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Cricket: High fives for terrific tom
BURY St Edmunds bowler Tom Huggins had the crowd in a spin at the Victory Ground as he took an amazing five wickets in five successive balls.
The achievement has been described as "remarkable" by cricketing bible Wisden.
Huggins' quick-fire haul came against East Anglian Premier League leaders Cambridge Granta - with the batting specialist never even tasting the success of a hat-trick before the weekend.
The final over dismissals provided a dramatic conclusion to Bury's semi-final of the EAPL Twenty/20 competition on Sunday, helping book their place against eventual winners Swardston in the final.
Huggins, an ex-Northamptonshire batsman, said he had been so focused on the match he had to be told of his achievement as he left the field.
"I did not realise I had done it, purely because it was the last over of the game and it was getting quite tight," he said.
"I had no idea until I walked off, we were more concerned with winning the game."
The bowling feat completed a thrilling weekend on the field for Huggins, who hit 97 not out for Bury St Edmunds in their league match with Norwich, to keep their promotion dreams alive.
The deputy editor of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, Hugh Chevallier, said Huggins has now earned himself a place in an elite cricketing club.
He said: "Five wickets in five balls is quite an achievement. So much so, in fact, that it's never happened in first-class cricket.
"As for minor cricket, it's impossible to give much information, other than to say that Wisden knows of two recorded instances of a bowler taking nine wickets with consecutive balls. Both were school games, one in South Africa and the other in New Zealand. But five in five is still remarkable."
The president of Bury St Edmunds Cricket Club, David Barker, witnessed the wickets fall in succession on Sunday.
"It was a bit bizarre as people did not realise the first one was the first ball of the last over," he said.
"It was incredible, it was against Cambridge Granta who are top of the East Anglian Premier League - it was not Mickey Mouse cricket."
He added: "Tom has never taken a hat-trick before, let alone anything like that. He is a batsmen who does a bit of bowling."
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Weather for Bury St Edmunds
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
