Richmond fail to impress on big stage The London Tournament presented a chance for Richmond Baseball to continue their rise in British baseball. A good showing would build further upon the hard work that members have put into the club in all areas, such as the new facilities at Connare Field, the expanded and improved website and the creation of a third team with all the new Club members it has brought. Alas, the weekend would not bring the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The team selection philosophy decided upon by Richmond management was a team based on Flames players, supported by several Knights and a select few Dragons. [b]Small selection pool[/b] Despite a record number of registered members in the Club, unfortunately a distinct shortage of players turning out for the weekend forced Coach Vinnie’s hand, and he had to play some players out of position. Saturday first game against Dutch outfit Zuidvogel started out poorly with the Dutch taking a 3-0 lead after the 1st inning. After the initial jitters disappeared, both teams put on a good display of defensive capabilities, including 2 sliding catches in Centre field by Nigel Stephens, but another series of errors allowed Zuidvogel three more runs in the 5th inning. Unfortunately, the Richmond bats were kept completely silent, as Zuidvogel’s pitcher Cappo finished off a 7-inning no-hitter, final score 6-0. Game 2 on Saturday saw the Richmond team take on Great Britain’s Under 17’s, and although the batting improved, one run and four hits weren’t enough to balance yet another error filled defensive display, and the GB juniors from walked away with a 11-1 victory. [b]Sunday sunshine?[/b] Sunday came, and despite having managed to convince tournament organizers that Richmond deserved a 1PM start as opposed to a 9AM start, Richmond still only had 5 players available with less than 15 minutes to game time. Luckily, several players turned up in the nick of time, and Richmond took the field against Southampton Mustangs with a lighter yet very inspired squad. Impressive fielding held Southampton to one hit in the first, and Richmond’s responded well once at bat, with the 2 run first inning highlighted by Kenji Shimono’s triple. Richmond was not to be denied, and efficient fielding combined with competent batting led the Richmond side to an 11-3 victory. [b]Irish eyes were smiling[/b] Richmond needed a solid win against Ireland 2 in the final game to have a chance to get their hands on the Frank Brady Trophy, but the circumstances were less than optimal. Due to a late start of the Mustangs game and subsequent late finish, the Richmond side had to rush from diamond 5 to diamond 2 for the Ireland fixture. The Irish side was to be a tough nut to crack. Despite a decent start by Richmond, the Irish good fielding combined with an increasing amount of errors committed by the West London side, the Irish ran away with Richmond’s final game of the tournament, ending the game with a final score of 13-2. The lack of experienced players made Richmond unable to compete with the more senior sides, and although the Knights and Dragons player who participated did reasonably well under the circumstances, if Richmond Baseball wants to continue to make a name for themselves, and recruit top quality players, they need to put up the best possible team. With a possible trip to Venray in October for a Richmond side, winning has to be at the top of the agenda.

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