Killerton Update - June 2021

Thanks to all those who were able to attend last weekend.

A few of us arrived at the Premier Inn or the Holiday Inn on the Saturday afternoon and after a quick unpack retired to the Brewers Fayre for a quick catchup chat - oh, and a drink!

The quick catchup chat lasted through the evening meal until quite late!

Sunday Morning and some spent an hour or so checking the memorial trees that we planted in 2010 and then taking a walk through the gardens at Killerton.

The house did not open until 1 but a few people had booked to visit including Roger Dickson and Angela who bumped into Denise whilst there, who as usual gave them a really warm welcome.

There are a few more photos of the weekend on the website gallery

Against all the odds and the rather damp weather forecasts, the cricket match started at 2. We were fortunate to have Dai’s two sons, Julian and Lyndon, Tom Healy’s grandson Alex Bath, and John Davis’ sons-in-law Richard and Sean.

With a 40 over first innings Broadclyst went into bat setting a 202 target for the Killerton team. At one point rain interrupted play but players returned to the field to continue.

After a break for refreshments Killerton went into bat. In spite of a brilliant opening by the Griffiths brothers, and a good showing by Alex, the Killerton team was all out for 81.

Derek Barnard awarded the Man of the Match to Doug Urch of Broadclyst for a stunning half century (apart from his batting achievement, Doug rides a motor cycle from Weston Super Mare for each match).

John Morgan reluctantly presented the Richard Acland Trophy to Broadclyst’s captain Philip Walker Jnr.

Unfortunately, the current restrictions prevented Broadclyst from offering their usual hospitality and players and spectators left the ground for refreshments elsewhere or home.

One small group retired to the Premier Inn only to find the Brewers Fayre fully booked. Fortunately, some had thought to bring along a bottle or two for emergencies and thus retired to a room with tooth mugs and red wine. Very reminiscent of student days

As for cricket ... a number of the team this year were reluctant players and although the squad benefited from the inclusion of five “youngsters” it seems that we are struggling to offer a full team of fit players. If we are going to play a game against Broadclyst again we need to be able to offer a competitive team.

The cricket matches have been a great opportunity to get together for a few days and participate in an enjoyable day with Broadclyst CC on “our own ground”, however, perhaps now is the time to accept that getting a fit and able team together is proving difficult – if not impossible.

We need to decide now whether we offer a game next year as we need to let Broadclyst know by the end of July one way or another so that they can plan their fixture list.