BBRFC batted first after the team captains reached amicable agreement. The BBRFC captain had little choice after his first blunder of the evening had result in nearly half the team left waiting outside the White Night at Montgomery. Opening batsmen Griffiths and Pritchett were therefore charged with the responsibility of holding the fort until reinforcements arrived. Pritch toyed with the opposition opening bowlers before slugging one shot too many into the air and was caught while Griff continued to slay the RBCC attack to all corners of the ground. Joined by Sherpa, making a return to his former club, Griff went on to 19 before getting out. Sherpa guided the ball to altitude twice from his first two deliveries but fortune - and some of the hosts' god spirit - saw him remain at the crease. Some quick runs followed before he too was dismissed. Tim Cochrane, replendent in white and capped in maroon, looked every bit the part. But his innings was, sadly for his team mates, to be merely a bit part.

With the arrival of the rest of the BBRFC team, Millhouse was sent in. And how he responded, offering rare Peruvian stability in the middle order with a well judged innings which included some frenetic running between the wickets. Following an energetic fielding display later in the evening, de las Casas showed the potential that close observers of Belgian and Peruvian rugby have previously identified. Later in the match, however, his exciting debut had been threatened to be cut short by a nasty injury. Following Stern's sage advice to employ the long barrier technique in fielding the ball, Millhouse adopted a copybook stance to take a ball that bounced awkwardly as it raced to the boundary. Quick reflexes saved both another potentially career threatening nose break and the addition of a further four runs to the RBCC total.

The BBRFC managed to reach a credible total of 76 from their 18 overs with brief contributions from the captain and Jeremy Burks, both playing against their summer club mates, and some stoic lower order batting from Loper and Patrick. This total was, however, never going to seriously threaten a competent RBCC side that included a number of its first team players. Nevertheless some threatening and intimidating early bowling from Loper created hope and fired the BBRFC pack.

Tim Cochrane and James Stern, who had both promised much with the bat after some impressive pre-match form in the nets, determined to make inroads into the RBCC top order. The duo stemmed the RBCC run flow with some accurate bowling, and both claimed wickets including a plumb LBW decision for Stern after he craftily deceived the opposition's star South African batsman. Pritch made good the captain's offer to bowl with a controlled display of aggression familar to BBRFC club members. Some skilled fielding including a diving one handed catch from Patrick ensured that the cricketers would have to work hard for their win. But, to their credit, they made it in the end with two wickets to spare.

Over the barbecue and beers which followed, several South African accents in the RBCC team were heard to suggest a return match, but this time with the oval ball. It remains to be seen whether this is feasible, but the BBRFC's Peruvian recruitment sleuth will be ready to pounce should the cricketers be able to produce a line up for this possible clash. All in all an enjoyable evening and a match played in good spirits, for which many thanks go to the RBCC.

Reuben Levermore