Rovers march on after vandals ruin grass track
ROVERS blasted their way back into the thick of the Carey Olsen Championship chase with a 163-run demolition job on a Mavericks side now in danger of missing out on a CI League place after their fast start to the campaign.
ROVERS blasted their way back into the thick of the Carey Olsen Championship chase with a 163-run demolition job on a Mavericks side now in danger of missing out on a CI League place after their fast start to the campaign. The injury-ravaged Mavericks never got going, their mindset a negative one from the very moment they lost the toss having already seen their wish to play on a grass track over-ridden by the umpires who went along with Rovers' view that it was best to play on the matting rather than an under-prepared natural one.
The choice had to be made after some overnight malicious pitch vandalism by unknown perpetrators.
When assistant groundsman Les Ferbrache left the ground on Friday evening, having called off the Barclays Premier One game towards the end of the first innings after a heavy shower, the covers were correctly placed and the drainage pipes situated so that any water would not go onto the square.
When he arrived on Saturday morning, the pipes had been moved and left to dump the overnight rain onto the prepared pitch.
'All the hoses had been pushed under the covers. There were four or five bad patches. It was saturated and you couldn't have played on it. It is a mystery. But whoever was responsible, it's very childish,' said Ferbrache.
Mavericks certainly felt hardest-done-by.
Some of their players had to go home to get trainers as they had arrived only with spikes for a game on grass. The delay meant a reduction to 40 overs per side and Rovers' bowling attack was best suited to a matting game and so it proved as Mavericks crumbled feebly to 82 all out chasing a formidable 245 for six.
Richard Headington top-scored with 75 from 108 deliveries and featured in a second-wicket stand of 139 with skipper Tim Duke, who helped himself to 63 from 60 balls faced.
When they were out, Ed Benfield laid into the bowling, cracking two sixes in a 17-ball 35.
Rovers soon had Mavericks reeling.
Mike Webber had already been hit painfully on the hand when he gloved another short Derbyshire delivery to the keeper and skipper Robbie Moore and Aussie Justin Meades both slapped poor shots into the covers and were caught.
Only Justin Walker, who had to withstand some short, sharp bowling and retaliatory comments after his own verbals in the Rovers innings, made a decent fist of batting. His pugnacious 37 included seven fours.
