Hole-hearted

Clean bowled: Sig David Wade (R Signals) takes one of his three wickets during a devastating over in the Army’s decisive victory against the Royal Navy

AN inspirational man-of-the-tournament performance from SSgt Steve Hole (DLO Andover) drove the Army’s Twenty20 cricketers to a second successive Inter-Services title at Portsmouth.

The Reds made light work of the Royal Air Force on a blisteringly hot day on the south coast, economically bowling the airmen out for 105 before eclipsing the target in just 13 overs.

Hole’s unbeaten 64 set the Army up for 168 runs from their 20 overs in the deciding game against the Royal Navy and the hosts were unable to match the reigning champions, eventually falling comfortably short with an innings of 140.

Head coach Dave Gelling was happy with his side’s levels of concentration and the “professional” manner of the two victories.

“We were reasonably confident going into the tournament despite the usual concerns over availability and the unpredictability of the shortened game, where anything can happen,” he said.

“The first game [against the RAF] was an easy ride, but that had a lot to do with our approach and I was pleased that we finished it off quickly.

“We were slightly disappointed not to have scored more against the Navy, but we defended the total well.”

All-rounder Hole set his stall out early on against the RAF, claiming two wickets for just eight runs from his four overs. Cpl Ian Redfern (RE) weighed in with a further four wickets as the Army got their title defence off to the best possible start.

Chasing the airmen’s modest total, Gnr Muzza Heyns (RA) led the way with an inspired knock of 47 and the RAF took just four wickets before the Reds reached their target.

After watching the Royal Navy canter to a 26-run victory against the beleaguered RAF, the Army went into the final match against the hosts knowing that a win would allow them to keep hold of the title for another year.

After losing the toss and being put in to bat, the Reds made a slow start and things did not look good when Heyns was bowled for just four runs.

Cpl Dan Webb (212 MI Sect) notched up a quick-fire 24 and the Army’s innings finally took off when Hole came to the crease and smashed his way to an unbeaten 64 as his team closed off the 20 innings with 168 runs.

The Navy’s response was tentative and some outstanding bowling, including a spell of three wickets in one over from Sig David Wade (R Signals), prevented the home team from finding any kind of rhythm.

With the scoreboard showing just 138 runs when the eighth wicket fell, the Army smelt victory and a final two-wicket salvo from Hole wrapped up a deserved win and the championship.

“Even though the score might make it appear it was close, we were in control and the Navy never looked like they would reach our total,” added Gelling.

The Army were due to take on the Navy at Lord’s as this issue went to press. See next month’s SoldierSport for a full report.

FORMULA One superstar Mark Webber joined more than 400 riders to take on the Army Cycling Union’s (ACU) Are You Tough Enough? enduro challenge.
The Australian raced to 18th place in the four-hour event around a specially-constructed eight-mile track at Porridgepot Hill, near Deepcut.
A mixture of Service and civilian cyclists got on their bikes to tackle further two-hour and fun races, which were organised by ACU member CSgt Si Panter (R Anglian).
“It was amazing to see so many people turn up,” said Panter. “A lot of blood, sweat and tears went into making sure the course was exciting and challenging enough.”
The Porridgepot Hill circuit was redesigned for the event to provide riders with a challenging surface including long climbs over mud, soft soil and pebbles.
The solo four-hour men’s race was won by Simon Ernest, of AW Cycles, who completed seven laps of the track in the allotted time.
Capt Adam Morris was the Army’s highest finisher in the Combined Services four-hour race, which was won convincingly by the Royal Navy’s Andy Plewes.
l See next month’s SoldierSport to find out how Mark Webber came to swap horsepower for pedal power.

THREE Twickenham residents raised £960 for the Army Benevolent Fund and The Sailors’ Society with a collection outside this year’s Army v Royal Navy Rugby Union showdown.
Pam and Laurence Jones and Winnie Wright collected the cash outside Twickenham train station ahead of the Army’s record-breaking seventh successive win in May and will split the money equally between the charities.

SIX Hohne-based REME runners braved a herd of stampeding bulls to raise more than £2,800 for Help for Heroes.
Capt Nigel Booker, Cpl Richie Howells, LCpl Chris Beetson, LCpl Jim Nagle, Cfn Ross Meats and Cfn David Graham were among the thousands of people taking part in this year’s Pamplona Bull Run in Spain.
Each of the military men had to negotiate an 825m run through Pamplona’s narrow streets while avoiding falling competitors and the six fighting bulls rampaging behind them.
“Once the run was over and all the bulls were in the bull ring, we reflected on what we had done,” said Booker. “We couldn’t believe that we had actually done it.”
To make a donation, visit their website at www.justgiving.com/pamplonabullrun until September 7.

CRICKET 4 – Royal Navy v Army (Vine Lane); 5 – Royal Air Force v Army (Vine Lane). GOLF 4 – Army v Whittington Heath (Whittington Heath); 5-6 – Army open stableford championships (Whittington Heath); 7 – Army v Little Aston (Little Aston); 13 – Army v Tidworth (Tidworth); 16-17 – Women’s coaching weekend (Woodhall Spa); 20 – Combined Services v R&A (St Andrews); 26-27 – Army v NAPGC (Sherwood Forest); 28 – Army v Civil Service (Sherwood Forest). RUGBY LEAGUE 27 – International nines competition (Headingley). RUGBY UNION 16 – Middlesex sevens (Twickenham). SHOOTING 2-3 – British clay target grand prix (Beverley); 9-16 – Small bore British Championships (Bisley); 13 – Clay target Inter-Services match (Orston).

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