For the second year running a close first round victory gave rise to a difficult away fixture, and this one for the Ramblers might have been on Mars. The secretarial notice stated ‘I have what their secretary accurately describes as “a couple of fairly useless maps”. I am not passing them on, as they would tend to do more harm than good. If in doubt you would do better to consult someone who has previously been to Malvern”.

Eleven Ramblers duly arrived – Parker-Bowles and Daniels returning, and Charlie Cottenham making his debut, with Farmer, Hill-Wood and Wolfe-Murray standing down, and discovered that, unlike Radley the previous year, mid-June in the Malvern Hills does not mean blazing sun. However the mist had lifted when Hunter and Devereux had removed Blofeld, Lane Fox, Ingleby-Mackenzie and Lomax for 22. Resistance came from the inevitable Daniels, who made a gritty 44, but 106 was never going to be enough. Michael de Grey had other ideas and when he had taken 4 for 15 Malvern were 58 for 5. Jeff Tolchard and the ubiquitous Hunter saw them home.