Well, thank goodness for the Under-9s, or this Saturday just gone would have been a total disaster for SCC.
Even so, the sun was out and there was the smell of the odd BBQ in the air so we'll keep these things in perspective!
There were fewer games this week, it being half term, although lots of junior players were involved in District matches. We hope everybody had an enjoyable half-term and that you're all looking forward to going back to school (or, depending on your perspective, the kids going back to school!!!)
The only two junior sides to play in the week gone were the Under-13 Blues, who played a Cup game at Shillingstone on Friday evening, and the Under-9s who got their league matches underway on Saturday morning at Marnhull.
The Blues posted another emphatic victory against Shillingstone and remain unbeaten in League and Cup. With George Coleman retiring on 30 not out and good contributions from Will Bourne (26), Max Nettley (16) and Joe Daniels (10), Stalbridge put 136-6 on the board. Shill never looked like getting close and finished on 50 all out, with the wickets shared around. Man-of-the-Match for an excellent spell of tidy bowling was Jasper Hodgson.
On Saturday at Marnhull the Under-9s bowled first in the opening league game of the season. Everybody had two overs and made a good start, though 'Mr Wide' proved to be a regular scorer for Marnhull, as so often at this age! Nonetheless, Dan Watson bowled a very tidy spell and Billy Daniels was the star of the attack taking 4 wickets for 7 runs. In reply to Marnhull's total of 272 for 5 (remember they start at 200 in these games!), our boys all scored well to reach 331 for 1 wicket. Winning by 59 runs. Hal Banfield, Harrison Sweatland, Billy Daniels and Max Townsend all made double figures, while Dan Watson top-scored with 21 and was named Man-of-the Match. Well done boys on a great first performance.
This coming week we have lots more junior games, with the U13s in particular having a busy week of league and Cup games.
Across the age groups, Star of the Week Awards were presented to;
Under-7s - Harley Trew & Louis Parker
Under-9s - Dan Watson
Under-11s - none awarded this week, as no games and training was rained off!
Under-13s - Jasper Hodgson
Under-15s - not awarded this week, as no game.
Well done to all of them!! (Please remember to bring back the trophies to the next session, or get them to the coaches, so they can be presented to others next week).
As for the senior sides, after two really good weeks when we narrowly missed getting clean sweeps of wins, this weekend the wheels really came off the SCC bus! Only the Sunday XI saved us from a full set of losses. Still, even after a bad day on the pitch it's important to commiserate with a beer - one has to find a way of avoiding Britain's Got Talent somehow...
The less said about the 1st XI game at Broadstone the better! The only bright spots were Alex Sullivan's innings of 66 and 14 year old Greg Willows making an accomplished Premier League debut. The team stumbled to 146 all out and then saw Broadstone make 150 for the loss of only 1 wicket. All in all, it was a dismal day at a ground where we always seem to struggle.
The 2nd XI suffered another defeat, albeit in quite a close match against Portland in The Park. After a solid start to the Stalbridge innings led by Colin Moore (41) and Jon Fryer (38), the innings looked to drifting away until Rhys Horsman (33) and Jake Trim (22no) gave it some serious long handle action in the last few overs to take us to a respectable 195. Unfortunately, Portland got a flying start until the spinners John Sullivan (4-53) and Jason 'Shirley Bassey' Forsey (1-17) started to tie them down and take wickets. At 7 wickets down and 30 odd runs to get the visitors were wobbling badly, but their experienced skipper steered them home in the penultimate over.
The 3rd XI took a very young side to Chalke Valley to play a team that are new to the league - always a dangerous proposition! Only John Arter and Matt Coleman were the pension side of 20, with three talented Under-13s - Max Nettley, George Coleman and Jamie Anderson-Deas all featuring. Three wickets from Chris Meikle, and two apiece from George and Jamie helped the team pick up four bowling points as Chalke Valley totalled 237-9. In reply, our lads reached 65 all out, with Jordan Nettley top-scoring with 19.
So it was down to the Sunday XI to make sure that the seniors contributed at least one win to the week and so they did! Rob 'the new Matt Prior' Burfitt made 110 runs and Ollie Calcott added 53 as an opening stand of 129 laid the foundations of the Stalbridge total of 210-3. In a really good game, Blandford Nomads were eventually bowled out for 207 with 4 balls to spare, Jason 'The Floatmeister' Forsey taking 3-24.
So, on we go, a few more wins next week would be nice. Selection for matches via the website seems to be working quite well, though we would like to urge all members to complete your availabilities and, especially if you are expecting that you might be selected for a match, please check your emails and click 'yes' or 'no' to confirm if you are available to play. The aim is to avoid Captains and Managers having to make phone calls/texts chasing non-responders!!
Have a good week.