Llandudno Cricket Club Oval is a beautiful ‘town ground’, surrounded by grand Victorian houses and with a backdrop of the Great Orme mountain and its signature Kashmiri goats.
The warmth and the friendliness of the off-field reception for the tourists from the Gulf was exceptional – but on the field, the story was otherwise.
“Llandudno do NOT lose to tourists!” was the motto of the day, matched by the Camels’ “The Camels never lose on tour!” The scene was set for a clash of titans in their fifth game of the tour.
The opening batters for the home team, professionals Alex Corver (Aus) and Kai Page (SA), set about the Camels attack, showing no mercy. Both smashed half-centuries in style, peppering the boundary and scattering spectators who turned up in droves to cheer their team on.
On their regulation retirement, the Camels breathed a premature sigh of relief. Enter the dragon! Jamie Grimshaw not only continued the carnage, he accelerated it. All seven bowlers suffered irreparable damage to their tour averages.
His most spectacular shot was a reverse six off paceman Tom Wooding, now bowling with a broken finger. The greatest punishment was saved for skipper Guy Parker’s ‘death bowling’, although there was some compensation in the three wickets (the only ones to fall) he took, including a fine stumping – his fifth of the tour – by Dave Mason.
Only heroic fielding by every Camel, most notably Paul Baker, Fergus Shaw and Steve Turner putting their bodies on the line to save fours and Wooding’s Exocet returns from the 70-yard-long boundary, provided some limitation on the run rate.
Eight-an-over for 30 overs is not normally too hard a task for these seasoned Camels. The first over faced by Charles Forward and Matt Rees went for nine runs. Fine. But Llandudno now turned to their secret weapons in the form of Wales internationals Jessica Price and Shana Kelly.
Their persistent nagging length and accuracy kept the Camels well and truly in the cages. Rees (29) cracked six fours before being caught behind. Forward struggled to a painful 29. Stubborn resistance to save the match was now the order of the day.
There was still room for some sparkling batting by Shaw (26) and Dave Axtell (13 not out). Saving the game became easier as the overs ran out.
Both teams had achieved their initial aim of ‘not to lose’. However, the now depleted and tour-battered Camels return to the same venue for the final game of their North Wales tour – to face the North Wales Ladies XI – in a first for the tourists: a ‘Hundred’ contest.
Note: Camels play to rules where the opposition have to get them all out to secure the win (games are played like this in some leagues in the UK to encourage teams to take wickets).
Scores: Llandudno Cricket Club 243 for 3 wkts in 30 overs drew with Awali Camels 107 for 5 in 30 overs
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