Todays game is a late start (2:00pm) so we don't have to head off until midday.   So after a nice breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon a small group of us jump in the car and head off to a cricket shopping nearby Warwick.   I was going to buy some new keeping inners but not at 20 pound ($40) thanks.   So its a morning coffee and then back to the car for the 2 mile trip back to the hotel. We have the coordinates in the GPS but Stirling has a thing against such technology and leans over and turns the unit off.   He then leads us totally astray and the trip back takes us about 20 minutes.

Its about a 45 minute drive back into the Cotswolds for today's game at Shipston-on-Stour .   Ross wins the toss and makes his first mistake for the day.   He gives the Warwickshire Over 50s first use of the wicket.   I'm not keeping today - Peter Howes has first option on the gloves and elects to keep all day - another bad decision. Gill and I are in agreement that with so many games in close succession it is advisable to only keep for half the game and pass over the gloves to another of the keepers - else our concentration suffers in the latter overs.

The Warwickshire openers take to our bowling with a vengeance.
After 20 overs they are 1/121 and it looks like we are going to be chasing a very big score.
Some tidy bowling and good fielding in the latter overs enables us to 'restrict' them to only 6/228 off their 40 overs.

Skipper-for-the-day Ross has asked us to play with positive intent in pursuit of this large total. Gill and Jimmy get us away to a good start before Gill is bowled around his legs after leaving a ball that swung back late . Jimmy goes for 20 before John Dedman retires for a classy 30.   At number 5, I now go out to join Ross.   The opening bowlers are off and are replaced by two very good spinners - one left-arm orthodox and one offie. The leftie is tight - in fact finished with 0/9 off 6 overs and that included a six that John struck to reach his 30. The offie is the better of the two and bamboozles Ross on several occasions. Knowing what a class batsman Ross is, I'm wondering just how I am going to handle him. He's getting good turn and bounce and varies his pace very well. He cleans up Ross as I get a few away through mid-on and midwicket by playing across the line until I try to play straight and drive him down the ground. Bad plan - I miss and he hits. I'm out for 5.

Wickets are falling at regular intervals and it looks like we could even be bowled out for less that 100.   Murray bats with a runner due to his earlier injury and his dismissal sees John Dedman recycled to join last man Brain (Panda) Scott . Solid defence and some nice shots from John has the score ticking upwards. With a couple of overs to go the big Panda springs to life and sends a couple of lusty blows out through cow-corner - one clearing the rope on one of the longer parts of the ground.   John finishes with 45no.   They see us through to a final total of 148.

Its not a total disgrace as they are a younger side than ours and in fact are into the semi-finals of the county Over 50s competition,   They also had a couple of 30-somethings playing for them today - regular first graders from the local club.

Then its on to the usual......speeches, dinner, presentations, ale - you must be getting the picture by now. Dinner tonight was a chicken pasta dish and a curry & rice - followed by strawberries & cream.   Back in the car for the trip home and Stirling is following us.   We are using the GPS of course while Stirling is relying on his rat cunning and intimate knowledge of the local area.   At one turn -off he flashed his lights at us to tell us he thinks we have gone the wrong way. We ignore him. He turns around and goes the alternate way. We ignore him.  

We get back to the hotel 10 minutes before him. We win !!