Gent batsmen frolic in the sun

Nabeel Husain's third century against the Weasels, his fifth in all, together with fine support from batsmen Naveed 'Nine Lives' Khan and the returning Jim Wright and bowler Mark Sciberras, were, for The Gents, the highlights of an enjoyable day's cricket. Weasels fielded gamely but were dogged by ill-luck, dropping Khan three times, failing to run out Husain early in his innings after a mix up and suffering the early departure retired hurt (due to an injured thumb sustained in a previous game) of key batsman John Bishop. Though The Gents defended their total easily enough, it would have been a lot closer had both their in-form batsmen departed early. Perhaps fortune favours the brave: or perhaps The Gents' luck will run out soon. Certainly Weasels missed Michaels here but played keenly throughout, with no trace of post-traumatic embitterment disorder.

Sanjay Patel assembled the team for a pre-match pep talk. 'Ah good, we are about to be told we've all done very well' smirked the team. It soon became obvious, however, that it was to be a wigging and there was much shuffling of feet and nervous tittering as the team's batting and running between the wickets incurred the considerable wrath of the leader. We then got going and Khan survived the early dismissal of Denton bowled Dyer to club a bold if chancy 51 in 15 overs before cutting to point off Regnier-Wilson. Gilkes was soon deceived in the flight and stumped in what would the first of a trio of victims for Weasels' new captain, the likeable West Ham fan Tom Pagan. Richard is now just 6 runs short of his 1,000.

The 105 run stand between Husain and Wright won The Gents the game. The latter batted as if he had never been away (though he had attended the Oval nets) and after moving discreetly into the 20's unleashed some powerful drives, running superbly with his younger partner, who hit ten fours and three sixes, including an outrageous reverse sweep. Pagan had them both but SP and Sciberras added a bright 22 in the breezy sunshine to conclude the innings. Weasels had kept at it well and smiled through their misfortune.

Husain's innings was the fourth highest in the club's history and once he had his eye in there was little the game Weasel bowlers could do to stop him. He is a phenomenon. The will he/won't he discussion about his departure burbled on most of the day. "He's off on 1 August," pronounced Hemin confidently. "But he's just taken a three month auditing contract," countered Jim Wright. We'll know anon.

After a tasty tea taken al fresco, in which proper cheese sandwiches and chocolate rolls featured, Weasels quickly lost Bishop. Hayes and the impressive, top-scoring Jeavons batted well and there was resistance throughout the order but few boundaries, as The Gents bustled through 35 overs in two hours. When the ball was forced through the inner ring, Ken Toft and Yu Himm Fung swept to great effect. To quote Nine Lives: 'Every ball that came their way was attacked aggressively, cleanly taken and dispatched with gusto to the stumps. At our level, 100% accuracy is a rarity'. SP was able to use seven bowlers. Of these, Mark Sciberras was the pick, flighting the ball well, bowling a nagging length and deserving his three wickets. At the end, Mister Snelling tried a few bouncers at Dyer. The big man can still get it up.

This is a splendid ground with first-class batting wickets, if rather windswept and right on the Heathrow runway 27 flightpath, though no flying saucers were spotted. The clubhouse made an acceptable if slightly sterile venue for post-match socialising, during which pressure was put on the secretary to organise a few more Saturday games in 2009. Finally, big thanks go to last minute guest Yu Himm Fung, a man of eternally sunny disposition, though stressed by his forthcoming nuptials