Unsworth CC 1st XI v Moorside CC 1st XI

So, by now, every ground in the GMCL is as dry as a bone. Scorched earth, dusty, brown etc. Not Unsworth! Oh boy, Milo and his mates could have grazed on that outfield for a week. Local knowledge suggests that the drainage is poor and given the huge full deep pond at third man it could well be the case.
Not content with the greenest outfield you have ever seen, the Unsworth Groundsman decided to water the track on Thursday evening (allegedly). By the time we all arrived it was still piss wet through. It was, as they say, a sticky dog and suited the medium pace and spin of the Unsworth attack. Every ball cut a piece out so it ended up with a very bad case of acne.
Needless to say, Swampy lost the toss and (what a surprise) Moorside were asked to bat. Everybody except Harry Mouse struggled with the pace and deviation and even he was cautious until he was given out LBW to a ball which hit is left pad outside the line of off-stump. 134 all out was probably 15 short of par on a wicket that should never have been played on.
Same for both sides you might say. Except it wasn’t. As the afternoon sun baked at 27c, the wicket began to dry out. Having said that with Unsworth on 35/6 after 20 overs the signs were looking good. But “Lucky” Desai the Unsworth Pro was dropped a couple of times and then took the case off it for a catch behind only for the umpire to say “no”. Apparently the Unsworth scorer 90 metres away was heard to say “I heard that from here”. The standard of umpiring overall was inconsistent.
So, a three-card trick executed perfectly resulted in the third League loss of the season. BUT… so did Stand, so we got away with one. Saddleworth are lurking again in 2nd place, having recovered from the smoke inhalation/World Cup TV in July.