Let’s start with a quick run through of the cricket fixtures tomorrow. We’re aiming for 1415 starts home and away with Farleigh. There has been a bit of movement with what was previously on SOCS, so this should clear things up as to the final set of arrangements, now also updated on SOCS. Some previously published fixtures with Sherborne House have been cancelled.
The 1st XI make their first home appearance of the season at home, on Bailey. Also at home, on Wolvesey are Colts C (Year 6) and at St Cross cricket Club are the 3rd XI.
Away at Farleigh are the 2nd XI, 4th XI, Colts A and B, and Foals (Year 5) A, B and C. The Foals B and C matches will be soft ball owing to the nature of the pitches.
All cricketers from Year 5 and up who are available should find they have been selected for these fixtures.
Under 9 (Year 4) will have a Games' session comprising a swim followed by an alternative activity with collection from 1530.
There is also senior athletics (collection from 1530), fly-fishing (collection from 1630) and tennis (collection from 1530).
Saturday
On Saturday the Under 9s (Year 4) make their opening appearance with all boys selected across three teams at Twyford.
All Year 7 & 8 cricketers will play in Set matches finishing at 1630, with collection around 1645, by the time the players have walked back to school.
Colts will have nets and swimming with collection from 1530.
Athletics is on, with collection from 1530.
Foals will also play in Set matches from 1245-1400.
Parents’ match tea will be available in the Octagon from about 1400 and again at about 1630.
Good luck to Bertie C and Teddy E who compete at the British Youth Fencing Championship this weekend.
Match reports
Wednesday 19 April
Foals A XI v Farleigh
Pilgrims’ 41 All Out (19.2 overs)
Farleigh 42-2
Pilgrims’ lost by 8 wickets
Our first match against Farleigh was always going to be a tricky opening fixture given that, for some of our players, this was the first time facing the hard ball or walking out onto the green in full pads. In contrast, a well-rehearsed and confident Farleigh side won the toss and elected to bowl, taking a quick flurry of wickets that unfortunately put Pilgrims’ on the back foot from the start. However, our 9th wicket pair of Christain and Boris led the way and showed us how to play in that situation; calm, patient and watching the ball carefully until the bowler and fielders make a mistake.
Pilgrims’ did look strong with the ball in hand, and some good opening bowling from Patrick and Archie showed a lot of promise going forwards. Farid kept well behind the stumps, and it was encouraging to see so much enthusiasm and positivity in the field. Our targets going forwards are:
- batting defensively at the start of each innings
- communication between batters and running between the wickets
- catching with the hard ball in the field.
There is plenty for us to work on this term, but I’m sure that this group of boys will rise to the challenge. I am sure that, come our next meeting with Farleigh later this term, we will be much more confident of where we are as a team and will put on a much-improved performance against the same standard of opposition. Well done all. CAL
Foals B XI v Farleigh (pairs)
Pilgrims' 160
Farleigh 250
Pilgrims' lost by 90 runs
Pilgrims’ won the toss and opted to bat first. It was a tentative display, which in some ways is unsurprising as this would have been the first hard ball cricket match that the boys played. However, it was pleasing to see Austin S, Eddie Q, and Hal H play some confident strokes. Our, running between the wickets was good, although indecision meant that we did not score as many runs as we could have.
Farleigh batted confidently during their innings, and quickly got runs on the board. This was helped by some inaccurate bowling, with wides and no balls gaining 2 runs to the opposition. Freddie W took a wicket, with a ball that bamboozled the batsman. Hal H demonstrated his ability with the ball, with his ‘left arm over the wicket’ style proving tricky for the batsmen to hit.
All the boys contributed to the performance. There is plenty to work on, and as with most skills repetition of the process will lead to improvements. I encourage all the boys to work on their bowling in the coming weeks, to develop their technique and accuracy. TMH
Foals C XI v Farleigh
Pilgrims’ won
This was a fun opening match as we started the cricket season. Aiming for a consistent line and length in our bowling will be a focus in these early sessions but, with both teams evenly matched, the result of the game came down to the final over. Heading for a draw, the Pilgrims’ players took a wicket to win the game in an exciting finish! TWR
Saturday 22 April
Foals A XI vs Papplewick
Papplewick 87-6 (20 overs) (Theo M – triple wicket maiden)
Pilgrims’ 84-9 (20 overs) (Christian 17)
After Wednesday’s baptism of fire against Farleigh, there was an initial feeling of apprehension for Saturday’s fixture against Papplewick. The boys were eager to put the first game of the season behind them, and I was impressed with the positivity and resilience each member of the team showed in today’s match.
Pilgrims’ won the toss and elected to bowl first. After some understandable first nerves and a couple of giveaway wides, the opening partnership of Patrick and Barney set a strong foundation and kept the run rate to a manageable level. Archie struck with the first wicket in the seventh over, and it wasn’t long before Boris removed the second opener clean bowled. The turning point in the game came in the twelfth, when Theo M managed the extremely impressive feat of a triple wicket maiden (two catches and a bowled), setting Papplewick on the back foot and allowing Pilgrims’ to break into the tail. Patrick added to the fun with a wicket maiden at the start of his second spell, ending with extremely impressive figures of 1 for 7 off his 4 overs. In the end, Papplewick managed 87 off their allocated overs, meaning Pilgrims’ needed just over 4 an over for victory.
The boys went into their batting innings with one clear objective in mind: to see out the entirety of our 20 allocated overs. Christian was our anchor, lasting from the first ball until eventually falling in the fifteenth over for an extremely impressive 17. Edward and Theo W also added to the scorecard contributing 9 each, including two fours from the hard-hitting Theo, coming in from down the order at 10. A couple of bonus extras including a generous penalty 5 runs for the ball hitting a bowler's jumper, meant that the score stayed roughly in line with the target chase for the majority of the chase. The game came down to the final ball, with Pilgrims' needing an ambitious four off the last delivery. Unfortunately, the bowling team came up trumps this time and the fairytale would have to wait. However, enormous credit is given to Harry for having the courage to face the difficult final delivery.
Overall, this was a much-improved performance from Foals A team, who will have learnt a lot from such a nail-biting finale. Our focus will remain on batting defensively, building up partnerships and putting pressure on the opposition bowlers by refusing to give away wickets. I am extremely happy with the progress this team is making and remain confident that the first win of the season is right around the corner. CAL
Foals B XI vs Papplewick
Papplewick 187
Pilgrims’ 152
Lost by 35 runs
Saturday afternoon saw our boys take part in a competitive match against Papplewick. It was pleasing to see that improvements in both batting and bowling are starting to occur despite the season being less than a week old.
Having won the toss, we decided to put the opposition into bat. All the boys had the opportunity to bowl two overs, and all demonstrated an ability to bowl a ball the correct line and length. Unfortunately, consistency was lacking, and we gave away a few extras. However, this was balanced by a greater number of wickets being taken than in our first match. Eddie Q, Lucas J and Niran S all took wickets, and Alexander L bowled accurately throughout his overs. The Papplewick batsmen kept the score ticking over and ended their innings on 187.
The boys took a little time to get going during their batting innings. A lack of confidence, both in playing shots and running between the wickets resulted in few runs being scored. Eventually, we started to pick up runs, with Eddie and Lucas scoring runs, with Lucas hitting a couple of fours. Despite these late efforts the boys were unable to reach the target set by Papplewick, and ended up losing by 35 runs. Progress is being made with our bowling, but more confidence with the bat is needed. TMH
Foals C XI vs Papplewick
Our second outing of the season saw a very different type of game. Papplewick batted first and scored quickly and impressively. Scoring 110 but losing 6 wickets (therefore deducting 30 runs) so a net run chase of 81 was needed by Pilgrims’. Pilgrims’ bowling was excellent and the concentration in the field could not be faulted as a mix of run-outs and superb catching were the highlights of the innings.
Pilgrims’ were to start the run chase well. However, some very good bowling restricted the scoring and as the overs went by and the scoring became less, the battle was uphill in terms of getting a win. The boys tried hard to get the run chase up, and with four members of the team playing cricket for the first week, we could not have asked for more in terms of effort or ability. Equally, encouraging was the boys support of one another which kept team spirits, efforts and an excellent game going right to the end.
As the season continues, we look forward to seeing how much the boys play and understanding will develop in the future. TWR
Andrew Short
Director of Sport