News Archive 2006

Click a link from the list below for the detail

10 Nov 2006  Clubmark Silver Award

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Colts Manager Frank Sharman has announced that the club has been awarded the Clubmark Silver Award.

You may be aware that in July we achieved the first step with "Active Surrey" awarding us the bronze stage certificate and we are pleased to announce that three months later, we obtained the silver award on 31 October 2006.

Our objective is to complete the gold award by the end of the year. There is, however, a large part for ALL club members to play by contributing constructive ideas concerning the 5 year development plan. In other words what do YOU want to see developed and what part are YOU willing to play to secure this? We need your participation so please contact Frank Sharman on 01932 783869 or any other committee member.

Our aim is to achieve "Clubmark" status by the early part of the 2007 season and this in itself will bring immediate benefits in the form of:

(a) Formal acknowledgement that we are a child friendly club guided by ECB qualified coaches operating in accordance with ECB child welfare policies
(b) Access to government and ECB money in the form of substantial grants and loans at attractive rates for the implementaiton of our development plan
(c) Continuous back-up and support from Surrey Cricket Board officers with all future negotiations, etc

My personal thanks must go to David Papworth, who has prepared the paperwork and pushed and chased me to the finalisation of both awards!!

17 September 2006  Hall the mighty SIX hitter

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Not content with a century on Saturday in the Middlesex 2012 Cup Final that paved the way to victory against Acton, Max Hall was at it again on Sunday with another, this time in a Twenty/20 match against Horsham, in the process equalling the long standing Club record of 6 centuries in a Season by Rizvi. With 2 week-ends still to go he is now targeting number 7.

Included in the innings was an over which yielded 34 runs, 6-6-4-6-6-6, undoubtedly a new Club record and one which will probably stand forever - after all Gary Sober's 36 in an over off the unfortunate Malcolm Nash when he was playing for Notts against Glamorgan in 1968 has certainly stood the passage of time. In fact only Ravi Shastri has equalled that feat since, playing for Bombay against Baroda in 1984. Well done Max!!

16 September 2006  Middlesex cup triumph secures 'double' for Sunbury

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Sunbury's last competitive match ended with a comfortable victory against Acton in the inaugural Middlesex 2012 Cup competition for a league and cup double and featured a superb century from Max Hall and another 5 wicket haul for Mathew Todd.

With Richard Gould, Jimmy Adams and Andy Poynter all missing out with the bat and Neil Farnsworth (26) pulling up with a serious leg injury when looking very menacing it was left to Jamie Hewitt (22) and Charlie Holcomb (35*) to support Hall who looked in commanding form from the moment he came to the crease. The three experienced Sunbury batsmen added 124 quick fire runs with Hall particularly punishing with 13 fours and a six in his innings of 108. When Hall was finally dismissed with the score on 213 with 5 overs remaining a score of 250 looked probable, but some excellent bowling and fielding from Acton saw 4 wickets fall in quick succession and the innings finally closed on 233-8.

Danny Pope struck early when his pace and accuracy saw the Acton opener's middle stump uprooted with the second ball of the innings. When substitute fielder Paul Scott pounced and threw down the wicket with a magnificent throw from 30 yards and keeper Stewie Poynter with another piece of quick thinking got a second run-out followed by the first of Mathew Todd's wickets when he dismissed the dangerous looking Israr (35) Acton were struggling on 66-4 from 19 overs. Todd and Adams(0-28 from 10) tied down the Acton response and with Todd striking regularly and with Pope (2-41 from 9) and Hall each chipping in with a wicket the innings closed on 162 with Todd finishing with outstanding figures of 5-32 from 10 overs, leaving Sunbury victors by 71 runs.

16 September 2006  Jonny Irons show of steel in vain

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On the adjoining pitch to the 1st XI game at Winchmore Hill Sunbury Chieftains failed to emulate their seniors when they were soundly beaten by the Middlesex Tamils by 58 runs in the final of the Vase competition.

Fielding first Sunbury were always struggling to contain the dangerous Tamils batsmen and with the score on 197-3 from just 31 overs a score in excess of 300 looked likely, but the introduction of Jonny Irons stemmed the run rate. His spell of slow bowling produced an excellent return of 3-33 from 10 overs and helped to keep the score down and the innings closed on 275-7.

The Chieftains were soon in trouble with Martin Miles, Gavin Spencer and Paul Scott all failing with the bat and only the Gabb brothers - Richard (23) and Paul (16), together with Jason Orr (24) putting up any real resistance. With half the side dismissed and the score under 100 it needed a fine attacking innings from Irons (85) to give the score an air of respectability but after he was dismissed the innings quickly folded and Sunbury were well beaten by the stronger Tamils side.

4 September 2006  Under 11s win Surrey Final

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Sunbury Under 11 finished off their season in fine style with a victory over Guildford in the Surrey pairs competition. Having lost one Middlesex final and one Middlesex semi-final, the Under 11s performed well in the final overs to triumph over a strong Guildford side.

The game was really won by two great bowling spells by Haroon Aslem (2-20 from 4 overs) and James Churchman (3-22 from 4 overs). The bowling was helped by some magnificent fielding including a stop on the boundary and run out by Amit Karawadhra, a stop by Adam Hackett and run out by Alex Hughes and a caught and bowled by James Churchman.

Sunbury batted first and reached 306 with batting honours going to Francis Annandale (19*), Amit Karawadhra (16*), Alex Hughes (16) and Ruari Crichard (14). Guildford then batted well and after eight overs were on 247. But crucially Guildford were still only on 249 after 14 overs following 6 overs of very tight bowling and fielding, a period which really won the game for Sunbury as Guildford fell eleven runs short of the target following a late rally.

2 September 2006  Celebrations all round at Sunbury

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Despite losing their last league match of the Season to Cobham Avorians, Sunbury had cause for a double celebration when the 2nd X1 defeated Malden Wanderers to clinch the 2nd X1 Premier Division title to add to the 1st X1 triumph.

Gareth Lewis and his 1st X1, having secured promotion the previous week were looking forward to going out with a bang...but little did they imagine it would be in such a way. With the toss being the most important factor of the day it was not difficult to see that on a green damp wicket which had been covered since Thursday the winner of the toss would field first. So when Sunbury were invited to bat it soon proved predictable, as the accuracy of the Cobham Avorians attack took it's toll on the early Sunbury batsmen, none of whom could master the difficult conditions, and they completely destroyed any chance Sunbury might have had of registering a good score by reducing them to 32-6 and they looked sunk without a trace. Only Neil Farnsworth (16) and Jamie Hewitt (24) managed to get into double figures and offer any kind of resistance and the innings closed on 88, recording Sunbury's lowest league score for many seasons.

With threatening clouds overhead, rain in the air and the need to win to ensure promotion the Cobham Avorians openers set about their task as if every over would be the last, and their victory target was achieved in just 10 overs of some of the most bludgeoning batting the normally accurate Sunbury attack could ever expect to face.

Meanwhile the 2's were recording their ninth consecutive victory against Malden Wanderers and with the two other contenders Reigate Priory and Wimbledon playing out a draw were able to sneak past Wimbledon to win by 8 points. Fielding first it was the day for the Roland-Jones brothers to come to the fore, and with Olly capturing 5 wickets and Toby 4 Malden Wanderers were restricted to 204. Skipper Gavin Spencer with a quick fire 76 got the innings off to just the start that was needed and with Charlie Holcomb (35) and Kash Afzal in his last match for Sunbury chipping in with an unbeaten 51, victory was secured with 5 wickets to spare.

As if Saturday's success was not enough more celebrations came on Sunday when the Sunbury 1st X1 secured their place in the Final of the Middlesex Olympic 2012 Cup with a close victory against Southall by just 12 runs in a high scoring game. Amazingly this was the same wicket as was used for Saturday's league match with over 500 runs recorded. Highlight of Sunbury's innings of 278-3 from their allotted 45 overs was the batting of Adam London 104 not out and Charlie Holcomb 92 not out both of whom were in good form. With an asking rate of over 6 per over the Southall batsmen made a good attempt at a very imposing target and coming to the last over needed just 14 to win but when keeper Stewie Poynter took a good stumping off occasional spinner Max Hall to capture the last wicket and the Sunbury supporters could relax.

26 August 2006  Masterclass from Nash sees Sunbury home

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In an amazing turn round in fortunes Sunbury, having been off form in recent weeks, easily defeated Purley thanks mainly to a spectacular century from David Nash and then found out that nearest rivals Cobham Avorians and Walton had both suffered unexpected defeats. In simplistic terms Sunbury had not only gained promotion to the Premiership but as champions.

Batting first Purley were looking comfortable at 100-2 after just 25 overs but the introduction of Olly Roland-Jones in support of Matthew Todd soon changed matters as the two slow bowlers got to work and 8 wickets fell for just 29 runs with Todd claiming 4-29 from 14 overs and Roland-Jones 3-13 from 8.

What came next when Sunbury batted was quite breathtaking. Nash, returning after a successful spell in the Middlesex 1stX1, produced one of the best innings seen at Kenton Court for many a season and his sheer brilliance saw Sunbury home with 8 wickets and more than 20 overs to spare. Starting slowly his innings accelerated at pace and his 105 not out with shots to all parts of the ground, contained 18 boundaries and was made off just 90 balls in 74 minutes.

This Saturday the last League match at home to Cobham Avorians becomes somewhat academic but with pride at stake Sunbury will be determined to finish in style.

26 August 2006  2s Keep up Pressure

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Meanwhile the 2nd X1 have an outside chance of clinching the 2nd X1 Premier title when they visit Malden Wanderers on Saturday after destroying close rivals Dulwich to record their eighth consecutive victory.

In a match restricted by rain to 83 overs and on a difficult wicket Max Hall and skipper Gavin Spencer (25) got the innings off to a brisk start with an opening stand of 87, but it was a stand of 128 between Hall and Charlie Holcomb (50) that put Sunbury in command. Hall was particularly punishing on any loose bowling and thoroughly deserved his 132 not out to allow the declaration to come on 221-5.

Dulwich were never in with a shout and the accuracy of Toby Roland-Jones with 4 wickets and Kash Afzal with 3 and Jason Orr with 2 each quickly saw the innings fold at 54 and a win by 167 runs.

The final weekend brings 1st and 3rd teams Wimbledon and Reigate into action against each other and given the match finishes in a draw and Sunbury win against Malden Wanderers the title will sit proudly next to that of the 1st X1.

19 August 2006  1's Stuttering Form Continues

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Needing just a score draw to be guaranteed promotion to the Premier Division, Sunbury's batsmen under-performed for the second successive week when they were dismissed for just 140 and lost to local promotion rivals Walton by 2 wickets.

Richard Gould (9) and Adam London (17) got the innings off to a positive start before both fell to lbw's off successive balls and when Andy Poynter (6) was out the same way shortly after with the score on just 51 the recent batting frailties began to show. Although Max Hall and Jamie Hewitt pulled things round the introduction of ace spinner Mark Bainbridge signalled the disaster that was to follow when he captured Hall (39) and then Hewitt (19). Only Oly Roland-Jones (10) and Neil Farnsworth (18) put up any resistance against the accuracy of the Walton attack and with Bainbridge finishing with 4-11 from 11 overs the last 7 wickets fell for just 41 runs and Sunbury's innings closed on a modest 143.

Walton's openers got off to the best possible start posting 63 before the fall of the first wicket in the 13th over when Mathew Todd struck, but it was to be Roland-Jones who was to make the most impact when he captured 5 wickets in 8 overs and although it took Sunbury to within a sniff of victory, Walton were able to get home with 2 wickets to spare, Roland-Jones finishing with a season's best of 6-34 from 14 overs.

With Cobham Avorians getting 4 points from a winning draw the 3 main protagonists move into the final 2 matches separated by just 10 points. Although Sunbury remain top they must beat Purley at home on Saturday before entertaining Cobham Avorians in a winner take all game the following week whilst both clubs will need to look over their shoulders at Walton who have a comparatively easier run-in. As they say 'form is temporary, class is permanent' and it must now be hoped that the exciting Sunbury batters can come good when most needed in support of their bowlers to get them over the finishing line.

13 August 2006  Under 17s End Era with Middlesex Cup Victory

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Sunbury v O.Actonians

Sunbury Under 17's signed off their season with a comfortable victory by 7 wickets against Old Actonians at Teddington on Sunday to win the Middlesex Chairman's Cup.

In a match reduced through rain to 35 overs a side Sunbury fielded first with only the opponents opener showing any real class. Wickets fell regularly with all the main bowlers making significant contributions but it was Joel Miah who made the most telling when with the score on 115 he bowled Dhami (68) and then followed it up with another wicket in the same over and a third in his next to finish with 3-8 from 5 overs. With Adam London chipping in with 2 late wickets only one more run was added and the innings collapsed and closed on 116. London finished with 4-38, Andy Holley with 2-13, Kevin Smith with 1-13 whilst keeper Joel Pope claimed 3 excellent stumpings. Although wicketless Stewie Poynter and Vishal Manro also bowled well

London and Pope got the innings off to a good start and put together a stand of 46 in eight overs before firstly London (11) was dismissed followed shortly afterwards by Pope (29). Nick Jupp (16) was out to a somewhat controversial caught and bowled but Poynter and Shane White took Sunbury to victory with an unbeaten stand of 55 with Poynter on 27* and White on 29*.

With half the side now over the age limit Cup victory was a fitting end for a very successful Sunbury Colts side, containing the 2 Middlesex Academy players London and Pope, South of England U15's wicketkeeper/batsman Poynter and Surrey U15 star batter White as well as 4 others with County experience.

12 August 2006  Toddy & Junior plot Sunbury escape route

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On a poor Beddington cricket wicket the Sunbury batters, Adam London and Gareth Lewis apart, struggled to 120, only for the ever reliable Mathew Todd and Adam Stanier to bowl superbly well to ensure victory by 44 runs to maintain Sunbury's grip at the top of the table.

With Richard Gould failing again when he was bowled in just the second over it was another bad start and when Max Hall and Andy Poynter both went with the score on 24 and with James Hewitt, Oly Roland-Jones and Neil Farnsworth following in quick succession the Sunbury innings looked in total disarray at 53-6 and thoughts of winning the league let alone promotion were certainly not to the fore. Adam London however had other ideas and did not allow the unfavourable batting conditions to worry him and joined by skipper Gareth Lewis they began to put matters right. However after just over 2 hours at the crease Sunbury's youngest and least experienced batsmen finally fell for a dogged and determined innings of 49 and when Lewis who battled hard to keep the Sunbury score moving was dismissed for 31, including 6 fours, the innings quickly closed with Sunbury all out for 120.

With the wicket playing all sorts of tricks Sunbury took the field thinking they could still win and although the pace of Danny Pope proved not to be the answer on the day, the less pacier Stanier bowling line and length and the accuracy of Todd's off spinners was to prove to be the key. The Beddington openers got off to a reasonable start and 30 runs came up in 12 overs before Stanier struck, and when he collected his second wicket with the score on 38, what was to follow was unimaginable. Slowly the total crept up and on 59 the faithful Sunbury travelling supporters could have been forgiven for thinking the worse. Todd quickly struck twice and wickets started to tumble. Another Todd wicket followed in his next over and with half the Beddington side out for 62, suddenly it was 'game on' and a belief that victory really could be achieved. Stanier, not to be outdone, captured 2 more wickets in consecutive overs and with the score on 76-7 it was looking even better. Todd then took 2 more wickets in consecutive balls and aided by a kamikaze run out for the tenth wicket the home side were dismissed for 76 - the last 8 wickets falling for just 17 runs in 9 overs. Backed up by some excellent fielding and catching Todd finished with 5-38 from 13 overs and Stanier 4-11 from 10.

With third placed Walton slipping up at Camberley, Sunbury's trip across the river on Saturday to face Walton takes on a new significance and victory would probably end Walton's promotion hopes and secure Sunbury's as with just 3 matches to play they now top the table by 8 points from Cobham Avorians with Walton a further 23 points adrift.

5 August 2006  Hewitt injury poses a real problem

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Sunbury were dealt the cruellest of blows when Jamie Hewitt pulled up after bowling just 2 balls with a back injury which also prevented him from batting in his customary number 5 slot and may well prematurely end his season as Sunbury push for promotion, and although they restricted Ashtead to a seemingly modest 204-9 in their 60 overs they could only manage 184-9 in return to earn just 4 points for the winning draw.

Fielding first Sunbury got off to the best possible start when Danny Pope trapped the Ashtead opener lbw with just the second ball of the innings but the Hewitt injury was to prove vital, as try as they may Sunbury's support bowlers Adam Stanier and Gareth Lewis were, for once, unable to make any inroads into the visitors batting line-up. Pope did strike again with the score on 33 and finished with a creditable 2-23 but after just 24 overs Lewis turned to his slow bowlers Kash Afzal and Oly Roland-Jones who bowled unchanged for the remainder of the innings capturing 7 wickets whilst conceding just 108 runs. Backed up by some good support fielding, with Neil Farnsworth performing better than of late behind the stumps with 3 stumpings and a catch, Afzal finished with 4-62 from 20 overs and Roland-Jones 3-46 from 16 overs.

On a wicket of variable bounce, which was to be the downfall of 3 of the Sunbury batters, the 205 target for victory seemed very achievable for the talented Sunbury batting line-up but with Richard Gould and Max Hall both out in the first over and Andy Poynter getting an unplayable brute of a ball which kept low Sunbury were tottering on 18-3. Adam London and Roland-Jones set about the recovery and the pair batted sensibly for 21 overs adding 68 runs before London (24) was run-out whilst backing up. Roland-Jones fiercely straight drove, but the ball rebounded off the bowler onto the stumps to leave him stranded. Farnsworth joined Roland-Jones they added 48, before Farnsworth (26) who had bludgeoned 2 mighty sixes tried for a third and paid the penalty. The same fate befell Afzal (13) who after 3 consecutive fours was easily caught at mid-on from a mis-timed drive. With Roland-Jones batting well and playing some excellent shots all round the wicket Sunbury were in sight of victory but he too fell for 85, including 13 fours, with the score on 167. Lewis, who was defeated by the bounce and Pope were both dismissed in the next over and suddenly Sunbury were staring defeat in the face at 167-9. Last pair Hewitt and Stanier, inexplicably batting at 11, showed all their experience to pass the 177 target required for the winning draw and play out the last 5 overs.

With Cobham Avorians and Walton both winning, Sunbury's lead at the top of the table has been reduced to just 8 points and with 2 of the last 4 games against the other 2 contenders, Sunbury will have to up their game when they visit Beddington on Saturday, hopeful that Hewitt might be fully recovered and with Matthew Todd returning to the squad.

29 July 2006  Easy win for 1's

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On a wicket badly effected by Thursday's heavy rain, Sunbury wrapped up their easiest win of the season, defeating lowly Camberley by 6 wickets after bowling them out for a meagre 115 in a foreshortened match that lasted just 48 overs and was finished in 4 hours.

Fielding first the Sunbury quicks Danny Pope and Jamie Hewitt took full advantage of the conditions and on a green, grassy wicket of variable bounce Hewitt in particular was enjoying his opening spell. His 2 early wickets were just reward and when Pope chipped in the visitors were reduced to 40-3 from just 9 overs. When Adam Stanier and Gareth Lewis were introduced into the attack they both suffered from some big counter attack hitting, both going for 14 runs off one over, but both capturing a wicket in the process. Lewis soon settled into a good line and length and bowling with pace he snapped up 2 more wickets to finish with 3-30 (all bowled). The last 5 wickets fell very quickly for a meagre 15 runs and Hewitt 2-24, Stanier 2-32, Pope 1-17 and the rare sight of Mathew Todd bowling a solitary over, sufficient enough to capture a wicket that took his league total to 25 for the season, all made telling contributions. The final Camberley total of 115 from 26 overs would have been significantly less had it not been for the 30 extras gifted to them...the only downside of an otherwise excellent all round performance.

Conditions were no easier when Sunbury batted and the early setback of losing Adam London, lbw first ball did not help. Richard Gould was initially finding it hard work but Max Hall went on the attack and his 40 in just 37 balls including 9 fours was probably the best approach. When he was finally out caught behind and Andy Poynter went soon after, 3 wickets had gone down for 77. Gould (46) battled on defiantly until he was bowled for another excellent innings that saw him pass the 400 run mark for the league season and it was left to Hewitt (20*) to steer Sunbury home with 6 wickets to spare.

Sunbury are home to Ashtead on Saturday, starting at 12.30, looking to maintain their 17 point advantage at the top of the table

29 July 2006  League Round-up

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The 1st XI's easy win over Camberley saw them maintain their 17 point advantage over Cobham Avorians and Walton who also both won on Saturday in the chase for promotion to the Premier Division.

The 2nd XI's quality win over Reigate Priory narrowed the gap between Sunbury and Priory to 14 points. But that did a favour to Dulwich and Wimbledon as well who also both won on Saturday to leave all 4 clubs in a fight for the title.

The 3rd XI drop to third spot after a very late losing draw at home to Priory who keep top spot ahead of Wimbledon, winners on Saturday.

The 4th XI had a disappointing defeat at the hands of Beddington Village, chasing only 156 and after being 74-0 they collapsed to 136 all out.

22 July 2006  Sunbury Back on Track

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Sunbury returned to their winning ways with a comfortable victory away to Cheam after posting an imposing total of 242-8 in just 41 overs and then bowled their hosts out for just 85. With nearest rivals Walton and Cobham Avorians drawing their battle and fourth place Spencer losing Sunbury have now opened a gap of 18 points at the top of the table.

Richard Gould and Adam London got off to their now customary steady start but the loss of 90 minutes through rain meant a reduced over match and a change of tactics. From 19-0 in the early session both Gould and London set about increasing the run rate after the break and they put together a stand of 122 from 26 overs before Gould (67) including 10 boundaries, was dismissed for his second consecutive half century. The team instructions were clearly to look for quick runs and when Neil Farnsworth went with just one more run on the board the stage was set for the three middle order batsmen, Andy Poynter, Jamie Hewitt and Olly Roland-Jones to give the suffering home bowlers the charge. Firstly Poynter 26 from 19 balls including 3 huge sixes, then Hewitt 34 from 19 balls which included 4 fours and a six and then Roland-Jones 27 from 24 balls helped London who again stood rock like before falling lbw for 59 and although further wickets fell quickly in the search for runs the innings closed on 242 from just 41 overs at just under 6 per over.

Without strike bowler Danny Pope it was left to skipper Gareth Lewis returning from injury to open the bowling with Hewitt and both bowled with pace and accuracy but without any early success until Hewitt struck twice in the 10th over. The first wicket saw a remarkable full length diving catch from Adam Stanier off a hard driven drive, followed next ball by a regulation catch from keeper Farnsworth. When Lewis struck in the next over and then Hewitt again in his next, Cheam were suddenly struggling on 37-4. Mathew Todd was introduced into the attack and quickly got into the act with 2 early wickets and when Hewitt got Stanier a wicket with a brilliant catch at short mid-wicket the home team were in total disarray at 62-7 with a further 2 overs remaining. Dogged defence from the eighth wicket pair saw Sunbury begin to worry with victory in sight and time running out, but Farnsworth got Hewitt his third wicket with a brilliant diving catch and the slow bowlers Todd with 2 more wickets including another outstanding Hewitt catch, this time in the slips and Roland-Jones capturing the last wicket in the penultimate over saw Sunbury to victory by 157 runs. Hewitt finishing with 3-20 from 9 overs and Todd 4-20 from 13 overs.

After three consecutive away games Sunbury return to Kenton Court on Saturday when they play Camberley starting at 12.30 and on Monday host Worcester Park in the semi-final of the Surrey Twenty/20 starting at 5.45pm.

21 July 2006  Sunbury Cruise by Weybridge to win by 6 runs off last ball

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In front of a big crowd on 'The Green' at Weybridge Sunbury advanced into the semi-final of the Surrey Twenty/20 with a victory over Premiership side Weybridge by 6 runs and now have a home tie against Worcester Park looking to book a place in the final.

Winning the toss and electing to bat Sunbury were off to the best possible start when Max Hall smacked 20 from the first over. With Gareth Lewis chipping in with 18, 50 came up in just 5 overs. But then the wheels came off when firstly Lewis then Charlie Holcomb, Neil Farnsworth and Hall (28) were all dismissed for just 9 runs in the course of 3 overs. Oly Roland-Jones and Richard Gabb set about getting the innings back on track and with some sensible batting they added 50 in 6 overs before Roland-Jones (22) mistimed a fancy sweep shot and was easily caught. Gabb continued to keep the score moving until he was run out for 30 and when Jason Orr quickly followed the innings again looked to be in decline at 128-8 with 3 overs still remaining. The feature of the team this season has been their determination to succeed in adverse situations and the 'never say die' attitude shone through when Adam Stanier (19*) and Mathew Todd (10*) added 34 from the final 18 balls to see the innings closed on 162-8.

If the Sunbury innings had started well, then their attempts in the field were even better with quickie Danny Pope blasting out 2 of the top Weybridge batters in his first over and when Kevin Smith claimed another scalp Weybridge were reduced to 9-3 from just 2 overs. A fourth wicket stand saw the score get to 70, but two further wickets fell with the score on 101 when first Gabb took a good pressure catch off Stanier's bowling on the boundary (Stanier then failed to complete a hat-trick when firstly Toddy dropped 'a dolly' and then the bowler himself failed to hold on to a not too difficult caught and bowled), but the next ball produced a good bit of fielding from skipper Lewis which lead to a run out. Roland-Jones then captured the first of his 3 wickets when Stanier again got into the act when he stayed calm to take a skier on the boundary which would have been 6 had he failed. Pope was re-introduced into the attack for his last 2 overs to capture a wicket in each to finish with a creditable 4-24 with some of the quickest bowling seen from a Sunbury bowler for many a year. In between Roland-Jones captured his second wicket and Weybridge came to the last over needing 12 for victory.

Cometh the hour, Roland-Jones stepped up to the mark with a containing over that left the home side needing 6 from the final ball to tie the match, but in the event he captured his third wicket to give him excellent figures of 3-23 and Sunbury victory by 6 runs to send the Sunbury supporters home in delirium and their Weybridge counterparts acknowledging they had been beaten by a better side.

Now on to the match with Worcester Park, the coloured clothing and the blaring music...it was never like this in W.G.'s day!!

21 July 2006  Active Surrey Bronze Accreditation

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The Club has been awarded the Bronze Award as the first step in the Active Surrey Accreditation Scheme. For more details on the scheme try their web site www.activesurrey.com

19 July 2006  Brad's County Progress

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Bradley Erasmus is making great progress with Middlesex, this year being picked for the county Under 10 side.  The 8 year old has added to his maiden century of last year with two more centuries so far this season.  First was against Berkshire at Wellington College and followed by a match winning 100 not out against Sussex at Uxbridge in the festival week.

15 July 2006  1s suffer first defeat but stay top

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Sunbury suffered their first League defeat of the Season when they went down by 12 runs to Spencer, but still maintain their position at the top of Surrey Championship Division 1 albeit by a slender 5 points from Cobham Avorians.

Winning the toss and fielding first, Jamie Hewitt struck in his first over when Richard Gould took a fine diving catch at mid-on and if Adam Stanier had managed to hang on to a hard chance in his second over it could have been the perfect start. But is wasn't to be and the Spencer opener took full advantage and frustrated the below par Sunbury attack until he was finally out in the 50th over for a well deserved 102. It was clear that Sunbury were missing the absent Mathew Todd and with skipper Gareth Lewis injured only Hewitt (3-20) and Danny Pope (2-44) looked in any way menacing. On a hard flat wicket it looked as if a score approaching 260 was on the cards and with 8 bowlers being given an opportunity, backed up by some good support catching and fielding Spencer were able to post a fairly modest total of 239 when the innings closed, the last 5 wickets falling for just 24 runs in six overs.

Sunbury's innings started badly when in form Adam London was run out with the score on 11 but Richard Gould and Neil Farnsworth responded well, scoring 65 off the next 12 overs, with some attacking stroke play until Farnsworth (35) miscued to mid-on. Andy Poynter joined Gould and the momentum of the innings was maintained until Poynter (31) charged the Spencer off spinner and was stumped by a distance. Gould continued his rock like innings and with Hewitt took the score to 164 from just 36 overs before being bowled for an excellent 65. The next passage of play was to turn the game when 3 wickets fell to the very poorest of umpiring decisions. Firstly Hewitt (42) who was looking at his menacing best was adjudged lbw from a ball he clearly made contact with, then Olly Roland-Jones (19) was given out caught off a ball he didn't make contact with and then Max Hall was adjudged lbw playing well forward and the Sunbury innings was suddenly looking very rocky at 218-7. In the event the 22 runs still needed for victory proved to be too much and when Pope was bowled the innings closed on 227 and Sunbury were left thinking of what might have been had those 3 bad decisions not been made.

Next Saturday Sunbury visit lowly Cheam, hoping to bounce back from a reverse they should have won comfortably knowing any more slip-ups could affect their title aspirations.

10 July 2006  U17 win Middlesex Cup

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The Under 17s did well to defeat Ashford by 6 wickets in the Middlesex Cup Final. Batting first Ashford reached a reasonable total of 119-7 from their 20 overs with Andy Holley taking 2-7 from 3 overs and Charlie Pearce 1-6 from 2 overs. The Sunbury reply got off to a good start with Holley (32) and Stuart Poynter (19) and when they were dismissed Kevin Smith (43*) did the damage assisted by Sean and Mark Ventham, to bring home the victory with the loss of just 4 wickets.

This was a great performance in the absence of players such as Adam London, Joel Pope, Nick Jupp and Shane White.

Congratulations to team and management!

10 July 2006  1s go 18 points clear

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With local rivals Cobham Avorians and Walton slipping up Sunbury were able to extend their lead at the top of Surrey Championship 1, when they comfortably defeated Purley by 121 dismissing their hosts for 150 following an earlier declaration on 271-5.

Winning the toss and electing to bat on a hard fast track Sunbury's now regular openers, the experienced Richard Gould and the youthful Adam London got the innings off to a fine start with 69 coming from the opening 18 overs before Gould (37) was caught following an uncharacteristic loose shot. Olly Roland-Jones (24) joined London and the pair took the score to 119 before he fell to a mistimed shot, and when Andy Poynter joined the determined London the pair quickly added a further 64 in just 8 overs. before London, who had batted for just short of 2 hours was finally out for a splendid 74 (9-4's). Jamie Hewitt (32) with 4-4's and a six, kept the momentum of the innings going and with Poynter took the score to 248. Poynter continuing his rich vein of form passed his second consecutive half century but when he was bowled for 65 (4-4's and 2-6's) it was left to Neil Farnsworth to chip in with a quick 16 from 13 deliveries to enable the declaration to come in the 55th over at 271-5.

The early declaration meant that Sunbury had 56 overs at their disposal to force home the victory and they got off to the best possible start when quickie Danny Pope dismissed the Purley opener with the first ball of the innings when a fast yorker sent the middle stump flying. Better was to follow when Pope struck again in his next over and Purley were tottering on 4-2. A third wicket stand of 56 saw some respectability to the score but the introduction of Matthew Todd soon put a stop to any ambitions the home side had of getting close to the Sunbury total, when with 3 wickets, all bowled, in his first 3 overs they slumped to 100-6.

Roland-Jones chipped in with 2-24 but when he was replaced by Pope the innings quickly folded, and he again struck in his first over when he bowled the dangerous Gaskin (60). Farnsworth took a smart stumping to give Todd a final bowling analysis of 4-19 from 12 overs and then Pope took the last wicket to finish with 4-40 from 9 overs to give Sunbury their victory with 18 overs remaining.

Next Saturday Sunbury visit fast improving 4th placed side Spencer, starting at 12.30 and the following Tuesday visit Premiership Weybridge in the 3rd round of the Surrey Twenty/20 starting at 6.00pm.

8 July 2006  Noopy 6 sends 3s Top

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The Third XI have taken over at the top of their division with a crushing victory over Dulwich. Anoop Manro was the destroyer with 6-20 as the hosts were skittled out for 81. The Third XI then completed the win with 8 wickets in hand.

8 July 2006  New scorebox does it for the Seconds

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The new scorebox did it for the Second XI on Saturday with a comprehensive victory over un-beaten divisional pace-setters Dulwich. Skipper Spencer inserted the visitors who struggled against some fine quick bowling by new boy Steve Lewis and the returning Toby Roland-Jones. The hard ball offered a bit of bounce and pace and Dulwich were soon in trouble finding it difficult to score and regularly losing wickets. At 59-5 with all batsmen except Boss back in the hutch things looked bleak.

But a fine sixth wicket partnership took the total ominously to 111, at which point Lewis returned for his second spell. In one extraordinary over from Lewis 4 wickets fell to reduce the visitors to 112-9. Keeper Joel Pope took 3 catches to take his match tally to 4, including 2 stunners, and one batsmen was bowled with the ball simply removing the leg bail. Dulwich eventually finished on 151 in the 51st over after a last wicket partnership between skipper Beeching and keeper Taylor. Lewis finished with a fine return of 7-44 and must surely be giving the selectors something to think about.

Martin Miles and Max Hall started brightly in the Sunbury reply and the early loss of Miles caught behind did not affect the confident air with which the home team went about their business. The languid Charlie Holcomb batting at 3 never looked in trouble and he and Hall took the total to 89 before Hall mistimed a shot and was caught at mid-on for a fine 43. The innings then took on a completely different feel as Matt Golding joined Holcomb. The cautious Golding appeared to struggle somewhat against a fine spell from Brown who bowled 9 overs for Dulwich for just 7 runs.

But crucially there was no breakthrough for the Dulwich bowlers and eventually Holcomb (60*) and Golding (30*) cast off the shackles and completed the 8 wicket victory in fine style with 9 overs in hand.

And the scorebox? Well it performed ok as well.

27 June 2006  Joel Pope wins Manager of Month for June

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All the results for June are now in and the destination of the June MOM award was in doubt until the last minute. The number 1 position changed hands many times in the month. But in the end there was a clear winner in the team "Philipe Andre" (manager Joel Pope) with a 12 point lead over "Beatties Beauties" (manager Bruce Beatty). Congratulations to Joel who will collect his prize at the Players Supper in October.

Remember that you can change 2 players in July at a cost of £5. You can make a big difference with 2 changes.

The overall competition is still lead by Adam London's "Terminators" with Richard Barker's "Guesswork" and Bruce Beatty's "Beatties Beauties" chasing hard.

24 June 2006  Sunbury move to top of table

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Sunbury 1st XI eased to the top of Surrey Championship 1st Team Div 1 on Saturday with a hard fought win over Banstead at Kenton Court. Walton only managed a winning draw against Purley to see Sunbury take a 7 point lead as the season nears the half-way mark. And next week Walton visit Kenton Court!

Banstead's 209 did not look enough and Sunbury set off in confident mood in pursuit of their target in a possible 52 overs. A late collapse meant that there was some nail biting in the crowd but some superb stokes by Jamie Hewitt saw Sunbury home with 7 balls remaining.

This was rich entertainment for the many past players and supporters who turned up to support the Vice Presidents and Life Members day.

Match Report - Michael Lowe

Sunbury won the toss on a very lovely day at Kenton Court and chose to bowl first. The soundness of this move looked in doubt as the visitors chased on to 125-1 from 32 overs. This however quickly became 133-5 as Matthew Todd and Danny Pope shared 4 wickets in as many overs. Banstead batted into their 60th over before being dismissed for 209, Todd finishing with a fine 5-58 from 22.2 overs and Pope with 3-36.

In response, Sunbury batted steadily with the openers taking the score to 78 before young Adam London fell for 31. Gould continued his innings with support from Hall (18) and Poynter (25) before he was dismissed for a solid 79 in the 42nd over, leaving Sunbury 164-4. With 46 needed off 10 overs and with 6 wickets in hand an easy victory was on the cards. However only 9 runs were scored in the next 5 overs with a further 2 wickets lost. A slight wobble which was overcome by a solid partnership between Hewitt (30) and Danny Pope (7) who saw Sunbury home to a 4 wicket victory with 7 balls to spare. With Walton only drawing, this win saw Sunbury move to top with a commendable 5 wins from their 5 matches played.

17 June 2006  Benefit lunch - last 10 places

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If you fancy a two and a half hour 5 course lunch including wine, mixing with some of the country's leading county players, listening to a fabulous array of really funny speakers and generally having a good time then you have better be quick.

There are only 10 spaces remaining for the Richard Johnson benefit lunch at Sunbury on Monday 3rd July. Tickets are £40 per person.

To reserve your space at this prestigious occasion contact Clive Shaw on 07979 808980.

22 June 2006  Johnson benefit gathers momentum

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Everything is moving on a pace in preparation for this big day at Sunbury.

We now have 8 participating teams:

Vodafone - Coco-Cola - Mantles Financial - Reed Personnel Services - Oddbins - Arkadin Communications - Reed Learning - Scottish Equitable

and Richard has confirmed that subject to availability the following players will be turning out to bolster the teams:

David Nash - Chris Silverwood - Owais Shah - Alec Tudor - Ian Salisbury - Mark Ramprakash - Ally Brown - and of course Richard himself.

 The cricket itself will take the form of a round robin 8-a-side tournament starting with the first games at 9.30am and the final scheduled for about 6.30pm. So it will be fun, fun all day long and the opportunity for autographs galore.

Please put the date in your diary now and try to support the day.

17 June 2006  Sunbury v Cheam

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Sunbury took charge against Cheam right from the start when Danny Pope struck twice in the first over and although the visitors managed 221, the batsmen for the first time this season showed some consistency and with Adam London and David Nash both scoring half centuries they easily passed the Cheam total to win by 7 wickets, scoring their fourth consecutive victory to keep in close contact with leaders Walton.

Pope was again in fine form and his '2 in 2 balls' in his opening over followed shortly after by his third victim and aided by a run-out soon saw the visitors in trouble at 37-4. Although they recovered well with some lack lustre bowling, Pope completed the rout by taking the last 4 wickets for just 10 runs, for his first 7 wicket haul for the Club which gave him final figures of 7-42 from 11.5 overs.

Richard Gould and London gave the Sunbury innings a perfect start and they added 80 together before Gould was bowled for 40. London was run out shortly after for a well deserved 52. But there were no problems for any of the Sunbury batters, and although Andy Poynter looked good for his 21 before falling victim of a skier Nash stood firm and when he was joined by Jamie Hewitt the pair quickly knocked off the runs, with Nash finishing on 59 not out and Hewitt 41 not out.

Sunbury entertain Banstead this Saturday starting at 12.30 intent on continuing their successful campaign

11 June 2006  Mixed fortunes for 1st XI

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Sunbury had mixed fortunes at the weekend when they defeated local rivals Cobham Avorians on Saturday by 111 runs but failed badly against Preston Nomads on Sunday in the National Knock Out Cup when they were comprehensively beaten by 7 wickets.

Cobham Avorians v Sunbury...Saturday 10 June

Magnificent Hewitt sets up big Sunbury Win
Sunbury beat Cobham Avorians by the comfortable margin of 111 runs to record their third successive League victory that sees them move to second place, thanks to the brilliance of Jamie Hewitt.
The Sunbury batting has lacked consistency so far this year and so it proved again when they were reduced to 64-4 with only Adam London (28) and Andy Poynter (31) showing any real form. But Jamie Hewitt who has been Sunbury's only batsman to show any sort consistent form this term was up to the challenge. With support from firstly a cautious Poynter the pair took the score to 150 with Hewitt particularly punishing the home bowlers and then with Joel Pope (18) when a quick 49 was added from 10 overs, Sunbury were able to declare at 265-9 from 58 overs. Hewitt's big 100 being a masterful innings containing 5 sixes and 13 fours in a commanding knock of 139 not out.
Danny Pope had the dangerous Avorians opener Hick caught from a mistimed shot in only the second over of the innings and the young Sunbury strike bowler ended with 3-30 and with support from Hewitt 2-28, Lewis 2-28 and Stanier 2-16 the hosts were always struggling to make any sort of inroad towards the large Sunbury total and the innings closed on 154 from 48 overs of accurate bowling supported by some excellent fielding and catching.

Sunbury v Preston Nomads... Sunday 11 June

What a difference a day makes!!
After such a first class effort on Saturday, Sunbury, missing Jamie Hewitt and Adam London, were completely outplayed by Sussex Premier League table toppers Preston Nomads in the Cockspur National KO Cup and suffered their first defeat of the season going down by 7 wickets.
Again it was the batting that failed and although Richard Gould (22) Max Hall (33) and Andy Poynter (17) all got started, none were able to play a significant innings against some excellent bowling and fielding and it was left to Danny Pope (28 not out) batting at nine and last man debutant quickie Steve Lewis to strike a few lusty blows to take the score to a respectable 179-9 after the allocated 45 overs.
Try as they may the Sunbury bowlers, with Steve Lewis looking particularly dangerous, were unable to make the early breakthrough needed and with the visitors scoring at a respectable 5 an over they were soon on top. Sussex 2's opener Joe Gatting was certainly in a rich vein of form and with some positive strokeplay scored his maiden century for the Nomads, finally being dismissed for 105. The damage by this time was done and although Gould (1-30) and Hall (2-9) chipped in with 3 late wickets the Sunbury total proved to be 50/60 runs short of what was needed and the visitors passed the Sunbury total with the loss of just 3 wickets in 36 overs.

This Saturday Sunbury play host to Cheam in the Surrey Championship Div 1 match starting at 12.30pm.

3 June 2006  Contrasting Victories

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After the dreadful weather conditions of recent weeks Sunbury got down to business with two contrasting victories, over Ashtead in the Surrey Championship on Saturday and a poor Watford Town in the Evening Standard Challenge Trophy on Sunday.

ASHTEAD v SUNBURY

A hard fought battle with newly promoted Ashtead on Saturday saw Sunbury to their second League win, when chasing 175 they notched up victory by 4 wickets, but not before they had slumped to 70-5. Although striking early when James Hewitt captured a wicket in only the third over of the day Ashtead were looking comfortable at 100-2 on a flat and true pitch aided by a lightening quick outfield. The introduction of spinner Mathew Todd into the attack changed the pattern of the game and with wickets falling regularly the home side were finally dismissed for 174 in 47 overs. Todd was outstanding and his spell of 12 overs 7 maidens 3 wickets for just 10 runs proved the turning point. Hewitt chipped in with 2-33 and Adam Stanier with 2-48.

In reply Richard Gould was dismissed in the second over but Hewitt and Adam London added 50 before Hewitt (23) was bowled. With 3 more wickets falling cheaply, including another good knock by London (31) the total reached a very modest 70-5 with the home side feeling they were about to pull off a shock result. Charlie Holcomb was joined by Max Hall and with some dogged defence and excellent attacking stroke play they added 102 for the sixth wicket before Hall fell for 54, but with Holcomb 48* Sunbury passed the Ashtead total with 4 wickets and 20 overs to spare to move into second place in the League.

SUNBURY v WATFORD TOWN

Against Watford Town on Sunday in the 2nd round of the ESCT Richard Gould and Neil Farnsworth got the innings off to a steady start until Gould (17) was stumped with 56 runs on the board. Farnsworth continued to take the attack to the visitors and quickly reached 59 from 66 deliveries before one shot too many proved his downfall and he was bowled. Max Hall continued where he left off the previous day and chipped in with a quick 33 and out of form Andy Poynter at last got going with an excellent 58. However it was skipper Gareth Lewis who stole the show with an aggressive 54* from just 41 balls faced that saw the innings closed on 278-6 from their allotted 50 overs.

Watford were never in the hunt and facing some accurate bowling from a Sunbury attack missing Hewitt and Todd, backed up with some good catching and fielding they managed to score at a rate of a little over 2 runs per over for the first 20 overs and slumped to 70-9 in just 29 overs. Danny Pope bowled with pace and accuracy and was unlucky not to capture more than just the one wicket but with Gould 3-23, Lewis 2-28 and Kevin Smith in his first competitive 1st X1 game bowling with maturity beyond his years taking 3-14 from 5 overs the final wicket fell on 96 leaving Sunbury winners by a huge margin of 182 runs.

This weekend Sunbury visit the strong Cobham Avorians on Saturday in the League and on Sunday play host to Preston Nomads in the National KO Cup

3 June 2006  Wet weather lament

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It must have been on of the wettest starts to the season for years with only half of the scheduled fixtures completed - 25 completed games out of a scheduled 51. The weather does seem to be on the turn at the start of June so here's hoping. The 1st XI won their only completed league game and find themselves in joint 3rd with Walton and Cobham Avorians ahead of them having finished more games.

31 May 2006  Fantasy League May MOM

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With all the qualifying results now in Adam London's Londonators team has come well clear at the top with a more than 30 point margin over Paul Scott's The Aussie Scorr. 24 teams qualified for the May competition but all 47 entrants are qualified for the remaining MOM awards. Remember that the June, July and August MOM awards are for the scores from games in those months not the overall position at the end of the month.

14 May 2006  15 out of 15

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The colts League and Cup sides have started the season outstandingly - in the first 2 weeks we have played 15 matches and won every one! There have been excellent performances, none better than the Under 15s match away to Richmond where over 300 runs were shared and we won by just 3 runs! 'Well done' to all our managers and coaches - keep the flag flying!

14 May 2006  Cockspur Cup v Shephers Bush

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Another low scoring game on another difficult wicket at The Bush, with again the bowlers dictating the outcome, saw Sunbury after a very shaky start come through to victory by 54 runs when, chasing a very low score of just 131 Shepherds Bush were dismissed for 77. Batting first Sunbury got off to a disastrous start when 3 wickets fell in the opening overs for just 4 runs. However the ever watchful Richard Gould stood firm for the second consecutive game and when he was joined by Charlie Holcomb the pair set about putting matters right, and took the score to within respectability before Holcomb (29) was out to another umpiring error. With Gould battling away and almost carrying his bat until he was finally dismissed for an excellent 57 in the 42nd over and Danny Pope chipping in with a quick 11 the innings finally closed on 131. If Sunbury's innings started badly, the Bush reply was even worse with Pope striking in the first over, Adam Stanier in the second and with wickets falling regularly the home side were reduces to 40-8 in no time. Accurate bowling, again backed by good enthusiastic ground fielding, with Pope 4-17 from 7 overs, Stanier 2-6 from 9 overs, Gareth Lewis 2-9 from 7 overs and Mathew Todd 2-25 from 7 overs saw the Bush skittled out for just 77 to see the Kenton Court outfit progress into the next round where they have a home match on Sunday 28 May.

13 May 2006  Championship v Spencer

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After the disappointment of being rained off last Saturday Sunbury got down to business when they defeated Spencer by 56 runs in a low scoring match that saw the bowlers of both sides hold the upper hand. Batting first Sunbury lost an early wicket but when David Nash joined Richard Gould the pair batted cautiously and with great resolve to take the score to 67 before Gould was dismissed for 28 and shortly after Nash for 33. Indifferent batting on a difficult wicket with some interesting umpiring decisions saw the score slump to 98-6 before determined performances from Neil Farnsworth (17), Max Hall (17) and a quality innings from James Hewitt (44 not out) who with Mathew Todd (11) added 29 for the last wicket saw Sunbury to a modest total of 164. Spencer found batting no easier and the Sunbury openers Hewitt and Adam Stanier bowled with hostility and accuracy to reduce the visitors to 28 for 5 in just 17 overs. When Todd was introduced into the attack to maintain the pressure the Spencer batsmen found it even harder going and he returned figures of 3-18 from 14 accurate overs of off-spin, and with Hewitt taking 3-25 from 12 overs and Stanier 3-31 from 13 overs aided by some particularly good out fielding the innings closed on 108 leaving Sunbury victors by the comfortable margin of 56 runs. Sunbury visit Camberley on Saturday, start 12.30 in buoyant mood and keen to continue their winning start.