The Hustlers

Kicking off the second half of the season, the Hustlers wandered out to the Fox & Hounds to face the Pittville Outcasts.  Could we avoid losing our second game against them?

We looked to be starting 2011 well when Pete knocked up a first hand spare on his way to our first 40 of the night.  JT just missed out on a 40 as 1st leg handed over with the scores still level.  2nd leg stuttered, with TC claiming the night’s lowest score & Lewis our 2nd 40 of the night as they dropped 15 pins.

Third leg soon had things looking different, Steve narrowly missing a 40, while Clive racked up our top score of the night, despite his 9 spare.  So it was down to the anchors now, facing a deficit of a mere 5 pins.  After 2 hands we were within a pin and it was all down to the last leg to decide the result.  Rob’s 40 wasn’t enough to bridge the gap and we eventually lost by 6 – an improvement on our previous encounter.

And so we look to the Suffolk next week to regain our winning form.  Will we be able to avenge our 2 pin defeat against the Kraftsmen?

11/1/11 v Pittville Outcasts @ Fox & Hounds

JT	7	7	6	6	7	5	38
Pete	13	2	3	7	7	8	40
Gary	5	4	8	4	1	9	31

1st leg total 109 v 109

TC	4	7	6	1	7	5	30
Jim	3	7	7	5	4	5	31
Lewis	7	5	8	6	6	8	40

2nd leg total 101 v 116

Steve	6	7	7	8	7	4	39
Mart	4	5	4	7	5	8	33
Clive	8	7	8	4	9s	8	44

3rd leg total 116v 106

Rob	5	8	7	6	6	8	40
AS	5	6	7	6	4	7	35
Neil	8	7	7	5	4	2	33

4th leg total 108 v 109

Grand total 434 v 440

WIN by -6

In a break from Cheltenham League skittles, a number of Hustlers took part in the 2nd Tony Clay Memorial Shield to commemorate our former Chairman.  His successor provided the following account.

 Mark, Pete and Rob (and ex-Hustler Alec) were joined by June and Kate and 36 other hopefuls in the second Tony Clay Memorial Shield at the Civvy Club on 14 – 15 December 2010.  

It was back to the Suffolk this week as the Hustlers took on the Shadows to finish off the first half of the season.  Could we string it all together to get back to winning ways or would the Shadows hit the high notes?

 

Our last game of 2010 saw us get off to Apache start.  With JT hitting another spare to scrape a 40, and good support from Pete & Gary, we could only manage to finish the 1st leg leading by a single pin.  2nd leg soon got into their rhythm and, despite a stumbling Salty, a resurgent Jim clinched his 1st 40 of the season, ably backed up by another Lewis 40, to stretch the halftime lead to 11 pins.

Third leg looked like they might be struggling when Rich started with a beaver.  But Wallsy (with our 2nd spare of the night) found the best rhythm of the match as his Foottapper performance rocked in with a 49 to stretch the lead by another 11 pins.  Surely a sign that the festive season was going to be a joyful one?   But the Shadows weren’t done yet and, steadily pulling pins back, were determined to make a Cliff hanger of it.  With 40s from Dobbin & Olive, the anchors just held on to see us home by 8 pins.

And so we go into Christmas riding high in the League.  We’re hoping Santa will bring us some magic to keep the streak going.  We reconvene on 11 January to face the Pittville Outcasts at the Fox & Hounds (NOT the Gas Club!).  Have a Great Christmas.

15/12/10 v Shadows @ Suffolk

JT	6	6	12	4	6	6	40
Pete	7	6	5	6	7	7	38
Gary	7	5	6	6	7	6	37

1st leg total 115 v 114

Mark	2	8	4	7	6	6	33
Jim	8	7	7	6	8	7	43
Lewis	8	8	6	7	6	6	41

2nd leg total 117 v 107

Steve	8	8	6	8	9	10	49
Rich	0	7	5	9	6	5	32
Stu	5	4	7	6	6	6	34

3rd leg total 115v 104

Rob	4	8	6	8	6	8	40
AS	7	5	4	6	5	8	35
Clive	8	8	8	8	4	6	42

4th leg total 117 v 131

Grand total 464 v 456

WIN by 8

With the hoar frost gone, the Hustlers ventured out to Bishops Cleeve to face old rivals the Cream.  Would we get frozen out or could we lick the cream?

Our penultimate game of 2010 saw us fumbling with freezing balls as we looked to win this top of the table battle.  1st leg got off to a very uncertain start, as Neil racked up another 40, but barely making up for JimBob & Lofty’s season low scores.  Lofty succeeded in snatching back possession of Barry the Brasilian beaver in the process – indeed, he almost got a second beaver to boot.  Both sides failed to break the ton, but we still managed to drop 9 pins.  Uncharacteristically, AS failed to produce a single swandive, while Jim pulled out his best score of the season as 2nd leg put in a more consistent performance, yet still managing to drop a further 13 pins.

And so we began the 2nd half trailing by 22 pins, but still with a good hope of pegging them back.  Steve (with our 2nd 40) & Gary’s consistency made up somewhat for TC’s misfiring and we finally won a leg to pull back 5 pins and leave the anchors a good chance of pulling the game back.  Despite a couple of hiccups, Rob led the way with another 40, with Clive & JT trailing behind, but keeping the pressure on as they slowly pegged back pins.  A brave effort narrowed the gap by 12 pins to see the Cream narrowly scrape the win by a mere 5 pins.

We’re back at home next week for our last game before the Christmas break.  We will be trying to spoil the Shadows’ festive season and bring back the winning ways.

8/12/10 v Cream @ RBL BC

Neil	8	8	7	5	7	6	41
JimBob	5	3	4	6	4	4	26
Mart	7	5	5	0	3	1	21

1st leg total 88 v 97

AS	6	4	8	4	7	3	32
Jim	8	4	7	5	6	8	38
Stu	5	6	6	7	8	4	36

2nd leg total 106 v 119

Steve	6	6	9	7	8	9	45
TC	6	6	5	3	6	5	31
Gary	6	6	5	7	7	5	36

3rd leg total 112 v 107

Rob	8	8	8	6	4	9	43
Clive	6	5	4	7	8	6	36
JT	5	6	7	5	5	5	33

4th leg total 112 v 100

Grand total 418 v 423

WIN by -5

After last week’s stunning win, the Hustlers were looking to carry that winning streak back to the Suffolk and regain the fortress.  How would they fare?

 

Memories of last week’s start were still fresh in our minds as we opened up against Smiths A.  Another 40 from AS was enough to keep honours even in a hard fought first leg.  2nd leg continued the tight battle but Gary’s 40 (with our only spare of the night) wasn’t enough to counter Pete’s masterful beaver and we turned around trailing by a mere 2 pins at the midpoint.

There was still plenty of time to go as 3rd leg took over, but a faltering display from both sides saw us drop a further 3 pins with our lowest leg score of the night.  But it was still not all over as we looked once more to the anchors.  And very soon we began to ship yet more pins as Lewis opened up with another Beaver to regain control of Barry and the doubts began to settle in.  But, by the 4th hand, we were back on level terms once more and the game to play for.  The 5th hand saw us finally take the lead and it was up to Cap’n Clive & Neil to make sure of the win with a 40 apiece.

Next week we travel to the wild outreaches of Bishops Cleeve to take on the Cream at the RBL.  Can we pull off a win there?

29/11/10 v Smiths A @ Suffolk

Mark	7	6	8	6	4	3	34
Jim	4	5	6	6	8	7	36
AS	7	8	5	7	7	6	40

1st leg total 110 v 111

Pete	6	0	4	2	6	8	26
Steve	9	4	7	4	5	7	36
Gary	6	4	11	6	9	7	43

2nd leg total 105 v 107

Mart	6	6	7	6	6	6	37
Rich	7	2	6	6	3	7	31
AU	4	6	5	9	1	8	33

3rd leg total 101 v 104 

Lewis	0	6	5	8	8	4	31
Clive	6	5	8	8	8	7	42
Neil	6	7	7	6	9	8	43

4th leg total 116 v 105

Grand total 432 v 427

WIN by 5

Following on from last week’s unwelcome home loss, the Hustlers took to the road once more to try and regain that winning feeling as they took on the Cannonballs Elite at the Saracens Club.  Could they get back on track?

With the fear of another defeat looming over them, 1st leg got off to a nervous start with two 40s (the first of the season for Rich), only Neil breaking the mould as his 3 spares took him to a magnificent 61 (our highest score for some considerable time) and helped us chalk up a 28-pin lead.   This helped settle a  2nd leg which suffered a last minute rejig as a result of our skipper’s communication breakdown!  With a steady perfomance, all 3 managed 40s, but shipped enough pins to leave us leading by 15 pins at the halfway mark.

3rd leg set about stretching the lead back out as TC and Stu both notched up 40s, only to see Lofty eke out 2 more spares on his way to our 3rd highest score of the saeson thus far).  And so the anchors took over, with a lead of 22 pins to defend.  But the Elite started clawing back the pins.  Stavros helped himself to a spare on his way to another 40, along with JT, but could only watch in despair as Rob became the only Hustler to fail to score a 40 on the night (and the only 1 to drop his average).   Fortunately for our vice-Captain, we did enough to hold on and get back to winning ways.

Next week it’s back to the Suffolk to take on Smiths A.  The fortress must become impre once more.

24/11/10 v Cannonballs Elite @ Saracens Club 

AU	7	7	7	7	8	7	43
Rich	9	8	8	5	7	7	44
Neil	6	11	7	15	9	13	61

1st leg total 148 v 120

Lewis	6	6	8	9	7	7	43
Mark	6	8	7	8	8	7	44
Clive	8	6	7	9	7	8	45

2nd leg total 132 v 140

TC	6	8	8	7	7	6	42
Mart	8	8	8	11	5	13	53
Stu	9	5	8	6	5	7	40

3rd leg total 135 v 128

 

Rob	6	8	3	4	9	8	38
AS	6	11	8	7	7	6	45
JT	8	7	5	8	9	5	42

4th leg total 125 v 135

Grand total 540 v 528

WIN by 12

Back at home, with 5 consecutive wins under their belt, the Hustlers were looking to extend their winning streak as they took on Ullenwood CC.  Whose bowling would win the day?

 Eager to keep the run going, the Hustlers got off to a bright start, with AU’s consistency bringing him a spare-free 40, while Clive’s "Hustler’s spare" denied him a 40.  But 1st leg still racked up an 8-pin lead and we looked to be well on track.  The light started to fade a little though as, much to the delight of Lewis, TC opened 2nd leg with a beaver and we started shipping pins.  But another spareless 40 from Lewis, with able assistance from Mark, helped slow the rot and we turned around still 3 pins up at the end of the leg.

3rd leg then stepped up to try and stop the rot, but it didn’t look good as Stu opened his account with a 1 and the pins started to look like favouring the cricketers as we lost the leg by 11 pins, leaving the anchors with it all to play for.  But our anchor was suffering this week and, despite JT’s 40, couldn’t do enough, dropping a further 8 pins, to see our first loss for a few weeks.  If only Stu had got 68, we’d have won!

Next week sees us visit the Saracens.  Can we get our season back on track?

15/11/10 v Ullenwood CC @ Suffolk

AU	9	7	7	7	8	7	45
Pete	6	5	4	6	7	5	33
Clive	7	7	6	4	9s	6	39

1st leg total 117 v 109

TC	0	7	5	8	6	8	34
Mark	4	6	7	7	8	7	39
Lewis	8	7	7	7	6	7	42

2nd leg total 115 v 120

Gary	5	9	4	3	6	6	33
Mart	5	5	5	8	6	6	35
Stu	1	6	8	6	8	5	34

3rd leg total 102 v 113

 

AS	4	8	5	6	5	5	34
Steve	4	6	6	5	5	6	32
JT	8	6	9	8	7	5	43

4th leg total 109 v 117

Grand total 443 v 459

WIN by -16

Away at the Gas Club, Hustlers were looking to make it 5 wins on the bounce as they took on Old Golds.  Could they do it on this tricky alley?

 Taking his turn on 1st leg, Neil struggled to find form in reaching his lowest score of the season.  But Pete’s maiden 40 of the season, backed up by Cap’n Clive meant we won a seesaw leg by 8 pins.  2nd leg then started in grand style as TC hit his 1st spare of the season.  In another seesaw leg, we managed to pull out another 13 pins as TC hit his 1st 40 of the season and Jim equalled his best.

Confidence was now high as 3rd leg looked to extend our lead, getting off to a promising start with Gary notching a 9 on the 1st hand.  But they wee unlucky enough to be our lowest scoring leg of the night as they dropped 10 pins, leaving the anchors with still a reasonable lead to defend.  But that lead started to look frail as we started to drop pins rapidly.  With Rob failing to find any form (managing only half of his score from last week), it was up to the veteran JT to come to the rescue, with 2 spares in the last 3 hands, as he headed for our top score so far this season, but still managing to lose the leg.  Fortunately, it wasn’t enough to lose the game and we managed to hold on to win by a narrow 9 pins.

We’re back at home on Monday as we take on the Suffolk’s Ullenwood CC.

9/11/10 v Old Golds @ Gas Club

Neil	3	5	5	3	8	5	29
Pete	8	6	6	8	6	8	42
Clive	8	7	3	8	4	9	39

1st leg total 110 v 102

TC	16	6	7	6	6	5	46
Jim	7	3	3	8	6	8	35
Lewis	4	8	5	4	8	7	36

2nd leg total 117 v 104

Gary	9	6	8	5	7	5	40
AS	5	8	4	6	4	6	33
Stu	7	7	7	7	2	6	36

3rd leg total 109 v 119

 

Rob	5	5	4	4	2	5	25
Steve	8	6	4	8	6	6	38
JT	8	6	8	14	6	13	55

4th leg total 118 v 120

Grand total 454 v 445

WIN by 9

Having risen to 4th in Div 2, Hustlers played their 1st innings against their 2nd cricketing opponents of the season.  Could their winning streak continue?

 There was some trepidation amongst the Hustlers, as they worried about the condition of the wicket alley even before the first ball.

Our opening partnership got off to a good start as AS and Cap’n Clive both knocked off 40s – AS getting our first 9 spare of the season, with Jim helping establish a lead of 15 pins.  Despite Mark’s best efforts to collect a beaver, 2nd leg kept the opposition below 100 in a knock that increased the lead by a further 16 pins to put us 31 up at the halfway stage.

The start of the 3rd leg had the feeling of an England middle order batting collapse as we conceded 12 pins in the first 2 hands.  But they pulled themselves together with the help of AU’s 40 and just lost the 8 pins, to give the anchors a 23-pin lead to defend – and we knew they could give us a tense time with that big a lead.  But the tailenders put in a glorious performance as Dobbin knocked off our highest spares and first 50 of the season in chalking up a superb 22-pin leg win and give us our biggest winning margin of the season.

With no game next week due to cup fixtures, we next face up to the Old Golds at the Gas Club.

25/10/10 v Cheltenham CC @ Cheltenham CC

AS	7	4	8	8	9	9s	45
Jim	3	4	5	6	6	7	31
Clive	8	8	8	9	6	7	46

1st leg total 122 v 107

Mark	7	5	5	4	4	1	26
TC	4	9	6	6	7	7	39
Lewis	8	6	7	9	7	6	43

2nd leg total 108 v 92

AU	7	4	9	7	7	7	41
Stu	7	5	7	6	4	2	31
Steve	2	4	6	9	8	5	34

3rd leg total 106 v 114

 

Rob	8	16	6	7	5	8	50
JT	7	6	8	6	7	5	39
Neil	7	7	8	7	7	6	42

4th leg total 131 v 109

Grand total 467 v 422

WIN by 45!!

Now on a roll, Hustlers returned to the Suffolk to face the Chosen Champs.  Could the run of victories continue?

A much changed Husters team took to the alley this week.  First leg got off to a steady start, with Stu notching up our first 40 of the night as he guided us to an impressive 13-pin lead.  Steve kept up the 40 per leg, but couldn’t help extend the lead.  Instead, we dropped 5 pins, to raise the tension of the game a little.

3rd leg fought back, with Lewis claiming our third 40, but dropped a further 10 pins, putting us behind for the first time.  So, once more it came down to the anchors to chase the game down.  And they set about doing so from the off, but it was still a tight fight right up to the end, as Rob’s 40 guided us to a low-scoring victory.  But the run continues, so we all stay happy.

Next Monday sees us visiting Cheltenham CC.  Can we carry our winning streak through another match?

18/10/10 v Chosen Champs @ Suffolk

AS	5	7	6	7	7	4	36
Jim	5	6	8	4	5	6	34
Stu	5	8	8	6	8	5	40

1st leg total 110 v 97

Pete	2	4	7	4	4	5	26
JimBob	7	2	5	4	6	7	31
Steve	6	8	9	8	6	6	43

2nd leg total 100 v 105

Lewis	9	7	7	7	7	5	42
Rich	5	6	5	5	5	6	32
Clive	4	7	7	6	7	5	36

3rd leg total 110 v 120

Rob	9	6	5	7	5	9	41
Gary	6	5	7	4	7	3	32
Neil	7	7	8	7	3	4	36

4th leg total 109 v 100

Grand total 429 v 422

WIN by 7!!