Welcome to this week’s Wizzy News.
Lots to report on a usual with plenty of great performances to celebrate.
Honours Boards
Congratulations to all who made it onto our Honours Board this week – most notably Matt Watts who narrowly missed out on his first century in the Second X1 game against Ifield – see the match report for further details
Match reports
First X1 vs Middleton
Lack of availability shows with 1st XI falling to quality Middleton team.
JR Won toss for 4th straight game and elected to bat.
Solid start, with SCS looking in fine form before pulling a high full toss to mid-on.
Fellow opening partner Chris Douglas continued his form passing 50 once again.
The home team made in roads at the other end with brief resistance from Ran Dawson and a Jack Dixon who scored 33.
Chris continued to hold up his end and tried to push the rate on – hitting some impressive boundaries. However, once he fell the lower order batters failed to catch fire in the remaining overs as the Green ultimately reached a below par score of 187 for 9 in their 45 overs.
Oscar once again opened the bowling and bowled well but it was Jnr who managed to pick up the wickets of both opening batters ; Nelmes, who had scored prolifically in previous meetings and Gibb who Jack Dixon caught smartly at slip.
The next partnership was harder to break running well and finding the boundary. The skipper rang the bowling changes but to little affect.
Ran Dawson was to make the breakthrough to make it 138 for 3 and took another wicket few overs later, sadly it was too little too late, with Middleton reaching their target with more than 14 overs to spare.
Difficult game with Middleton a class above in all departments, Wizzy reinforcements needed if we are to compete at this level. Next week it’s a Home game against Burgess Hill 2s.
Please click here for the full scorecard
James Rainford (Junior aka JR))
Second X1 vs Ifield
With the Green resplendent, another beautiful Sussex day greeted the 2nds for the home clash with Ifield’s 4th XI. Both teams fielded a proper mix of age, experience and youth so a close fixture appeared to be on the cards. What also caught the eye was the length of the road side boundary – no more than a 7 iron required to score a maximum here but running shoes required for shots to the other side of the wicket. Initial speculation suggested it would be a high scoring affair.
Ifield to bat first and the opening pair were subdued by tight opening bowling from Tom Jenkins and Matt Watts. First blood to Tom then Matt snared the other opener really well held by Raff Finn in the gully. The number 3 bat Kannappan Chander (helpfully ‘KC’ to his friends and the scorer) tried to inject some pace into the innings but as the overs ticked by the first-change bowlers of Josh Dixon and Tommy Colbran proved just as difficult to get away. Bowling with accuracy and variety, both were rewarded with a wicket a piece. Mention should also be made of local boy George Nichols’ heroic 7 over spell bowling unchanged up the hill for 2 wickets including KC stumped off the final ball of the innings by Callum Price for 69. George returned to the pavilion looking properly knackered but the combination of tight bowling by the unit backed up by the Green’s spirited performance in the field had restricted Ifield to a miserly 145 for 7 from their 40 overs. A terrific effort that had duly confounded the roadside pundits.
With the tea quickly demolished and Umpire Klein fiddling anxiously with his walkie-talkie, openers Matt Watts and Callum Price strode to the wicket to take guard. Could the Green hold their nerve or would destiny intervene? Well as events unfolded, we had no reason to be concerned. Showing great skill, alacrity and a relentlessly positive approach, the openers took the fight to the Ifield attack right from the get-go. The maximums quickly followed with Callum in particular deploying a handy 3 wood down towards the Cricks while Matt’s rasping shots square of the wicket were frequently rewarded with the satisfying crunch of leather on car. In no time at all, Matt posted his 50 and with the score on 105 it was a surprise when Callum replaced his 3 wood with a sand wedge and was caught by the keeper for a well made 39. It had a been a terrific opening stand that made the result a formality as George Nichols strolled out to keep Matt company.
The remaining drama of the match then centred on Matt’s race against time and the scoreboard as he closed in on what would have been his first century for the club. Agonisingly, with 4 runs required to win and 6 required for the century, Matt’s final blow cleared the ropes but kissed a leaf and Umpire Klein duly signalled a 4 to leave Matt undefeated and out of time on 98. It’s a funny game is cricket and as we know will always have the last laugh.
Plaudits to Matt for his terrific knock but really well played to all XI for a great team performance and a thumping victory.
Please click here for the full scorecard
Charlie Maunder
Many thanks to club photographer Chris Marshall for some more fantastic pics
Women’s team vs Billingshurst
A fantastic performance by our ladies team against Billingshurst on Thursday evening – a closely fought contest that could have gone either way. Keep it up ladies – you are getting better and better every game !
Last Thursday, as players gathered in the early evening sunshine on our beautiful village green, the scene was set for the Women’s 3rd league game vs Billingshurst. Showing improvement with each match, this week’s brief was to take more wickets and keep the oppo’s runs to a reachable target.
Skipper Jen won the toss and put the oppo into bat. Ann opened the Wizzy bowling attack, giving only 3 runs away and a couple of extras. Bex followed and the first wicket fell, bowled out on the off stump! Jen added another wicket with a great catch from Ann at mid-wicket, and Trish ‘it’s not just the boys in the Dixon dynasty that can play’ Dixon bowled the fourth over, keeping the oppo’s first pair to a humble 15 runs.
The same four bowled against Billy’s 2nd pair, with another batter bowled out by Bex. Then it was the turn of Jo, Sarah and Sam. ‘Awake’ in the field, Wizzy secured another wicket with a fast fielded run out. Kirsty, Sam and Jen were kept busy on the leg side, and Sarah, playing this week at deep cover, saw runs kept to a minimum. However, Billy’s 4th batting pair put on a decent show, and almost half the innings, to set a target of 102 to win. Special mention of Jo, who ‘cool as you like’ stepped up to keep wicket after five minutes’ notice and a couple of practice throws. A solid performance gave nothing away behind the stumps.
Wizzy then turned to batting and first up were Jen and Trish, setting us on our way with 5 and 4 runs respectively. Next in were Jo and Sam. Both had their eye in, and keeping a steady pace of singles and boundaries they landed the two top scores – 10 for Jo ‘Root’ Spiers and 9 for Sam ‘Cook’ Cookman. Bex and Ann followed, with less success but still building runs and handing over a total of 63 to the final pair. 4th pair Sarah and Kirsty ‘stepped up’ and it was anyone’s game. With sharp calling and focussed effort, they set about gaining quick singles and keeping Wizzy in with a chance. To ever increasing cheers from the barmy army, and ‘What’s the score, what’s the score?!’ heard from the batters after every ball, Wizzy gave it their best. But Billy were not complying. With one of their best bowlers on form, they took what turned out to be a decisive 3 wickets in the last 4 overs, and after a contest fought closely to the final over, the score finally settled on a win for the oppo.
There was much to be proud of and the Wizzy Women brought a competitive performance to the local derby. Thanks as ever to Peter for umpiring, to the scorers, to our illustrious barmy army and to all for another marvellous tea. ‘Why don’t we do this all the time?’ asked a Billy player as the prosecco corks popped. ‘Er, we do!’ we replied 😊
Bex Samuelson
Under 16 vs Horsham
WGCC U16s all but won in a thrilling finish against Horsham CC
On a beautiful clear morning the sun shone on the stage which would prove to be a cauldron of intrigue, excitement and tension for 40 overs on Wisborough Green. The U16s which comprised 3 U16s, 6 U13/U14s and 1 U12 (Harry Maggs) were 1 short however brimming with talent and energy which was well on display during the pre-match warm up.
The Green were invited to field and with the opening bowling pair of Will Dixon and Matt Ritchie kept the Horsham early order on their toes with only the odd edge finding runs. Both Will and Matt were rewarded with early wickets. After this Horsham started building partnerships despite some good bowling from 1st and 2nd change bowlers including Archie Gray who bagged a key wicket with a high catch excellently executed by Ran Dawson and our U12 hero Harry Maggs dismissing their star batsman with a good catch behind the wicket by George Redgrove. The score continued to tick over and at the death Will and Matt picked up 2 more wickets leaving Horsham 143 for 6 off their 20 overs. Game on.
After the break the opening pair of Ran and Raff Finn strode out to start the counterattack. Ran was quickly snared LBW and Harry Hunter (his first cricket experience of the season) entered the fray and started to hit any bad balls to the boundary. Raff holed out on 8 runs and George joined the party. Both Harry and George batted well together continuing to keep the scoreboard busy and at 10 overs WG were 68 for 2 – a strong start with more batting to come. Harry soon retired on 36 after battering ball after ball to the boundary with power and good timing. Will followed and continued a productive partnership with George exploiting any poorly directed bowling and the short boundary. Will was run out at 30 after pushing for a risky 2nd run and soon afterwards George retired having anchored the innings with a well deserved 30. This was set up for a nail-biting finish with Matt Ritchie and Archie Gray at the crease. The best of the Horsham bowling was kept to the end and with 1 over to go WG needed 9 runs to win. Having scored 4 runs in the first 5 balls – 5 was required in the last ball to win. Good bowling won the battle and WG were left a whisker short at the end of the match.
Great game – a great performance from our young U16 side with 10 men against the 11 U15s from Horsham and we almost did it.
Please click here for the scorecard
Tarnie Dixon
Under 12 vs Barns Green
There was a chilly start to the day as the Wisborough Green U12’s arrived at Barns Green who fielded a physically imposing team with two players playing down.
Captain for the day Buddy Edwardes won the toss and wisely elected to bat. Buddy and Henry F opened against the Barns Green Sussex bowler and weathered some fast-paced accurate overs. The scoreboard eventually started moving quickly as Buddy, Olivia B and Freddie, batting initially with patience and then with intent, all retired on scores of over 25. It was a joy to watch and a highly impressive display of batting. The final score of 149 from 20 overs is the highest posted by a Wisborough Green U12 side in several years.
While this score was always going to take some chasing Barns Green are noted for having some heavy hitters in their ranks. Hector lead the way in the opening overs with 1 for 8 from 3 overs, the only player on either side to not bowl a wide or no ball. In the middle section of the innings the overs bowled by Olivia F, Henry N, William T and Max were all impressively accurate and the Barns Green batters were just not able to accelerate the pace of their innings. Well done to Max for taking his first U12 wicket. The fielding was tight throughout which is becoming a hallmark of this team with only a few very minor errors in the final overs with the match clearly won. A special mention to Gus ‘The Wall’ Gray who kept wicket well and with courage particularly to the opening quartet of bowlers, Olivia B, Freddie, Harry and Hector who are as quick as any you will find at this level. The Barns Green innings finished on 119-6, a comprehensive victory.
All in all, a very good display by an increasingly useful side who are becoming adept at reading match situations. The standard of fielding is good and Wisborough were probably 10 runs better than their opponents in this respect.
Well done.
As always, a massive thank you to Kirsty Dawson for scoring the match and to Tom Dawson for umpiring and helping with fielding placements during the match.
Please click here for the full scorecard
Phil Maggs
Under 10 boys vs Under 11 girls
A glorius summer’s evening welcomed the Under 11 girls and the Under 10 boys to the Green for a keenly awaited training game. The Pizza van was in place, parent’s wine glasses were filled – who would want to be anywhere else.
It was great to have some players in both teams playing their very first game of cricket – what a wonderful introduction to the game.
Prior to the game the Girls were given the opportunity to play in mixed teams – an offer they emphatically turned down. This was their opportunity to show the boys a thing or two – and who could blame them.
The game started with the boys batting first. Coaches were on hand in the field to give a helping hand where necessary. Lots of good cricket played with some great shots by the boys ably fielded by the girls in a spirited contest. A huge amount of learning about trying to focus on bowling accurately, changing from bowling ‘over the wicket’ to ‘around the wicket’ , backing up in the field and defending the boundary. Lots of encouragement by their teammates saw the girls taking advantage of their oportunities including taking a couple of good catches. Really good to see some opportunitic running between the wickets by Callum and Edward putting pressure on the fielders.
After the break it was the boys turn to field – eager to defend their total. The girls batted with great courage and skill – particularly against the speedsters bowling at well over a hundred miles an hour. Its not easy to bat against the faster bowlers but the girls did a great job defending the good balls and going after the bad balls – even if they were a little wide.
Some great catches in the field and good bowling pinned the girls back a little, but they remained resolute – kept on trying and didnt give up. So good to see
The final over of the game beckoned and the crowd were hungry for an exciting end to the game. Girl’s skipper Lucy sensed the mood and decided it was time to give the boys something to think about – hitting a glorious 6 with the forth ball she faced. The boys couldnt quite believe their eyes. The crowds rose to their feet asking for more – and with the final ball of the game Lucy coolly and calmly despatched the ball the over fielders outstreched hands and over the boundary rope for another glorious 6 – much to the celebration of the girls and parents alike. What a fantastic way to end a wonderful evening of cricket.
Congratulations to the boys who were the victors on the day but well played to the girls who showed how much they have progressed in such a short space of time. A fantastic game of cricket where everyone had a bat and a bowl and learned a lot in the process.
The girls nominated Bobby Ayling as their boy’s Player of the Match and the boys nominated skipper Lucy Ross-Hurst for her captain’s innings as the Girl’s player of the match. Congratulations to both of you and well done to all the players for an entertaining game of cricket.
Thanks to all the parents and those who helped to make it a very special evening.
Sun setting on a wonderful evening’s cricket as the players choose their players of the match
Upcoming Fixtures this week
All of our age group fixtures are available on the ECB’s Placycricket website – please click here for list of all of our fixtures. A hard copy of the fixture card is available at the Pavilion – please do grab a copy. Please click here for an electronic copy
A busy week of cricket ahead :
- Our First X1 are at home to Burgess Hill at 12:30 on Saturday and our Second X1 are away to Kilnwood Vale.
- The Under 10’s are at home to Slinfold at 9:00 am on Saturday and our under 12’s are away to Roffey at 9:00 am
- Our under 14’s are away to Ifield on Sunday morning and our under 16’s are playing at home at 2pm
We are expecting very hot conditions this weekend – players need to ensure that they drink plenty water before, during and after their matches
RunWisborough – Sunday 11 June 2023
The much awaited RunWisborough event is on Sunday morning – good luck to all the runners taking part.
The organisers could do with some additional help so please do contact the team at info@runwisborough.co.uk if you able to help in any way – even if its only for a short while. The event is a great opportunity to showcase the village and have an event we can all be proud of hosting.
Please click on the following link for all the details – https://runwisborough.co.uk/
Spotted out and about
Hope everyone’s been giving 100% at work ….
There’s always one …
That’s it for this week.
Have a great cricketing week 🏏😊
Cheers
Wizzy
