The 18th Cheriton
six-a-side tournament once again provided exciting non-stop cricket
on Bank Holiday Monday with nearly 1600 runs scored in the 15
matches and 10 hours of non-stop action. It
was Fair Oak who claimed
the Flower Pots Cup for only the second
time with victory over fellow Southern League
outfit Tichborne Park.
With just two teams qualifying from each of the
two highly competitive groups of four, competition was fierce from
the start. In the Green Group Tichborne
Park topped the table after wins
against Ropley by 19 runs, Fair
Oak by 5 wickets, and Bishop’s
Waltham by 17 runs. They were joined in
the semi-finals by Fair Oak who went
through having beaten Bishop’s
Waltham by 18 runs
and Ropley off the last
ball.
In the Gold Group
holders Ventnor saw
off Hambledon by 24 runs, St
Cross by 25 runs, and finally ended
hosts Cheriton’s campaign in a last
over thriller, to top the group. St
Cross just made the semis for the first time on net
run rate having tied with Hambledon earlier
in the day, while both had got the better of the home
club.
In the first semi-final, Ventnor scored 43 for 2
in their 5 overs, which Fair Oak reached with 3 balls to spare,
while in the second semi the Park overhauled the St Cross target of
44 for 2, again in the last over.
The final proved to ‘The Greg Stewart
Show’ as Fair Oak batting first made 73 for 3, with Greg
retiring on 27 including 2 huge 6s. In reply Tichborne were
never in the hunt and made 49 all out with Greg capturing 2 wickets
for 1 run. Fair Oak had gained revenge for defeat in the
group stages to win handsomely by 24 runs and take the silverware
they last won in 2007.
The large crowd had enjoyed a great day’s
cricket as well as the Flower Pots Inn Beer Festival, BBQ and other
refreshments throughout the day.
In the individual awards, The Dutton Gregory Best
Batsman Award was won by Kane Burgess of Tichborne Park, leading
run scorer with 92 runs; the Knight Frank Champagne Moment went to
Andy Sturman of Fair Oak for his response to a contested run out;
and the Windwards Bananas Best Bowler Award went to Tom Allam of
Tichborne for his 5 wickets. In addition, the Unique Plumbing
Services Biggest 6 was won by Tom McCormick-Cox of St Cross, and
the Cheriton Computers Catch of the Day was won by Ed Kemp of Fair
Oak for the superb take of a huge steepler in the
final.
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1. Teams
