Finchley face Masters class

14 April 2012

An exhibition of old Masters will be on display at Finchley Cricket Club this weekend. However, the only art on show will be the art of aggressive fast bowling as demonstrated by the old master himself.

Kevin Masters, a 42-year-old grandfather, will spearhead the Lordswood attack in Sunday's Evening Standard Challenge Trophy quarter-final against Middlesex giants Finchley.

Lordswood, from the outskirts of Chatham, are the rank outsiders in the last eight of club cricket's premier knockout tournament.

But there is no danger of mighty Finchley underestimating the Kent side, who have collected the scalps of last year's semi-finalist Stanmore and 2001 winner Wanstead in the £12,000 event which features London's leading 112 teams.

Finchley captain Jake Milton has done his homework and will know all about the upstarts from the Medway, particularly Kevin Masters.

A self-employed builder nicknamed The Hod, the fiery Masters had four years with Kent and one at Surrey in the Eighties and has since been a driving force in the rise of the unfashionable club which has climbed five divisions in seven years to reach the Kent League's Premier Division last year.

Captain for seven years until he handed the armband to former Kent off-spinner Darren Scott this summer, Masters is also the father of David Masters.

His 24-year-old son left the Kent staff this year to join Leicestershire and was in the side beaten by Warwickshire in the Twenty20 Cup semi-finals at Trent Bridge a fortnight ago, watched by his proud dad.

Twenty-four hours later Masters and son were back home in north Kent sharing the new ball in Lordswood's Challenge Trophy fourth round victory over Wanstead. Fortunately for Finchley, David Masters is not available on Sunday because Leicestershire have a National League fixture.

Kevin Masters said: "Dave has opened the bowling with me many times for Lordswood and it's a shame he can't play at Finchley. But I've noticed that Leicester don't have a game on the day of the semi-finals, so who knows?

"We're not kidding ourselves though. We know we are real underdogs and that's just how we like it. We've got a great set of lads here, the spirit is terrific and we don't fear anybody."

Hampstead have been forced to concede home advantage for their quarter-final against Enfield because the club are committed to staging an Old England fixture at Lymington Road on Sunday.

A request to stage the tie a week later was rejected by tournament director David Willis, who ordered the switch to Enfield.

Radlett, conquerors of threetimes winners Teddington, travel to Wimbledon on Sunday.

Teddington, though, have the considerable consolation of a place in the semi-finals of the National Knockout. They will entertain Bath on Sunday week, with the winners facing Nottingham's West Indian Cavaliers or Sandiacre from Derbyshire in the final at Lord's on 4 September.

Mark Crawley top scored with 79 as Teddington trounced Weybridge by 70 runs in their quarter-final while Bath cruised to a six-wicket victory over Ealing.

Sunday's quarter-finals: Finchley v Lordswood, Enfield v Hampstead, Wimbledon v Radlett, Bexley v BWIA Cavaliers.

Semi-finals: 17 August. Final: (The Oval) 14 September. For further information, www.capitalcounty.com/eveningstandard

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