overs were an attempt to push the score to 200 but a steady flow of wickets with Lawton being caught at long off for 18, Owen Marshall perishing in similar fashion for 6 and Jog bowled for 5 the Frogs were stumbling. A late flurry from Wright (14*) and Carson (19) helped the Frogs get up to 196-9 with Tom Marshall coming in at 11 blocking the penultimate ball and then swinging the final one for four.

As tea time came attention turned to the Headingley test match which had been followed in the background during the day. To keep up with the latest, the Frogs had an ipad and East Woodhay had a phone, though not many people paid attention to begin with as the players started to tuck into tea. This was until Ben Stokes started to unleash and with every boundary more pairs of eyes would turn to watch the cricket. We all know how the result completes with one of the most remarkable test match victories and two inspirational innings in their own rights. Tea was extended to about 50 minutes to ensure the drama wasn’t missed and with the East Woodhay stream slightly ahead of the Frogs stream it made for two sets of cheers about 5 seconds apart!

As the players returned to the field (with Jog in a pretty delirious mood) the Frogs didn’t start brilliantly as East Woodhay progressed to 40-0 off 8 but Jono got two breakthroughs as first Andrew Carson claimed a steepler and then Andrew Lawton claimed an excellent catch which was spinning away from him at backward point. From here the two spinners were introduced as Jog found rhythm despite (or maybe enhanced by) his delirium, bowling beautifully taking 4-12 from 5 overs including a classic leg break, leg break, googly set up to win an LBW. At the other end Eddie Campion at the age of 13 bowled a brilliant spell of left arm spin with figures of 8-4-9-1 tying the batsmen down superbly and only being hit for one boundary - East Woodhay were reduced to 72-7. From here Owen Marshall and Bob Campion were introduced and East Woodhay provided stubborn resistance. Both took a wicket and Bob’s leg breaks also provided some danger for Sykes who was keeping. The young batsmen was waiting for the leg breaks to drop and trying to hit them behind him, nearly cleaning up Sykes a couple of times in the process!

The game was finished as Andrew Lawton took a wicket second ball (having been hit for four from the first) to bowl East Woodhay out for 136 in 35.2 overs and a Frogs win by 60 runs. Elgar for the day was awarded to Chris Lawton who nearly reversed over Elgar in the car park who was sitting on top of a suitcase behind Posh’s car! The importance of the suitcase of course being irrelevant in this story in comparison to Elgar.

Day 2 - Frogs vs Wiltshire Queries 

Frogs (won toss) 238-3 dec (39 overs) beat Wiltshire Queries 167ao (35.1 overs) by 71 runs

On Monday the Frogs arrived at Tidworth for their game against the Wiltshire Queries on one of the best Bank Holiday Mondays in recent memory. In the 28 degree heat the Frogs were pleased that captain for the day Callum Carson won the toss and chose to bat. Callum and Andrew Lawton opened the batting and reached 50-0 from 11 overs before Lawton was bowled for 13. Sykes joined Carson and the pair looked to press on the scoring with some attacking batting against the Queries bowling.

The Frogs hundred was brought up in the 19^th over without further loss as both batsmen pressed on the accelerator and played some fine shots all around the wicket. Carson was dropped a couple of times but reached his 50 from 82 balls in the 25^th over with Sykes 32* at the other end. Carson then showed his experience by helping himself to the pre-lunch buffet bowling, before tactically finding the man at deep midiwicket in the last over before lunch for 73, in order to fully enjoy the main lunch buffet.

Just after lunch Sykes was bowled for 53 with his middle stump removed from the ground! This brought Ethan Walker in to join Kieran Grey and the Maidenhead pair (on their Frogs tour debuts) kept up the positive scoring from the Frogs. They put on a partnership of 60 in a mere 5.3 overs with Grey hitting three sixes in his 43* (22 balls) and Walker hitting two in his 25* (17 balls). An impressive batting performance from the Frogs saw a declaration at 14:30 on 238-3 from 39 overs, leaving the Queries a potential 42 overs to reach their target.

Jono Wright and Chris Lawton opened the bowling for the Frogs and after a tidy start the Frogs had their first reward as Wright had Jephson caught behind by Sykes. The Queries continued to look steady although were falling behind the rate as Lawton was replaced after a very tidy spell of 7-2-19-0 and was denied a deserved wicket by a tough chance going down in the cordon. He was replaced by Tom Allen (GT, although the number of nicknames increased steadily through the week!) but it was Wright who made the second breakthrough getting the dangerous Shaw caught and bowled for 19 after the fifth attempt on the juggle. In his next and last over, Jono had his third wicket as Lind was caught behind by Sykes for 3. Jono finishing with excellent figures of 10-2-28-3 and the Queries at this stage 60-3 from 19 overs. GT then got in the act as Melhorn was stumped and then Eddie Campion was introduced and was straight into his work with a wicket as Sutthery was bowled for 2. So at tea the Queries has collapsed from 53-1 to 69-5 from 22 overs.

Tea marked the start of the last hour and a tough equation for the Queries requiring 170 from 20 overs with 5 wickets in hand so the Frogs went on the attack in search of wickets employing some attacking fields. However, it didn’t quite work as Palmer and in particular Streatfield pushed the Queries scoring on with 50 runs in the first 7 overs after the break until Palmer was caught by Carson for 27 from 34 balls. At 118-6 from 29 overs the Queries required a tough 120 from the final 13. However, despite losing Moor for 6 – dismissed LBW by Marshall (who had been brought on from the far end in place of GT) the Queries continued on the attack. Skipper Campbell had joined Streatfield and Campbell’s cameo had reduced the task to 74 from 7.2 overs with 3 wickets in hand to put the game in the balance. Young Eddie Campion though held his nerve to bowl Campbell for 24 from 13 balls and when Marshall bowled Streatfield for an excellent 43 the Queries were 165-9 with 39 balls left. The Frogs last year (under the leadership of Carson snr.) had not managed to take the final wicket but this year Eddie Campion did the business for Carson jnr., finishing with 4-59 as the Queries were bowled out for 167 – a win for the Frogs by 71 runs.

As always at Tidworth the Frogs had enjoyed a good day out on a great ground with excellent hospitality from the Queries. It was at this point of the tour that we said goodbye to Eddie Campion, Alex Sykes, Andrew Lawton and Jono Wright but had welcomed Richard Lawrence for the Devon leg of the tour. A quick shout out must be given to the bowls group who “invaded” the playing area and were waved off by the umpire in the far corner! On the note of bowls, GT managed to complete a whole course without picking up a single point in a game with Eddie and non-playing Andy Carson. He was therefore awarded Elgar! 

Day 3 - Frogs vs Devon Dumplings 

Frogs 171ao (54.4 overs) beat Devon Dumplings (won toss) 132ao (36 overs) by 39 runs

After heavy overnight rain in Devon the Frogs were hoping that the game would still be on against the Dumplings, thankfully it was. However with the heavy rain some of the wicket ends were rather damp and as the pitch wasn’t covered it was soft and green and would evidently provide a test to the batsmen in the first few hours. As therefore to be expected, skipper Andrew Carson lost the toss and as also expected the Frogs were invited to bat. Carson opened the batting with Richard Lawrence and things as expected were not easy. Those that have played with Richard or regular readers of match reports would probably expect this pitch to suit Lawrence’s game of frustrating the bowlers and this was certainly reflected with his very steady 1* from the first 10 overs as the openers found things rather difficult, though didn’t give any chances and at 16-0 had enjoyed the better of the first half hour on the scoreboard.

Things didn’t get any easier during the 90 minute session before lunch as Carson managed to get a few pull shots to the boundary but the excellent Dumplings bowling was making life difficult. Lawrence was dismissed caught behind for 8 from 34 balls in a gritty 50 minutes and at 36-1 Callum Carson came out to join his brother. Unfortunately though the Frogs lost a second wicket four minutes before lunch as Carson backed himself to guide one through the packed cordon, only to be caught behind for 8 and Matt Ogden saw out the rest of the over as the Frogs lunched 60-2 from 26 overs with Andrew Carson 42*.

After lunch Carson was adjudged caught behind for 45 down the legside and when Ogden (24) and Walker (0) followed quickly the Frogs were 92-5 from 39 overs as Simon Slabbert and Tom Marshall came together. When Tom Marshall was caught at 104-6 the Frogs were in a tricky position but Owen Marshall and Slabbert changed the tempo of the innings with some positive batting. Owen’s positive 21 shifted the momentum before becoming one of Bernie Wilson’s three wickets getting caught at mid off. Slabbert was still there though and with Poshy a partnership of 26 got the Frogs up to 170-7 before three quick wickets in search of quick runs saw the Frogs 171ao in 54.4, a very good effort in testing conditions with Slabbert (another of Wilson’s wickets) making a very useful 43.

The pitch was still proving tricky to play shots on and the Frogs knew they were in with a chance, the Dumplings would end up having 45 overs to reach their target of 172. The perfect start came from Tom Marshall as he trapped Roberts LBW in the first over. At the other end was the Bolton legend Stephen Walsh, on his first tour in a number of years but a most welcome addition! Walshy’s eyes lit up as he began to hit the seam and see the ball jag about. His first wicket was a batsmen trying to play an expansive drive and Slabbert caught a stinger at cover – one day the modern batsmen will learn that 400 isn’t a par score on every wicket. Richard Parboo who had also joined the tour on the Tuesday for his first time replaced Tom Marshall and as most bowlers on the day, took a liking to the pitch. Tea was taken with the Dumplings 40-2 from 16 overs, the end of the spell for Walsh, 8-2-19-1 an excellent return.

After tea Parboo picked up Ewen, caught at mid-on for 18 at 50-3 from 18 overs but from here the Dumplings put a good partnership together as Ethan Walker and Chris Lawton came into the attack.  However, from 80-3 the Dumplings fell apart as the Frogs asserted their control. First Lawton had Lewis caught excellently by Richard Lawrence at 1^st slip as the Dumplings became 80-4 and then a wicket fell every over. First an excellent stumping from Grey standing up to Lawton, who had now seen off the two set batsmen. Then Ethan produced a very decent nut to dismiss T.Fogerty, D. Fogerty was caught at mid-off by Marshall off Lawton and Walker got Abbott to glove a short ball through to Grey and the Dumplings were 107-8 from 30 overs. From here the last two were dismissed by Parboo (8-1-19-2) and the excellent Lawton who finished with 6-0-20-4, a brilliant spell of bowling! The Dumplings all out for 132 in 36 overs. A win by 39 runs for the Frogs with 9 overs unused in the day.

After the game the Frogs celebrated their excellent victory with the opposition, enjoying a beverage in the squash club next door. Elgar was awarded to Slabbert for spending an hour trying to locate his car keys, including having to disappear from the field for 10 overs!

So three from three for the Frogs, could they continue the form in the second half of the week?

Day 4 - Frogs vs North Devon CC

Match abandoned                                                              

On Wednesday the Frogs travelled to Instow in very heavy rain. On arrival Andrew Carson met the NDCC groundsman Andy Cameron at 1pm and for the first time in many years at North Devon, it was decided there was no possibility of play – especially with further rain forecast. Therefore as Simon Slabbert departed the Frogs looked for alternative activities – it was at the North Devon Leisure Centre at Barnstaple that they found indoor bowls.

After some practice initial practice two semi-finals took place between A. Carson/C. Lawton vs R. Parboo/C. Carson and T. Marshall/E. Walker vs K. Grey/T. Allen and it was the pairings of A. Carson/C. Lawton and K. Grey/T. Allen that made the final. The Allen/Grey combination was reliant on points from Grey but the polite sledging and gnarling from GT couldn’t go unnoticed in its effectiveness – hence another nickname – The Maestro. However, the quality of Carson and Lawton playing steady and consistent bowls that saw them take the title 9-4 after 8 ends. The other activity sought was the opportunity of the afternoon in the sauna organised by the one and only Mr Keith Rodger. Though Keith not having any trunks meant that Rich had to go and find some for him! After their late lunch the three arrived at the sauna, only to find that advanced bookings were required and there was no space left!

The group then joined up for an early dinner in the Boathouse whereby one of the greatest moments of recent years on tour occurred. As noted earlier, Trev had joined us for two games but unfortunately his first of two was rained off and it was a discussion over an early dinner that earnt Trev Elgar. This reflection will not do the story justice but here goes.

With Andrew Carson having played at Normandy on the previous Saturday a few of the typical Surrey Championship jokes had been banded about during the week but Andy took upon himself to try and convince Trev that the game had occurred in France. So followed ten minutes of hilarity as those around Trev tried to work out whether this was a wind up or not, some of the explanations included:

“The Surrey Championship founders had links with Normandy”

“Match fees get paid in Euros”

“There is red wine on tap”

“The ferry fee is part of the club’s league subscription”

Of course none of these are true but they provided the meat on the bones to the story which Trev went along with, we even later found out that Trev had nipped to the gents but only to research if Andy’s game had been against Normandy which of course it was, no attempt to find out where the ground was! Eventually tour leader cracked and admitted his joke and Tom Marshall who had struggled to keep a straight face behind Trev could finally burst into laughter. It must be said that full credit to Trev who took it fantastically well but was of course awarded Elgar as a result!

Day 5 - Frogs vs SOA 

Frogs 228-3 dec (35.4 overs) score draw with South Oxford Amateurs (won toss) 228-8 (39 overs)

On the Thursday the Frogs were pleased to see a drier day ahead as they travelled to the Valley of Rocks to take on a new tour opposition in recent history. With the South Oxford Amateurs also touring Devon at the same time and the Stragglers game setup for the Friday, this was a great solution for all to get a game at the Valley of the Rocks. Duncan Ellis also arrived to join the party for the last two days of tour.

The Frogs lost the toss but were invited to bat by the SOA captain and both Walker and Grey got off to a very positive start. Walker was the aggressor as the Frogs reached 51-0 from 6 overs before Grey was caught for 17 which included two sixes. Owen Marshall then joined Walker and the two continued on their merry way with Owen talking over the aggressor role in his 42 before being dismissed for with the score 107-2 from 15.1 overs having done the bulk of scoring in the partnership.

Walker then reached an excellent 50 and started to unleash along with Tom Marshall who had joined him - the pair traded blows and the Frogs brought up their 150 within 22 overs. From here Walker really decided to put his foot down including going 4, 6, 6, 4 in consecutive balls as the Frogs neared 200 and Ethan reached 85*. Having then hit the same bowler for another maximum the first ball of his next over, Walker was then caught and unfortunately did not complete a maiden Frogs ton. Ever the man to accelerate the scoring Richard Lawrence walked in at 5. Though whilst Tom Marshall kept the scoreboard ticking, Rich took a rather more sedate approach. As time in the game was tight due to the SOA needing to get on the road to return home the Frogs skipper Andy Carson was keen not to bat too long and was hoping that Tom Marshall would reach a well-deserved 50 being on 46* with an unofficial 3 balls left. However the completion of a leg bye and Richard Lawrence coming on strike saw the skipper declare on 228-3 from 35.4 overs – much to the frustration of Rich!!

After tea the Frogs opened the bowling with Callum Carson (who always seems to get a bowl at the Valley of Rocks) and Big Trev. Callum managed to get two early wickets in his only bowl of the year bowling slingy right arm in duckers, bowling Crouch through the gate and having Lunn caught. He should have had a 3^rd were it not for Trev forgetting to pay attention at fine leg, after a miscued hook from a batsman who had been rushed deceived for pace. Trev bowled well but went wicketless in his opening spell. Callum took himself off after 4-1-13-2 (should bowl more often) and was replaced by Owen Marshall, and the Maestro replaced Trev after his first seven overs. Unfortunately though the SOA batsmen took a liking to the ground and Basford batted particularly well. SOA reached 87-2 with 20 overs remaining requiring a further 142 which is by no means too big an ask on the small ground. The Frogs managed to get a third wicket at 112-3 from 24 overs as GT got in on the act having read the posters on how to bowl off spin by Robert Croft earlier in the day.

However, the Frogs just couldn’t stem the flow of runs as Chalk was given a bowl and managed to pick up a wicket much to the Frogs delight but propelled by Basford the SOA runs kept coming. Normally a wicketkeeper Kieran Grey came on to bowl his seamers and Tom Marshall also came on to bowl five death overs. Basford completed an excellent hundred and the SOA had reduced the rate for the last five overs down to only just over 6 and the Frogs were on the backfoot. However Grey then dismissed Basford for 117 and the Frogs thought they may have a chance to squeeze the game. Off the last three overs the SOA needed 17 to win with 4 wickets in hand but Marshall first conceded 6 and then Trivedi 4 to leave 7 off the last. This boiled down to 2 runs off the last ball from Tom Marshall and although the SOA had lost another wicket the Frogs could only try and save the draw. The last ball was another good Yorker from Tom which was hit towards long off (which is only a 40 yard boundary) but it wasn’t hit very well so that batsmen turned and tried to make it back for a second. Trivedi sprinted to the ball and managed to get it away but his throw was slightly misdirected which meant at the bowlers end Tom Marshall had to collect the ball from his right and throw it two yards to his left to break the stumps, the verdict – OUT! So a score draw with SOA 228-8 from their available 39 overs. A great game of well contested cricket with a very rare result with both teams wondering if they could’ve done more.

This was then followed by fish and chips on the front at Lynmouth and a trip up and down the funicular railway for some. Elgar was awarded to Richard Lawrence for his paddy when being declared on mid over but the earlier plinking meant the skipper had seen enough!

Day 6 - Frogs vs Somerset Stragglers CC

Frogs 257-8 (40 overs) lost to Somerset Stragglers (won toss) 261-6 (38.1 overs) by 4 wickets

The final day of the tour saw the Frogs take on the Stragglers at Taunton Deane, the Frogs first appearance there for a number of years. Richard Lawrence again found a net to park his car in for protection! Richard though had been busy that morning and had popped to the Somerset CCC club shop to get a couple of shirts, one for Callum and one for Andrew Carson – who received a Marcus Trescothick shirt that was compulsory to wear!

In a 40 over game the Frogs lost the toss and were inserted on a pitch with a green tinge. Skipper Andrew Carson opened the batting in his Trescothick shirt with Richard Lawrence and it was Carson that was the aggressor. Despite the skipper’s love for Trescothick the only similarity between the two is perhaps theit limited foot movement at the crease! That being said the Frogs progressed well, reaching 51-0 from 10 overs, until Lawrence was bowled for 21 at 65-1.

Callum Carson came to the wicket who joined Andrew who made a 45 ball fifty. In a partnership of 45, Callum contributed 12 before being bowled at 110-2 from 19 overs, the Frogs 111-2 at the halfway stage as Richard Chalk joined Andrew. From here Andrew somewhat hogged the strike facing the next 24 consecutive deliveries and in this reached his hundred from 75 deliveries with 18 4’s and two 6’s and the Frogs accelerating nicely to 141-2 from 24. The slog sweep that brought up his hundred was Trescothick-esque in name only! Carson was dismissed a couple of overs later for 114, the score now 154-3. Kieran Grey joined Chalky and it was Grey that kept up the momentum for the Frogs. Chalk was caught for 10 at 192-4 after 33 overs but at the other end Grey had been playing some great shots and after Owen Marshall was dismissed for 0, Walker came to the crease. With Grey he put on a partnership of 43 in just 20 balls as the Frogs got excellent momentum in the latter part of the innings. Grey reached his 50 from 42 balls with 8 boundaries and a six. The Frogs then somehow lost 3 wickets for 0 runs including Grey for an excellent 57 to become 242-8 with 10 balls to go, as GT joined Tom Marshall at the crease. The pair added an extra 15 runs to close the Frogs innings on 257-8 from their 40 overs, a very competitive score.

In reply, there was no last day of tour feel in the field, well at least to start with. Three wickets from Walker saw the Stragglers reduced to 13-3 from 6 overs but unfortunately this was as good as it got for the Frogs. Though Andy Marshall picked up the fourth wicket at 64-4 from 14 overs and then the 5^th at 110 as at drinks the Stragglers were 112-5.

Though after drinks Williams and Quick pressed on the scoring for the Straggler as a combination of GT, Andy and Owen Marshall tried to stem the flow. GT was unlucky as some last day moments of fielding from the Frogs saw three catches go down and ultimately their chances. The last day fielding is a tradition that must be upheld and did include some Owen rolls and refusals! A tiring Frogs got a sixth wicket as GT got a much deserved victim, bowling Quick for 27 as the Stragglers still required 78 from the last 9 overs. However, Stephens came in and hit the ball everywhere from ball one in making 53 from just 27 balls as the Frogs lost by 4 wickets, the Stragglers having 11 balls to spare. The last moment of the tour is one to forget, Andrew Carson bowling his first delivery since his wicket at Exeter in 2016, getting dispatched for 4.

So as the Frogs trooped off after a long week of excellent and well played cricket, thoughts turned to a beverage (for those not driving) and the journey home. Mr Lawrence very kindly bought a jug and after he had showered and packed his multiple bags, tried to locate his phone. However it wasn’t forthcoming and slowly but surely kit bags were emptied, pockets turned out, kit bags removed from cars, a complete sweep of the dressing rooms and bar but no phone appeared. Thankfully in the modern world we live in there is an app for all occasions and Rich’s phone was soon located…in Duncan’s car heading south! Fortunately Dunc had only got 20 minutes down the road and kindly returned to reunite Rich with his phone!

Despite the final result on the last day, an excellent week was enjoyed and a record of W3 D1 L1 A1 represented an excellent return. Having this year increased the number of games to 6, the Tour Managers were very grateful to all of those that played, a total of 23 players was quite some effort! There was as well some great support on the tour and we do look forward to 2020. A final note must, as always, go to the B&B hosts, oppositions, umpires, scorers and everyone else that made for such an enjoyable week.