Sunday, January 20, 2019

'Sport' from NoelW: A sticky wicket

In last year’s challenge, I painted six Yorkshire cricketers for my Sealion/Walminster/interwar project. This year, I’m completing the team and I’ve painted Sarissa’s pavilion as an HQ. The Sarissa model is excellent, as always, and also includes two sight-screens. I also scratch built the wicket. I plan to lay out a pitch, but haven't done this yet.



Six of the figures are made by Sloppy Jalopy  completing the set I began a year ago.


They’re painted in the colours of the Yorkshire team of the 1930s. 


The batsman at the centre of the photo is Wargames Foundry, originally from their Darkest Africa range. He’s been on the lead pile for around 15 years, I think.


With these, I’ve now a full team of 11, plus a twelfth man and an umpire. Now I need some opponents – which would be painted up as Lancashire, but actually be German fifth columnists. (If anyone knows of suitable figures, I’d be keen to hear).

I guess some Challengers will understand cricket about as well as I understand baseball, even though both games are essentially the same – one player throws a deceitful ball at another who tries to hit it with a stick. If he misses, he may be out. If he succeeds, he scores by running, unless he’s hit it so far he gets a bonus score. Meanwhile the fielders try to catch the ball or return it to a key spot on the pitch before the batter is able to reach that spot. (There’s a more amusing description here)

Using Sarissa’s dimensions (7.9 * 5.7 * 5.9 ins), the pavilion fills 265 cu inches, which is more than the 216 of a 6x6x6 cube. However, obviously it doesn’t completely fill that space due to roof slope etc, but there’s also the two sightscreens, so perhaps 20 points is a fair guesstimate. Plus 7 figures = 55 points to add to the bonus.


13 comments:

  1. I like it when old figures are finally painted - it's a situation that is recurring constantly in my hobby life!

    Lovely work, Noel, well played sir!

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  2. Nicely done, good to fish antiques out of the lead pile.

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  3. It's probably worth pointing out to those unfamiliar with the sport that revolvers and rifles are only used in friendly games. At national level and above they use sub-machine guns.
    Great work on the models and the pavillion.

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  4. Guns and sportsmen? That's hardly cricket, I'd say... Excellent idea, well executed. Can't wait to see the opposition!

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  5. These are truly desrrving of the theme "sports", I say: well done that man!

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  6. Nice set up,great terrain and lovely figures!
    Best Iain

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  7. They look great. How common is the use of a revolver in game of Cricket?

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  8. Great work Noel and a nice explanation about Cricket. The fact that it's close to baseball saves me a lot of time determining that I'd absolutely hate it (except if it had firearms like your example above). ;)

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