CCC

Dear All,

Well it was fantastic to be back playing cricket again after the last few crazy months. A big step up for our group from last year and soft ball into the world of hard ball. And the players rose to the challenge superbly!

Those that could arrived early to get used to handling the hard ball ( no practice sessions until then) – and stand in coach Adam Talbott arrived and took things up a notch – thanks so much to Adam for standing in for Owen (our usual coach) at such short notice.

The Captain for the day, Greg Thomas, won the toss and elected to field. I asked him why – and he said he would prefer to chase the Ivybridge score knowing how many there were to get. Good answer!

On the whole we bowled and fielded really well, restricting Ivybridge to only 44 in the first 12 out of 16 overs. The best bowler for us was Sam Ford, with stunning figures of 2 overs, 1 wicket maiden (no runs scored off the over & a wicket taken (bowled)) and only 2 runs conceded! Well done Sam. Special mention to Seb G with 1wkt for 11, including a caught & bowled that seemed to stay in the air for ever (maybe that’s just because I’m his Dad!!). Jarryd bowled Really well with only 5 off his 2 overs, and so did Lennon with some left arm variation, and Seb C with some power. The stats never lie -each bowler bowled better in their 1st over – only 34 runs conceded in these…..

I thought the fielding was tidy for the first match – but can improve. Not many catches were offered, and Seb caught the only chance.

Thanks also to Seb G and Jarryd for donning the wicket keeping gloves – something we will have to share around a bit.

In the final 4 overs, there was a superb knock by an Ivybridge player, Jake, who made 44! Ivybridge ended their 16 overs on 100 exactly. At the break we discussed the fact that we regularly made over 100 last year – and that the total was assailable – even if the Ivy score had Ben piled on at the end of their innings.

Seb G and Sam got CCC off to a fantastic start – putting on 35 with no risk in 4 overs and not losing a wicket. Great running between the wickets! Jarryd batter really well, finishing our 8th over with him on 19, supported by Ed Lavers, and the score on 60. Seb C and Lennon battled hard, but faced some good tight bowling and lost a couple of wickets. Well done Lennon for getting a few quick singles in what was a tricky patch for us. The final pair, Stanley and Greg, went in requiring 34 off the last 4 overs. They put in a stunning display of positive hitting to ensure that we finished the match 18 runs ahead of Ivybridge. Epic, clean hitting from Stanley and, although out once he scored 30 with the bat. Greg, at the other end scored 11 and was just starting to get going when the match ended.

Well done team for a fantastic performance!

The stats never lie:

We gave away 44 extras (wides, no-balls, byes) – nearly half of the Ivybridge score…. – we can work on this as the season progresses.

We lost 4 wickets in our innings – 20 runs. Say we conceded only 20 extras, and lost only 2 wickets – we would have won by 48 runs…! Something to aim for I think!

Finally – I wish to mention player of the game. Adam and I had no hesitation in naming Stanley Baker, for his match winning 30 runs scored – but this was after he had just been hit for 24 in one over by a very able batsman. Well done Stanley for it letting it affect you, and bouncing back with that performance!!

In summary – thank you all for a great evening out and a great first performance!

Things to work on:
1. Cut down on extras in the field.
2. Whilst batting – work on our calling & running between the wickets.
3. Be aware of what is happening whilst you are fielding. If the ball doesn’t come to you, you are still in the game and have a role to play!

That’s it for the report – just to advertise that there IS practice this Friday evening at CCC – core time 6-7, but we may finish a bit later depending on the light, weather etc. It would be great to see you all there so we can continue building those skills!


Best Regards,

Rob (mgr)

Rob Giles
07850 144005