The 1st XI travelled to fellow B Division promotees Kilmington as both sides were looking for a win to distance themselves from the A Division relegation zone.
Thors made one change from the win at Exeter with Alistair Chilcott coming into the side for George Greed. There was a bit of rain in the air during the toss but the forecast was set fair and when the hosts won the toss they elected to bat on a deck known for its high scores this season.
In a similar vein to last week, Ben Slaverio & George Daldroph kept it tight for the Thors early doors restricting Kilmington to 29-1 after 12 overs, Slaverio with the wicket.
Kilmington tried to get after the change bowling partnership of Robbins and Van Der Meulen but not without the pair picking up a wicket each. After 21 overs the score was 84-3 and the spin pairing of Jopling and Choules were introduced.
Choules struck instantly, getting Seaward caught and bowled. The pair kept it generally tight but the hosts found the boundary with ease when presented with the odd loose ball, Josh Short in particular looking impressive.
Choules picked up a couple more wickets, however, thanks to smart catches from Harry Choules and Sam Jefferson to remove Josh Cann & Josh Short respectively. By the time Choules & Jopling had finished their 10 over spells the score was 166-6 going into the final 10 overs.
Naturally, kilmington looked to increase the rate in the last 10 and whilst they didn’t find the boundary too regularly, they ran well putting pressure on the Thorverton fielders. Daldorph and Van Der Meulen both picked up wickets at the death but Harry Johnstone batted well for the hosts scoring a half century before being run out on the penultimate ball of the innings. Kilmington ended on 234-9.
There were points where it looked like Thors could have restricted Kilmington to even less but the score was still slightly under par given past scores at Kilmington this summer.
Thors started the chase positively with Robbins finding the boundary twice in the first over off of Kilmington’s Aussie overseas, Osborn-Corby.
However he then departed in the 4th over for 13 and halfway through the powerplay (5 overs) Thors were 24-1. Osborn-Corby decided to test Fielder with some short stuff with the first finding the fine leg boundary for 6. Expecting the same again, Fielder dispatched the very next ball over third man, out of the ground and narrowingly missing a neighbouring greenhouse. Widely believed to be the first time the veteran has hit 2 6s in a row.
By the time Fielder fell in the 15th over for a well made 30, the score was 69-2. A solid start from Thorverton meant that we were ahead of the run rate and keeping wickets in hand would be key. Chilcott, batting at 3 this week, and Van Der Meulen, steadily accumulated before Josh Short got the prize Van Der Meulen wicket in the 19th over with the score on 99.
Teenager Sam Jefferson then came and went, out LBW for 5 as H. Choules and Chilcott sought to rebuild. Approaching his half century, Chilcott slapped a long hop to the only fielder on the leg side boundary only to be put down. He almost instantly regrouped finding the boundary in elegant fashion, followed by a single to bring up his 50, his 4th of the season.
The opposition spinners had started to find their rhythm at this point, getting the ball to misbehave with the ageing surface and ball. This was the undoing of Choules, caught at slip for a patient 12 off of 36 balls as well as Pitt, also caught at slip, not before finding the boundary twice.
With 15 overs to go, we were 160-6 needing 75 more to win. Chilcott continued to make things look straightforward though, turning the strike over and finding the boundary when required. Daldorph also looked in good touch, clattering the sight screens with some strong straight drives. The pair put on 51 for the 7th wicket and by the time Daldorph was out for a well made 24, the win was in touching distance.
In true Thorverton fashion, this was not without nerves and hiccups. Jopling came and went for 4 in 48th over with 6 still required to win. Slaverio didn’t help nerves by wafting outside his off stump on his first ball but that was a minor blip as he saw out the next balls maturely, finding a couple of singles in the process.
The nerves in the hutch were not matched by Chilcott who, now with the field up, pummelled Fuzzard to the boundary to win the game for Thors, 19 points.
The relief was palpable in the Thors ranks as Chilcott finished on 94 not out – perhaps one of the best TCC innings since the win/lose DCL era.
As Thorverton stayed in 6th but moved 26 points clear of the drop zone, the skipper said:
“Huge win. Really great game of cricket against 2 evenly matched sides. Felt we kept them just under par but was still very tense during the chase! Clinical and composed from Chilly, I’m so pleased for him, a great innings”.
Next week the 1s are back at home to face 8th placed Barton.
Thorverton Cricket Club 