Apparently civilisation on Vis dates back to pre-Roman times, and with a similarly aged squad, MCC
returned to the Croatian island for the second summer in a row. The occasion this time was the Vis
International Sixes, a six-a-side six over tournament comprising 10 teams from across Europe. The
first task awaiting the intrepid adventurers was the 9 hour drive to Split and with 2 players who shall
remain anonymous forgetting their passport and 1 dropping out just before departure, things were
off to an inauspicious start.
Having left our trusty motors in a somewhat secure looking car park by the port in Split, our eight
finely-tuned athletes just about managed to lug their gear to the villa furthest from the dock,
naturally uphill. All was forgiven, however, once we saw the view and jumped straight into the
(definitely not cold!) swimming pool. Next up was the issue of sustenance, which was easily resolved
by raiding the local living room sized supermarket for their entire stock of 3 crates of beer.
Our playing schedule started at 10am the next morning with a match against an unpronounceable
Croatian team. Unsure as to what was a good score, tour captain Suchit put the opposition in.
Wickets were shared between Tom (2), Joy and Suchit, with one run out, our Dalmatian friends
amassing 37 from their allotted overs. Using his prerogative as captain, Suchit opened with Sandy,
taking us across then line without losing a wicket with plenty of overs to spare.
Next up was, we later found out, one of the favourites for the tournament, having won it 3 times
previously. Sandy once again opened, this time with Joy, and once again they set us on a good path,
with them both retiring on 25, leaving the rest of us to slog the last few runs to reach a total of 79.
Some inspired field placing meant the opposition’s openers consistently hit the ball to our four
fields, keeping the run rate down. As we would later learn, it is very difficult to recover from such a
position and we ultimately controlled the rest match to win by 23 runs.
Our opponents for the first game on Saturday had lost all of their matches so far, so we were
optimistic our good run could continue. Looking to benefit from maximum bonus points, we elected
to bat first and Simrat set the tone by retiring on 26. A couple of quick wickets slowed our progress
slightly, but Veith and Owen capitalised on the final overs, including a booming six from Owen back
over the bowler’s head that he will no doubt be milking for the next few seasons. The second innings
was more reminiscent of a Test match than six-a-side game as we struggled to take the wickets
required for the final bonus point. Golden arm Simrat was brought on to bowl the final over, with 48
needed to win and still 2 wickets needed for the bonus point. After two big hits dented our run rate
slightly, the batsman holed out off the penultimate ball to raise our hopes. Simrat went all out on
the final ball, tossing it up higher than a Himalayan mountain, the batsman came down the track,
missed everything and keeper Owen took the bails off to secure the bonus point and our spot in the
semi-final.
The final group game was a slightly more relaxed affair for us, now that we had already qualified.
After keeping the opposition (well three of them, as they seemed intent on not allowing the other
three to participate in the game) to a respectable score of around 70, they took the relaxed
approach a bit too far, changing the field almost every ball, placing a fielder exactly where the ball
went previously, ensuring the match went well over the time limit. Some tight bowling to begin with
increased the required rate, but Sandy and Joy both kept the score ticking over until Joy decided to
do some fine avoidance by getting out on 24. With Sandy then retiring again and the middle order
departing as quickly as they arrived, we were left needing eight off the final over.
Sandy had now returned and duly hit the first ball of the over for four, before a couple of singles meant the equation was two off three balls. Despite this, Sandy had decided it was six or out and somehow hit the ball straight to one of the few fielders in the outfield. As we were playing last man standing, Tom now
took strike aiming to simply get bat on ball. Unfortunately, this task was too much for our self-
designated number 11 in a six-a-side game. Sandy was run out attempting a bye off the final ball to
leave us one run short. However, given we had already qualified and the result meant the opposition
could no longer progress, it was the Bavarians who were ready to celebrate in the evening.
We were playing the Rogerstan Royals in the semi-final, who were on a roll having won both games
the day before to qualify by the skin of their teeth. Having spotted them at the dock in Split from
around 500 yards away thanks to their flamboyant pink and blue blazers, we knew we were in for an
entertaining match. Joy and Sandy were sent out to open, however Joy was back sooner than
expected, with Sandy holding down the fort and smashing some big sixes to retire on 29. Owen and
Suchit kept the runs ticking and Nishant hit two more sixes in the final over to take us to our top
score so far in the tournament of 92. Not content with just opening the batting, Sandy also opened
the bowling, conceding just two runs off the first over. Nishant and Joy then kept it tight in the
middle overs, with a run out and a wicket for Joy meaning the required rate was getting out of hand.
Simrat was once again trusted with the final over, and once again took two wickets to seal the
match, including a ridiculous leg-side catch by Owen behind the stumps.
The final was to be a rematch against the Chimes team from the Czech Republic. Batting first we got
off to a slow start, thanks to some tight bowling, scraping to a somewhat respectable score of 69.
The highlight of the innings was definitely the ball deflecting off Simrat’s pad into the air, him loosing
sight of it and it subsequently hitting him square on top of his helmet. Unfortunately, the short
boundaries and our tired legs meant that the total just wasn’t quite enough and we finished as
runners-up, losing the final in the last over.
We would like to say a big thank you to Roki and everyone who helped put on the tournament, as
well as to all of the teams who competed for making it such an enjoyable experience. We hope to
see you again soon!
"Middled It" Davies
