The Gooding Pinter Lamb Memorial Cricket Match 
An annual cricket match played by members and friends of Gaieties CC and Nomads CC in memory of Ossie StC Gooding, Harold Pinter and G Charlton Lamb. 

 
 Salmon Rushdie, Ossie Gooding and Harold Pinter Guardian June 21st            Charlton Lamb

Match 32 Nomads CC v Gaieties CC at Beaconsfield CC 2.00pm June 22nd 2014 Wilton Park Beaconsfield HP9 2HZ 

Toss:   Nomads won the toss
Result: Match Drawn
Umpires:Several
Scorers:Many
Debuts :Paul Reeve

NOMADS CC Innings
D Williams  bowled      R Thurston 77
S Reeve     run out                 0
T Brockton  c Cowley  b R Thurston 15
AN Regan    c Cowley  b Nieburgh    8
C Peerless  bowled(p/o) Bowden      8
A Smith     bowled(p/o) Bowden      5
J Lane      lbw       b H Thurston  6
P Wakefield bowled      R Thurston  2
S Vithiani  bowled      Schneider  25
P Reeve     bowled      R Thurston  7
ME Blumberg not out                 0
Extras     (b23,lb11,w7,nb2)       43
TOTAL      (9 wickets,46 overs)   200

Fow:1-9(2),2-63(3),3-84(4),4-?(5),5-129(6),6-147(7),7-155(1),8-182(8),9-191(10).

Bowling-Schneider 9.4 2 35 1,Stanning 6 4 13 0,R Thurston 13 3 26 4,Nieburgh 7 0 35 1,Bowden 5 1 18 2,H Thurston 5 0 28 1.

GAIETIES CC Innings
J Vincent   bowled      Vithiani 20
R Crowe     lbw       b S Reeve  11
J Smith     bowled      S Reeve   5
R Thurston  bowled      Brockton 23
J Schneider bowled      S Reeve   8
B Nealon    bowled      Brockton  7
H Thurston  bowled      Brockton 17
? Nieburgh  not out              40
N Cowley    c P Reeve b Smith    11
M Bowden    not out               9
Extras     (b6,lb6,w1,nb0)       13
TOTAL      (8 wickets,42 overs) 163
Dnb:R Stanning

Fow:1-19,2-40,3-42,4-53,5-66,6-97,7-112,8-140.

Bowling-S Reeve 15 0 69 4,Vithiani 10 3 19 1,Smith 9 1 37 1,Brockton 6 2 10 2,P Reeve 4 1 19 0.



 Leigh and Anne came to support Nomads and sort out David Williams' stranded car

Williams, Extras and Suraj contribute a total beyond Gaieties 

Bucks Minor County ground Beaconsfield CC played host to the annual fixture vs the Gaieties on Sunday and under blue skies and warm temperatures an entertaining contest was fought between he two sides as part of the match to remember Ossie Gooding, Harold Pinter and of course the much loved Charlton Lamb.

Ben Nealon turned up crocked and unable to undertake duties as wicket keeper for Gaieties so Nick Cowley, an opener bowler by trade, was forced into the unaccustomed role much to Nomads' advantage. He opened the bowling to good effect in the Memorial match for Charlton Lamb at Gateshead Fell last summer.

Tom Brockton won his twelth toss in a row (yes, 12th) and elected to bat on what looked like a belter of a wicket. Young Brockton was probably blissfully unaware that Nomads lowest post WW2 total was made at Beaconsfield, all out 14 having reached 8-0 without difficulty in the 1950s!

The diminutive David Williams opened up with the in-form Stu Reeve but Reeve was to be cut down being run out backing up for 0, surely the most cruel dismissal in cricket (apart from being bowled by Charlie Meyers!). Brockton joined Williams and thanks to some wayward bowling from James Schneider the score progressed merrily. However, the introduction of Rufus Thurston (4-26) turned the match on its head as his off-cutters spat violently from full of a length and he dismissed Brockton for 15, caught behind by Nick Cowley. Al-Naser Regan was also quickly on his way after gloving a bouncer and when Charlie Peerless was also dismissed cheaply Nomads had slumped to 105-5.

Williams was ploughing something of a lone furrow but was tucking into anything overpitched and reached a well deserved 50 with a straight drive for 4 off the bowling of Schneider (back on for spell number 2). Captain Hugo Thurston’s leg breaks were proving to be ineffective but he did snaffle Jamie Lane LBW (suggestions that the ball was going over the top?), Andrew Smith chopped on, a victim of the now variable bounce in the wicket and Paul Wakefield spooned a catch to cover from a delivery that held up on the pitch. Williams found support from Suraj Vithiani and the pair began to rebuild the innings, but alas Williams was dismissed for 77 and it was left to Vithiani to nurse the tail to 200 in partnership with debutant Paul Reeve and President Michael Blumberg.

So 200 on the board, on a wpitch that was now playing a good few tricks, the general feeling was that this was a decent total. After a cracking tea (thanks to Gaieties Hugo Thurston and Roger Davidson) Reeve and Vithiani took the new cherry for the Nomads and their opening burst was full of quality deliveries. Gaieties were never up with the rate and after 15 overs they were floundering. Reeve took a four wicket haul, including the ball of the season to knock back the off-peg and dismiss the dangerous James Schneider but more importantly Gaieties run machine Crowe. Suraj conceding just 19 runs from his 10 overs took the important scalp of opener John Vincent.

Andrew Smith and Tom Brockton kept up the accurate bowling, Brockton cleaning up the Thurston brothers with identical in-swinging deliveries and the incapacitated Ben Nealon who had once scored 123 not out against Nomads for Gaieties. and Smith chipping in with one wicket well caught by Paul Reeve. Gaieties were now 8 down but with time running out Nomads were not able to force the win despite a second spell from Stu Reeve and an accurate 4 overs of bowling from his father and Northwood stalwart Paul Reeve. Gaieties some way off the pace at the end of their innings, but a draw the result.

After a few well chosen words from Gaieties' Chairman Roger Davidson who also passed on Gaieties President Lady Antonia's apologies for absence and Nomads President Michael Blumberg at the post match supper, David Williams was deservedly awarded the man of the match for his swashbuckling 77 and both teams socialised into the evening with stories of the exploits of Gooding, Pinter and Lamb.

Thank you to Beaconsfield CC for their hospitality and the Gooding family for their on-going support.

And no doubt from the lofty firmanent on high where plays the eternal game of cricket, Ossie looks down and remarks with a smile " I'd have bowled out both those sides for very little". Hm! F--------------------------------ke me , not if I were batting you wouldn't replies Charlton and after a significant pause Harold grunts in acknowledgement "Bloody good cricketers, both of you".

 Beaconsfield CC's 'Percy' greeted the players on arrival during the Nomads innings he watered this flower bed in front of the pavilion 
 

Previous Matches
2013 June Match Drawn
2013 April Nomads won by 2 wickets
2012 June Match Drawn
2012 April Cancelled Deluge
2011 May Nomads won by 6 wickets
2010 Gaieties won by 9 wickets
2009 Match Drawn,Ben Nealon hits ton for Gaieties

2008 Gaieties thrash Nomads by 173 runs

2007 Nomads won by 5 wickets
2005 Match Cancelled Wet Pitch on brilliant sunny and breezy day
2004 Nomads lost by 64 runs
2003 Match Cancelled

Gaieties played Virgin XI at the Ampleforth Don Wilson Festival for several years and then as a traditional fixture nearer home and this was incorporated into the Nomads list. This match became a regular season opener for a decade but this year has been rescheduled for the end of August.

For many years Gaieties CC held an inter club match involving 22 Gaieties with one side captained by the club skipper and the other by the club chairman. These matches were held for several years at Thames TV sports ground Chessington and then at Tadworth CC. After the departure of Ossie in late 2002 so the match became a Memorial match for Ossie and subsequently upon Harold's innings ending in late 2008 for Gooding and Pinter. Charlton Lamb left us suddenly in March 2013 so the last two matches are in memory of all three.

As the naughties passed so Gaieties found it ever more difficult to raise 22 players and thus for 2011 it was proposed and agreed at the Gaieties AGM that members of Nomads CC should make up numbers. Since 2012 it has been staged as a Gaieties XI v a Nomads XI which is appropriate as Ossie Gooding and Charlton Lamb were members of both clubs.

As a result Gaieties CC and Nomads CC now play each other twice a season.

In the current match six of the Gaieties XI had also played for Nomads in past seasons.

Nomads CC was founded 111 years ago by 17 former pupils of a Prep School in St John's Wood, Peterhouse Lodge, long since closed.

Gaieties CC was founded 77 years ago by Lupino Lane, actor and theatre impresario.