Category: 2012 Season

2012 Season

by rayleigh

Rayleigh U13As v Westcliff U13s 20.5.12

Rayleigh (81-5) lost to Westcliff (103-5) by 22 runs
 The poor run of weather lately meant that this was the 1st fixture of the season.  The pitch had more than a tinge of green, and the bounce was anticipated to be low.  On a cold and overcast morning at Rawreth Lane, Conor won the toss and inserted the opposition.  Despite some good opening bowling from Josh and Matt, Westcliff got off to a good start, going at 5 runs an over.  Conor and Max failed to secure a breakthrough as the openers continued to build with a mixture of good shots and some luck as well.  A much bigger score was on the cards, but the retirement of the 2 openers in quick succession coupled with some excellent bowling from Henry (1-13) and Mihir in particular (3-13) meant that Westcliff were pegged back a bit.  However, 103 on that pitch looked a very testing target.
 Openers Max and Matt got Rayleigh off to a solid start, with Max in particular keeping the scoreboard ticking over against some good bowling.  They managed to put on 50 before Matt was first to go in the 12th over for 18.  However this had taken 3 more overs than Westcliff and with the required rate at over a run a ball, chances had to be taken by the incoming batsmen.  Max retired on 25 not out and Craig, Josh and Mihir all fell cheaply in the pursuit of quick runs.  Conor was run out off the last ball for a run a ball 8 but this was not enough.  Westcliff were worthy victors by 22 runs. 
Unfortunately, 64 dot balls and only 2 boundaries compared to Westcliff’s  56 dot balls and 12 boundaries tells its own story.   Despite the loss there were a lot of positives.  Max continued on from a fine indoor season with another not out retirement; Matt too has got his season up and running with 18.  On the bowling front, Mihir and Henry proved that the squad has plenty of depth and variation and all the boys fielded well on a cold day.  Next up is Hadleigh away in the 1st round of the cup and the boys will have hopefully blown all the cobwebs away and be better off for this run out.
 
by rayleigh

Only two games played week ending 6th May

All 5 Saturday league games and one friendly game cancelled. The only game to escape the weather was at Belhus on an artificial wicket and  relatively dry outfield.  The 6th (Dragons) XI batted first in a 40 over game and totalled 152-6, Chris Slough (41), Kalpesh Patel (31), Rebecca Holyoak (31) and Steven Lynch (20*) all contributing.  Belhus 5ths started scoring at 5 an over and with Mike Randall (60) at the wicket they seemed to heading for an easy victory.  Some tight bowling by Jai Patel 2-38 off 9.1 overs, Sam Martin 1-38 off 10 overs and Phil Hammond 2-28 off 7 overs slowed the run rate down and when Randall was caught by a fine diving catch by Kalpesh a tight finish ensued but Belhus scored the winning runs in the penultimate over.  Some good performances in the first match of the season for most players on a cold and damp day.

The Sunday XI played a friendly game v Old Chelmsfordians and batting first in a low scoring game scored 100 all out, Nick Gosling top scoring with 23. OCs were bowled out for 66, Matt Gilmore taking 3-9and Ian Bryant 2-13.

The Women & Girls game and all colts matches cancelled

by rayleigh

Rayleigh u14 End of Indoor season report

Game 5 saw Rayleigh take on Orsett B, looking to build on a reasonable first half of the season.  Batting first, Rayleigh made 117-4, with good contributions from Max Jones (11), Craig Smith (16), Matt Dobson (20) and top scorer Josh Jones 21 not out.  This proved too much for Orsett’s second string with some tight bowling and wickets from Conor Slough (1-35) and Josh (1-9) meant they could only reach 85-2 in return.
The next match saw Rayleigh take on Belhus A who had been bowled out the previous week for 3.  They were more determined this week but still struggled against a good opening blast from Josh and Matt which saw only 12 runs conceded and a wicket for Josh in the opening 4 overs.  Further pressure from Conor, Owen and Max with tight bowling and good all-round fielding restricted Belhus to 63 all out, with Conor ending with 3-19.  In reply, Matt (25 not out) and Max (20 not out) took Rayleigh to the brink of victory with a chanceless, opening stand of 60.  Craig’s 2 not out meant Rayleigh reached their target of 64 nearly 5 overs to spare without losing a wicket.
In the 7th game of the series, Rayleigh played Thurrock B and came out on top in a tight finish.  Winning the toss and bowling first, Rayleigh restricted Thurrock to 57 off the first 10 overs; however some late big hitting and some wayward bowling saw Thurrock post a competitive 86-5.  Luke Sullivan and Conor Slough both had figures of 1-9 from 2 overs, with Conor chipping in with 2 run outs as well.  In reply, some early quick wickets put Rayleigh on the back foot and behind the required run rate, but solid contributions from Conor (9) and Josh Jones (7) gave Luke the platform he needed to play an outstanding and ultimately match winning innings of 21 not out to see Rayleigh home by 1 wicket with 5 balls to spare.
And so to the last game.  Unfortunately Rayleigh only had pride to play for but for opponents Orsett A, a victory would secure them the title.  Orsett won the toss and inserted Rayleigh.  Josh and Matt put on 48 for the opening stand against some good bowling with Josh scoring 25 (retired) and Matt 18.  Having taken 10 overs to do so, there was a predictable clatter of wickets as Rayleigh went in search of some quick runs for a competitive total.  Special mention goes to Adam ‘Brylcreem’ Sullivan for his 4 not out on debut as an emergency stand-in.  Look out Luke!  When Orsett batted, an opening stand of 33 in 4 overs killed the game as a contest; however it was good to see Matt pick up his first wicket of the campaign, with a fine catch by Conor.  Despite some tight bowling from Luke, Conor and Adam, Orsett reached their target comfortably with the best part of 3 overs to spare, without losing a wicket.
And so the season finishes.  The boys ended with a creditable record of 5 wins and 3 defeats to finish 4th, getting stronger as the season went on.  All in all, 10 boys were used with Max finishing as top batsman and Conor as top bowler but in truth everybody chipped in at some stage.  Six different boys top scored in various matches, with 4 of them reaching the retiring mark of 25.  In the field, 5 different boys had best bowling performances, with Conor getting 4 run outs and Craig taking 6 wonderful catches behind the stumps.  They all were a credit to the club.  Nine of the ten boys will be available for the same age group next season and will be much the wiser and stronger for the experience this season. 
Thanks to the mums and dads for getting the boys to the games each week and helping to put the mats away afterwards.  Roll on the summer!! 
by rayleigh

Under 14 Indoor Mid Season report

The indoor season got off to an indifferent start against Horndon.  There were a number of absentees for various reasons which made getting a side out very difficult.  For many of the boys, this was the first time that they had turned their arm over and swung the willow in anger since last season and it showed.  Horndon scored 97 batting first, with Rayleigh conceding 31 extras in the total,  In reply, only 2 players troubled the scorers – Luke Sullivan with 4 and Conor Slough (c) with a top score of 6 – in a paltry looking total of 27.  On the upside, there was a promising debut behind the stumps for Craig Smith, and the effort was there.
Game 2 saw Rayleigh put the preceding week’s woes behind them as they took on Thurrock A and put in a much better performance all round.  Bowling first, Rayleigh restricted Thurrock to 84-3, which included a triple wicket maiden for the returning Josh Jones – all bowled!! In reply, Rayleigh got home with 10 balls to spare thanks to Craig Smith with 10 and Alex Belcher 16 no.
The 3rd game of the season saw Rayleigh take on Belhus B.  Batting first, Rayleigh reached 124 in a stronger performance  with 3 players retiring – Matt Dobson was out last ball for 25, his opening partner Max Jones made 26 no and Conor Slough made 25 no.  In reply, a tighter bowling effort from the team restricted Belhus B to 89 off their allotted 12 overs with Conor Slough taking 2-15 and Josh Jones 1-18.
Rayleigh played unbeaten Stanford Le Hope in their 4th game of the season and came up against a good side in form.  Ultimately, it ended in defeat but it was a very close run thing.  Batting first, Stanford le Hope got off to a flyer, but Rayleigh gradually reined them back in to a competitive but gettable score of 85 thanks to wickets for Josh (1), Conor (1), Max (1) and Owen Brooks 2-11.  Craig Smith also took 3 great catches behind the stumps.  In reply, wickets fell at regular intervals preventing any real momentum being built, but 10 from Conor and an outstanding 41 from Max Jones nearly got the team home.  In the end, they fell an agonising 13 runs short.
So halfway through and Rayleigh have won 2 and lost 2.  The boys are beginning to get to grips with the different tactics required for the indoor game.  This is a young side for the age category and all 9 boys used so far will be eligible for next season in the same age group.  All have contributed in some way.  A number of the boys they have played against are a year older, and this is all good experience.  The boys have carried themselves well, and special mention has been made by the umpires to this effect.  Here’s to a better second half of the season.
by rayleigh

U13B vs Old Southend & Southchurch U13B (Away)

Date: 15th May 2011

 

OS&S: 116-7 (20 overs)

Rayleigh: 61 all out (17.5 overs)

Rayleigh team: Ben L, Ben E, Callum B, Joe P, Matthew A, Liam H, Mark B, Harry D, Sam C, David W, Cameron M

Without captain Callum Bthrough illness and a few late call-ups to the A team, the Bs took to the field for our first league game of the season against Old Southend & Southchurch.

For many of these lads it was a step up to “proper cricket” after being used to several years of the “Terrier” version of the game. A steep learning curve now awaits but it is one that many of them will hopefully adapt to quite quickly.

Stand-in captain Joe won the toss and we fielded first.

We were up against a much better team and that was evident as soon as the game started. There would be no first match win, so plan B was to take the positives out of the game, of which there were several.

We have some useful bowlers at this level. Cameron bowled a good line and length without reward. Harry D returned very impressive figures of 4-0-21-4 and Liam H got one wicket and bowled a beautiful line and length and could easily have had 4 wickets as well with a little more luck.

Sam C struggled for his first two overs, but when he came back on near the end, bowled two people out in the same over.

So there are grounds for optimism there. The fielding wasn’t bad either and the lads were looking to back up all the time.

The positives taken from our batting were Ben E reluctantly opening and batting sensibly (especially defending a yorker superbly).

When we were four down for 12 runs, Liam came to the crease and with Ben E, started to move the score on with good running between the wickets. And then Liam and Harry did the same. Liam scored 9 runs and Harry top scored with 12 not out.

This gives us hope for future weeks and we shall attempt to build on it.

No game this Sunday (22nd) so next fixture is May 29 away to Canvey Island.