In this issue there are the usual tales of woe as we look back at our recent games. In addition there is the 4th test, and another Kytes profile with one of our newer members in the spotlight.
On top of all this a rather chilling message was received as Captain Slog puts bat to ball once again. And, as the editor gets really carried away, there is a somewhat amateurish critique of fast-bowling actions, and finally, complete indulgence reigns supreme when one particular Kyte spends the night with his stomach contents.
 
 

No doubt many Kytes members can recall the extraordinary Rumble in the Jungle (Ali stunning Foreman in Kinshasa, Zaire) and the amazing Thriller in Manila (Ali doing likewise to Frazier); well the Shizuoka Kytes now have their own version, the Grizzle in the Drizzle.
As the name suggests the early dry, still, cloudy, 26?C conditions gave way to a sprinkling of rain. Light and refreshing at first, the drizzle steadily worsened as the game progressed, and as the drizzle got worse so did the grizzle.

It was a rare pleasure to welcome a team from elsewhere than Kanto. The Nagoya CC now appears to be run by its Sri Lankan faction and it is hoped that we can arrange a couple of fixtures together each season. It was also a pleasure to welcome Malcolm on his Kytes debut.
 

Skip lost the toss, now five in succession, and Nagoya batted first against a depleted Kytes bowling attack. Bruce and Takashi took the new ball and initially things looked reasonably promising. Anton and Nick kept the good work going. Indeed 3 wickets had fallen by the 10th over, Bruce accounting for two, one a fine outfeld catch from Antony, the other a super slip catch from Ume. Bruce was on song, but was removed prematurely from the attack, kept in reserve for later, in retrospect the wrong decision.
In a brief pause during a boundary conversation Antony found time to make a second catch, from Anton's bowling, a good tight spell. At drinks the Nagoyans were 62/3 from 16 overs, a well-balanced position.
However from drinks onwards the 4th wicket pair took control as the drizzle set in. Although there were plenty of sketchy shots they played themselves in with a mixture of quick singles and hard hitting. It was a torrid time for the Men in White as at least half-a-dozen mishits fell safely, and the omission from the Nagoyan rulebook of the page concerning lbw dismissals only added to the Kytes' grizzliness.
The wet ball wasn't at all easy to grip, bowlers and fielders suffering alike, but in truth there were too many loose deliveries and too much sloppy fielding as the grumbles mounted. Someone was even heard muttering something about missing Toddy!
Despite some sterling work from the fielding coordinator and Bruce's return to the attack the task of papering over the cracks proved too much for the Kytes who lost a lot of their shape.
Takashi, with a good c&b finally broke the partnership, but not before a century had been plundered. The other batsman finished on 75 as Antony took his third catch, and Nagoya's innings closed after 40 overs on 262/6, having piled on 200 runs in 24 overs, more than double the initial run-rate.

By the time the Kytes' openers had taken guard the persistent drizzle had become wetting rain. A valiant attempt to make something of the game was made by fielders and batsmen, but there's no such thing as a shower in Shizuoka and the rain just kept on coming, eventually petering out sometime around Tuesday. No-one was more disappointed than the v-c, who was seeing the ball *like a balloon", nor Neil, who was run-out on the final delivery, when R-G M stepped into the breach to suggest calling a halt to proceedings.
Frustrating though it was, all concerned realised that there was no option but to cease play with the Kytes on 20/1 from 4 overs. Leafing through Wisden it transpires that this was the first game at the ACO to be abandoned during play since December 1992.
Although the result was technically declared a draw, Nagoya CC undoubtedly left with a moral victory from the Grizzle in the Drizzle.

The Kytes' grumpy mood was, however, considerably enlivened by its American member, who joined the team at Yoshida's soba shop. In a condition that can only be described as completely Brahms and Liszt he proceeded to perform his own grizzly act, cavorting and wrestling with the stuffed bears, much to the hilarity of all present. But our very own Grizzly Adams has surely blown his chances with the bashful proprietress.
 
 

On the morning of June 22nd a rather dishevelled Druid burst into the Sky Times editor's office, direct from his pagan ceremony of the summer solstice the previous night. It appears that on the stroke of sunrise the heathen Captain Slog, who had also been present, suddenly began chanting as if in a midsummer night's dream. The Druid, feeling that Slog's ramblings might have some earth-shattering significance, and having once found a copy of the Sky Times in a landfill site, immediately made his way to the ST office complex in search of enlightenment.
With due apologies to Messrs W Shakespeare and M L King, he proceeded to recite Slog's chant word for word in the presence of the editor.

PS A news programme the following day reported the sighting of a few crazy hippies at Stonehenge performing some kind of weird ritual. One was hurling lumps of cow-dung at a pair of the vertical monoliths which were topped with a third horizontal stone, whilst another was leaping around trying to swat the missiles with a willow branch. All the while they were heard repeating something about dreams and kytes. Maybe cricket has a longer history than we think.
 
 

One of those swelteringly hot days, 35?C and a humidity of 150%, made any prolonged practice session out of the question. The lack of club equipment, courtesy of Takashi's early arrival and departure, meant we had to rely on R-G M's personal kit, and a wicket consisting of a rather Heath Robinson affair of a suspension strut inside a box, topped with the cuttings' catcher from the lawn-mower; back to grass roots cricket.
About 8 members attended and a pretty solid 3- hour practice ensued, punctuated with frequent drinks breaks. It seemed like a bit of the old team spirit, which had been somewhat lacking in the Grizzle in the Drizzle, was returning. The practice session was followed by a session of pitch-rolling, which set everyone up nicely for an afternoon session in Yoshida's. No wrestlemania this time but a couple of points of general interest cropped up which merit wider circulation. Firstly, it appears that the French surname of the Paraguayan goalkeeper is easily explained by the fact that Paraguay was once overrun by a number of French parrots. Secondly, spittle is unhygienic; well for 40 minutes anyway. The nasties can survive for this period, after which time the gob is presumably quite safe to smell, touch or even lick, depending on your fancy; something to bear in mind next time you come across a dollop of expectorant.
 
 
 

Fast bowling actions can take many various forms, and opinions vary just as widely as to their merits. To judge the best it may be argued that the proof of the pudding is in the statistics, but let's leave the figures aside for a while; they never tell the full story. Instead the Sky Times cricket critic uses his own highly arguable judgement to consider some of cricket's greatest ever fast bowlers in search of the best ever fast-bowling action.

Some fast bowlers hone their actions over the years, developing their raw and rugged talent into the ultimate bowling instrument, rather like Denis Lillee, Richard Hadlee or Allan Donald. Others look pretty ordinary until the delivery stride when it all comes magnificiently together, such as Freddie Trueman, Malcolm Marshall and Andy Roberts. Some use their own unique actions, especially Jeff Thomson, Frank Tyson and Mike Proctor, all who generated incredible speed.
There are also those who hare in at great pace, maintaining remarkable control of their direction, notably Waqar Younis, Wes Hall and Kapil Dev. And there are some who simply seem to glide through their run-up, transferring their natural speed into their delivery with effortless ease, the greatest modern exponent perhaps being Michael Holding, certainly an action of great beauty.
However even the style of Holding cannot match that of the fast bowler with the smoothest, the most balanced, the most fluid and most efficient action that has possibly ever been witnessed on a cricket field, that of Ray Lindwall.

He was a natural. A run-up of less than 25 yards started with a few quiet paces which rhythmically accelerated, as smooth as silk, into longer strides, culminating in a classic sideways delivery position, his left arm swinging forward from high giving the final pull as he leapt like a panther into his delivery stride. It was a thrilling spectacle of grace with menace.
In addition Lindwall had the full range of fast bowlers' deliveries in his repertoire, from inswinger to outswinger, a devastating break-ball, a savage bouncer, a variety of cutters and, moreover, he was a master of pace change. Seldom can a fast bowler have possessed such an armoury.
Lindwall was born in 1921 in Mascot, Sydney and began his cricket as more of a batsman than a bowler, scoring his first century at the age of 12. He progressed from the St George club in Sydney to the New South Wales team at 19, his precocious bowling talent already shining through.
Military service robbed him of 5 years of his career, but he roared back in the 1945/46 season, making his test debut for Australia against New Zealand. He then made the team for the 1946/47 tour by England where his test career was well and truly launched. He formed a formidable opening bowling partnership with Keith Miller which helped secure Australia's pre-eminence in world cricket in the post-war years.
?For the record his 14 years of test cricket brought him 228 wickets in 61 matches at an average of 23. Only 5 Australians, Lillee, Benaud, McKenzie, MacDermott and Warne have taken more test wickets, and all with an inferior average. On top of this he also scored 1,502 test runs, averaging 21; no mean feat for the main strike bowler.
The 1948 tour to England probably saw Lindwall at his breathtaking best. He found the English conditions much to his liking and an electric atmosphere would grip the ground every time he took the new ball. His bouncer, a fearsome weapon, landed 6 batsmen in hospital that summer but, of his 86 victims, no less than 43 were bowled. This may well have been the nearest a fast bowler has ever come to perfection, the time when speed, variation and control were harmonised by that sublime action.
Ray Lindwall died only a few years ago at the age of 74 and will go down in cricketing history as possessing the action that the text-books copied.
 
 

If there is something strange in the air these days it seems trendy to shrug one's shoulders and blame it on el nino. This year the soaking weather, courtesy we are informed of el nino, has had a major effect on the Kanto Cup games. The Kytes have been luckier than most, losing only one game to the rain, but all the others to the opposition.
Perversely el nino, and little sister la nina, have recently conspired to shorten the rainy season and stave off the typhoons, but have diminished neither the temperature nor the humidity.

Following a Saturday afternoon that hit a blistering 38?C the most eagerly awaited fixture on the calendar, the match against Fuji CC was approached with caution. Water was taken on board before, during and after the game and, owing to E Coli worries, the curry was replaced with a rather juicy selection of fruit, buns and cake. As it transpired the weather that greeted the teams was *merely' 32?C, sunny and dry, with a light breeze and was not quite the sauna that had been feared.
 

By 10.37am all the Kytes were at the ACO and, even though 10am is the designated arrival time, some collective praise is in order. The outfield resembled a field in places which would slow the ball dreadfully at times, but the pitch was green, hard, drizabone, and altogether in pretty reasonable nick; testament to all those hours of cutting and rolling which the Men in White have sweated over in recent seasons.

For the highlight game of the season against our friends and rivals, Skip unbelievably won the toss, no doubt a side-effect of el nino, and the Kytes batted first against a Fuji team depleted to only 9 players following some serious wedding celebrations the previous night.
Nevertheless the Kytes' openers faced a hostile opening bowling attack on a pitch much to the bowlers' liking. Both Neil and Anton played with great determination and, even though the runs weren't exactly flowing, every delivery negotiated was one less that the other batsmen would need to face against the exceptional bowling of Farhan and Mark C.
Eventually Neil's wicket was captured, clean bowled, as was Dilshad's soon after, following a few cracking blows that evoked memories of his epic innings in this fixture last season. Anton too was bowled, his first such dismissal in Japan.
At drinks, after 15 overs, the Kytes were 35/3 and Francis was starting to attack the change bowlers. Ume also tried to wrest the initiative as did Bruce and Nick but no-one managed to stay long enough to put together a telling score. St Francis honestly regretted that his 22 would end up as the topscore. The nine Fujians performed well in the field with Mark McT excelling, at times covering the entire off- or leg-side virtually single-handedly.
Bruce in particular looked good, tonking two 4's and a 6, before missing a rather innocuous delivery, the Kytes' umpire Neil proving that the lbw law still exists. Nick was also timing the ball well and Todd was too; so was Takashi, who took the leather off the ball with one ripper of a 4, but the Fuji attack was always on top. Skip prodded a few more runs and a legside tickle from Robert ensured that there would be no ducks, but even though the innings was maintained until the penultimate ball of the 40 overs, only 120 had been scored.
?There can be little doubt that Fuji's bowling attack of Farhan, Mark C and Feroz is one of the finest in the country so, in comparison with some of the Kytes' recent batting performances, 120 was not really all that bad, but neither should it be regarded with any great satisfaction. Sometime maybe everyone will hit top form in the same innings and we'll have 4 or 5 50's...., maybe.

For once it was the opposition who appeared to be more jaded as the second innings commenced. Todd and Bruce opened the bowling in lively fashion. In fact Bruce took a wicket with his first delivery, the Fuji umpire Rahim also upholding the lbw rule. This was followed by a stinging catch by Ume at cover off Todd, and in no time 2 wickets had fallen cheaply; the Kytes were in with a sniff.
Todd continued a fine fiery spell, hitting a purple patch when the keeper took a very difficult legside catch that was controversially turned down, and then dropped a much easier one; no blame on el nino here. This was the cue for Farhan to start slogging and, with Takahashi-san playing very straight, the game swang right back to Fuji. Takahashi though was caught by Skip as he was goaded into opening up by Anton, who was varying his bowling to good effect.
 

However this only brought the match-winning partnership together as Mark McT provided the stable base to underpin Farhan's wild offence. Even Nick, with his well-flighted deliveries, was unable to find a way through. Bruce and Todd were brought back into the attack in a last-ditch attempt but Farhan's luck held and in one over from Bruce he slashed no less than three edged boundaries.
????Nevertheless the Kytes' fielding co-ordinator was still brimful with enthusiasm and he finally pouched the umpteenth skied mishit from Farhan with a shout of *Mine" that may well have woken Randy from his siesta across the river. This energetic attitude transmitted itself to the rest of the Kytes who in no way capitulated as their total was neared. Indeed the Fuji captain was brilliantly caught by Takashi with only 3 runs separating the teams, giving Bruce very respectable figures of 3/34. This capped super fielding performances from both Ume and Takashi, the pick of the fielders. Rahim polished off the game with a 6 and Fuji finished on 125/5 after 25 overs. MVP Bruce.

In the event the nine men of Fuji ran out winners at a canter, confirming their superiority over the Kytes. It was a good game of cricket though, played in a fine competitive spirit. The Fuji team and entourage joined the Kytes for some refuelling at Yoshida's where the tired bodies were able to recuperate from the heat and exertions of the day in a most relaxed and breezy atmosphere.

PS There was a rather disturbing event at the Kanto Cup game between Friends CC and Tokyo Sri Lankans CC on the same day. Furious at having their appeal for a catch from Aamir rejected, the entire Sri Lankan team promptly packed up and went home. We can only blame it on el ni*o.
 
 
 

On the morning of July 19th respected Kytes member Todd Philips, twice winner of the Kytes bowler of the season award, and acting captain a few weeks ago was seen somewhere in the vicinity of the 2001 club lying unconscious in a pool of puke.
Immediately on hearing the news the Sky Times office despatched its investigative reporter, who was still trying to unearth the mystery of the lunch-time curry, to the scene.
On arrival all that was visible was the vomit, though a spew-trail of size 13 footsteps could be seen winding down the street, curiously in completely the opposite direction to Todd's abode. Your reporter followed the trail for about 5 minutes until it eventually petered out. Still no sign of the man himself.
One can only speculate on the circumstances that led to all this. Based on the evidence to hand, plus a little firsthand knowledge of Mr Philips it can be deduced thus:
 
 

Todd went to a party at 20:01 on the night of July 18th. In all probability he had already downed quite a few at some cheap drinking hole beforehand. At 20:01, where a set price covers all you can drink, Toddy may well have introduced a group of people to some drinking games and no doubt Todd drank everything in his path, and more. Being one of the last to leave, and having once more failed to pull anything sane, he would have sat on a step in an attempt to work out what day it was. A rough, puke-filled night would have ensued in that very same spot. Eventually extricating himself from his vomit sometime the next morning he then staggered away only to discover about 30 minutes later, when his senses were beginning to return, that he was going the wrong way. A state of this kind can only have produced the most splitting hangover, though an unconfirmed report claims that Todd was back on the beer by Sunday evening; what is this guy made of?
t must be stressed that this is all pure speculation.
 
 
 

Answers:

a) By touching shoulder with fingertips (from the same arm).
b) 1773
c) 5 feet (1.52m)
d) Umpire - nonpere (non pareil, without equal).
e) Both have the same, namely 3.
 
 
 

Questions:

a) What is the maximum pitch-rolling time before an innings?
b) Can a pitch be watered during a match?
c) Is a pitch mown during a 2-day game?
d) If more than one roller is available, who has the right of choice?
e) Can a bowler request the groundsman to re-mark the crease?
 
 

In order to give at least half our members that winning feeling again the Kytes decided to play with themselves.
A Shizuoka festival of cricket was arranged with one team loosely based around those who work for Fujitsu, with some extras, and another even more loosely based around a hard-core of New Zealanders, the teams being known as the Emus and Kiwis respectively.
Sadly for some regulars (Ume, Anton, Bruce and Bizen) were unavailable, but new players, Mark and Janne, were welcomed, and there were very welcome returns for ex-members Garth and Paul. In all 15 players contested an excellent game, Neil captaining 8 Emus and Francis 7 Kiwis, on an ACO scorcher, 32?C, sunny and still. The ground was half-cut, an accusation that, surprisingly, couldn't be levelled at any of the players as the Emu openers took guard.
 
Capt Neil went for his shots from the outset and, excepting Todd, took the bowling apart. Great support came from Paul and Mark who played very straight, and Malcolm who was swinging to good effect, but no-one could get on top of Todd who clean bowled the first two wickets.
However with Toddy rested the partnership between Neil and Antony sent the ball to all parts of the ACO. Whether it was the well-timed orthodox drives and lofted shots from Neil, or some of the sweet half-volleys tonked to leg from outside off-stump from Antony the result was the same. The score was romping along at about 8 an over.
The partnership was eventually broken by Neil's sporting retirement after 20 overs. This however led to a mini-collapse at the hands of Robert, of all people, who goaded two batsmen into stumpings, Garth having donned the gloves, and had Janne caught by Takashi who continued his much-improved fielding. Janne, in his first cricket match, learnt what a cruel game cricket is at times, waiting patiently for a few hours to bat, only to be out 3rd ball and back on the sidelines 5 minutes later.
Nevertheless the scoring rate suffered very little as Nick clubbed his first ball for 6 over cover, and sent a few more in that general direction. With 10 wickets allowed in each innings Neil returned to smack a few more, ending up on 70-odd. Todd came back to the attack and in all conceded only 16 of the Emus final total of 173 all out.
Virtually the entire 30 overs had been used, and even though Capt Francis had marshalled his bowlers well, and had also bowled pretty well himself, the Emus posted a very good score which would need at least one of the Kiwis to play an innings of substance.
An inspired decision from St Francis to open the Kiwis batting with Robert and Garth (since everyone else flatly refused) was to pay dividends. However it was the Emus who initially had the upper hand. Danger-man Nick with a new ball in his hands seemed to add a bit of pace to his deliveries and forced the Kiwis on the back foot. Mark at the other end also gave little away and after 10 overs the Kiwis' score was barely 35, but the Emus were wicketless and the Kiwis' openers had blunted the opening attack.
A huge 6 from Garth out of nowhere signalled a change in fortune, and even though Nick finally claimed the prized wicket of R-G M in his last over the tide was starting to turn.
Cometh the hour, cometh the man, and Garth was that man. A terrific assault on the bowling saw boundaries galore. Takashi too hit some meaty blows, but fell to a good ball from Randy. A piece of cricket history then occurred, propelling Kevin into the record books as he became the first ever Shizuoka cricketer to be out hit wicket. This actually put Randy on a hat-trick which Todd safely survived.
Neil had organised the bowling duties carefully, ensuring that there was hardly a time when an experienced bowler was not in operation at one end, but by this time it mattered little to Garth who continued his attack. With Todd also belting some rasping shots the Kiwis were back to the asking rate and the game was swinging from the Emus.
Garth fell for 70, including 8 6's, with the Kiwis still needing another 40 or so to win, but Francis was not to be denied and he saw the Kiwis through to victory with 2 overs remaining. MVP-Garth

The festival of cricket produced a close game that could have gone either way. Who knows what would have happened had Neil not retired, and if Bruce had played....? It is greatly hoped that this kind of game can become a regular fixture on the Kytes calendar, possibly for the final match before the summer break (as today), and also as the season's finale in late November or early December. A proud footnote: Janne represented the 12th nationality (Finland) to partake in Shizuoka cricket.

Yoshida's: Once more everyone was simply too cream-crackered to do much more than relax, drink and jaw at the soba shop. Randy seems to be back in favour with the proprietress who took a series of photos of everyone starting with, you've guessed it, Grizzly Adams himself.
 
 

This issue's player profile jumps continents once again as the spotlight falls on Antony, husband to the wonderful Alice and father to Charlie and Henry. Sadly for us he is only here on a 1 year contract, so we thought we'd take the opportunity to learn a little more about him before his return in December.

Full name - Antony Dermot Bowesman

Birthplace - Newport (Gwent) UK.
Birthdate - 24 May 1962
Height - 183cm
Weight - 80kg
Job - Computer contractor-Currently Fujitsu Shizuoka Engineering

Newspaper - Weekend Financial Times
 

Favourite:
Film - The Apartment
Actors - Sean Connery, Harrison Ford, Jack Lemmon, Walter Mathau
Actresses - Jamie Lee Curtis, Meg Ryan
Book - News from Tartary, Peter Fleming
Meal - Anything Asian and spicy
Fruit - Raspberry
Vegetable - Mushrooms
Drink - Vintage port, wine, beer?(in that order)
Sports - Hockey, squash, cricket
Sportsman - David Gower
Sportswoman - Hanna Mandlikova
CD - Mozart Piano Concertos No 20 and 21 - Mitsuko Uchida
Group - Genesis (preferably with Peter Gabriel)
Musicians - Van Morrison, Steve Winwood

Greatest weakness - A bottle of 1977 Fonseca vintage port
Greatest strength - Sense of direction

Most respected quality in others - Optimism
Type of woman - Cuddly

Boyhood sporting hero - Kenny Dalglish, Liverpool football club
Most memorable sporting moment witnessed - Streaker at Lords in 1975
Most memorable personal sporting moment - Tackling Sean Kerly (England Hockey capt)

Motto in life - Always try to reach beyond your grasp.
Future dream - Pay off mortgage, quit work and walk/cycle the Himalaya with my kids.
 
 

For the first game after the summer break it was yet another belting day at the ACO, 30?C, sunny, dry and still, as the Kytes hosted Nagoya CC for the second time this season, the first having resulted in the abandoned Grizzle in  the Drizzle. None of that kind of stuff this time; an exciting game that either side could have won.
Owing to Skip's enforced absence Anton took over the captaincy. His first duty was to lose the toss, which enabled Nagoya to bat first on a firm, dry, grassy pitch.

Capn Anton bravely decided to open with Nick and Antony. Three overs and 33 runs later he would have been forgiven for ditching the plan but he persevered. Nick slowed down and Antony sped up (tattooing the keeper's ample chest with one particularly stinging delivery), which seemed to suit both, and after 10 overs, with the score on 50, the brakes had been applied.
Wickets were falling too. Todd, having deprived Nick of a wicket by moving not an inch for a catch that gently plopped a yard in front of him, fielded the ball on the bounce and sent it back like a guided missile to shatter the one and a half stumps in his view, leaving a bewildered batsman stranded. Antony too snapped a wicket, as did Todd as first change, Robert taking a regulation catch behind the stumps.
Mark then joined the attack and, with his 4th delivery, saw Ume take one of his signature catches. A slash outside off-stump sent the ball flying, but Ume, at short point, flung himself to his right, clasping the ball whilst horizontal; magic. This spurred Mark to greater heights as he bowled no less than 2 more victims, leaving him with figures of 3/13, an outstanding spell.
The Nagoyans tendency to throw the bat, successful in our previous encounter, kept the score moving at a decent rate, but this time the wickets were tumbling. Indeed, apart from a short mid-innings revival, they never really looked like wresting the initiative back from a spirited Kytes team, well-directed by the Capn.
Further wickets fell to Takashi, Bruce (2) and the Capn himself as Nagoya were all out for 135 with only 27 of the 40 overs completed. A target requiring a run-rate of just under 3.5 per over would be gettable for most teams, but remember this is the Kytes we're talking about.

Kytes opened with Capn and Garth. The unexpected happened as Anton was once again bowled, but Garth and Antony stuck steadfastly to the task and kept the scoreboard ticking with a mixture of wides and no balls. They were just starting to convert their swishes to hits when Antony edged one and was caught. Martin, on his debut, having put in a fine performance in field, including a very nonchalant catch, applied himself well to the task at hand as the Aussie connected with a few on his way to a valuable 23, and the score continued to mount at the required rate.
However Nagoya made the most of a few rash shots from the next few Kytes and the score fell to 65/6 at the halfway point. Bruce then staged a strong recovery, striking with some sweet power; Todd also smashed a few, and Takashi too, but wickets kept falling, nearly all to catches from mistimed shots. Bruce finally went for a topscore of 29 as a leading edge from an attempted sweep sent the ball gently back to the bowler.
Kytes were now 100/9 leaving Takashi and Robert the remaining 36 to polish off. Battling for every run the last pair fought to the end but the Kytes eventually ended all out for 110 from 33 overs, victory to Nagoya by 25 runs. MVP Mark

Another near miss for the Men in White, but at least there was none of the Grizzle in the Drizzle. As Anna maintained after the game, "Even if you always lose it doesn't matter". We have no choice but to agree, but the "always" is a bit harsh. It was another terrrific day's cricket though as we had some Fun in the Sun.

Yoshida's: With no Randitent for protection the hospitality at the soba-shop was even more welcome than usual. With no Randy the proprietress made only a few appearances, the sour-face back on show. Wait till we tell her that he'll soon be leaving.

PS:-A healthy discussion took place concerning the Kanto Cup. A team fee of 30,000 yen  has been demanded for this season. With no committee meeting and no consultation this figure was somehow arrived at to cover such things as 6 trophies, umpiring fees, stationary (sic), telephone bills, the all-star game and the presentation dinner. Whilst having nothing against contributing to legitimate expenses, the team appeared hesitant to fund this rather profligate spending, since the original stance of the current regime was one of low budget and no nonsense. There was also a big gripe about the complete lack of match information that was received. Not once were league tables or any match results sent, which are precisely the kind of expenses that our contribution should cover. Surely expenses should be kept to a minimum until sponsorship is found, rather than continually tapping the players. Given the Kanto Cup's extremely chequered past on all matters financial it was also a major concern that a central account with no official accountability would be handling a budget of something around 500,000 yen of Kanto Cup teams' money. An itemised report of accounts would be requested.
 

Let's not finish on a downer though. The bottom line is that in terms of highs and lows, excitement and grumbles, great performances and bad luck, this season is turning into one of the most incident-packed ever. And there's still more to come.
Despite (or perhaps as a result of) all these ups and downs the Kytes are having one of their most enjoyable seasons, with team spirit and camaraderie at all-time highs. Maybe our worst season (results-wise) could become our best.