From www.thisiswindsor.com

Agony as Windsor fail to capitalise on hard work

WINDSOR finally had to settle for a draw with NPL Teddington but captain Deri Watkins was a frustrated man after his side threw away a winning position against the side second in Division One.

Tight bowling from Windsor helped restrict Teddington to 165-9 in 52 overs at Home Park and after Craig Bird, Brian Davis and Andy Chorley got them past 100 for the loss of three wickets it looked like a surprise win for the newcomers.

Teddington struck back with the quick wickets of Matt Greene, Rob Matthew and last week’s hero Mark Huggins (first ball) meant in the end it was Windsor clinging on. They had just six points to show for their efforts when clawing to 135-9 in 48 overs at the close.

“I was always confident we wouldn’t lose but it was such a shame not to win after being on top for three-quarters of the game,” said Watkins. “They showed why they are one of the top teams in the division because they kept on fighting and had depth in the bowling attack.

“The lads were down in the dressing room afterwards but I told them not to forget we had come close to defeating a strong side.

“We are just lacking the killer instinct to close down games at the moment. Bowling-wise we can compete with any one its just waiting for the batsmen to fire.”

Watkins also spoke about some of the problems the side has been facing this year: “We are finding we are playing teams now who have one or two outstanding players, better than anything we have. Clubs are paying pros to come in and try and get them up the divisions.

“We would not do that because our club policy is to encourage youngsters through and treat everyone equally.

“I have said it before but we also have the close the gap between our Firsts and Seconds. So far we have seen Rob Matthews, Brian Davis and Matt Joel drop to the seconds and get big tons, it is showing the difference.”