Catz cricketers triumph in Varsity match

Two postgraduates from St Catharine’s College contributed to an impressive victory for Cambridge University Cricket Club against Oxford University Cricket Club this week, with Cambridge winning by 249 runs. Niel Botha (2019, Finance) and Padraic Flanagan (2019, Scientific Computing) each took five wickets for the Blues during a four-day match at the Fenner’s ground in Cambridge on 3­–6 September.

Niel commented, “It was an immense privilege to represent Cambridge University Cricket Club in the University Cricket Match. The whole team put in a clinical performance over the four days and I'm grateful for being able to contribute with both the bat and ball. Overall, it was special to beat Oxford by a substantial margin and I'm very proud to be a part of such a great team.”

Padraic added, “As a team we put in an enormous amount of work over the winter in the nets and the gym, towards the common goal of winning the four-day Varsity match. It was an amazing feeling to justify that hard work with such an emphatic victory, with important contributions from every team member. The captain had a really tough time selecting the team due to COVID-19, and I’m glad to have rewarded his faith by taking key wickets opening the bowling in both innings.”

This Varsity game had originally been scheduled to take place in early July at The Parks in Oxford. When it became apparent by April that it wouldn’t go ahead as originally scheduled, the team all assumed that their chance to represent the Blues in 2020 was gone.

“It was incredibly tough news to bear because of the amount of commitment we had all made over the Winter, and even harder to bear for MPhil students like myself who wouldn’t be returning for another season.”

The game was granted first-class status by the English Cricket Board (ECB), the last ever first-class game to be played by Cambridge University Cricket Club. As a result, the Club closely followed measures required by the ECB’s COVID-19 protocols for first-class games, as well as the University’s own requirements: there was a complete ban on spectators, a temperature test on entry to the ground, one person in the changing room at a time, sanitisation breaks every five overs and social distancing while waiting to bat.

Padraic reflected, “Adhering to these restrictions was a small price to play, however, and we quickly adapted to the new cricketing normal. In fact, once the first ball was bowled, the protocols had hardly any impact on the cricket itself. We owe a great deal of gratitude to those responsible for making the week possible, in particular to Helen and Anthony Hyde. It is a week that will live proudly in the memories of anyone associated with cricket at Cambridge.”