24 May 2017
Cheltenham College always prove strong opponents on the cricket field and our block fixtures against them at the end of week 3 turned up some interesting results, showing the importance of home advantage!
Playing at Abingdon, the 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U14A, U14B and U14C all completed good victories, with some excellent individual performances. Ben Ling (50), Max Owen (31) Bertie Thomas (3 for 13) and Will Senior (3 for 27) made great contributions to the 114 win for the 2nd XI, whilst Josh Valentine (51) and Oscar Frost (5 wickets) dominated the 3rd XI victory at Cox's Field.
The U14s continued their unbeaten run, with close victories for both the A and B team, whilst the C team was more comfortable in their 64 run victory. For the U14As, Elliot Hyman had a fine all-round performance with 46 runs and 3 wickets, George Siriwardene made 38 and Karum Sangha a miserly spell of 3 for 12. In the U14Bs game, Louis Summons continues in good form with the bat with a responsible 42, whilst Charlie Hobbs picked up 3 wickets with the ball. An undefeated 51 from Oliver Paton and 3 wickets for James Beckinsale also sealed the win for the U14Cs on the adjacent pitch.
Away at Cheltenham, The 1st XI made 177 for 9 from their 50 overs, which was below par, although the wicket had plenty of life in it early on. The innings received some impetus from Hector Chambers, who made 33 at a run a ball, but we were probably 40 runs light at the half way stage. Cheltenham made a steady start and paced their chase nicely, losing just the 3 wickets in reaching the target. Also at Cheltenham, the U15s took on a very strong year group for the opposition. The U15Bs and Cs struggled with the bat in chasing totals of over 200 runs. The U15As, like the 1st XI on the adjacent pitch, struggled to kick on with regular starts with the bat, falling 30 runs short of what they could have posted, losing by 7 wickets in the end.
The recent weekend was heavily disrupted by the British weather! All fixtures at Abingdon succumbed to the rain, but three fixtures were possible away at Bradfield. Under gloomy skies, the U15C team and 2nd XI found it difficult going with the bat on damp wickets, whilst the U15As looked set for an easy chase with 5 overs to go. The batting collapse that ensued meant that they managed to come up short in a game that they could have won.
This week, we have fixtures against Shiplake and the 1st XI host the South Oxfordshire Amateurs.
