Sunday 1st June’s fixture away to Wimborne was another tough encounter with first ITW and Rotherwick ITW 
having not claimed a victory for well over a decade in this annual fixture.

Another successful toss was won by skipper Hooper who inserted the opposition.

Debutant Ali Hussain and veteran Adie Turnbull opened the bowling and started well, Hussain impressing in 
his early overs and should have claimed his first wicket for the club until the chance was spilled by 
Poole behind the stumps. The deadlock was broken with Turnbull’s appeal for LBW being confirmed by the 
umpire. Wickets fell at reasonable intervals with Turnbull finishing with 2, a mix up between the batsmen
resulting in a run out and Cordery snared a wicket reducing the home team to 73 for 4, Crisp, Wimborne 
No.5, went to work moving the score along to 120 before the double change bringing Kyle Frost and Lewis 
Benge into the attack, the bowling changes worked a treat with both Benge and Frost taking two wickets 
each in a short burst reducing Wimborne to 140 for 8, Wimborne’s No.10, Heyes, and Crisp fought back 
strongly putting on 63 for the ninth wicket before Ince, replacing Frost at the pavilion end, trapped 
Crisp into a mistake and snared him, caught by Poole. The innings was ended when Benge removed Heyes to 
claim his third wicket of the innings. Wimborne totalled an imposing 205 setting a stiff task for the 
visitors to chase.

The chase started positively with Guye and Hooper moving the score briskly along to 53 before Guye 
(21 (runs that is not years)) holed out to the young left arm spinner Beardsley. Larry Benge joined Hooper
but the partnership was quickly broken as Hooper edged to the keeper to depart for 20. Paul Appleton 
joined Benge and with the pace needed to be picked up Benge set about the task punishing any loose bowling 
to blaze his way to 35 before edging Beardsley to slip with the score on 107 for 3. Lewis Benge then 
joined Appleton and set about marshalling the run chase. Another 30 was added before Appleton was out for 
19. Frost came and went in a blaze of glory with literally a 6 and out innings before being stumped as 
Beardsley snared his fourth wicket. Ince joined the younger Benge and they cruised along steadily and got 
to 168 before Ince was mercilessly triggered by umpire Guye, clearly still smarting from his own dismissal
(hit a full toss straight up in the air off the young spinner Beardsley). This brought Ali Hussain to the 
crease to join Benge the younger with 37 still required, reports had been made that Hussain as a batsman 
had a fluffy tail and big ears, the implication that he was a rabbit was hard to get away from!!!! 
Hussain blew away this theory by smashing 34 not out in the 5.3 overs he was at the wicket which took 
Rotherwick ITW to their second win of an excellent weekend. Sunday’s plaudits undoubtedly go to Lewis 
Benge who’s team best figures of 3-22 followed by his excellent 44 not out in marshalling his more 
experiences teammates through the final stages of a top class run chase showed great calmness as the match
came to its conclusion. A mention should also go to Wimborne’s Harry Beardsley who ended up with figures 
of 5-77 in Rotherwick ITW’s reply.