WHAT a finish! James Tyler was deinitely the man of the moment for Countess Wear 2ndXI in their last-ball win over Kentisbeare.
The Wear were chasing 274 to win at Rectory Park and looked well and truly out of it at 128 for five.
A belligerent innings from Ian Ballinger, who made 70 in a hurry, got the Wear back in the game. His stand of 63 for the sixth wicket with 13-year-old Exeter School student Tyler was crucial to the eventual outcome.
Kents’ captain Chris Gillett probably thought his worries were over when he had Ballinger caught behind and Robin Pearson was run out almost immediately.
It all came down to the final over, bowled by Kents’ Dave Bunker with the Wear needing 18 to win with their last pair in the middle.
Said Gillett: “I remember saying to one of the team ‘we can’t lose this now, surely?’ when we had them 130 for five, but on a belting deck with a quick outfield and not the longest boundaries things can change quite quickly at Kentisbeare.
“Countess Wear needed 18 off the last over and the first four balls from Dave went single, single, a four for James then a dot.
“I thought it best to project the cow-corner boundary as that is where we thought James was likely to hit it and had three fielders out there.
“I said to Phil Chappell, who was next to me, ‘as long as he doesn’t hit this one for six we will be ok’.
“It sailed over our heads – as did the next ball after he took a big swing at it.”
Tyler, who is in the Devon under-13 squad, finished unbeaten on 36.
Darren Rice, the Countess Wear captain said Tyler had shown real composure for one so young.
“James has played for us since last season and has always been a promising bowler, but no one has ever seen him bat like that before,” said Rice.
“The amazing thing was his composure in the last over, when he turned down a run on the fourth ball, knowing that would leave the only way to win it was hitting two sixes.
“James had never even hit a six in adult cricket before, yet there he was backing himself to hit two!
“He hopped down the wicket, the ball was in the slot and put the first six away somewhere over mid-on.
“Last ball he hopped out again and stuck it in the hedge; cue everyone running on to the pitch celebrating.
“I have never played in a game like it. All I can say is James put some of our established batsmen to shame.
“James certainly got on with it a lot more quickly than his dad Mark, who scored a very patient 10 opening up for us.”
Beaten captain Gillett said, at a time when cricket at lower levels is struggling for numbers, it was refreshing to see a youngster doing so well, even if he was on the opposite side!
“Young James opened the bowling as well and I thought he bowled pretty well,” said Gillett.
“He got a bit hot under the collar when he was no-balled a couple of times, but most lads get like that.
“The two sixes at the end may have been memorable, but they weren’t his best shots. That was an absolute pearler of a cover drive.
“For a 13-year-old lad James has a lot of potential.”
