The Willows lost this inaugural match against a Mobil Oil XI composed of five players from their corporate office in Wellington, bolstered by six local ex-Canterbury representatives. So the team line-ups were strong.
Unfortunately, the Willows did not make the start they wanted with the bat. At 61/6 with the “stars” back in the Pavilion, it was John Mitchell (27) and Tom Lancaster (36 not out) who did a salvage job and got the score up to a meagre 138 total. The HSOB quicks, Stu Roberts and Chris Flanagan, gained three wickets apiece.
In reply, runs didn’t come any easier at the start of the Mobil XI’s innings. Wade Cornelius worked up a brisk pace and led the Willows’ fightback. At 64/5 the match was evenly poised when a “hand of God” incident occurred which ultimately sealed the final outcome. Craig Thiele came back for his second spell and with Paul McEwan on only 3 runs had an LBW appeal affirmed by the umpire. Clearly, it was more than a trifle “rough” so as Mac trudged off, Craig magnanimously (mellowing with increasing years and certainly unheard of in his fiercely competitive past) invited him to return to the batting crease and continue. Just the invitation Paul needed, and with Chris Flanagan they swung the victory for the visitors. Chris hit the ball cleanly and scored 36 not out to record a useful double.
The ma!ch, although it was not a run feast, was blessed by fair weather and a sizeable crowd. We appreciated the many playing and non-playing members who came out to watch the game, designated “Club Day”. At the after-match, Jim Law (Chairman of Mobil Oil) was presented with the Jim Law Trophy for the win and he in turn handed cheques of $3,000 ih total to the Rangiora St. John Ambulance and the local Boy Scouts troop.
The Mobil lads looked smart in their special kit and hats for the game. Mobil Executive Kevin Parker flew in from Singapore for the game (and to watch his son bowl a good spell of leg spin) and local Mobil representative Ross Cameron was a vocal force behind his team’s success. Thanks to Jim, Kevin and Ross for setting this up. An enjoyable day and a match to be annually contested in the future.