Alex Shines as the Rain Clouds Gather

For the 2nd successive week, the 5th XI escaped the rain when all other teams were abandoned and achieved another win which eased their position in the lower half of the table.
Green toiled in the field managing to take only 2 wickets until Vic Simmons claimed a couple in what turned out to be the last over of the Horndon innings. After time lost to rain, Horndon made a sporting declaration to keep the game alive after Towler had scored 54 in their total of 153 for 4.
In reply, Alex Cason and Malcolm Waters began circumspectly in difficult conditions and some good bowling. The tempo increased with both reaching a half century. Muddy was dismissed for 62 but Alex hit out as the dark clouds gathered to finish undefeated with 90.

Another Weekend Washout

Another wet weekend saw 4 of the 5 games scheduled for Saturday washed out without a ball being bowled. The 1st XI made a great effort to mop up including the use of their own whale (pictured). As rain closed in again, the players were pressurised into taken an early lunch by Herbie who was doubtless on the lookout for leftovers. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th XIs didn't even get as far as the ground before they got the bad news.
The cup game against Wanstead on Sunday too was washed out and is now scheduled for 8th July. The 2nd XI visit to Ingatestone also became a victim if the weather.

Only the 5th XI Beat the Weather

Rain once again frustrated nearly everyone trying to play a game of cricket this weekend. Only the 5th XI managed a result, sneaking home by 2 wickets chasing a modest 111 at Benfleet for some much needed points. Matt Simmons took 3 for 38 and Chris Haylett (2-21) and The Doc (2-1) took two wickets apiece.  The Doc also shone with the bat scoring 30 valuable runs with the ever reliable Keith Walmsley making 21.  The 4th XI were surprised to have their game cancelled on Friday although there were problems earlier in the year at Coopers school with an early cancellation when Upminster were due to play GP&R. Jon Powell hit 67 for the 1st XI as they set a target of 179 but visitors Wickford were unable to make a start. Chammy Mudalige (28) and Ian Russell (26) were the other main scorers. Similarly Alex Cason (69) helped the 2nd XI score 170 against Wickford but the home side were unable to commence their reply. Ahmad Kiani (22) and Gavin Castle (20) also made runs.  A bigger challenge awaited the 3rd XI as Chingford scored 215 for 5 but the weather had the last word.
On Sunday the story was the same with the cup match against Wanstead and the 2nd XI friendly against East Essex being cancelled.

Green No Match for Park in 20/20

Green went out of the 20/20 cup last Wednesday when they were no match for a strong GP&R side at Gallows Corner. In a strong wind, the hosts got off to a fast start despite Alex Cason taking making an early breakthrough. Jack Taylor and Al Surrey bowled fairly economically but all the other bowlers went around the park until there was a late flurry of wickets in the closing overs.
By contrast, the Park bowlers bowled with much more control and were backed up by some good fielding. Royston Smith top scored with 79 and shared a promising opening stand with Paul Hurworth until the latter holed out at deep extra cover.

Brentwood Ease Green Out of Cockspur Cup

A solid batting performance by Brentwood for whom Walford, West and Brandy hit half centuries allowed them to reach 242 for 6 from 45 overs in the group semi final of the Cockspur Cup. Ricky Gill was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 39 from 9 overs.
Green made a reasonable start but after the first three, Smudger (32) Ananda Krishnan(45) and Ian Russell (38), there was little resistance and the score subsided to 173 all out resulting in a heavy defeat.

Pearson Cleans Up at Danbury

Cockinson (65) and newcomer Jason Parry (39) resembled the keystone cops in a century opening stand littered with misunderstandings which could easily have resulted in either of them being run out. However, after a slowish start, the rate picked up with Cockinson benefiting from two easy missed chances at slip before reaching his half century. Jason was first to go followed fairly shortly by Cockinson who chanced his arm once too often between the wickets. Aaron Hills and Paul Hurworth did not last long and it was left to Bambi and Herbie to consolidate. The pair did so effectively and raced the score along to 222 for 6 off the allotted 40 overs.
The Queens Park & Danbury batsmen made a bad start finding John Coxall particularly difficult. The Silver Fox took 2 for 1 (a wide) from his opening 5 over spell. Ross Frost picked up the 3rd with the help of a good catch by Harry Potter and Jason Parry picked up a couple of wickets in the middle order. The game was over as a contest when Aaron Hills removed the skipper with a snorter that removed his off stump after which Gary Pearson took the final 4 wickets much to the delight of Herbie who made good ground to pouch the final wicket.

Freddy's Charge Puts Green Back on Top

Heavy rain at Wanstead looked to have put any positive result out of the question on Saturday. A remarkable mopping up operation allowed the game to continue and Green duly bowled out the hosts for 134. In response Green struggled until 'Freddy' Butt, making a welcome return following injury, hit out to pull off an unlikely victory which put Green back to the top of the table.

4ths & 5ths Frustrated by Rain

The 4th & 5th XIs were both frustrated by rain in the Shepherd Neame League games on Saturday. Puddles on the pitch caused the 4th team game to be abandoned at 4 o'clock with the 5ths suffering similar frustration at home to Hornchurch.

Run Glut at Nazeing

Ananda Krishnan was in commanding form as he blasted a quickfire century against Nazeing Common in the opening midweek fixture. Chammy Mudalige shared in an opening stand batting in similar fashion after which the bowlers were plundered for 79 by Royston Smith. Harry Potter (39 n.o.) and Colin Bull took the total to 284 for 3 before Pipey (the non-playing captain) called the innings to a halt after 2 hours.
Green had a powerful bowling line up too with Graham Bull bowling a lively opening spell and Jack Taylor bowling a good line and length. The Pig was his usual economical self. Bones picked up a couple of wickets but despite the efforts of Potter, Chammy and Smudger (who was ecstatic at bowling someone with his googly), the home side held on until bad light curtailed proceedings. A marvellous decision by Umpire Petit, saving everyone from a soaking as the rain fell as the players reached the pavilion.

Green Cross Their Bridges

Green were set a challenging total when they visted Three Bridges in the second round of the Evening Standard Trophy on Sunday. Ananda Krishnan bowled well to take 3 for 28 but a century by former county player Mark Newell enabled the hosts to reach 262 for 6 from their 50 overs.
Ananda Krishnan (43) and Shaun McMurray (68 n.o.) began well but the loss of Ananda put Green behind the clock. A splendid innings of 85 by Ian Russell upped the tempo and Royston Smith (27 n.o.) finished things off with 9 overs to spare.

Hockerill Cooked by Graham

Graham Cook(72) continued his good opening form with a fluent innings against Hockerill at Central Park. Ian Gibbs (24) departed after a half century opening stand after which Bambi's wretched run of form continued with a duck. The Inspector played himself in and proceedings livened up when Chris Brett (33) arrived at the crease for a bright and breezy innings. Clouseau accelerated to complete an undefeated half century before the declaration on 216 for 5.
James Knight was unfortunate not to mark his debut in senior cricket when Chris Brett dropped the simplest of chances at cover. This allowed Hockerill to get off to a decent start but wickets fell regularly with Dave Mocock, Aaron Hills, Paul Simmons, James Knight, Chris Brett, Ian Gibbs and Herbie Gosnell all getting in on the act. Herbie leapt like a salmon (OK a whale) to take a caught & bowled chance and later took a catch to pour scorn on Chris Brett's claim about difficulties with the sun.

Green Go Down Despite Shaun's Ton

Green made a bad start at Gallows corner when Freddy Butt went early. Ian Russell (22) and Shaun McMurray steadied things but Royston Smith suffered yet another LBW whilst Jon Powell also fell cheaply. A magnificent hundred by Shaun (117 n.o.) led Green to a respectable but not commanding total of 248 for 7 with assistance from Liam Ferns and Ricky Gill.
Ananda made an early breakthrough in the GP&R innings but solid batting throughout the order ensured that Park got home for the loss of 5 wickets with Churchill making 62 and Zaim undefeated on 93. Chammy was the most successful bowler with 2 for 75.

Cookie Leads 2nds to Victory Over Park

A good bowling performance by the 2nd XI set up victory against GP&R at Central Park on Saturday. Trevor Oakley (3-30), Misbah Uddin (2-32) and Simon Jeffries (2-46) restricted Park to 184 all out in 50.4 overs.
Skipper Chris Cook led the way with an undefeated 81 n.o. whilst Gavin Castle (26) and Misbah Uddin (25) also chipped in to see Green home by 5 wickets.

3rds Surprised by Walthamstow

The 3rd XI were surprised by an unexpected influx of South Africans to the Walthamstow side. Andy Cook (44) and Rob Newton (24) managed to get Gren up to 187 but it was not enough as the home side got home with 5 wickets to spare despite Vijay Srinivasan taking 3 for 65.

Chapman in Tune for the 4ths

There was an unusual delay to the start to the 4th XI game against Walthamstow when the players waited for the square leg umpire to adjust his headphones. There was no doubting that Kevin Chapman (7-25) was tuned in from the start as he ripped out the top of the visitors' order aided by a couple of smart slip catches by Grant Apicella. James Haylett found a good line and length at the other end to help maintain the pressure. James then helped Al Surrey get in on the act when he took a well judged catch to end Walthamstow's most productive spell. Jack Taylor and Tom Farquharson both bowled tidy spells and Javed Ali took a couple of wickets with Appy completing his hat-trick of catches but some obdurate batting kept Green in the field for longer than appeared likely at one stage. Chappers returned to finish off the innings for 97.
Grant Apicella (30 n.o.) was dropped from the first ball he faced and then played second fiddle in a stand of 72 with Thomas Oakley (33). Kevin Brailey (20 n.o.) was also fortunate to escape before he had scored but struck some fine blows to finish off proceedings.
Green suffered a blow before the off when John Doughty had to drop out following over-exertion in the garden. The Whale had to be confined to the bath until high tide.

Southend Keep Simmons at Bay

The 5th XI had much the better of the game against Southend-on-Sea 4th XI but were unable to press home the advantage as the visitors held on at 129 for 8. Matt Simmons was the leading wicket taker with 4 for 29.
Earlier, Keith Walmsley (39), Malcolm Waters (26) and Chris Haylett (22) had helped set a decent total but Green fell 1 run short of the extra 2 batting points on 174 for 9.

Magnificent Powell Puts Green Through in National Cup

Jon Powell struck a magnificent undefeated 75 to chase down a target of 234 and put Green through to the 4th round of the National Cup with victory against Hampstead at Central Park on Sunday. The innings got off to a good start with Ananda Krishnan (18) and Ricky Gill (30) putting on 30 for the first wicket to be followed by a stand of 70 between Ricky and Ian Russell (28). Three wickets fell in quick succession before Jon Powell joined Liam Ferns in a century stand dominated by Ralph who hit six sixes. When Teddy departed Shaun stayed with Jon to see Green home with 5 wickets in hand.
Earlier Gary Headley and Imraan Mohammed had got the visitors off to a good start with a stand of 68. With the fall of the first wicket, the former Middlesex county player Paul Weekes, joined Headley in a century stand. The spinners gained an element of control with Shaun McMurray bowling an economical spell of 9 overs for 30 runs and Ali Horne (1-43) and Ricky Gill (2-44) taking wickets with an economy rate under 5. Rob Glassberg (2-26) too took a couple of wickets and there were 3 victims for wicket keeper Alex Cason as wickets fell regularly in the closing overs.

Credit in Defeat for Weakened 1st XI

Once again Green were forced to send out a weakened team for a Sunday League fixture with the National Cup game against Hampstead taking priority. However a fine bowling performance from Al Surrey (3-27) helped restrict the home side to 163 for 8 from their allotted 40 overs at Chelmer Park. Aaron Hills (2-34) and Chammy Mudalige (2-41) also contributed well with the ball.
Batting proved to be more of a problem despite the efforts of Potter (46), fresh from his ton the previous day, Chammy (25) and Clouseau (21). There was little resistance from the others and Green were bowled out for 121 to lose by 42 runs.

Tiraj Hits 87 As Minty Reaches for his Pipe

Tiraj Patel took advantage of good batting conditions to score 87 n.o. at Thorley on Sunday. Fatigue and time deprived Tiraj of what would have been a well deserved maiden century. Josh Barnard seemed to lack patience in falling early after which Ian Gibbs scored a quick half century. James Haylett departed first ball allowing Graham Cook in to score 39 in a brief stay at the wicket. Herbie made a brave attempt to get Tiraj running and provided the high spot of the day in attempting to launch a ball that feebly trickled onto his stumps. Green set a commanding total of 260 for 6.
James Haylett bowled an excellent first spell in which he took the first wicket with an in-swinging yorker. Minty bowled a spell that had most players yearning for a return of Pipey with his superior pace but he managed to pick up a couple of wickets. There were scurrilous suggestions from the slip cordon, instigated by Vic Simmons, that a series of chances were downed by the keeper but it can be confirmed here that this was not the case. Herbie ran and slid around to good effect making frequent visits to the bushes to retrieve the ball. Matt Simmons took 4 wickets in two spells, one courtesy of younger brother Paul. However, Green were unable to remove the last pair and had to settle for the draw.

Simmons Hat-Trick Puts Under 15s Through

Remarkable figures by Matt Simmons, who took 5 for 3 including a hat-trick, saw Hornchurch tumble to 58 all out in the 2nd round of the Peters Trophy. Alex Cason was also in good form with the ball, taking 3 for 25.
Alex was also in good batting form as he scored 25 n.o. as Green knocked off the runs for the loss of 2 wickets.

Batting Collapse Lets in Chingford

Green seem to have set up a winning position having reduced Chingford from50 for 1 to 73 for 7 with Chammy Mudalige (3-39) and Ricky Gill (4-18) in fine form with the ball. However the visitors rallied around skipper Simon Kirnon to add 68 for the last 3 wickets.
Chris Cook departed without a run on the board but, with Jon Powell (33) batting well Green advanced to 51 for 2 before a similar collapse saw them bowled out for 113 with Carolus and MacGregor doing the damage with the ball.Only 3 other players reached double figures in a miserable batting display.

2nds Finish Woefully Short

The 2nd XI were well short of challenging an imposing target of 291 set by Chingford. Lloyd Edwards (3-54) and the returning Misbah Uddin (3-67) performed creditably with the ball but could not prevent the hosts rattling along at a healthy rate.
In response , Green were well off the pace. Despite sound contributions from Mizzy (48), Alex Cason (38 n.o.), Rob Glassberg (25) and Gavin Castle (22) the 2nd XI finished woefully short and didn't even make the 4th batting point as they finished on 197 for 5.

Potter's Maiden Ton Wins It for 3rd XI

The 3rd XI were struggling to chase the 177 required for victory at Fives & Heronians when a maiden century from Paul Hurworth (101 n.o.) batting in partnership with Vijay Srinivasan (30 n.o.) pulled the game round and earned a 4 wicket victory.
Good Bowling by Vijay Srinivasan (3-29), John Coxall (3-36), and Kevin Chapman had helped establish a strong position as the hosts were dismissed for 176 in 50.3 overs.

Four for The Whale but 4th XI No Match for Park

Despite good opening spells by both James Haylett and Al Surrey at Ilford wanderers on Saturday, Gidea Park & Romford got off to a solid yet restrained start. As both openers passed 50, the scoring rate increased and the 4th XI were looking at a mammoth score to chase. The Whale then made the vital breakthrough courtesy of a catch by Herbie. Rikkus took a good catch to remove Trayler for 80 and JD managed to put the break on. Park declared on 205 for 5.
The slow wicket did not make stroke-making easy and Green soon lost Thomas Oakley in reply. Herbie, Rikkis and Javed Ali all departed leaving Cockinson resembling still life at the other end. At the start of the last hour an increase in tempo was required and Cockinson fell attempting to hit Cobill over the top. Jack Taylor struggled to get the ball away but Al Surrey and JD gave the innings a bit of impetus to take Green towards a 2nd batting point which Matt Simmons duly secured in the final over.

Lack of Runs Causes a Problem for the 5th XI

Lack of runs has been a problem for the 5th XI who were, once again, exposed batting first. Despite the efforts of Vic Simmons (31) and The Doc (24) Green could only muster 153 in 49.2 overs against Chingford. The visitors experienced few alarms in passing the total for the loss of 4 wickets.