Merry enjoys his day in the sun

Old Cranleighans 239 for 5 dec (R Merry 100*, Clarence-Smith 90) beat East Horsley 181 (Christo 62, Williamson 3-23) by 58 runs
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Ed Henderson maintained the unbeaten start to his OC captaincy career with a comfortable 59-run win at East Horsley, Rob Merry marking the occasion with a well-made maiden hundred for the club.

The setting at East Horsley was as always glorious on the hottest day of the year so far, and Henderson increased his popularity by winning the toss and batting. The reality was this decision owed as much to his 11th man, Henry Watkinson, still enjoying a family barbeque in Shere, as any desire to keep his players from the worst of the heat.

Merry started with a flourish, cutting the first ball of the match for four and cover-driving the second for another boundary. Thereafter he look so comfortable that John McDermott to mumble: “What’s going on … does he think this is his bloody testimonial match or something.” He gave two chances, one in his seventies when a steepler to cover was dropped, the other on 96 when a much harder low drive was put down by the bowler. A warmly-welcomed hundred, maybe, but nothing, as his brother rightly noted, could "excuse that ridiculous mask when keeping".

But Merry otherwise looked untroubled, even when a clatter of wickets left us wobbling slightly. Callum Preece was bowled shouldering arms – offered the get out by spectators who asked if the ball seamed or swung, his honesty that it was “dead straight” was very unCranleighan; Tristan Rosenfeldt, with the appearance of a sunburnt Buster Bloodvessel, got off the mark with a sumptuous late cut but immediately ran out of puff and was leg-before soon after for 9, Tom Merry played back to one that begged for a front-foot shot and was bowled for 0, and then Mark Shapland was found wanting by another straight one for 5.

Merry was then joined by Charlie Clarence-Smith and the pair positively frolicked in a fifth-wicket stand of 170 off 21 overs in 81 minutes. Despite giving Merry a 30-run start, Clarence-Smith, who cut loose after reaching fifty, had almost caught his colleague up when he skied a catch to mid-off for 90 made off 88 balls. Merry duly brought his hundred with his 14th four - 139 minutes, 83 balls - prompting the declaration.

Set a stiff target – Henderson was told by several of his team he had declared too early – East Horsley lacked the firepower to mount a serious challenge. That they came close was due to Hendo’s one miscalculation of the day when he offered Chris Christo, our potential South African ringer (dumped when Watkinson finally appeared shortly before tea and after Rosenfeldt’s offer to bat but not field were brusquely dismissed), to the home side.

There were a few chuckles when Christo clipped the first two deliveries he faced – fittingly off Henderson – for the sweetest of boundaries and for a time it appeared he might be able to single-handedly ruin our afternoon. He struggled to find anyone to stay with him, and then was undone when Martin Williamson’s first ball of the afternoon found his weak spot – a full toss smacked straight to Preece on the square-leg boundary. The last pair hit out spiritedly but to no avail. The wickets were shared around, although Michael Chetwode was left indignant as his usual divine right to mop up the tail was denied to him by the new regime.

All in all, a really enjoyable day which underlined there is room for a handful of village matches against pleasant opponents in our fixture list.