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| Adrian Manger XI and Robin Pykett XI line up before the match. Picture: John Gaisford |
The two long-time friends organised the special Centenary Match at Horspath on Bank Holiday Monday to mark their 50th seasons in club cricket. Inviting old Tiddington teammates, including some whom they played alongside in the National Village Cup final at Lord's in 1995, together with those from their more recent years at Horspath and the Oxfordshire Over 50s and 60s, they played a 40-overs contest.
The Robin Pykett XI, minus Jack Brooks due to his Somerset commitments, posted 216-9. Opener Jeff Higgs returned to the crease to finish with an unbeaten 63 after initially making 50, while Nick Pykett smashed 50 from 28 balls before retiring.
Captain Pykett, best known for his bowling, made his highest score for many a year with 20, while Clive Ricks also chipped in down the order with 22. Manger went wicketless from his eight overs as it was left to Josh Winfield (4-52) and David Heritage (3-38) to peg back the Pykett XI.
Brother Phil Manger (34) got Adrian Manger XI's reply off to a good start accompanied by Chris Jones (31), before both fell to Neil Smith (2-33). Stephen Green (53 retired) and Will Eason (46) kept up the chase.
However, the Manger XI were halted in their tracks by off-spinner Swapnil Kulkarni, who swapped places behind the stumps with Pykett to take 3-8 with the skipper snaffling a catch and a stumping, while his counterpart went for two. Fourteen runs were needed to win off the last over bowled by Ray Manning and six from the final delivery, as they fell just short on 213-6.
Robin, who also went wicketless, said: "It was a pleasure to see a few old faces. It was a good game of cricket played in the right spirit. Everybody has done something and it's a nice way to celebrate cricket with a good game."
And Adrian added: "It turned out better than expected because it was a really good game of cricket from two sides that were selected for a convivial game."
Posted by: Russ