The return of James Wyatt to the 1st XI
brought about a much improved bowling performance by Green in their Shepherd
Neame League fixture against South Woodford at Central Park. On deciding to
bat, the visitors were soon in trouble as James
bowled his 10 overs and took 4 for 30. Ananda
Krishnan was economical with only 23 coming from his 10 overs whilst
Ricky Gill (2-53) and
Chris Cook (2-27) picked up a couple of wickets apiece as South Woodford
were restricted to 210 for 9 from their allotted 50 overs. Paul Hurworth (42) and
Freddie Butt (21) got Green off to another
good start after which Jacob Thompson (66 n.o.) and
Royston Smith (78) completed the 7 wicket
victory, with Smudger falling just before
the end.
The 2nd XI were in trouble at the start of the reverse fixture against South
Woodford at Highfield Road, finding themselves 39 for 3 when
Graham Cook had been dismissed for 19. It was,
once again, Martin Cason who came to the
rescue forging partnerships with Jack Taylor
and Tom Farquharson (32) to take the score to 158. Two further wickets fell
to leave Green struggling at 168 for 9 but a last wicket stand of 59 between
Minesh Gunalan (42n.o.) and Aaron Hills (9)
allowed them the comparative respectability of 227 all out.
The hosts were confident of passing this total but Minesh (2-46) followed up
his batting performance with two early wickets. South Woodford stage a
recovery with Gilani (44) and Piperdi (46) to the fore but Tom Farquharson
(3-13) ripped out the middle order. Aaron Hills
(2-67) and Thomas Oakley (2-19) took a
couple of wickets apiece to leave the home side hanging on with 9 down. James Duhig (2-23) and
James Haylett (2-9) had the early Harold
Wood batting in trouble at Ilford Wanderers. Although there was a mild
recovery, Jawaid Ali took a couple of wickets and
John Coxall conceded just 12 runs to leave the visitors short of runs
and behind the rate. It was the younger players who got Wood moving with
Connor, Hatton and Browne all striking the ball well with King coming in low
down to strike a quick 27 and take them to a couple of batting points.
Alex Cason, playing in the 3rd XI because of injury, still managed to
show up the rest of the 3rd XI fielding by taking two catches (of the two
taken).
It was Green's game to lose on a docile wicket and they tried their best.
Sir Harold holed out at mid-off and
Cockinson followed him back into the hutch
having inexplicably run himself out after playing the ball straight to the
fielder at point. Ian Jones came on to tempt batsmen into self-destruction
and Gibbo, Tiraj Patel
(18) and Alex Cason (36) duly obliged by
holing out in the deep. Green would have been in more trouble had the same
bowler held on to a sharp return catch but Green had enough firepower left
to ease home through Jawaid Ali (33 n.o.) and
Suggs (9 n.o.).
The 4th XI were involved in a tight match that could have gone either way
against Harold Wood. Having won the toss and inserted the home side, the
4ths were indebted to a spell of 5 for 40 from skipper
Vic Simmons after Fowles had made 63. In
reply, Chris Haylett (53) scored another
half century to put Green in with a chance but they fell 2 runs short with 2
wickets in hand despite the efforts of
The Doc (27), Dalton Calcott (24) and Luke Hartman (22).
Two little ducks opened up for the 5th XI with
Ivor and Terry Dack failing to trouble the scorers. However Green
managed to post a reasonable total of 167 for 6 in difficult conditions
through the efforts of skipper Malcolm Waters
(54) and Kevin Chapman (44). Southend
never really threatened with Kevin Hewitt in fine form with the ball taking
5 for 34.There were two wickets each for Kevin
Chapman (2-20) and Rob Duhig (2-7) with
The Inspector claiming the final wicket in a
much needed victory.
The Sunday 1st XI didn't really make enough runs against Bexley to cause the
home side too much trouble. Aaron Hills (27),
Chris Haylett (35) and
Potter (39) all made useful runs early but
it was Martin Cason (again) who took Green
through to any sort of total. Jacob Thompson batting far too low (I know you
need to give people a game but batting below
Ali Horne !!??!!). James Duhig and
James Haylett each took an early wicket but Mitchell (100 n.o.) and
Riley (67 n.o.) saw the hosts comfortably home after
Chris Haylett had taken the third wicket. Graham Cook (89) and
Geoff Robinson (87) got the Sunday 2nd XI
off to a brisk start against Goresbrook at Central Park. Shaun Ross bowled a
fine spell, charging in for 10 overs in the heat but had no luck whatsoever.
There wasn't much in the wicket for the bowlers as the opening stand grew to
182 before Cookie was gunned down by
Ted Patel. Herbie (37 n.o.) found some form
after his Saturday duck and Clouseau was
afforded a couple of minutes at the end to register another not out. Ted Patel deceived the batsmen by mixing up his
leg-side drifters with a few on the stumps to take the first 3 wickets for
21. Fraser King produced a good one to take the fourth wicket and
Rob Duhig claimed the fifth courtesy of a
splendid running catch by Herbie that
defied the vast quantities of tea consumed much to the delight of his
adoring fans on the veranda. At this point, the visitors settled for a draw.
Barwick (41) and Walker (82 n.o.) hit out in the closing stages and 3 late
wickets for Matt Simmons (3-40) gave Green
a glimmer of a chance but to no avail.
Potter (47) continued his recent run of good form as he and
Freddie Butt
(25) gave the 1st XI a sound start in the game against Upminster. Several
batsmen got a good start but failed to convert to a big score with Shanka
Gunalan (34), Jacob Thompson (29), Royston Smith (23) and Alex Cason (20)
helping Green to reach a disappointing total of 252 for 8 from their 50 overs.
The bowlers did well to contain Upminster and bowled them out for 220 with
Chris Cook in fine fettle with 3 wickets for 11 runs being backed up by
Ali
Horne (3-38) and Shanka Gunalan (2-32). This was the first victory of the
new league season and, hopefully, the start of a more successful period.
The 2nd XI bowling was in similarly good form in dismissing Wickford for 214
at the Patmore Memorial Sports Ground. Five of the home side's first six
batsmen made double figures with only Greaves making it beyond 40 as Minesh
Gunalan (4-53), The Pig (3-24) and
Matt Simmons (2-58) took regular wickets.
Green found themselves at 24 for 3 as Albury,
Graham Cook and Jon Bayfield
all departed early. Jack Taylor (26) managed to stay with skipper
Martin
Cason as the pair took the score to 109 after which the
Mick Clarke (27 n.o.)
supported the Fat Man as the pair knocked off the runs without further loss.
Martin finished with 117 not out, his second century of the season.
Westcliff-on-Sea found few problems with the pitch as they set off at a
brisk pace against the 3rd XI at Ilford Wanderers. A sharp piece of fielding
by Jawaid Ali broke the opening partnership with a run out but Dave Bullen
(76), mixing some fine strikes with some extravagant misses, established a
strong position in the company of Fosh and then Cheveralls.
Andy Cook
changed the course of the game by first containing Bullen and then
dismissing him. Jawaid Ali then ripped out the middle order and finished
with 5 for 72. The visitors total of 218 for 9 was given a late boost by
Burling, who hit the ball very hard in his short cameo of 27 and Hurley.
Green's fielding let them down once again with seven catches going down. Sir Harold (63) and
Cockinson (29) made a solid opening stand of 70 and were
progressing well before Hurley began a fine spell, in which he took 4 for 70
and probably deserved more, who bamboozled and dismissed the latter with a
fine delivery and also claimed the wicket of Ian Gibbs for 16.
Tiraj Patel
joined Sir Harold and the pair took the score within 60 of the target before
they were both dismissed in quick succession. Jawaid Ali struck the ball
cleanly and looked on course to settle the game until he showed his
inexperience of batting with Suggs and was run out for 35.This seemed to
encourage a minor panic but Suggs saw Green home in the last over to win by
3 wickets.
A total of 136 did not seem to be enough for the 4th XI when they visited
Langdon Hills Recreation Ground to play Basildon & Pitsea.The early batting
failed leaving the 4ths at 24 for 5 and it was largely due to skipper
Vic
Simmons (35) who with Dalton Calcott (10) and Fraser King (19) enabled Green
to post any sort of challenge at all.
The home side seemed to be well in control with Bedford (37) and Underdown
(38) keeping out the best efforts of Chris Haylett with the assistance of
some fielding lapses. The match turned in Green's favour with a stunning
catch by Fraser King after which Basildon & Pitsea collapsed like a pack of
cards with Chris Haylett finishing with 5 for 13.
The Hanger (2-10) allowed
himself his customary bowl at the tail and the Doc also (2-41) also picked
up a couple. Ted Patel would like to point out that this victory would not
have been possible without his six runs.
Phil Pearce (39) and Ivor (30) gave the 5th XI a good start against Horndon-on-the-Hill
until Karu (4-19) set Green back with four quick wickets.
Muddy Waters (27)
and Gavin Castle (15), finding his level at last, steadied the middle order
to set up a late order bash by Kevin Chapman
(69 n.o.) who received support
from Kevin Hewitt (12) and Rob Duhig (15 n.o.).
Ginsburgh dominated the reply with an excellent 98 but neither side ever
looked on course for victory with the visitors reaching 206 for 5.
Green lost their last 6 wickets for just 32 runs as they were knocked out of
the ECB National Club Championship by Waltham. Green had a flying start and
were 75 in first 10 overs with Potter (42) and
Freddie (25) again playing
well. However, they had no answer for Waltham spinners and lost wickets at
regular intervals. Ananda Krishnan (30),
Royston Smith (25) and Shanka
Gunalan (21) all made a modest contribution to a total that was below par.
Khawer Kazmi was the pick of the bowlers taking 5 wickets for 9 runs in 6.2
overs. Former test player, Mohammad Akram, scored 49 opening the batting as
Waltham coasted to victory in 23 overs for the loss of 4 wickets.
Ricky Gill
picked up 2 for 51.
The beautiful weather of Sunday did not exactly inspire Green's openers in
the 2nd XI clash with Chigwell as they were both dismissed for 4.
Chris
Gibbon (23) and Billy Shorey (28) rescued the situation a little before the
obdurate Clouseau laid anchor whilst
Chris Haylett sparkled to 39 before
being run out unluckily. Matt Simmons (48 n.o.) almost caught up
the
Inspector (64 n.o.) until the latter found his touch in the final over of
the innings.
The target of 223 seemed like a mountain to climb as
James Haylett (3-18)
and James Duhig (2-22) ripped out the top of the order.
Rob Duhig (3-15)
winkled out three more wickets but, on a flat wicket, the hosts held on for
a draw at 94 for 8.
Jacob Thompson (143 n.o.) was in stunning form at Herongate on the Bank
Holiday Monday but may have cost his side the game by losing the ball when
striking his umpteenth six. Jacob joined Cockinson (77 n.o.) at the wicket
with three wickets down for 52 and immediately started to dominate the
bowling as the pair added 236 before the declaration came after 34.4 overs. Potter took an early wicket but the home side made a positive start. The
weather became progressively worse but Herongate had, by then, established a
grip on the game. Potter (4-86) and
Matt Simmons (3-59) did well to get
Green back in the game but were denied by the 9th wicket pair who won the
game in the last scheduled over.
Saturday proved to be a disastrous day for the Green with all sides going
down with the exception of the 4th XI who can take scant consolation for an
abysmal batting performance in holding on for the draw.
The 1st XI did not exert any control with their bowling and it is likely to
take a few games to determine the best balance of the attack with the result
that 9 bowlers were used. Gidea Park & Romford's commanding total of 293 for
9 was built around half centuries from Collard (69) and Kulasena (88).
Ananda Krishnan bowled tidily without
success but the main wicket takers were Shanka Gunalan (4-26),
Ali Horne (2-41) in an economical spell of
10 overs and Chris Cook (2-25).
Losing Freddie early on was not an ideal start
but Paul Hurworth(41), in his new found role
of opener, and Jacob Thompson began a reasonable response. The departure of
Potter led to a middle order collapse and it
was only Chris Cook and
Simon Jeffries (33 n.o.) who managed to
stay with Jacob and allow him to complete an undefeated century. However
Green finished 64 runs short for a 2nd successive defeat.
The 2nd XI suffered a similarly heavy defeat but this time they were unable
to defend a total. Martin Cason was in
splendid form yet again scoring 88 and Thomas
Oakley (52) completed another half century.
Bambi (25 n.o.) made some useful runs towards the end of the innings as
Green closed on 229 for 7 from 52 overs. The home side made light work of
the task, completing a comfortable 9 wicket victory in just 41 overs with
Baker scoring a century and Collier 71.
The Peter May Centre produced a wicket hardly worthy of the legendary PBH
but it produced a close encounter between the 3rd XI and Walthamstow. Green
lost Cockinson early after which
Geoff Marchant (17) and
Ian Gibbs (86 n.o.) batted resolutely to take
the score towards 50. Sir Harold was next
to go as the home side attack of O'Hanlon and Bonser bowled unchanged taking
wickets at regular intervals. Ian Gibbs alone
stood firm and allowed Green to set a challenging total on the unreliable
surface. James Haylett and
Keith Mitchell (2-59) began well with the ball, passing the outside edge
frequently. James Haylett made the initial
breakthrough after which James Duhig took two
wickets in quick succession leaving Walthamstow in a bit of trouble.
Alexander(53) stood firm for the hosts until he was removed by
Bones who had toiled away without much reward. Walthamstow were reduced
to 129 for 8 at which point Green looked favourites but an enterprising
stand of 25 for the 9th wicket between Everitt and Mirza saw 'Stow sneak
home in the last over.
The 4th XI bowling acquitted itself well in bowling out Fives & Heronians
for170. Chris Haylett (3-33), Fraser King
(2-22), Vic Simmons (2-23) and Dalton Calcott
(2-27) did the damage to set Green a reasonable chase. Chase was hardly the
appropriate word as Green crawled to 85 for 6 from 47 overs with only
The Hanger (35 n.o.) making and score worthy
of note. The Panthers made a decent fight of their
game against Hadleigh & Thundersley at Great & Little Warley. Batting first,
Green were dismissed for 119 despite the best efforts of
Malcolm Waters (40) and Phil Pearce (29).
Kevin Hewitt produced a trojan performance with the ball taking 5 for 39.
There was good support from Tom Greaves (2-21) and
Kevin Chapman (2-37) but the visitors got home by 1 wicket.
The Sunday games at Fives & Heronians and St Margaretsbury were called off
after heavy rain in the morning.
Those of you worried about swine flu will be distressed to hear that
there was a killer pig at the club last Saturday. Don't be too alarmed as
this was just Steve 'The Pig' Gawler cleaning up in a killer game of pool
which is destined to become a Saturday night feature. Reminiscent of 'Fast
Eddie' Felson, The Pig showed his full range of trick shots to out-stay his
rivals (there were plenty of takers for the role of Minnesota Fats).
The Trolley must be wary of introducing too many Saturday night features or
The Pig might become a millionaire having already won the 'Up to the Oche'
and the Eurovision Song Contest sweep earlier in the evening. If you think
you can challenge The Pig, make a point of turning up this Saturday.
It is with regret that we advise that Merv Lewis passed away last
Saturday. Merv was a competitive opening batsman and brave wicket keeper.
His forte was in standing up to the stumps for bowlers of all speeds where
he took one or two knocks (as well as stumpings). He scored over 2,200 runs
and claimed 177 victims made up of 119 catches and 58 stumpings.
He joined Ardleigh Green in 1974 and continued to play until 1985. Following
his retirement from playing, Merv served both 2nd and 3rd XIs well as an
umpire in all weathers.
He will be sadly missed by his many friends at the club.
The funeral is at the Basildon Crematorium in Pitsea on 3rd June at 4 p.m.
Two veterans with a combined playing career of over 80 years at Ardleigh
Green reached notable milestones in the same game when the 3rd XI played
Harlow at Ilford Wanderers. Keith Mitchell, the club's leading
wicket-taker reached 2,500 wickets when James
Haylett held on to a catch at square leg to dismiss opener Ken Aldred. Geoff Robinson passed
Dennis Bull's career total of runs (22704) to
move into 2nd place on the all time list. To put this in perspective,
Dennis retired from playing 10 years ago and
the pair started playing at about the same time. The chance of making 1st
place look remote with Royston Smith over
9,000 runs clear at the top.
The 2008 champions, Wanstead made an impressive start
to the defence of their title when they set a 50 over target of 297 for 5 in
the opening Shepherd Neame League Fixture. This year sees the the 50 over
format for half of the 1st XI Premier League games. Green made a good start
to the replay through Paul Hurworth, playing well for his 69 and
Ricky Gill
(29). Royston Smith made 22 but there were 5 ducks as Green crumbled to 169
all out with Mohammed Fayyaz Khan picking up 5 wickets. Ramesh Gunalan was
unable to bat following an injury sustained in the field and it is to be
hope that he makes a swift recovery.
Leigh-on-Sea set a challenging target of 251 in the 2nd XI game at Central
Park. It looked as if it would be much worse as the visitors raced away to
an impressive start. The slower bowlers gradually got a hold with Matt
Simmons (3-73) and The Pig (3-71) picking up 3 wickets apiece. Thomas Oakley set the reply off in fine style, scoring a quick 42. Green
made steady headway with Martin Cason (104 n.o.) and
Jon Bayfield (53)
providing the major stand. With the vultures hovering around the bat, late
replacement Billy Shorey biffed the ball to the boundary, leaving
Fat Cas to
finish the job.
The Harlow openers seemed to have little difficulty in the early stages of
the 3rd XI contest at Ilford Wanderers. After Keith Mitchell (2-35) made the
breakthrough, green's bowlers got a grip and the scoring rate slowed
appreciably with John Coxall in miserly form in taking 3 for 19. At 52 overs,
the score was just over the hundred mark with 6 wickets down and so, with no
points to lose, Harlow had little choice but to bat on. This decision seemed
particularly harsh on Herbie Gosnell who stomach could be heard rumbling at
surrounding grounds as he longed for his tea. It was nearly an hour later
when Green managed to take the final wicket with a total of 169 on the board
and over 71 overs bowled.
After the early loss of Sir Harold, Gibbo (56) and
Cockinson (53) looked
sound before playing more expansively to bring the target within reach. Both
departed in quick succession but Green eased home in 31 overs.
The 4th XI were indebted to Chris Haylett for any semblance of
respectability in their game against Hainault & Clayhall.
Chris was
undefeated with 71 out of a meagre 129 as some good bowling gave the home
side the upper hand. With such a small total on the board, Hainault & Clayhall made light work of the task and finished the job with 6 wickets in
hand.
The Ardleigh Green Panthers (a.k.a. the 5th XI) were left holding on for a draw in their game
against Chingford 4th XI. The bowlers stuck manfully to their task against
some excellent batting by Woodland, whose 122 dominated a total of 202 for
9. The wickets were shared by Rob Duhig (5-65), his first five wicket haul,
and Kevin Chapman (4-39) with good back up from the others. Green struggled
in reply and it was left to Malcolm Waters (39 n.o.) and
The Panther to
cling on for the draw with 8 wickets down.
The 1st XI recovered from their Saturday blues with a resounding victory in
the Conference Cup. After Freddie Butt (41) and
Potter (51) had provided a
brisk start, the innings was dominated by a club record stand for the 4th
wicket of 298. Smudger (196 n.o.) was in particularly belligerent mode
whilst Shanka Gunalan (103 n.o.) scored his maiden century for the Green.
Faced with the daunting target of 411 from 45 overs, Chingford acquitted
themselves well with the bat, reaching 278 with Alex
Cason (3 for 38), Aaron
Hills (2-46), Aundre Fernando (2-36) and Mahela Ilshan (2-21) all picking up
wickets.
The Sunday 2nd XI seemed to be in a strong position with four early wickets
falling to James Haylett,
Vic Simmons and Ted Patel
in their home game
against Hockerill. However, Foster (39) and Hudson (105) played with
comparative ease as the visitors recovered to 198 for 9 before the
declaration came. Bambi and Cockinson (23) began reasonably but, once Bambi
skied a catch, the
latter became bogged down as Green got behind the rate.
Herbie Gosnell
exploded into life after a slow start and, in partnership with
Gavin Castle (21), gave Green a reasonable chance of victory. Both departed in quick
succession and the game petered out into a draw.
Week four of the 2009 season saw Green exit from the Shepherd Neame
League Cup, a competition that has brought considerable success in the last
few years. The decision to entrust Potter to provide a fast start proved
successful as he scored a fine 68. Ananda Krishnan continued his good early
season form with an undefeated 63 but, apart from a brace of 20s from the
Gunalans, there wasn't enough support and the innings finished 5 overs early
on 248.
Green's fielding did not provide the back-up required by the bowlers and the
visitors got home rather too easily, winning with over 3 overs to spare for
the loss of 4 wickets. Ananda was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 40.
The 2nd XI had a comfortable 8 wicket victory in the reverse fixture with
Martin Cason (96 n.o.) and Jon Bayfield (46 n.o.) easing them home. The
bowlers laid the foundation for the victory with Minesh Gunalan (3-31), Matt
Simmons (2-7), Thomas Oakley (2-12) and Mick Clarke (2-24) all amongst the
wickets as Hainault & Clayhall collapsed to 160 all out.
It was hard to see the 3rd XI performing as badly this week as they did last
but they managed it when they were bowled out for 66 at East Hanningfield.
Only Cockinson managed double figures as a succession of batsmen duly
surrendered their wickets. The bowling was a little more impressive with
James Duhig making an early breakthrough and the Silver Fox (2-17) bowling
an economical spell in which he took 2 wickets. However, the fielding was
poor with more contenders for drop of the season.
The wily Hanger (4-19) undermined the visiting North Middlesex batsmen in
the 4th XI game at Ilford Wanderers. With The Doc (3-27) and Paul Simmons
(2-31) also bowling well, the visitors were bowled out for 183.
The Doc was in fine form with the bat too as he helped himself to 96 n.o. to
see Green home for the loss of three wickets. Herbie, having done some
impromptu laundry at the tea interval, registered his first half century of
the season.
The 1st XI gained some revenge for last year's league cup exit at Saffron
Walden with a 4 wicket win in the National Club Championship. Ricky Gill
(2-36) was the main threat to the home side as they scored 245 for 6 in
their allotted 45 overs. For green, Freddie was approaching his best with 79
whilst Shanka Gunalan scored his first half century for the club. However,
there was still a fair amount of work to do when the 6th wicket fell but
Ramesh Gunalan (25 n.o.) and that old stager Martin Cason (25 n.o.) saw
Green safely home.
Those who have winced at watching Bambi on ice will not be surprised that
Green's own Bambi has a few problems in the running department. Having
knocked over Cockinson when looking the other way, the veteran keeper was
stranded well short when the return came in to the bowler. And for good
measure, Mr Bayfield then drew Ivor into a QE2 impression by calling him for
a run and then sending him back. However, it was good to see Jon continue
his good form with an excellent century. The Inspector (39) also made good
runs as Green set visitors Takely a target of 206 in the 40 overs a side
game at Central Park.
James Haylett (4-18) and Matt Simmons (3-30) proved to be a bit too strong
with the ball but Takeley stuck manfully to the task after losing early
wickets. They still finished well short on 158 for 8.
The temperature dropped considerably in the Bank Holiday fixture at Little
Hadham. The Hanger made a good 66 before tiring appreciably and was followed
by more explosive knocks from Potter (43) and Matt Simmons (42). Billy
Shorey got in on the act with 22 and a few late sixes from James Haylett and
Jack Taylor boosted the total to 247 for 5.
Little Hadham found it difficult to get going with Rob Duhig (2-32) and Paul
Simmons (2-32) taking wickets but they comfortably held on for the draw at
122 for 6).