Moto Yawata, Chiba 06.12.14
By Dave Lollback
Sharks of all species and weights assembled in the city of Ichikawa last Saturday 6 December clutching the hottest tickets in town – VIP entry to the 2014 Chiba Sharks Awards Party. This strictly invitation-only affair was hosted by the enchanting proprietress and obliging staff of “Indian Food Athithi,” purveyors of exquisite South Asian delicacies and proud operators of arguably the best Indian restaurant within eight minutes’ walk of Moto-Yawata Station.
Ravenous hordes of paparazzi flash-bulbed the night into day as a school of stylish Sharks, Sharkettes, and Sharklets set the red carpet alight in their finest Uniqlo and Shimamura ensembles. Many of the neighboring residents were heard to gasp and breathlessly remark that the sensible pants-and-jumper combination sported by Sharks life member Chris Thurgate was undoubtedly the fashion highlight of the awards season thus far.
Once inside, everyone was quick to slake their thirst with a liquid dispensed from a machine with a beer label on it or to partake of mango lassi. Delicious edibles were available throughout the day, with the fish in particular drawing high praise from many.
There was some early alarm when Vicky and Prashant noticed that the Tiranga, or the glorious tri-color national flag of India, was prominently displayed upside down on the premises’ wall – an international signal of distress. There was palpable relief, however, when it was discovered that this was simply an oversight, and the restaurant’s toilets were in fine working order. Needless to say, Prashant and Vicky both very pointedly righted the flag so that it’s deep saffron took pride of place at the top, not at the bottom.
A cosmos of Shark stars both present and future, and the extended Sharks family, were on hand to celebrate a long, full, and relative fruitful season 2014, including:
Anton, Minami, Zain, Nick & Meg & Jack & Oliver, Takady, Takuma, Rui, Sagar, Aditya T, Alwin, Rob & Sam, Karthik, Atharva, Chris M, Vicky, Chris T, Dhugal, Prashant & Sonali & Aditya, and Dave & Kyoko.
There was much to get through and so Chris M and Anton maintained a cracking pace throughout the event. Each award announcement was met by clapping of fins and raucous cheers, probably only surpassed in volume by the sonorous trumpeting of those of us whose fragile constitutions were left to deal later with the after-effects of a heady mixture of fermented beverages and spiced foodstuffs.
All Sharks in attendance no doubt greatly appreciated the work of Anton, for enthusiastically undertaking the job of MC for most of the event, and especially that of Chris M, who graciously jumped in to take on the role of organizer of the party, as the person who volunteered for that role at the beginning of the year was AWOL (is that how you spell it? Well, close enough).
See who won what below!
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29th Friendly vs Bundy Rumblers at Fuji
Lost by 3 wkts
Touring team from Australia. Lovely people. Organised by CT. Sharks batted first. Loads of Ducks. 81 ao
Bundy batted hard and won in the final over
BF – Takady
3rd – Anton
2nd – Sumon
1st – Vicky (29 and a few wickets)
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05th – JCL1 vs Wyverns 1 at Tanuma
Won by 5wkts
Wyverns bat first but were demolished by brilliant bowling from Takady, Adit, Vicky and Alwin 2 wkts apiece. 95 ao in 33ov
Sharks get there for 5wkts in 29.
BF – Dhugal
3rd – Vicky
1st= Dhugal (85 n.o.)
1st = Takady (2/3 and 4 mdns)
13th – JCL1 vs Wombats at Fuji
Lost by 5wkts
Sharks bat first – woeful 76 ao
Wombats win in the 14th for 5 wkts
BF – Mairaj, Rui, Zain, Adit
3rd – Rui
2nd – Dave
1st – Takady (3/32)
26th – JCL1 vs Sano1 at Tanuma
Lost by 8wkts
Sharks bat first 193/7 off 40 – not a bad effort with contributions all down the card
No spark in the Sharks bowling or fielding. Sano breached our total in the 33rd over for 2 wkts
BF – Anton
3rd – Ashiq
2nd – Dave
1st – Prashant (boundary filled 49)
27th – JCL2 vs Fuji Far East at Tanuma
Lost by 75 runs
Fuji bat first and rack up 4/331 from 40 wkts
Thurgate leads the fight back with 125 off 79 balls (14f/5s) but all out in the 30 for 256
MOM – Zain, for a solid supporting role with the bat
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03rd – JCUP vs British Embassy at YCAC
Won by 90 runs
Sharks bat first and rack up 174 for 4
Great bowling all through the list to restrict YCAC to 84
BF – KB
3rd – Pave
2nd – Prashant
1st – Dave (62 n/o)
24th – JCL1 vs Paddy Foleys1 at Sano3
Won by 26 runs
Sharks bat first, lots of contributions see us pile on 6/304 after 40
PF hit big as usual but regular falling wickets mean PF fall just short at 278
BF – Takady
3rd – Takady
2nd – Dave
1st – Dhughal (97 and 2/43)
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01st – JCL2 vs Hokushinetsu Hawks at Sano 3
Lost by 148 runs
Hawks bat first and pile up 316 for 6 wkts – Rui 3/44
In reply Sharks finished with 168 for 9 – nice little contributions thru the order. CT made 51 and Mairaj a 50 ball 9.
MOM – Rui – great bowling
14th – JCL1 vs Wyverns1 at Sano3
Won by 98 runs
Sharks bat first 190 ao after 37. People generally got in but got out when they started playing scoring shots
Good bowling and great fielding including a Takady Freddie Flintoff moment finished off Wyverns in the 23rd over for just 92
BF – Takady
3rd – Adit
2nd – Dhugal
1st – Dave (71)
15th – JCUP vs Keio Knights at YCAC
Won by 50 runs
Sharks bat first and make 131 for 4 including a Takuma cameo at the end for 13 off 12 incl a 6
Good bowling and sharp fielding see Keio dismissed for 7 for 81
BF – Creece
3rd – Takuma
2nd – Rui
1st – Chris T (48no – 6f/2s)
28th – JCL1 vs Wombats at Fuji
Lost by 6wkts
Sharks bat first – short of players (Nanda and Amit help out) 218 for 7 off 40
Wombats stoic with the bat and win in the 38th for 4 wkts
BF – Karthik
3rd – Sankar
2nd – Dave Lollback
1st – Prashant (96no 6f/6s)
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13th -JCUP vs YCAC at YCAC
Won 6wkts
YCAC bat first and great bowling and catching sees them off for 112 in 18 overs. Vicky 4wkts
Sharks get there in 16 overs for the loss of 4 wkts.
BF – Anton
3rd – Dave
2nd – Vicky
1st – Prashant (52 n.o.)
19th – JCL1 vs Sano1 at Sano3 – Sharks won by forfeit
26th – JCL1 vs Paddy Foleys 1 at Sano 3
Won by 9 wkts
Short of regular 1st XI bowlers and roasting hot
Paddys bat first.Good bowling in short spells and some great catching meant Paddys ao 97 in 29th
Solid batting at the top sees Sharks win in 21st over for just 1wkt.
BF – Ryo Yamashita
3rd – Takady
2nd – Dhugal
1st – Alwin (30 n.o. as opener)
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2nd – JCL1 vs MAX at Tanuma
Won by 6wkts
MAX bat first and hung around well before a late blitz saw the scoreboard stop – 144 for 8
Sharks beat that in 30 overs with the middle order seeing us through.
BF – Creece
3rd – Takady
2nd – Dhugal
1st – Prashant (6 for 19 in 2 overs!)
16th – JCL2 vs Wyverns 2 at Tanuma
Lost by 5 wkts
Sharks a healthy mix of youth and experience and bat first. Good opening from Nav and Murad. However not much after.
Wyverns win in 22nd for 5 wkts. Absolutely pissing it down. KB abandoned his game next door.
MOM – Murad – Showing how its done with both bat and ball.
17th – JCUP South Kanto Final vs YCAC
Won by 7wkts – back to back Championships
YCAC, dawdling around, eventually bat first. They start well soon buckle under good bowling and fielding 126 for 8.
Dave just smashed ‘em. Karthik joined in the carnage too.
BF – Chris T
3rd – Dhugal
2nd – Karthik
1st – Dave. 69 (11f, 1s)
24th – JCLT20 vs Sano
Lost by 83 runs
KB skippered, Sano bat first. 10 Sharks bowlers take 7wkts for 161
11 Sharks bats could only rustle up 78
BF – Sankar
3rd – Sankar
2nd – Ashiq
1st – Sumon (A short but beautifully crafted 19 runs)
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28th – JCL1 Semi Final vs Sano at Sano3 – winning comfortably until we…
Lost by 23 runs
Sano bat first, bowlers tight but we drop absolutely everything to allow them to 199 ao in the 39th
Sharks cruising to victory until an epic collapse of 8 wkts in 66 balls for 32 runs leaves us shaking our heads.
Just to add to the misery Dave, Anton and Nav broke down on the way home.
BF – Takady
3rd – Takady
1st = Dhugal (patient 62)
1st = Prashant (typically explosive 59 7f 2s)
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Japan Cup Finals
Day 1 – Morning match vs Paddy Foleys
Lost by 7 wkts
Sharks bat first – steadily give away wkts and finish with 122 for 9
We couldn’t take wickets and Paddy’s coasted to 126 for 3
BF – Prashant
3rd – Vicky
2nd – Nick
1st – Dhugal (53 n.o.)
Day 2 – Morning match vs Hawks
Won by 8wkts
Hawks bat first. Their big hitters taken cheaply with good bowling and catching for 105 for 7
Sharks Dynamic Duo Karthik and Dave reply with venom and help us to the total req after 17 overs.
BF – Dhugal
3rd – Karthik
2nd – Dhugal
1st – Dave (45 – 5f 1s)
Day 2 – Afternoon match vs Tokai
Won by 71 runs
Sharks bat first and find it difficult to get in. The players that do get in make the bulk of 153 for 8
Demolition job from the bowlers. Tokai for just 82 a.o.
BF – Nick
3rd – Dave
2nd – Dhugal
1st – Nick 2 catches and 56 runs
Day 3 – Morning match semi vs Tochigi
Lost by 8wkts
Sharks bat first, better than Sunday with lots of players contributing to 146 for 7
Tochigi go ballistic and smash 147 in 16 overs – form that would see them go on to win the comp.
BF – Takuma/ Chris T
3rd – Dave
2nd – Nick
1st – Dhugal (59 – runs 5f 2s)
Day 3 – Afternoon match vs Hawks again
Won by 9 wkts
Hawks bat first and are cleaned up for 98 for 9
Sharks go ballistic and Doogs and Dave smash Hawks back to the stone age winning in the 9th for 1 wkt
BF – Nick
3rd – Dhugal
2nd – Dave
1st – Takuma (4 for 27)
Sharks finish in 3rd – an excellent effort by all who played in the end. Well done.
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15th – Chiba Cup vs University XI
Won by 27 runs
Sharks bat first – openers patiently work thru some tight Uni bowling until ALW breaks the deadlock by getting Sagar run out. Flood gates open and Sharks all back in the hutch for 77 off 18 (from a ludicrously optimistic 35 overs)
Uni start carefully but Sharks bowl great lines taking regular wickets – snuffed out for just 50
BF – Chris T / Karthik
3rd – Sankar
2nd – Vicky
1st – Sagar (2 for 6)
24 Matches played (1+ from 2013)
2768 runs (141 +), 159 wickets (14 +) and 78 catches (6 +)
Reporters – KB, Dhugal, Dave, Navin, Scott, Nick, Chris Molloy, Chris T., Anton
12th men – Aayush, Mairaj, Sagar, Sankar, Molloy, Vicky, Alwin, Takuma, Anton
Umpires – Chris T, KB, Dave, Prashant, Vicky, Adit, Alwin, Navin, Takady, Haruo Matsumura, Molloy, Anton
Best Bowler: 3rd: Adit (14 wkts), 2nd: Vicky (20 wkts – av.11.55 ) 1st: Dhugal (20 wkts av.11.45 )
Best Batsman: 3rd: Prashant (370), 2nd: Dhugal (489), 1st: Dave (543)
Best 2nd XI Batsman: Chris T (180)
Best 2nd Bowler: Rui (5wkts)
Best Fielder : 3rd: Dhugal, 2nd: Nick, 1st: Takady
Best First Year Player: 3rd: Pave, 2nd: Sankar, 1st: Karthik
Most Improved Player: Takuma Yamashita
Spirit of the Shark: Anton
Cricketer of the Year: 3rd: Prashant (170), 2nd: Dhugal (238), 1st: Dave Lollback (250)
And that was our 2014 season. See you in 2015.
