County Under 14 Results
Wiltshire v Oxfordshire - ECB County Cup Group 6 - 3rd July
With 3 of last season’s regular players playing for the first time this season. Wilts were hoping to put on a better show than the previous game against Oxfordshire.
Captain Guy Brothwood was hoping to have better luck with the toss, but yet again we lost and were asked to bat on a low, slow Biddestone track. However, we would have batted if we had won. The day was bright and breezy with some heavy showers forecast, which luckily didn’t materialise.
Brothwood and Cowley opened the innings and unluckily Brothwood was out on the last ball of the first over. This brought Michael Reynolds to the crease. Cowley and Reynolds both collected singles and worked the ball around to keep the scoreboard ticking over. At the first drinks break Wilts were 48 for 1 with no alarms. The pair steadily started to accumulate runs and the 100 came up in the 26th over. Reynolds soon reached his 50 being particularly strong off his pads. The spin of Coles and Morris, which in the previous game had blunted the Wilts scoring, didn’t have the same effect. With the score on 160, Cowley was run out going for a 3rd run, his score being a very solid 43 and a partnership of 145. Reynolds continued on scoring quickly, and reached his maiden county 100 in the last over of the innings. Wilts had reached a very credible 206 for 3 with Reynolds finishing on 102 not out.
With the normal opening bowling pair of Haggaty and Miles on duty for the U15’s, it was left to Greg Davies and James Lavis the try a carry on the good work of previous games. Davies claimed a wicket in the last over of his spell. At the first drinks breaks the scores were identical - 48 for 1. However, when the spin bowling pair of Brad Dawson and Charlie Turrell were introduced, they immediately dried up the flow of runs. Lloyd Sabin who had been looking very comfortable, was finding it harder to score. Dawson and Turrell bowled 18 overs between them, only conceding 44 runs, with Dawson taking 4 wickets including the wicket of Sabin for a very good 58. Bibby batted well to try and increase the scoring but was out to Tom Cowley for 35 who again came on late to collect 3 more wickets. Oxon were finally all out for 153 in the 45th over.
At last Wilts had produced a performance of note. A very good batting display was backed up by some impressive spin bowling and good ground fielding. Winning their final Group 6 ECB cup game was very satisfying, although it was not enough to get them through to the next round. Credit must go to Reynolds and Cowley for the batting and Dawson, Turrell and Cowley for the spin bowling.
Wiltshire won by 53 runs
Wiltshire v Wales - ECB County Cup Group 6 - 30th June @
Hopes were high for this game, as we needed to win our final two games to progress through to the next round. James Haggaty went out to toss, and again we lost the toss, fielding yet again!
Maybe this would be a blessing in disguise, as for the 3rd game running Miles and Haggaty tore through the Welsh batting, the first 4 batsmen all out for ducks. Wales were 9 for 4. Simply excellent bowling from this pair yet again. With the ball seaming about, 2nd change bowler, newcomer Hector Whitrow struck, with a fine one handed catch from Max Betteridge. Welsh batsmen Gehler and Kings put on a solid 50 run partnership before Gehler was bowled by Miles for 36. Jake Kings was 9th wicket down for a very good 51. Wales finished on 142 all out. Tom Cowley once again came on towards the end and claimed 3 wickets with his off spin. Craig Miles 7-1-13-4, Tom Cowley 9-1-33-3 and Hector Whitrow 6-0-24-2 were wicket taking bowlers with the miserly James Haggaty very economical 9-4-22-1 supporting well.
The Welsh opening bowling attack struck straight away removing both openers, leaving Wilts on 21 for 2. The middle order tried in vain to restore some order, but wickets continued to fall at regular intervals and Wilts subsided to a very disappointing 97 all out. Not what the doctor ordered. The Welsh seam attack was very accurate with R. Smith taking 5 wickets. His figures were 9-1-16-5 and well backed up by A. Griffiths 4-1-8-2 and J. Edwards 6.4-1-15-2.
It was a very disappointing result after such a brilliant start to the match.
Wiltshire lost by 45 runs
Wiltshire v Oxfordshire - ECB County Cup Group 6 - 26th June at Bicester CC
Scorecard - We travelled North for our 2nd ECB County Cup match against Oxfordshire at Bicester. The wicket looked an absolute belter - hard with some bounce. Hopefully this time we could win the toss and bat, but no, fielding again.
However, maybe it seemed a good toss to lose as Craig Miles and James Lavis both struck in their 3rd overs and Oxon were reduced to 19 for 2. More success as a direct throw from Haines ran out Patel the no3 and Miles struck with his very next ball. Oxon were in trouble at 27 for 4. This continued with the 5th wicket falling at 48. Ed Goggs and Chris Knowles set about repairing the damage putting on 37 before the spin of Jack Haines brought an end to the partnership. With the wicket dusting up and producing some uneven bounce, there was another flurry of wickets to reduce Oxon to 95 for 9. However, the last wicket put on 38 to give Oxon a total of 133 ao. Craig Miles bowled well again to finish with figures of 9-2-25-3.
Wilts started well with Joe Weare and Michael Reynolds putting on 48 for the first wicket. Weare was out for 9 when spin was introduced. At 60 for 1 and seemingly coasting, spin in the shape of Fi Morris came on from the other end. She immediately caused problems claiming 3 wickets in her next 3 overs, drawing the batsmen out with her slow spin and getting them stumped. Thus was Reynolds out for 36, followed by a collapse of English proportions with 5 wickets falling for 9 runs. On 69 for 6 and spin dominating, Miles and Dawson tried hard to restart the innings. Progress was very slow and when Dawson was out with the score on 93, this left Miles to try and save the game, but he was out for a gutsy 25. The last wicket fell with the total on 110, 23 runs short. Spinners Fi Morris 9-3-12-3 and Jamie Coles 9-1-22-3 were the dominating bowlers for Oxon.
Wiltshire lost by 23 runs
Wiltshire v Dorset - Friendly - 22nd June at Chippenham CC
Scorecard - After a mix-up with the fixture booking at Larkhill, the game was moved at very short notice to Chippenham. A vote of thanks must go to Steve Silk for sorting out the ground, catering and the wicket at such short notice.
A bright and very breezy day greeted us. With the wicket firm in the middle and slightly damp on the topside, the idea was to win the toss and field. Stand-in captain Brad Dawson continued our bad luck with the toss and again we were asked to bat.
The openers Joe Weare and Tom Cowley put on a steady 23 before Joe was caught in the slips for 9. Michael Reynolds and Tom Cowley put on 48 for the 2nd wicket before Tom was LBW for 21. This brought in Jack Haines, fresh from his 50 in the previous match. These two set about building a solid partnership. After the 30 over drinks break, the tempo suddenly increased with 45 coming off the next 4 overs with the pair playing some cracking shots all around the wicket. Michael Reynolds was out caught for a fine 60 in the 35th over after a partnership of 77. Jack Mynott, drafted in from the U13’s, was next in and the pair continued to score freely with Haines hitting a huge six over mid wicket before being bowled for his 2nd county 50 with a score of 57. New recruit Ollie Jones, batting at number 6, was next in. Mynott and Jones scored 30 runs in the final 3 overs to take us to a very respectable total of 211 for 6 off 45 overs. A good feature of the innings was the excellent running between the wickets by all the Wilts batsmen. The Dorset bowlers toiled away in difficult windy conditions with J. Rowett 5–0–29-2 and J Hurley 6-1-19-2 being the pick.
Dorset began their innings in fine style with Triniman and Hurley running well between the wickets and hitting the bad balls for 4. Some indifferent bowling from the Wilts seamers helped their cause. With Dorset seemingly looking in no trouble, Triniman was out LBW to Mynott for 24, thus ending a solid opening partnership of 63. This brought Rowett to the crease and together with Hurley they put on a fine 74 run partnership for the 2nd wicket. Rowett was run out by Cowley for a very solid 35. After the lack of penetration from the seamers, captain Dawson turned to the spinners to try a put a brake on the Dorset scoring. This Dawson duly did, bowling his 9 overs for just 26 runs. With Tom Cowley coming on to bowl and striking with his 2nd ball, Dorset were now at 146 for 4 in the 34th over. Hurley was caught behind in Cowley’s next over for a fine 50. Things looked set for yet another close game, with previous games over the years always being very tight affairs and with Dorset just shading the very close ones! Credit to Wilts this time, the spinners kept up the pressure and wickets started to tumble at regular intervals. By the 42nd over things were getting too close with Dorset on 192 for 7. With Dorset needing 16 runs off the last 2 overs things were looking tense. Jack Mynott was thrown the ball and asked to bowl the penultimate over. He had Quinn, the left hander, who had taken 11 off the 42nd over, caught for a quick fire 23. He then bowled the number 10 Nippard with the 4th ball and with his last ball, ran out the last man. A fine performance by Wilts in yet another close game against Dorset. Dorset finished on 197 all out.
Solid batting from Reynolds 60, Haines 57, Mynott 29, Cowley 21 and Jones 14 laid the foundations and some excellent bowling from the U13s Mynott 4-0-16-3 and Cowley 6-1-19-3 secured victory.
Wiltshire won by 14 runs
Wilts U14’s v Gloucestershire U14, ECB County Cup Group 6 - 12th June 2008
Scorecard. The first game of the ECB county cup against Gloucestershire saw us at home in Corsham. With the wicket looking slightly damp and green it looked a good toss to win and insert the opposition. We lost the toss and were duly inserted.
With the first three batsmen back in the pavilion, the ball seaming around and the score on 12 for 3, things looked ominous for a low total. However, James Haggaty and Jack Haines steadied the ship. When the opening bowlers had finished their spells, things started to look a bit more comfortable for Haggaty and Haines and they were able to score freely on both sides of the wicket. A fine partnership of 72 was ended when Haggaty was caught behind for 38. Jack Haines continued batting fluently with some fine shots on the leg side and he reached his maiden county 50 before being caught for 54. Wilts then tried to bat out the overs, but were all out for a total of 154 in the 39th over. The Gloucester opening bowler Golding finishing with 3 for 7 off 5.1 and Wenham 3 for 15 from 5 overs.
With 155 to win, Wilts set about defending their total with aplomb. Craig Miles immediately struck in the first over, and then again in his second over. By bowling a good length and line and with the ball swinging and seaming, Glos looked in deep trouble. They were soon reduced to 11 for 4. James Lavis and Leo Dennis replaced the openers after their devastating 5 over spells. They too were straight in amongst the wickets with Lavis getting a catch behind and Dennis taking 3 for 11 off his 5 overs. Wilts scented victory with Glos on 24 for 6 and kept up the pressure never giving them a chance. Craig Miles came back to wrap up the innings and finished with a fine quick and fiery 5 wicket haul. Tom Weaver also had 4 good catches behind the stumps. With only one Glos batsman reaching double figures they were well and truly beaten finishing on a very disappointing 50 all out. Craig Miles was the pick of the bowlers finishing with figures of 5 for 9 off 6.3 overs and Leo Dennis again chipping in with 3 for 11 off 5 overs. A great start to the Competition.
Wiltshire won by 104 runs
Wilts U14’s v Marlborough College U14’s - 22nd May
A bright breezy day greeted us at Marlborough College for the 2008 season. New captain James Haggaty lost the toss on what looked to be a nice hard track and Marlborough duly elected to bat. Marlborough batted steadily at the start, putting on 47 for the 1st wicket. The second change bowlers, Dennis and Davies applied some consistency, only giving away a miserly 17 runs in 10 overs. The introduction of spin had an immediate effect, with Jack Haines getting 3 wickets in his first 2 overs. Eversfield and Wilson started to get on top of the bowling until Haines again struck to remove Wilson for 22. With the score on 106 after 29 overs, a low total looked on the cards. However, Hatherly and Eversfield batted well in the final 10 overs to give Marlborough a total of 190 for 6 off 40 overs with Eversfield not out 71.
Wilts’ reply started well with Weare and Haggaty putting on 75 for the 1st wicket, then as has happened before, there was a mini collapse with 4 wickets falling for 14 runs. This took all momentum out of the innings and wickets continued to fall regularly. Wilts didn’t show any urgency in the final 10 overs and only some lusty hitting in the final 2 overs (30 runs) brought the total to 159 for 8. A disappointing start to the season, hopefully some lessons learnt.
