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| CLAYGATE CRICKET CLUB NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 2004 THE GREATEST SEASON IN THE CLUB’S HISTORY? 2004 Surrey Downs League Division 1 Final Table / Division 2 Final table:
VICTORIOUS 1ST XI CAPTAIN DILLON WOODS AND 2ND XI ACTING CAPTAIN RUFUS LEGG WITH THE SURREY DOWNS LEAGUE DIVISION ONE AND DIVISION TWO TROPHIES
David congratulates everyone who has made this season such a success and looks forward to more of the same in 2005.
Dinner Dance Reminder A reminder that the 2004 Dinner Dance takes place at the Antoinette Hotel, Beaufort Road, Kingston on Friday 3 December. We aim to make it a special night to remember with plenty to celebrate. There may be a few corks popping… and a few trophies to hand out… Tickets £30 per person. Please encourage everyone to come. This is an event for members and partners. Please book tickets early by contacting: Caroline Spector, tel: 020 8398 1352, address: 15 The Island, Thames Ditton, Surrey, KT7 0SH, e-mail: caroline@wrightlaw.co.uk . Cheques made payable to Claygate Cricket Club to Caroline as soon as possible. See enclosed form. Contents Page 1 Front cover For those of you that actually read these newsletters… we have tried to do as much as possible to give you a bumper review to celebrate this special 2004 season. There are more photos and a few more articles. Do let me know if you can think of anything that will improve the Newsletter in the future. Even if you do not read anything else, please look at the AGM and Dinner Dance reminders straight away and put those dates in your diaries and send your voting form in for the club cups. Secretary’s Report Champions For a summary of the 2004 season all I need to say is that there was only one word that you could hear in Claygate on 11 September 2004 and that was “Champions”. With results on that fateful Saturday meaning both the 1st and 2nd XIs had won their respective divisions, the club was able to celebrate something very special. Two League Championships in the same season is a remarkable achievement for a small club like Claygate and so much of the credit must go to the four captains who put in the effort to get the best teams out week in, week out as well as all the players who contributed. It has been quite possibly the most successful season ever for the club, rounded off with a superb celebration evening organised by Dillon Woods, Sandhya and Vikram Prabhakar and others. What we have is a thriving club and four thriving teams but we must not rest on our laurels. As the 2nd XI nearly found to their cost this year, no team will give Claygate an inch next year in the League and they will all be out to deny us winning a single game. The Future Clubs can quickly change as players come and go and we need to keep developing our young talent and bringing in new talent. Both the Sunday skippers have done a very good job of helping our younger players gain more experience. A Saturday 3rd XI may be an additional way to bring players on - Graham Dear is stepping down as 2nd XI captain and will be trying to start up a Saturday 3rd XI during next season to give more of our younger players match exposure and if this works they may even end up joining a revamped league in a year or two. If this important initiative comes off, please support this initiative in any way you can. What’s holding us back? There are still factors that will hold this club back including apathy amongst members and the pavilion. The club needs everyone to remember that it does not run itself. It is a familiar and recurring subject I know. An obvious example of this is how few people put their hands up at the AGM to offer to take on a formal role in running the club. So come along and prove me wrong. There will also be news on the pavilion. Paddy’s retirement could really make things difficult next year. His contribution has been enormous, it has significantly helped stabilise the club by ensuring the bar, and the bar takings, are properly administered. I believe it is the best thing that has ever happened to this club - better than winning the League! We really need to find a solution for next season - preferably someone to take over from Paddy - and it is the responsibility of ever member to try and help find that solution. We still have a problem with some outstanding subscriptions and match fees. The committee hope to announce details of new subscription and match fees and how these will operate next year at the AGM. Conduct and Discipline The final part of this report unfortunately has to cover behaviour on and off the pitch. We are fairly lucky at Claygate, but one or two incidents have brought this club into disrepute. All the serious ones have occurred in the 1st and 2nd XIs on a Saturday. League cricket may be more competitive but that is no excuse for any behaviour or over enthusiasm that could lead the opposition to question our conduct and behaviour. The point is that it does us no favours. We must improve next year and the Code of Conduct will be reissued to all at the start of next season to remind players what is expected of them. New Players The club always aims to make new players welcome and please remember that all members are encouraged to invite new players to join the club. Speak to the captains if you want to introduce anyone. And don’t wait until next summer, contact Dillon Woods and get them down to the winter nets at Hinchley Wood School in March and April. We have had several new players join the club this year. This year’s role of new talent includes: Gareth Dutton, Raza Khan, James McPhail, Sunny Mahajan, Dilan Nugera, Dinesh Reid, Chris White, David Wright, Babur Zaheeruddin and I suppose we should forget Luke Cridland - safe journey back to Oz Luke. Fond farewells We also said goodbye to Mark Brand who really made a real impact in the Sunday 2nd XI this year. Rufus Legg Annual General Meeting The Claygate Cricket Club Annual General Meeting will be held in the Claygate Village Hall (same as last year) on Monday 22 November at 8.00 pm. Please note that there is no smoking in the Village Hall and we must take all rubbish away and leave the room as we found it or we will be barred from using it again. The agenda will include the election of Committee Members and other officers as well as discussion on the issues affecting the club like the Pavilion and Cricket Week. Please note that only paid up members can propose, second and vote at the AGM. We need new people on the Committee. Some of the posts likely to be vacant include: Saturday 2nd XI Captain and Vice-Captain, Sunday 2nd XI Captain and League Rep. There may be more and this list is not meant to stop anyone considering any of the prestigious posts on offer - for example volunteers for Secretary greatly appreciated. Nominations require a proposer and seconder at the AGM. The full list of positions and current incumbents is as follows: Committee Members: President: David Milner Other officials: Vice-Presidents: currently six End of an era - the Paddy Walsh story Paddy Walsh could have played for Chelsea or become the bantamweight champion of the world if things had panned out a little differently. Instead he ended up as the genial Irishman behind the bar at Claygate Cricket Club for nine years. That may sound like a jail sentence, but Paddy has loved every minute of it and is sorry it is all coming to an end. Paddy, 73, says: "I wish I was five years younger. I am going to miss it all very badly. But it is good time to go after the first and second teams both became league champions." Paddy was born in Cork in 1931 and came to England sixteen years later, working in a rubber factory in Chelsea as an apprentice engineer. Quickly making friends with some promising footballers, he was offered a place with the Chelsea junior team. But, says Paddy: "I never turned up to sign those forms and joined the army in 1950. It was like a holiday. All I did was play football and box for my company." In fact, Paddy won nine out of ten bouts as a promising bantamweight and reached an army final. Just as well none of us picked an argument with him behind the bar. 1955 turned out to be a good year. He met Maureen and his beloved Chelsea won their only league championship. Two years later Paddy and Maureen married in the days when Harold Macmillan was Prime Minister and Elvis Presley was just exploding onto the scene. They now have three lovely daughters and eight delightful grandchildren. The family moved to Claygate 12 years ago and Paddy says the best thing they ever did was get involved with the cricket club. "We have made so many friends with a lot of members and their families. We would like to thank them all, but all things come to an end. "It will be very strange to stand having a beer ("just a half") on the other side of the bar." His favourite cricket match was the Cup Final in the mid-1990's when Gerard Didcock bludgeoned 23 runs off the final over to give Claygate an astonishing victory. So what will Paddy do now that he does not have to trek from his home in Aston Road to the recreation ground to check bar supplies in the pavilion? Answers on a postcard. Well, we hope to still see plenty of him and Maureen during the summer months. And those of us who have suffered against him know he is still a very good golfer in the vivid red jersey of Wimbledon Common. He also likes a movie with Gary Cooper, John Wayne and Humphrey Bogart, his favourite film stars. It has been a pleasure for all of us knowing Paddy. He has created a wonderful spirit with that effortless bonhomie and wisdom behind the bar - and it is no exaggeration to say he is regarded with great warmth by everyone in the club. In those nine years , Paddy has become a Claygate legend. As his hero Bogart once said: "Here's looking at you, kid." A real thanks from everyone for the kindness, hard work and attention Paddy and Maureen have given us. Ian Darke Played Won Drawn Lost Abandoned Not Kelly Holmes… a sort of Dean Macey With the Saturday 1’s and 2’s vying to ‘do a Kelly’, with double gold in their sights, it was great to see Claygate still has the strength-in-depth to sustain two Sunday sides throughout the summer. Our athletic model was Dean Macey - sparkling at times, poor at others, great fun to be around… but overall just a little off-the-pace! Neither the weather nor the results reached last year’s heights, but it was a season which has seen the balance of the side continue to move healthily to the youngsters. With Matt Wells taking up the challenge of skippering the Sunday 2nds, the ‘Wells option’ which had supplied up to three players with one phone call disappeared, and Scott’s unavailability due to his love life (or was it his telephone bill?) meant a number of changes in the structure of the side. The new regulars Jamie Henderson, Nick French and Tom McKinley are all in their mid-teens, and with Chris Howe and Henry Vincent at 19 - the age profile of the side has changed dramatically. And what excellent seasons they’ve had. At 17, Jamie has become a real batting talent, and Nick and Tom are very capable with both bat and ball - their different styles complementing the side overall. Chris has also developed into the powerful bat that we always knew he would be and has also been a fine stand-in skipper. Having praised the youth, the old men are still a vital part of the side with Dick Murphy, Phil Lewis, Ian Darke and myself having all contributed well to the team’s balance and still delivering some excellent individual performances. Add Rufus, David Price, Russ Guyatt and several more … and we still have the basis of a very competitive side, capable of winning at least half our fixtures in a season. I can’t mention everyone in this short space, but thanks to all who turned out for the side this summer. As far as team performances were concerned, the highlights were the excellent victory against local rivals Long Ditton, the two successive mid-season victories against Oxshott (Damian Ross guesting with a powerful 99) and Horley and the big victory against Clapham Old Xavierians towards the end. Low points were ‘the game that never was’ in the drizzle at Stoke, and having bowled so well against Dorking in the damp, the miserable batting performance… which proved to be the lowest score of the season as well as a pathetic batting effort against Surrey Cryptics where Rufus had the distinction of carrying his bat as well as frustrating the opposition into putting all nine fielders on the leg side and still sweeping the ball for four. Individual highs with the bat - Rufus’s 120 not out against Old Martyrs, Richard Waller’s 60 against Long Ditton, Ian Darke's 87 against Old Paulines (his overall average for the season at just under 40!), Jamie Henderson’s 70 in the some game and 81 the following week, Nick French’s rapid 69 not out at Cove, Peter Andrews’ 70 at Sunbury and Chris Howe’s series of hard hitting half centuries. Bowling success was harder to find with Tom McKinley, Dick Murphy, Chris Howe and Nick French all picking up good wickets, Vikram Prabhakar coming in for a month in July and considerably strengthening the bowling over that time, and the skipper’s 6 for 33 not only proving to be the side’s best performance with the ball this year, but also a Claygate career-best which is nice to do at this age! On the fielding side, the youngsters add youth and energy with Tom McKinley’s unbelievable effort at Dorking the champagne catch-of-the-season, ‘Tiger’ Henderson prowled at cover point when he can stay on his feet, Ian Darke and Rufus Legg continued to catch the difficult ones and Phil Lewis remains evergreen behind the stumps and proving his worth with seven stumpings including several off the medium pacers including our Aussie fast bowler (that’s a compliment Justin) at Worcester Park. It’s of course a huge thanks to Paddy and Maureen who has served us so well behind the bar, and to everyone who has helped it be yet another enjoyable season - thank you!
Nigel Abbott Name: Nigel Abbott Top Score: 23! Best Bowling: 6 for 33 against Clapham Old Xavarians, 22 August 2004 At club since: Ed - 1992, for some reason Nigel put down 1994 but I know he turned out for me when I was captain in 1992 a couple of times Best memory from Claygate Cricket Club: the overseas tours Job: Public Relations Director, BOC Family: Sue plus two children - Angeline (23) and Kerrigan (21) Favourite Football team: AFC Wimbledon Favourite Claygate Player: the one who calls me and volunteers to play on a Sunday when I’m struggling! Favourite Films: The Lord of the Rings Trilogy Favourite TV shows: News and Sport Last CD bought: Rock Anthems! Hobbies other than cricket: Too many! Running marathons, mountaineering, photography, playing guitar and piano, etc, etc… Anything else we should know? If anyone had said ten years ago that I would still be hugely enjoying the sporting and social sides of being involved with a great community-based club, that I would have played on three continents including a test ground (Queens Park Oval), and that I would have achieved Claygate career best figures at 53, I would have said “Don’t be ridiculous!” But it has happened/is true. Miscellaneous dislikes: goodness! Pretentiousness, over indulgence, bad driving…that’s enough. Changes you would like at Claygate CC: to complete the development of the pavilion which will give us the base on which to build a club that’s already growing stronger. Ambitions: Many! But one is to climb the highest mountain in each of the seven continents. Everest is unlikely so maybe it’s six! Two down and four to go! Sunday 2nd XI Report Played Won Drawn Lost Abandoned The season got off to an auspicious start with the team travelling east to escape early season rain to play the Punjabi Lions - of Gravesend! Inspired by an opening spell of 4 for 2 by Justin Hannaford and 3 for 19 from Keith Ellis, the raucous Indian outfit was dismissed for 101. As the rain swept in from the east the normally gritty Claygate tail self-destructed and we were dismissed for 81 including 4 suicidal run outs. Things could only get better and duly did in a drawn match against Old Woking. Chasing 258 Steve McKinley notched an impressive 31 and Luke (aka ‘the sight screen’) Cridland, a Gower-like 38 as Claygate reached a serene 173 for 8. This was a bit of a false dawn as Claygate’s worst performance of the season against Hook and Southbrough occurred the following weekend. Only a doughty 41 run partnership between Justin and Ben Seabrook for the last wicket brought the Claygate score past 100. The batting and fielding display was so poor that Claygate Captain (me) left the field halfway through the Southbrough reply and was rumoured to spend the following week in hiding on a remote Scottish moor. This week in hiding did the skipper some good as he was able to cheerfully declare with an unbeaten 99 the next week setting Earlsfield a tempting 185 to win. A devastating spell of 3 for 20 from Justin and a wily spell from Wells senior (3 for 37) skittled the daunted Earlsfield outfit for 114 - a win at last. Claygate made it two in a row when they beat a surly Old Pauline side off the last ball of the match. Wells Junior and Senior contributed over a 100 to the Claygate score of 185 all out. Seabrook and Joel Watkins got 3 wickets a piece. Injury to Wells Junior then gave Peter Hartnell his chance to display his controversial tactics from his re-written textbook. Despite a magnificent 104 from Jamie Henderson Claygate posted a slightly below par 167 and Hersham just sneaked in with 2 wickets in hand with Joel, Justin and Ben each taking 2 wickets. The cheeky upstart skipper was back in charge the following week and his inexperience told in a crushing defeat to 10-man Concorde. The only highlight was a diving catch from Dave Williams - unfortunately it was to dismiss Claygate’s top scorer Rory O’Malley - Dave had drawn the short straw and was playing for the opposition. The rain ruined any chance of a result against Westfield when we were 102 for 2 chasing their total of 270. Jake Dear hit a lusty 41 with Mark Brand ending his run drought with a sparkling 50. After this display a new Brand turned up to play and scored a scintillating 105 the following week against Leatherhead and new recruit Gareth Dutton made a studious 35 on his debut. Unfortunately the opposition held on for a draw despite 3 wickets for Joel and 2 for Scott Labacik guesting for us from the Saturday 1st XI. A close game against Parkhead followed with Claygate going down by 13 runs and the next weekend brought a comprehensive defeat against a strong Caterham side on another dodgy Claygate wicket. The only performance of note was a season’s best 31 for Keith. After this demoralising defeat Claygate went to Burgh Heath against who we’d been 25 all out the previous season with an understandable sense of foreboding, but a sharp opening burst by Tom McKinley restricted the opposition to 157. A tedious 51 from the skipper (later compared to Boycott on Prozac) got Claygate within touching distance of Burgh Hill’s total. Another draw. August was a golden month for the Seconds, with a winning draw against Ockham (Tom Law 33, Matt Wells 52, Hanniford 3 for 45). There was another Hartnell captaining master class in a victory against Kew (Mark Brand 125 and guest star Ben Vincent 35). There was a last gasp victory against close rivals Chadwick (Wells Junior 57 not out, Tom Law 58 not out) with an opening attack of Wells Senior and Hanniford taking 7 for 67. This was followed by a third consecutive win, against Whitley Village, with man of match Joel taking 3 wickets and top scoring with 29. The sheen was slightly taken off a sparkling August by a three wicket defeat at the hands of Old Woking. The third Wells (Dan) partially made up for his record breaking 5 dropped catches (in one innings) with a hard-hitting 43, Justin taking 3 for 25, with Des Cecil’s explosive hand grenades blasting out two late wickets. This was my last game in charge as I went up north to practice my ‘tossing’ and the old student Hartnell took over the reins for the final few games and the end-of-season celebrations… The return game against Hersham ended in a close draw with debutant Chris White scoring 46 and Jake 40 not out before Joel took another 3 wickets and Luke a season’s best 2-10. The final game at Old Paulines ended in a 39 run defeat with Dave Williams top scoring with 39. Thanks to everyone.
Matt Wells Name: Matt Wells Top Score: 99 not out Best Bowling: in the nets At club since: 1999 Best memory from Claygate Cricket Club: Mark Brand’s first century Job: student (again) Family: (Ed - he left this bit blank so not sure if he is disowning them!) Favourite Football team: Hereford United Favourite Claygate Player: Peter Hartnell, aka Hawkeye, Hawkins, shotgun Favourite Films: Seven, Fight Club Favourite TV shows: The Office Last CD bought: Chilli Peppers - best of Hobbies other than cricket: cooking, drinking, running - useful as I can’t hit boundaries Anything else we should know? Originally was a right handed batsman - forced into being left handed by Dad! Miscellaneous dislikes: Parisians, well-done steak, Gravesend Changes you would like at Claygate CC: have a strict limit on number of Australians in the Sunday 2nd XI Ambitions: be a doctor, bowl a six-ball over Player Profile - the Quiet Australian Name: Justin Hannaford Top Score: 37 not out against Bank of England Best Bowling: 4 for 2 against Gravesend At club since: 2003 Best memory from Claygate Cricket Club: Jake Dear hitting a 6 off the last ball of the match to beat Stoke this year in cricket week. Job: Emerging Markets Analyst, UBS Family: married to Liz with daughter Emily Favourite Football team: Hawthorn in Aussie Rules and Newcastle United in Premier League Favourite Claygate Player: not answered - very diplomatic Justin Favourite Films: African Queen, To Kill a Mockingbird Favourite TV shows: Seinfeld, Trans World Sports Last CD bought: Turn on the Bright Lights, Interpol Hobbies other than cricket: Photography and riding my bike Anything else we should know? Would love to go to South America one day and walk the Inca trail Miscellaneous dislikes: spiders, cauliflower and England winning back the Ashes, in the order Changes you would like at Claygate CC: more social events for the club as a whole. Ambitions: to one day raise the bat and score 50! We need to look at the future of Cricket Week. This year we only had four names up for two of the matches just a week before Cricket Week started. By the end of the week it had been a roaring success - the best Corporate Day so far, three wins out of four and a host of great moments including a top contender for the champagne moment when Jake hit that six (see match reports earlier in newsletter). What do the playing members want us to do with Cricket Week? What changes might make you more willing to play? Later starts with dinner instead of lunch, more 8 or 6-a-side matches, cheaper cost with a simple tea and no lunch, different oppositions, etc.. Because of the essential revenue generated in Cricket Week, it is a very important part of keeping a club like Claygate going and as long as we have managed to get sides out, we have not changed it much over the years. The club would find it difficult to survive without Cricket Week so we need to provide what people want. Please see the back of the Club Cup Voting Form and fill in the section on Cricket Week. We need to know what you think about Cricket Week so we can plan for next year. Winter Nets We are scheduled to have winter nets at Hinchley Wood School (Claygate Lane, Hinchley Wood) at 9.00pm on Tuesdays based around the Sri Lanka Tour. Cost is £5 per club member / £3 for students. Two lanes of nets are booked on Tuesdays on: 25th Jan, 1st Feb, 8th Feb, 1st March, 8th March, 15th March, 22nd March, 29th March, 5th April * and 12th April *. * These last two April bookings may be transferred to outdoor practice on their square on Sundays in April, start around 11.00am or 12.00noon - eg on 3rd and 10th April. It is our choice whether we wish to take up this option. Square practice would have the advantage of longer run-ups. Another option is to use their outfield for fielding practice. Hinchley Wood mainline station which is about a 10 minute walk from the school. In addition, we have the option of booking additional nets either during the Sri Lanka Tour in mid-late Feb or during April at the Surrey Cricket Centre in Guildford. This has the additional advantage of longer run-ups and the option of their bowling machines as well. Unfortunately Claremont School have taken a season-long block booking from a football league. Dillon Woods Cricket Week Report Claygate’s Cricket Week success A six to win a game off the last ball, a hat-trick by a batsman, and some massive hitting were some of the champagne moments from a Claygate Cricket Week blessed with excellent weather, and which proved one of the most successful in years with three wins from four games. The only defeat of the week was against East Horsley on the Wednesday. East Horsley posted 259 for 7 with Tom McKinley performing well with the ball - 3 for 54. In reply Claygate were all out, just 22 runs short with Jamie Henderson making 54. At least East Horsley stayed late and drunk us out of house and home. Thursday saw a victory against local rivals Stoke. Stoke made 223 all out with Peter Shury claiming 4 for 47. Claygate won by 3 wickets with Simon Bushell stroking a fine 71 and with four needed off the final ball, in one of those magical cricketing moments that most of us can only dream of, 16-year-old Jake Dear drove a six into the woods to cover himself with personal glory and take the day for Claygate. The week finished with another victory, this time against Sunbury on the Friday. Sunbury knocked up 216 for 5 - with Chris Howe and David Price taking 2 wickets each. Claygate reached the total with 7 wickets down - Chris Howe hitting a forceful 45, Jamie Henderson 39 and Jake Dear helping another victory with 16 not out. Nigel Abbott 1st XI stars Vikram, Sunny and Babur in action
Saturday 1st XI Report The Final League Table (top 8 teams): Club Played Canx Won Lost Win Draw Lose Draw Points League Champions for the first time since 1992. This is the story of how we did it. Good pre-season nets set up the 1st XI season with an influx of new players providing more competition for places. Adopting an approach that had worked with the victorious 2nd XI from 2003, we backed the talent in our side by posting strong totals at a healthy run-rate and challenging opposition line-ups to withstand our bowling attack. This enabled us to exert significant pressure from the start with attacking field-placings which reaped instant rewards as we set about winning our first few matches by 100 + run margins. As a result, our extra 30 points win bonuses were the biggest single difference at the end between us and closest challengers, Westcott. This approach was only possible with unselfish play from the lower order batsmen, as the 1st XI had 11 batsmen for most matches this season, and were only able to make early declarations with half the side going out to bat and maintaining our strong run-rate from the word ‘go’. This was a feature of the side and went some way to show the level of team spirit with such a collective approach. Without this, we would not have the advantage of returning the favour to the bowlers, who were able to concentrate on taking wickets without worrying too much about the runs. Our front-line bowlers were immediately into their stride, with Babur Zaheeruddin instilling fear into opposing batsmen, Vikram Prabhakar out-thinking them, Ben Lane unplayable at times and Mark O’Connell deadly on wet wickets, proving to be the best attack in the league. With the backup bowlers (Chris Howe, Raza Khan, Scott Labacik and the leg-spinner) all taking important wickets, the Claygate attack scored the highest bowling bonus points in the league with good strike-rates and wicket-keeping from Azly Hamid, and most notably, Joris Nathanson - not forgetting his stunning catch at Westcott and six catches in an innings against Horsley & Send! With the bat, only Chris Howe shone in the early matches, but in mid-season, Sunny Mahajan emerged as the club’s leading batsman, including the highest score of the season (122) in the league for Claygate. This, combined with Chris Howe’s superb 83 at Westcott on a difficult wicket, stood out as the season’s best. In patches, individuals played important innings in difficult games, including a couple of stoic performances from Russ Guyatt on sticky wickets and a late surge by Russ Davis with a 75 and an 80, after a torrid start to the season. Vikram was ‘Mr Reliable’ batting at the death and for the last 5 matches of the season, Raza Khan breezed in with a stylish 111 not out, which sealed our league win. We also had the highest batting bonus points in the league, a true reflection of our positive stroke-play from Damian Ross all the way down to Scott Labacik. We were also the only team to score over 3000 runs, on the way to our overall total of 524 points, around 150 more than the previous year. There were some hiccups along the way with three losses (to Nutfield, Newdigate and Tadworth), but these provide challenges for us for next season. There is lots of room for improvement, most notably in the field. Here, Scott, Chris, Babur, Ben, Azly and Joris all impressed with outstanding catches coming from Scott, Ben, Joris and Mark close in. Scotty’s loan spell in the 2nd XI also added a few crucial points to help them take the title in the end by just 2 points. Another success was the seamless flow between the 2nd XI and the 1st XI with over a dozen players moving between the two during the season. Next season, every club will not only be trying to beat us as champions, but we will also be in the spotlight in our behaviour both on and off the pitch and will have an added responsibility in our approach to opposing players, umpires, the league, the spirit of the game and ourselves as a club. Otherwise all I can say is that it was a great team effort and let’s try and surpass this next year. Thanks to all those who played, even those who only helped out occasionally and thanks to those behind the scenes, especially Paddy and all those who made us some great teas throughout the season. Dillon Woods
Victorious 1st XI : (back) Babur Zaheeruddin, Joris Nathanson, Russell Davis, Mark O’Connell, Ben Lane, Raza Khan (front) Sunny Mahajan, Dillon Woods, Damian Ross, Vikram Prabhakar and Russ Guyatt (missing Chris Howe and Scott Labacik)
1st XI wicket keeper Joris Nathanson in action
Henry Vincent bowls as the 2nd XI desperately seek wickets in the final match
Saturday 2nd XI Report The Final League Table (top 8 teams): Club Played Canx Won Lost Win Draw Lose Draw Points CHAMPIONS!!! The Saturday 2nd XI won the Surrey Downs League title for the second year running when all the other top of the table teams failed to win their last games and we finished just two points ahead of Newdigate despite the infamous re-count. The season was played out as follows, played 13 won 6 lost 2 with 5 winning draws. We batted first in all but one game, the team scored a massive total of 2984 runs at over 40 runs per wicket and always at a rapid rate so we could declare early, only failing in one game to score more than 200, bowling we took 111 wickets. Batting first probably deprived us of the chance to win more games with our long and powerful batting line up but tactically, we had to bat first or miss out on the extra win and bonus points - as Newdigate found out when they came second overall with 10 wins compared to our 6 but fewer win and bonus points. The season started late after a few washouts with a win against Ockley and two massive victories against South Nutfield and Salfords scoring 239/4 and 246/1, both oppositions bowled out for less than half our score. Along with those highs were the disappointing losses to Headley and Tadworth, but again it was a case of throwing the games away. In the Headley game we allowed them to get/slog too many runs, 226 in 48 overs, but we were in the game most of the way and ended up on 197 all out after 37 overs. Against Tadworth we posted 211 for 7 off 45 overs which Tadworth managed to get with just three balls to spare. There were some great individual performances with two league centuries from Rufus Legg, 125 not out against Salfords and 123 against Ockham including a reverse sweep for four off one of their medium pacers. Dinesh Read scored 123 against South Nutfield amongst a series of powerful knocks and Alan McKinley scored a rapid 121 not out in the last game against Nutfield where we declared on 271/2 after just 30 overs against the team who had lost fewest matches. Rufus was our top scorer with a total of 464 runs, as well as stand-in captain for much of the season, and not far behind was Dinesh with 455, finishing with a league average of 75. The other top performers were Jamie Henderson 95 and 83 against Newdigate and South Park, Henry Vincent 86 not out against Tadworth, James McPhail 74 against Nutfield, Dick Murphy at 78 and Anthony Joseph 53 not out at Horsley & Send but for me the most important knock of all would be Chris Chance’s 79 at Old Woking coming in at No.8 when the team were in trouble, supported magnificently by Dave Page at No.9. Again not everybody batted as much as we would have liked due to the good form of our top order batsmen throughout the season. Bowling saw the usual suspects but not always with that same sparkle, Peter Shury - 14 wickets, Dave Page - 13 wickets, Henry Vincent - 11 wickets, Dick Murphy - 9 wickets but overall our bowling lacked the cutting edge from 2003. The Saturday 2nd XI saw the return of Scott Labacik - 10 wickets in 3 games including a 6-33 at Old Woking! Well done Scott, but by far and away the best performer was Chris Chance with 35 wickets with at average of 12.5 and a wicket every 22 balls bowled including 6-64 at South Nutfield which won him the League award for the top 2nd XI wicket taker. Fantastic performance Chris!!! Our fielding is still improving year after year, with Anthony Joseph and Dave Page fantastically supported by Jake Dear, Dilan Nugera and Boy Wonder Dan Ranger. What more can I say but it brings me to the end of this winning season, my thanks to Shrek for winding up the oppo, Grace Dear for her excellent tea’s, Paddy Walsh for running the bar and to you the Saturday 2nds which will always remain so special to me. I will be standing down this year in the knowledge that I am the only captain in Claygate history to be a back to back champion, over to you Dillon! On a more serious note thanks boys you’ve been magic and make it three in a row! Diego!
Player Profile - the Claygatian Name: Jamie Henderson Top Score: 140 not out vs Old Woking September 2003 (amazing bowlers) Best Bowling: 2 overs - 2 maidens At club since: 1999? Best memory from Claygate Cricket Club: scoring my first century! Job: student Family: parents, sister Favourite Football team: none, rugby is better Favourite Claygate Player: Russ Davis Favourite Films: Shawshank Redemption, Kill Bill Favourite TV shows: Friends, Hollyoaks Last CD bought: the OC soundtrack Hobbies other than cricket: driving, womanising, posing - see photo Anything else we should know? I love hats (and don’t we know it - Ed) Miscellaneous dislikes: collecting, ducks, wet pitches Changes you would like at Claygate CC: cheerleaders to support the players Ambitions: get a wicket, win the batting cup sometime! Picture: Jamie Henderson
Interview - a first season in charge Victorious 1st XI captain, Dillon Woods was interviewed over a bottle of wine during the Champions trophy final in September… Q: What made you decide to come to Claygate last summer? Highs/lows? A: A mixture of reasons - my previous club was stagnating off the pitch, Claygate was the only club I never got runs against - Mark O’Connell kept bowling at my toes, Claygate was close to where I live, so when Mark suggested I join Claygate instead . . I enjoyed playing with a great bunch of guys in the 2nds last year, combined with an attacking approach to each match. It just got better when the players responded so well this year to the same approach. The lows: my cave-man batting this season. Q: Could it get any better? OK first season, you made a few ducks and got dropped to the 2nd XI. Then you score two big hundreds and help the team win the League. Next they put you in charge of the 1st XI and you win the League. A: The league title is always special, but the overall aim is for the club’s gradual improvement, so yes, it can get better. Graham’s initiative of a 3rd XI could be immensely beneficial to the club. We need closely fought matches with a competitive, but healthy spirit, so the general improvement in standard in the Surrey Downs League combined with Claygate’s ambition for a new pavilion are just two great opportunities for improvement. Q: I have looked at the last three Claygate captains to win leagues, they all had one thing in common, a ruthless determination for your team to win, is that the magic formula or is there something deeper than that? A: I think having a clear vision of what it takes to win matches and backing your own judgement rather than pure ruthlessness, is essential. Other issues like adjusting one’s tactics as the game develops and balance are important too. Graham’s approach lent more to getting the players to perform to their potential in a positive manner. He calculated the risks and they proved correct. Q: As captain, you have had your critics this year. Do you feel you have justified your approach now? What have you learned for next year? A: Every approach will always have its critics. I feel the approach required for next year will need to be different because the situation will be different. We follow it up by how we play, our approach to the game, our teamwork and our behaviour on and off the pitch, as these are all just as important simply scoring runs, taking wickets and winning the league. We can improve in all these areas. Q: Do you mind having been a bit of a Brearley this year, the mastermind of the team who has let the others take the limelight with their individual performances? Perhaps you could bolster your average next year with a few 3rd XI games? A: It is a great honour to be mentioned in the same sentence as Mike Brearley. Tactical thinking, not scoring a century in test cricket and wearing silly head-gear are just some of the things we have in common. After that, I’m afraid the similarity ends. Q: My view is that you need a good (off or leg) spinner to compliment Vikram? Any candidates? A: Claygate has an outstanding leg-spinner who was grossly underbowled and Vikram rarely needs spin support because Mark, Ben and Babur can steam through virtually any opposition. There are however a number of spin options in the club including Henry Vincent, Sunny Mahajan, Nick French and Chris Chance. Q: 1st XI notoriously poor at doing things at the club - how can we change that? A: We have already changed that. Firstly we won the league. We then put on a great end of season BBQ and “alternative awards” which reflected the atmosphere and flavour of the first XI. Perhaps we’ll do it again next season. I want to organise a pre-season event next year as well. Q: Part of your family history is portrayed in the film “Cry Freedom”? Did you nearly forget your cricket bat? What do you remember from your childhood in South Africa? How do you feel now about South Africa and its recent development? A: - When we left South Africa we couldn’t take anything with us as we had to pretend we were going up the coast for our usual summer holiday and had to quietly pack winter clothes as the security police had placed electronic bugs in our phones and lights. Q: Most of us know you got married earlier this year to Bojana. How are you juggling married life with running Claygate’s premier team? A: I’m taking notes from those players with more experience, and from mid-December, from those fathers with more experience, as there is a young leg-spinner on the way. Q: How are you going to spend your free Saturdays over the winter? A: Watching the artists of the beautiful game (Thierry, Dennis, Patrick, Kolo, Robert, Jose Antonio et al) overcome the dark forces of the £190m also-rans of Trafford Park and the dour 0-0 nouveau-riche-ski wannabes! Picture: Dillon Woods with a couple of potential new recruits for next season
Averages - Batting Qualification: 10 innings Top Partnerships Wkt Partnership Runs Against (Some scorebooks have not always been properly filled in so there is a small chance that I may have missed some large partnerships along the way.) Averages - Bowling Qualification: 15 wickets
Fielding - Dismissals Qualification: 1 dismissal (There were over 10 catches missing from the Sunday 2nd XI scorebook.) Averages - Other Batting Name / Games / Innings / Not outs / Runs / Average / Highest / 50/100s (The following only played one game: name (runs): G Savage (54*), Kowshi (30*), Shafaz (17*), B Vincent (33), Daud (6), S Waller (4), Barry (4), A Cecil (3), P Gartland (1), N Perera (1), D Stitchbury (1), B Hughes (0)) (C Ranabahu (2 games) and Fahim, Fazal, M Hodges, B Rehill, A Sutton and D Wright (1 game) played but did not bat.) Averages - Other Bowling Qualification: 1 wicket (Also bowled: M Brand 7-0-34-0, I Darke 1-0-1-0, J Dear 1-0-2-0, J Henderson 4.4-0-23-0, R Legg 1.4-0-23-0, Fazal 4-0-9-0, M Hodges 6-0-27-0, A Joseph 3-0-13-0, J McPhail 1-0-11-0, S Mahajan 3-1-9-0, B Rehill 5-0-22-0, S Waller 9-0-55-0, P Weeraratne 3-0-5-0 and D Wright 5-1-20-0) Club Cups - Voting Instructions This is the first year that all the cups will be decided by votes from all the playing members at the Club. It’s a new method and is on trial so see how it works. Votes will be accepted from those who have played and have paid their annual subscriptions. If anyone who qualifies on these criteria and has not received a newsletter and voting form, please confirm with the treasurer that the annual subscriptions have been paid and let me know before the deadline for votes. I will collect the votes but will not reveal who voted for whom. All I ask is that everyone thinks carefully before casting their vote and weighs up the contributions from all the players. Please send votes to me by post or e-mail or phone me up by 17 November. Nominations from the captains are below and averages are above to help you make your choice (but you can also vote from outside the list of those nominated if you consider there to be a worthier winner). Please only vote once and avoid falling into the trap of only voting for players in your team. Remember this is a club made up of four teams and we need to look at the relative contributions and performances of all. No spoilt ballot papers please. Please fill in votes for each cup and you have two choices for each cup so please use them both. Cups will go to the outright winner after elimination and redistribution of 2nd choices. If there is a very strange result, like Luke winning the Batting Cup (!), then I will raise this at the AGM. Final results will be announced at the Dinner dance so no one will know the result until the time and I hope you will enjoy the suspense. Nominations Mallard: Colts Cup: Fielding Cup (most improved fielder): 2nd XI Cup: Bowling Cup: Batting Cup: Clubman Cup: Players’ Player: We need to start planning teas for next season. The Captains are ultimately responsible for finding someone to do the teas for their home matches. But please think of any ideas of who might be interested in doing teas next season and let them or Rufus know asap. Film Review For all cricket lovers… the film Wondrous Oblivion came out on DVD for rental or purchase at the end of September. It is Paul Morrison’s “whimsical” tale of two families isolated by society and prejudice and brought together by cricket. The “wondrous oblivious” hero is David, a Jewish boy growing up in London in the 1950s with a passion, but no talent (something we are all familiar with) for cricket. The story: when a West Indian family moves in next door, setting up a net in the garden, David is the only one who approves of this. Apparently it’s better on DVD than it was on the big screen. And, according to the critics, while the film struggles to balance its lighter moments with its serious messages and the climax arrives suddenly, we’ll be snivelling as the credits roll… For those of you that like this type of film it was highly recommended to me by Ian Darke and I would say worth renting to watch though probably not worth buying unless you want to after seeing it. Website A reminder that the Club Website (www.claygatecc.co.uk) is up and running. Thanks to those who have worked so hard on this over the last few years (Cadzy especially, Suranjan, Ian and Nigel). We would be grateful for any ideas/suggestions for content (to Nigel Abbott). Also a reminder of the Surrey Downs League website (www.surreydowns.org). Player Profile - the Darke Side Top Score: 105 (3 Claygate centuries in total) (plus a famous 97 not out - Ed) Best Bowling: 3 for 11 against Old Woking in 2002 (a miracle!) At club since: 1990 Best memory from Claygate Cricket Club: the camaraderie of the players, the banter and general atmosphere of the club, the tours have been great. Job: TV Sports Commentator Family: wife Liz and children Katherine (12) and Robert (10), two grown up children from previous marriage. Favourite Football team: Pompey (I was born in Portsmouth) Favourite Claygate Player: Rufus Legg - fine player and very club spirited (I did not pay Ian a penny for this - Ed) Favourite Films: Shawshank Redemption, The Pianist, Play It Again Sam, 13 Days (a great film about the Cuban Crisis of 1962) Favourite TV shows: The Office, Our Friends in the North, The Cricket Show (I wonder why - Ed) Last CD bought: Morrissey, David Gray, Dido Hobbies other than cricket: Racing, Theatre, Reading Autobiographies, Coffee Shops, Golf (bad) Anything else we should know? Made no. 36 in the charts - I featured on a Frank Bruno record!! Ran the London marathon in 1987. Miscellaneous dislikes: Long distance flying, petty bureaucracy and red tape, bad manners. Changes you would like at Claygate CC: a state-of-the art Pavilion and a bit less apathy. Ambitions: to stay healthy enough to keep playing for as long as possible and to see Des Cecil hit that much-deserved century. Picture: Ian Darke
West End Esher Six-a-Side Tournament On a drizzly Sunday in late August, Claygate won the annual six-a-side, five overs per innings competition at West End Esher. Eight local teams were involved and Claygate were invited to take part this year as part of West End Esher’s centenary celebrations. Under the astute captaincy of Mark O’Connell they won through the first group with victories against West End, Weybridge and Surrey Lions. In the final, against West End Esher, Claygate were set 62 and won with an over to spare with Tom McKinley outstanding and Chris Howe hitting the winning runs. The other members of the victorious squad were: Ben Lane, Danny Ranger, Scott Labacik and Joris Nathanson. Following the lead set by Graham Dear and the success of 2003 (and others previously) we continued with the Kwik Cricket sessions on a Sunday morning and pleased to note we had 55 boys and girls aged between 5 and 11 take part through the summer. David Andrews who also went up to the Colts, Hope Dear, Daniel Hanies, Matthew Neat, Sam Darby, Rohan Cooray, Nick Ainger and Tom Guyatt. Unfortunate timing meant we could not take part in a Kwik Cricket competition held at Capel Cricket Club but have high hopes of participating next year. We would like to thank all those members who helped out during our morning sessions and look forward to next year and seeing the children progress into the Colts. We will continue in 2005 starting at the beginning of June. Russ and Pam
Colts Report Claygate have plans to start a league team at Under-12 level next season. This is vital as a bridge between Kwik Cricket and the adult sections of the club. Most Sunday mornings this season with great help from Graham Dear and Luke Cridland, we have supervised a ten-strong group of local lads of varying talent. But we need some new kit and more help with the coaching next season, if it means senior pros like Mark O’Connell come down for a morning to teach them a few tricks of the bowling trade. We played just one game this year, when the boys put up a surprisingly good effort against the well-established youth team at Thames Ditton, losing by just a few runs in a tight finish. Next season we will look to build on that as there's nothing like match experience to teach the boys the demands of the game. If you know of any decent young players around this age, could you alert them to the fact that we hope to be running a Sunday team next season. I would seriously like the club to think about an all-weather track somewhere on the Rec, proving it can be virtually vandal proof (not easy). Ian Darke 2005 Claygate Cricket Club Tour We are going back to Sri Lanka, ten years after the very successful inaugural overseas tour took us to that exotic tropical island full of great beaches, ancient culture, known as the place which makes people happy and where they can make unexpected discoveries. With arrangements in the very capable hands of Andy Spector (020 8398 1352) and Suranjan Cooray (020 8817 1117), who both know how to look after our interests, it should be another memorable trip. Any late interest welcome but please contact Andy or Suranjan immediately! Costs are £899 per adult and the full amount has to be paid by 2 December.
Inside back cover - Club Bentota, Sri Lanka Back cover collage
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