Friday afternoon saw Wellington’s third midweek offering of the season and when they had the Foundation side at 16-4 with John Paine and guest player Robbie Rexworthy doing plenty with the ball, indeed the top three Foundation players were all out for ducks, Wellington could not have believed their luck.

But the usual order of these games was resumed through the 160 run stand for the fifth wicket that was fashioned by Shabeer and Dipanjan who made 100 and 77 respectively. Their partnership constituted a new friendly fifth wicket stand against Wellington, easily beating the 109 that was put on by Druc and Bowden for Lynton and Lynmouth in 1979.
This pair hit the ball very hard and very cleanly and one shot from Shabeer hit the football club stand roof and that is a mighty blow by any yardstick.

Still Wellington battled back to break the stand and John Paine’s 2-33 in 8 overs was a good effort in hot, tiring conditions. Rexworthy claimed the excellent figures of 5-20 in 6.1 overs as he cleaned up the tail along with Kevin Symons (2-49).

There were four dismissals for Alec Short behind the sticks as the Foundation closed on 250 all out with eleven balls to spare. Thom Trott and Josh House, another guest player, creamed a 55 run opening partnership in just 9 overs as they timed the ball excellently over the shortly cut outfield. Had they continued for any length of time then the Foundation score might have been in severe danger of been overhauled, but seamer Ritesh produced an absolute cracker to bowl Trott for 30 as he nipped it away at the last minute and with a wicket going the very next ball Wellington’s momentum had been checked.

Indeed when House was out with for an elegant, wristy 44 the score was 95-6 and Wellington had really folded quite badly. Alec Short ran the ball around well for 18, but Wellington were all but gone at 130-9 before Kevin Symons and Mark Saunders, who batted at 11 due to an injury he collected whilst fielding, lashed 62 for the last wicket as the ball disappeared to all parts of the ground.

Symons made his first half-century of the season as he made exactly 50 before he was bowled by the returning Shabeer, but not before he had matched the size of six that the Foundation side were hitting earlier on. Saunders overcame his injury to make 21no as Wellington were all out for 192 at the end of an entertaining game of cricket.