HARLOW CC’s final pre-season outing saw them hosting Sawbridgeworth in a 40-over friendly that featured several familiar faces including ex-Harlow players George Kenny, Alan Jones, and former 1st XI skipper Rehman Ahmed, who captained the hosts for the day.

Winning the toss, Harlow elected to bat first on a beautiful day and a flat wicket. The top order made a positive start, with Zabi Hakimi and Chris Whitworth negotiating the new ball smartly. Whitworth in particular looked in fine touch, peppering the boundary on his way to a fluent 48.

The stand gave Harlow a solid platform, and James Forde, returning after a season away, added an elegant 18 to keep the momentum going. But once again, the innings was anchored by David Waters, who continues to impress with bat in hand. The young Aussie followed up last week’s 73 with a superb 86, mixing classy stroke play with aggressive intent to drive Harlow past 200.

Despite that platform, a flurry of late wickets meant the visitors closed on 206-9, perhaps 20 or 30 runs shy of what felt par on a good surface.

In reply, Sawbridgeworth’s openers Joe Joyce and Alan Jones got off to a flying start, showing both class and experience. Harlow’s new-ball pair of Joe Riddell and Waters bowled with admirable discipline, but the margin for error against two set batters was razor-thin.