The joint membership of Jonathan Hardisty & Paul Attwood was integral in helping Pacific honour this fixture whilst ensuring the core Gracies players were able to enjoy an extra fixture.
P/G: 214-9 dec. N Swinburne 79 C Jones 26 R Bielby 26 Lee 10-1-30-3
H: 159-9. McLean 31. I Spencer-Baird 9-2-34-3 N Wilkinson 5-0-35-3
Under the joint Captaincy of Ian Crossland & Nigel Wilkinson, P/G batted 1st on another belter in the Kent countryside having won the toss. Opener Nick Swinburne made the most of the track & he was however, the only player to score a half century. Useful contributions from Craig Jones (26), back from 10 weeks filming in Ibiza & Richard Bielby (26) made useful middle order contributions before the declaration came at tea. Thompson & Lee picking up 3 wickets apiece.
P/G¹s bowlers came at the opposition hard as both Mike Alexander & Richard Bielby made early breakthroughs thanks to the assured catching of keeper Paul Attwood. Excellent fielding & catches, lead by Paul behind the stumps & Chris O¹Grady in the outfield ensured there could be only one winner ,however, with 4 overs remaining, & 1 wicket needed, Ian crossland brought himself back on in the hope of securing a result on this unique occasion - however, Jarma (22*) proved the stalwart as the game ended with Hartley still 55 runs short of their target. P/G were left an agonising 1 wicket away from theirs.
Nigel Wilkinson 3-35 & off-spinner Ian Spencer-Baird 3-34 stood out as the form bowlers. One point of concern was the incident which lead to Spencer-Baird¹s 1st wicket when keeper Attwood who despite succeeding in stumping Green (10) fell awkwardly while doing so & incurred mild concussion. Although, being able to carry on afterwards, Paul admitted he had no recollection of the incident. For next week¹s match against Washington, Nigel Wilkinson will be picking from a squad of 15 as he hopes that Ben Hardisty & John Baglivi will be fit after injury, but is also looking to find a spot for Jamaican born player-coach Tony Vassell.
P/G: N Swinburne J Hardisty S Black I Spencer-Baird C Jones R Bielby P Attwood+ I Crossland* C O¹Grady N Wilkinson* M Alexander
