E&MWCC 1st XI Crushed By Waterlooville

After the previous weeks soaking E&MWCC ventured into the first game of their County Division One campaign with high hopes as they took on Waterlooville CC at the JRMCG. E&MWCC captain Mark Padwick won the toss and put Waterlooville in to bat hoping that the over cast conditions would aid his young seam attack. Ash Willmott and Adam Kite opened the bowling with cautious opening spells that troubled openers Byron Haycock and Maxwell Goddard initially but on a pitch that served only as a relic of the previous weeks washout; both failed to make their breakthrough.

Jamie Banks replaced Wilmott hitting brilliant lengths and managing to exploit a wicket that was beginning to dry and starting to allow the ball. Adam Carrick replaced Kite and immediately exploited the extra bounce that Banks had hinted at as both looked threatening. Haycock looked shaky throughout his innings but continued to strike the ball well through the middle stages of his innings offering several caught and bowled chances that were hit too firmly for E&MWCC to capitalise upon. Padwick made the key breakthrough as he dismissed Goddard and he continued to stifle Haycock as he and Carrick restricted Waterlooville to 170 for 5 of 44 overs.

It was at this point that Haycock's power began to match his eye as he indulged in a spot of six hitting practice off of the bowling of Sean Yeates and Wilmott. In an instant the young South African batsman succeeded in tearing appart an innings that was in the balance 6 overs from it's end. He finishing on 156 and his team 261 for 5.

To add insult to injury Waterlooville opening bowler Sam Hillman launched a sublime assault that ravaged E&MWCC's reply completely as they were dismissed for 64.

E&MWCC should perhaps feel hard done by, they were in fact beaten by two superlative performances from Hillman and Haycock as a distinct lack of depth in the Waterlooville line up served as an encouraging indication of the gulf between the Hampshire and Premier leagues.

E&MWCC take on Lymington 2nd XI (A) next Saturday. Full match information can be found here for this and all future games.