Old Amplefordian Current Parents Battle for Glory on Exhibition Friday
William Price (W91) shares a great review of the Old Amplefordian Current Parents cricket match on Exhibition Friday.
Ampleforth has produced some brilliant minds over the years. In any field you consider, there has been an OA whose intellect has shone above all. But none have reached the heights of that great thinker, Eddie Wyvill (E95). For it was his idea that the OA fathers of current students should have a cricket match on the Friday of Exhibition.
The school enthusiastically backed the idea and Seb Phillips (C00), Head of Cricket, generously offered the 1st XI pitch while Hugh Codrington and John Slingsby volunteered to umpire. Lawrence Brennan (E91) and James Lovegrove (E94) agreed to captain the teams. Ages were spread from C89 to W04 and as abilities were unknown, it was thought fairest to select teams alphabetically, which actually led to a rather one-sided game.
The less said about the quality of much of the cricket in this 20 over game, the better. A couple of players had graced the 1st XI, some had never progressed beyond Fr Francis’s 6th XI and some claimed not to have played since prep school. The final result, Brennan’s Sat Raps beating Lovegrove’s Shovellers by 78 runs, (176 for 2 against 98 for 7) reflected some slow, inaccurate bowling, occasionally inept batting and often decrepit fielding.
But it hardly reflects the enormous enjoyment of the occasion. It encapsulated so many things about Ampleforth: the simple privilege of being there; the outstanding beauty of the Valley; the care and generosity of the staff and, above all, the sheer joy of fellowship in pleasurable endeavour.
Those who played in the match included: Lawrence Brennan (E91), James Lovegrove (E93), Christian Minchella (H94), Philip German-Ribon (C92), Justin Maxwell Stuart (C92), Charlie Grace (O92), Dick Murphy (C89), Tom Spanner (W04), Piers Tempest (E92), Ran Morgan (J94), Tom Paston Bedingfeld (E94), Andrew Freeland (J92), Matt Camacho (C98), Sam Gibson (C93), Rupert Greig (J96), Christopher Acton (E96), Hamish Campbell (C89), Nick von Westenholz (E94) & Richard Blake-James (H95), William Price (W91). Key pitch side personnel included Ben Pridden (C92) and Ralph Foljambe (O93).
The result delighted us all: Shac won.
