Supreme General
County Cricketer
- Joined
- Dec 10, 2022
Grand Final
Code:
31st August 2002
Southern Coast vs Home Counties, Lords
Home Counties: 328-7 (50); Richards 98(97), Sereny 57*(34) Malick 3-38
Southern Coast: 332-6 (50); Malick 122*(78), Hyams 104(100), Graham 2-57
Southern Coast win by 6 wickets to win the 2002 FPT
POTM: Jim Malick
What a spectacle that was to end the domestic season for the English sides. In the end, the team who deserve it the most ends up on top as they did with an almost flawless group stage performance. However, can't take anything away from Home Counties who faced their own hardships with their best batter falling out and basically quitting the team halfway through the tournament based on the leadership team's qualities and treatment of him. Starting at 2pm but the drinks and party atmosphere had been here well before that first ball was bowled and the excitement on and off the field went well on into the night under the blazing Lord's floodlights. On the field of play, it started with Gary St John winning the toss and choosing to get runs on the board. They started off slow but steady. However, outside the first powerplay, the first change seamers Corden-Cox and Malick broke open the top order reducing them from 61-0 to 76-4 when the skipper edged behind for Malick's 3rd. Despite that, Home Counties' middle order stepped up once again as they have done plenty times before. Lead by a serene 98 from Julian Richards and fired home with an explosive 57 from Peter Sereny, they ended to a very respectable and defendable 328-7. And things immediately got better for them, Len Graham getting an inswinging yorker to castle the Bermudian Corden-Cox first ball of the run chase bringing in the tournaments 2 highest run scorers together but they both fell well short of their own high standards. The game was very much leaning towards Home Counties when Jim Malick joined Anthony Hyams at 115-4 and they built well creating a nice platform but then Hyams fell just into the start of the 3rd powerplayafter getting his century trying to launch Clinton Hintz over deep midwicket but ended upjust mistiming his shot. Stanley Binden came in and added an extra gear to the innings and Malick turned into a man possessed. Joseph Friend was the catalyst going for 16 and 21 in his only 2 overs, brought in at the very worst moments. Then disaster, Binden caught on the square leg boundary. 29 needed off 17 but Malick was on strike and proceeded to hit 16 runs off the over. 13 off 12. North's final over went for 9. 4 off 6, Robert Howells to bowl the last. Malick drops one in on the leg side for one. 3 off 5, everyone is up bar deep midwicket. And Howells proceeds to bowl a slower ball wide of off stump masterclass for the next 3 balls. Its down to 3 off 2, Wright still on strike. On the fifth ball he swings and makes contact and pierces the ring field but not quite enough for the boundary as they get 2 more. 1 off 1 scores level and Howells bowls one just short of a yorker on Carl Wright's pads and he smashes it behind square to the boundary to seal the win. The travelling fans and neutrals go wild along with the all the Southern Coast bench, the home fans feel deflated but can't be too disheartened after such a great showing as I prefaced this with, in the end the best team overall has won.
