After last weeks defeat Reed’s 2nd XI were desperate to get the promotion ambitions back on track. Skipper Marcus Martin won the toss and took the courageous of putting the visitors in. With the sun out and the pitch looking like a batting paradise Reed would have to bowl well.
Peter Tidey and Karl Ward opened the attack for Reed, but it didn’t take long before the home side realised it would be a long afternoon. Pinner and Brown looked very solid for Stevenage and Pinner was playing extremely well. He played very straight and after a few risky shots early on, kept putting the good and bad ball away. After 20 overs the pair were going at almost five an over and it looked like Reed would be chasing well over 200. Fergus Martin replaced Ward and with a mixture of slow off breaks and arm balls, started to pull the run rate back. Tidey spoke to his bowling coach and tried a new tactic to Pinner and it produced an immediate effect when the youngster was well caught by Fergus Martin for an excellent 86 when the score was on 135. Brown was to follow thirteen runs later for 48 again, off the bowling of Tidey.
Reed were suddenly making progress. Simon Roberts, returning to the ground where he played his early cricket looked in good nick, but Tidey won that battle too and bowled him for 15. The runs now slowed. From that 148-2 in just 32 overs, it was now 179-6 with 8 overs left. A black cloud had been looming over the pavilion for some time and that is not a good sign at Reed. Sure enough rain came. The players tried to play on, but were driven from the field. The cover was quickly put on, but despite its quick removal a second downpour came and an early tea was taken.
Stevenage came out for 3.2 overs. Reed conceded just 14 runs in that time and picked up 3 more wickets. Martin picked up one and finished with 1-40 from 18 overs, while Tidey completed a 25 over stint with 6-110. Stevenage IIIs finished on 193-8 which was a lot less than it looked it might have been at one point.
The wicket hadn’t really been affected by the rain so Reed were confident they could chase down the runs. Sinclair and Bagshaw proved a stern test for the Reed openers who failed to pass it. Reed were 12 for 2 in now time. Marcus Martin and Richard Johnson repaired the damage putting on 39 before Johnson was bowled by McCobe for 20. Ben Bowles joined his captain and looked like he had somewhere to go. The pair ran well and took every available run. The pair added 81 in just 14 overs, but then Bowles went for an excellent 30 and one run later Martin went for 58. The game was back in the balance. Sixty needed in eleven overs. Both wickets had fallen to skipper Fisher.
Karl Ward and Roddi Liebenberg tried to push along, but Liebenberg was caught in the deep for 6 and Fisher had his third victim. This brought Marcus Baker to the wicket. Stevenage were protecting the boundaries well, but this means twos can be easy to find. Baker and Ward decided this might be the better approach and run well. With four overs to go, it was down to a run a ball with four wickets left. Reed needed a good over to get in front and Baker found the answer. He picked up McCobe for a six to deep midwicket and that gave Reed some breathing space. McCobe removed Baker off the last ball of that over for a very useful 28. Nine needed from twelve balls now the field had to change. Ward and Alex Kelly continued to pick up singles, but Ward was caught behind for 30 and now Stevenage thought they may have a chance.
Tim Tidey strode to the wicket and looked more like Tom Daley as he dived in to make his ground for another quick single. The field was now in. Reed needed two with three balls to go after three single off the first three balls of the last over. McCobe sent down a low full toss that Tidey managed to get past the field for four and Reed had won by two wickets.
A very good game of cricket and played in a very good spirit by both sides. All four results were possible going into that last over.
