This game is the Koh-i-noor diamond in the lustrous crown of the Stage CC fixture list. For 6 years, these two teams have locked antlers in a series of titanic cricketing battles. 4 times out of 6 Stage CC have prevailed. In order to reverse this trend, the Gipsies have resorted to a number of highly questionable tactics:

4 years ago, they arranged for a fleet of World War II Lancaster Bomber Aeroplanes to fly low over the pitch in an attempt to distract the Stage batsmen as they homed in an apparently unassailable Gipsies target of 273. 3 years ago, your correspondent's spinning finger was severely fractured while batting. The perpetrator of this deed was so proud of his achievements, that he actually took a photograph of the X-Ray of the fracture on his mobile phone and uttering at the same time the tactful and sympathetic words: "Cor, I can't wait to get home and show this to the missus!" Today's game saw no let-up in the Gipsies skull duggery: conniving with the Manchester Library by asking them to hold their casting sessions on the same day as this fixtrue thus depriving the Stage of their main strike off-spin bowler, who yesterday claimed the unlikely bowling figures of 5 over, 4 mdns. 4 runs, 3 wickets against the tormented Winchcombe CC. The relative strengths of the teams were equalised, however, by the absence of Lord Vesty who, I understand was running in the 2.30 at Goodwood. The Gipsies amassed the relatively modest total of 179 thanks largely to 76 run partnership by the Newman Father & Son dynasty. Oldroyd and Bowry struck 6 mortal blows to the Gipsies batting and Jeffrey Davis has asked me to say that he caught a catch in Northleach village square and Michael "Snake Eyes" Howarth added two more sharp slip catches to the 2 he held yesterday. Asif Ansari started the Stage innings with a brisk and expansive 58 but the Stage middle order was pedestrian in its reply. Davis essayed a few rococo Cover Drives but succumbed to a brilliant catch by Edward Richardson. Padhai failed yet again due to a cashew Nut deficiency. (He has since phoned your correspondent and asked me to amend this description of his innings: he got 20 odd). The game entered its nail-biting phase with the callow and youthful pairing of Bowry and Rochford at the crease.

Bowry was Graveney like in his elegance with some excellent cover boundaries off both front and back foot. Rochford clubbed and dabbed his way towards the total.

It was not unlike looking at the paintings of Rembrandt and Beryl Cook in the same gallery.

Nevertheless, the pair saw the Stage home to victory on the penultimate ball of the game with only the doughty Howarth remaining to come in. So once again, the Gipsies are defeated but both sides would like to thank Stowell Park CC fora their excellent hospitality and a great day out was had by