Loose Cannons CC from Singapore and Centaurs CC from Hong Kong arrived in Chiang Mai as the guests of Prem International School Cricket Academy for an enjoyable two days pf cricket. Both teams work for the same banking group but in different countries and they arrived for a weekend of socializing and entertainment, though the cricket proved to be competitive with both sides having some fine cricketers in their ranks. The Centaurs last toured Chiang Mai in 1982 with one of the player’s sons in the present side.
The teams first met for a 30-over match on Saturday on the next day. The Centaurs batting first made 158 for 6 with all the Loose Cannon bowlers putting in good stints. The youngest and tallest of the party George Pollard returned the best figures of 2 for 22 after bowling with aggressive pace in his 4-over spell. The eventual man of the match Keith Frith top scored with 37 with the lower middle-order making useful contributions.
The players and officials were treated to a five star three course extended lunch at the Krapod Kitchen in the Prem grounds. With players such as Will Buck and Rob Hands Loose Cannons were slight favourites in the run chase, and perhaps the over-indulgences of lunch and the previous night caught up with them and the batting mis-fired.
Despite a fine 49 from Rob Hands, Keith Frith ripped out the middle-order with 3 wickets in the 14th over reducing the Loose Cannons to 38 for 7, and the win was secured when Keith topped a remarkable performance with a hat-trick of stumpings to end the tail’s final efforts, as he finished with match-winning figures of 7 for 18 from 6 overs, as Cenataurs gained victory by 22 runs.