The opposition kindly put us in first and we opened with an appetiser of green olives and kettle chips, a delightful contrast of textures and flavour notes.
After successfully seeing off the openers, we set about executing the next phase of the game-plan. David Lawn had spotted a lot of kitchen activity shortly after our arrival, and reported back that someone was making a quiche from scratch (even making their own pastry), so imagine our delight upon discovering there were in fact two quiches offered as part of Byfleet’s magnificent tea: one caramelised red onion, the other blue cheese and broccoli. A piece of each? It would have been rude not to. There was plenty, and the ladies had gone to so much trouble. Most of the team agreed that sides of triple-cooked chips and little gem lettuce afforded the palate the balance required to enjoy the main to the full.
There was barely enough room left for the sandwiches. But if there’s one thing a Park Hill team has in abundance when the odds are stacked against it, is the ability to ensure their host’s efforts are appreciated. So, by working smartly through a series of middle-order partnerships, Hillians attacked the sandwich platter: egg mayonnaise with mustard and cress; mature cheddar with dry-cured ham; line-caught albacore tuna with English cucumber.
Slices of fresh, sweet honeydew melon, and handfuls of Concord grapes proved to be the ideal cleanser, setting things up nicely so we could tackle the home-made chocolate gateau, though it also helped that it was washed down with delicately smoked Lapsang Souchong sipped from china cups.
The cricket? Oh yeah, we got 117, they knocked them off in 10.2 overs.
Up the Hill!
Report by: Stu Radcox
Player of the Match sponsored by Nicholls Residential: Byfleet tea ladies
Park Hill Cricket Club 