Twenty - Weston Creek Cricket Club

Weston Creek, Cricket ClubBut the Oxford, Middlesex and Weston Creek wonder hadother ideas. Coming in at the fall of Irvine's wicket at 12.55,Carr took it easy during the last two overs before lunch. Noone could have foreseen the entertainment that was to comeduring the afternoon. With the help of Clive Jones, who wasin sparkling touch, John pushed the score along, adding about70 in the first hour after lunch. The partnership developedwith fine strokes and snappy running between wickets andsoon it became apparent that the match could be saved;perhaps won. When Jones holed out at deep fine leg the pairhad added 111 in better than even time. Chris Burgess figuresin a near 50 partnership and then, 15 minutes after tea, Carrreached his century.There was now plenty of time to get the runs. All it neededwas for someone to stay with Carr. Hugh Abrahams steppedinto the supporting role, and played his part admirably.The ANU bowlers stuck to their task but there was little theycould do to stop the flow of runs.When the umpires pulled up stumps the Carr-Abrahamspartnership had put on 99. Abrahams had a six and a handfulof fours in his valuable 39 while Carr's 173 included 17 foursand two sixes, one of which cleared the sightscreen at thenorthern end by a long way.It was as if Carr's battered Newberry bat had been madewithout edges; it seemed all middle. Mid-off, mid-on, midwicketand the bowlers had their work cut out as his powerladendrives tested them. No surprise if the groundsmanfound scorch marks on the turf in the arc between mid-wicketand extra-cover. Towards the end of his innings, John unleashedhis own specials, a front foot pull shot that depositedthe ball to a spot just inside the boundary. And his placementwas such that fieldsmen had a lot of chasing to do. For thosebeyond the boundary it was a sheer delight.118