Cavalier Cricket

2010 Friendly Fixtures

2010-02-16T12:37:00.001Z

Please note we now have added 2 Friendly Fixtures against Dedham this season to fill in some gaps in the fixture list. We will play Dedham at Home on 29th May and Away on 14th August, both games due to start at 1300.

PQD Presentation Evening

2010-01-06T12:15:00.002Z

So far the following people have indicated they wish to go to the PQD Presentation Evening on 6th February;

Tony Mayhew
Phil Wolski
Simon Gilhooly
Stuart Johnson
Jack Kneeshaw
Dan Skinner
Ray Smith

League Averages Dominated by Cavaliers

2009-12-15T11:26:00.000Z

Congratulations to Phil Wolski for winning the league wicket-keeping award; First to 15 Dismissals, a much deserved reward for some great keeping up to the stumps.

Congratulations to Ray Smith for winning the Division 2 bowling averages. Ray took 32 wickets, more than anyone else in Div 2, at an average of just 11.94. Indeed the whole Cavaliers bowling unit dominated the averages with Stuart Johnson second (30 @ 14.67), Darren Dellar third (23 @ 15.91) and Tony Mayhew fifth (27 @ 17.00).

Other Cavaliers appeared in the final tables; Danny Skinner was eighth in the batting with 44.6 and Simon Gilhooly 10th with 41.4. In Division 5 Rasanga Suraweera featured in both batting and bowling stats, while Vinnie was third in the batting with a very healthy average of 57.0, only bettered by the Stebbing guys.

The League Awards Dinner is Saturday 6th February and we will be attending to celebrate a great achievement. Please let Stuart or Simon know if you would like to attend.

Cavaliers Tour 2010 - Derbyshire

2009-11-02T10:56:00.005Z

** Friday 28th May to Monday 31st May. ** Please all note the dates for Tour next year, so you all have ample time to book off work. As always its a great laugh and would be good to see you all there!

Pictures from End of Season Dinner

2009-10-26T12:42:00.003Z

More pictures can be seen here.

The end of season dinner was well supported by club members, the food at the Red Lion was good, the speeches were short and to the point and a select few partied long into the night to send Rasa home in style.

The awards went as follows;

Best Batsman - Danny Skinner
First XI Batting Average - Danny Skinner
Best Bowler - Ray Smith
First XI Bowling Average - Ray Smith
Second XI Batting Average - Martin Vinter
Second XI Bowling Average - Rasanga Suraweera
Best Fielder - Phil Wolski
Chairman's Player of the Year - Tony Mayhew
Man-of-the-Match Award - Stuart Johnson
Clubman of the Year - Simon Gilhooly

Congratulations to everyone who won awards - thanks to everyone who attended for supporting the club.

Pavilion Update

2009-09-28T10:49:00.000+01:00

Our planning application has reached the public consultation stage with letters being delivered to local residents late last week. The process has been somewhat delayed by the requirement for accurate plans and my unfamiliarity with the planning department requirements. I believe we will have a decision in about a month's time.

Not so good news on the funding side of things. Our application to Sport England was rejected on the grounds that they don't support building projects from the Small Capital Fund. I think we can apply to their Matched Funding scheme or we can try Essex Community Foundation. Either way I don't see any reason why we can't complete our project before the first home game of the 2010 season.

Best Season Ever?

2009-09-28T00:18:00.001+01:00

Cavaliers wrapped up an excellent season with a victory over Earls Colne & Bures at the picturesque Bures ground, however Little Bardfield manged to beat both Colchester and Great Totham in the final weekend to snatch second place and leave Cavaliers third in Division 2 for the second season running.

We were asked to bat first on a spongey wicket offering considerable assistance for the bowlers but Simon and Jack laid a solid foundation allowing Danny and Rasa to reap the rewards of the short boundaries putting on a 100 partnership for the 4th wicket. Danny played his most destructive innings of the season while Rasa was clearly enjoying his late season form.

In reply EC&B lost wickets at regular intervals and only opener Pilgrim offered any real resistance being last out for a plucky 77. Rasa was probably the pick of the bowlers collecting 3-18 although Paul C bowled a very tidy spell of off-spin and in total 8 bowlers were used as the sun set over the river.

As news came through that Bardfield had beaten Colchester our last hope of promotion faded but sorrows were drowned in traditional fashion with a good few beers and a curry. With the Second XI coming second in Division 5 and almost certainly promoted, the Evening League side winning their Division title and the First XI collecting a record 15 league victories it has definitely been Cavaliers best ever season.

The Bardfield Sniper Strikes Back

2009-09-21T08:52:00.004+01:00

Since the first game of the season we've been joking about the 'Bardfield Sniper' after Phil collapsed in a heap attempting a catch. In an eventful day at Gosfield, Cavaliers 1st XI kept slim promotion hopes alive with a win despite coming under real gun fire from the bushes. Phil managed to reprise his famous swan dive and this time took a good catch, unfortunately the ball only cannoned into the batsman's pads.

Apparently Afghanistan have qualified for the next cricket World Cup and the Cavaliers, Danny and Jack in particular now know exactly what it must be like playing cricket in that country after three idiotic kids decided to turn their air guns on the pitch. The police were called and the culprits caught but sadly not detained.

In the game, Cavaliers won the toss and elected to bat first. Almost certainly a mistake as we had been warned that the pitch might deteriorate and due to the east-west alignment of the pitch (didn't old Essex groundsmen realise that the sun sets in the west?). After a wayward first over Stuart discovered a good line from over the wicket and bowled ten straight, economical overs but Danny was struggling with the new ball and despite inducing the opener to pull a catch to Rasa was unusually eratic. Gosfield captain, Dicker came to the crease and after taking his time to get set proceeded to dispatch anything short from the Cavaliers attack, of which there was far too much.

At drinks Gosfield were looking well set at 84-1 but the break was immediately followed by a wicket as opener Rose clipped Tony to midwicket where Simon took a catch diving full to his right. Gosfield consolidated for a few overs before returning to the attack taking Kevin and Tony for two expensive overs each. Hoping to find a combination that would bowl full and straight Darren and Rasa joined the attack and the plan worked as Dicker was finally trapped LBW for a fine 87. After that the resistance melted away and Darren joined the '5-for' club of 2009, Rasa took two thanks to catches by Jack in the deep and was unlucky to see Tony and Simon drop chances.

Despite some ragged bowling and fielding a score of 224 didn't look too daunting as long as we got a good start. Simon and Jack started positively but Jack clipped to short-square-leg in the third over. Paul continued the positive approach and Cavs had 53 on the board after 10 overs, well up with the required rate. When Paul steered a catch off a popped ball there was an emergency change to the batting order as Danny was caught in the can and so Rasa was promoted. In typical Rasa style he had one sighter before smashing 4-4-4-3 off the next four balls. Repeating the feat against the change bowler more or less took the game away from Gosfield. After making his fifty in double quick time Rasa unluckily managed to scoop a sweep back onto his own stumps. Danny took a little longer to look at the conditions before launching a similar battery of boundaries also racing to a quick half-century. Even the setting sun could not halt the assault although it was probably fortunate that the contest was over early as the sun was about a foot above the sightscreen by the close.

Tired Legs. Tired Minds. Tired Performance.

2009-09-19T22:00:00.001+01:00

The Cavaliers' Friendly season was brought to a close with an emphatic defeat c/o the Kelvedon & Feering Juniors.

Having lost the toss and been put in to bat the Cavs made a good start with Pete & Vinnie putting on 32 for the first wicket, however, once Pete had departed wickets fell all too regularly from then on. With Vinnie departing having skied one behind for a well played 25 a low total was inevitable though Luke & Paul (15) rallied briefly for the fifth wicket before Paul fell LBW playing across the line. Steve was unfortunate to come in facing the impressive Stobbs and was bowled at which point Luke (22) opted to re-enact Paul's out leg before playing (we think) a slog sweep? Cameos from Dan (12) & Dale (11*) ensured the Cavaliers made it past the one hundred mark but the visitors were unable to use up their full 40 over allocation, Bernie's dismissal brining the innings to a close with just 125 on the board after 38.4 overs.

With a small total to defend (against 12 batsmen) it was imperative for the fielding side that they bowl tightly from the off unfortunately the perennial problem of wides came to the fore once again with both Dale & Luke struggling to find their lines. Regular bowling changes were made in the hope of disrupting the fluency of the home side's batters but with little effect ... the introduction of spin c/o Vinnie did bring the first wicket but it was apparent to all that the game was all but over. The skippers decision not to use Muttiah Pawsey earlier on in proceedings began to look a tad foolish as the wiley spinner picked up the second wicket of the innings in his first and indeed only over and in fact had Craig been able to hold on to what was a tough chance at mid-on he could have had two wickets in two balls. Needing just four to win Pete was given the honour of closing out the season and the home side achieved their target with plenty of both overs and batsmen to spare.

A poor day at the office for the Cavaliers with wides contributing 28 of the home sides reply of 128-2... let us hope that lessons have been learnt for next year.

Wrong Time, Wrong Place

2009-09-13T10:13:00.006+01:00

Promotion hopes for Cavaliers First XI seem to be slipping away after a heavy defeat at Little Baddow who now seem certain of promotion themselves. Assuming Little Bardfield overcome lowly Gosfield today, Cavaliers will slip back into third place and will be at the mercy of other results even if we win our two remaining games.

The One-Day International at Lords and other work / social events took out five regular First XI players so it had been a tough week of calls to pull together a side at all, but eleven fit and able men took to the field determined to give Baddow a hard game. Robbie bowled an excellent opening spell dismissing both opens thanks to catches by Simon in the slips and Tony dashing around the boundary at long-off. Tony opened the bowling at the other end in an attempt to catch the opening batsmen off guard with some spin, which worked to a degree for four overs before Ray took over. Together Robbie and Ray applied some pressure resulting in four quick wickets to reduce the home side to 87-6 after 22 overs and give the Cavaliers reason to hope. However Andy Harris striding to the wicket coming at number 8 wasn't really what we needed as he took a fancy to Kevin's bowling launching him into the woods for the first of many ball hunts. Despite rotating the bowling and Tony returning to bowl six overs with only one boundary conceded we could not contain Harris and the excellent #3 Lucy who both made their centuries in a stand of 179 from just 20 overs.

Kevin returned to have another go and found much better control to dismiss both centurians going for big hits, another great catch from Jack under the trees, but it was all too late as Baddow piled on the runs to take Cavaliers for their worst ever total. Despite this all the fielders had shown great committment in difficult circumstances.

Tea was reduced to 20 minutes due to the time spent searching in the woods so Jack and Simon led out the reply still munching on cake. The Baddow bowling contrasted between the steady ,accurate at one end and wild pace at the other but the Cavs openers could not master either end and the start was slow although not any slower than Baddow's earlier. Both Jack and Simon fell to the steady, accurate end, Alex and Luke to the introduction of off-spin at the other. Paul M played some fine shots particularly off the spinner before the highlight of the innings as Robbie smashed the ball to all corners including a huge hit into the woods equalling his best score for the Cavaliers.

Against a strong Baddow side, boosted by their Mid-Essex league players, we had our moments and should feel pleased with our efforts, particularly the fielding by Alex, Luke, Kevin, Deji and Paul who threw themselves around to save every run. A big thanks to those five for stepping into such a tough game.

A Pinch of Spin

2009-09-06T22:12:00.000+01:00

Cavaliers recorded a much needed victory in the chase for promotion thanks to an inspired piece of pinch hitting by Robbie, followed up by some great slow bowling by Ray, Tony and Kevin. Ray collected his second 5 wicket haul of the season with a masterclass of wicket to wicket bowling.

On our last visit to north Clacton we had nine men and only played about 10 overs on a wickedly cold, wet day. Thankfully the weather gods had done better this year with all the foul weather coming during the week. Another lost toss saw us asked to bat first and with Jack and Paul unable to play Robbie had a chance to reprise his Twenty20 role of pinch hitter. Some very wayward bowling, extras ending up as the top scorer, and a glass outfield helped Cavaliers get off to an excellent start getting to 50 in the sixth over, and 100 in the fifteenth but Ramblers fought back with their slow bowlers and after their first breakthrough there was a steady trickle of wickets. Robbie was bowled by a beauty, Simon fell to a full toss first ball after drinks but Danny held together the innings as everyone chipped in without dominating. After aiming for a total around 300 at one point we were a bit disappointed by 215 but confident that good bowling would secure the game.

Darren and Stuart kept things tight at the start of the Ramblers reply but James and Daniels built a solid start. Having seen the Ramblers slow bowlers prosper it was time to introduce Ray and Kevin, who both bowled great 10 over spells, Ray picking up most of the wickets but both built pressure through a tight line. Our fielding was good again, with most of the catches being held, apart from a brief spell once the game was effectively over.

Only a later 10th wicket flurry of hitting kept things interesting as Ramblers were never really in with a shout of matching the Cavaliers score.

The next game is the big one against Little Baddow. Unless there are any surprises this game could determine the outcome of title and promotion places.

Batting Parked

2009-09-01T00:10:00.001+01:00

After learning that promotion rivals Little Baddow had lost the previous day, Cavaliers were given a chance to top Division 2 if we could overcome a 'genuine' Colchester & East Essex side. However it was not to be as we wasted a great position earned through some great bowling and a solid opening stand.

Things started well after being asked to field first as Stuart took wickets in his first two overs to reduce C&EE to 7-2 but Earley and Thomas built a good stand on an excellent wicket putting on close to a 100 before Thomas skied a catch off Danny who was bowling with real pace. Unfortunately good chances to dismiss Earley behind the wicket were spurned and he went on to make his half century until Simon's long arms snagged another one handed catch off Tony's bowling.

Both Robbie and Danny bowled a great spells with real pace and accuracy, indeed credit to all the bowlers on for restricting C&EE to 187, maybe a few more than they should have got if we'd fielded a bit better.

The reply could not have started any better as Simon and Jack built a stand of 98 runs before Simon was bowled in the 24th over. Jack was next out as the heat took it's toll on his concentration but we still looked well placed at 117-2, needing just 80 runs in 18 overs. For whatever reason, maybe the ball got a bit soft or maybe the bowlers tightened up their line but none of the other Cavaliers got to grips with the conditions and the pressure started to mount. Jon W made the only other significant contribution as we ran out 10 runs short of our target. With the required rate never above 5 and the field spread we strangely found it difficult to put bat on ball or hit any boundaries.

A disappointing result but the season is still very much alive with key games still to be played.

Rasattack

2009-08-31T23:00:00.003+01:00

Playing in his last league fixture in PDQ Div 5 Rasanga put in a man-of-the-match performance to secure victory for the 2nd's and in so doing ensured a 2nd place finish for the 2009 season.

With the fixture being played in the somewhat unusual surroundings of Brantham and the game having been shortened to 40 overs per side neither side was quite sure what to expect from the pitch and neither had an inkling for what would prove to be a competitive score. Batting first the Cavaliers got off to a poor start with the skipper falling without troubling the scorers and Pete following relatively soon thereafter leaving the Cavaliers struggling a tad at 28-2. With Luke watching on from the other end Alex C continued to keep the scoreboard ticking over though with the score having moved on to 53 his innings was brought to a close for a well played 31. "Man of the Moment" Rasa strode to the crease who having been told by his teammates that nothing short of 60 was acceptable started in his usual inimitable attacking fashion and as Luke watched on from the other end Rasa began despatching the visitors' bowling attack to all parts. Luke was finally put out of his misery for 6 (off 22 balls!) and Alex W soon followed and with the score at 99-5 things looked rather ominous however the introduction of Steve P turned the game in the Cavaliers' favour as he and Rasa soon had the scoreboard racing along this despite the incredibly slow over-rate! Rasa duly brought up his first and last half century for the 2nd's and didn't stop there, as per their earlier meeting this season C&EE were obliged to bring back their opening bowlers in order to get a breakthrough with W Spain finally managing to remove Steve P who had comfortably kept up with Rasa contributing 34 in a much needed partnership of 65 for the 6th wicket. Rasa's blistering innings finally came to end for a superbly crafted 72 as he was bowled by the big man Chiwora and thus with the score on 174-5, tail exposed and ten overs to go the game was still somewhat in the balance but excellent batting from Dan (22) and Bernie (13*) ensured the Cavaliers surpassed 200 for only the third time in their 2009 league campaign and with the last ball of the 40th over eventually bowled the score closed on 215-8.

Needing to be off the square no later than 7pm C&EE kindly agreed to forego tea until the close of play and the sides turned around immediately. Needing a good run-rate from the off the C&EE openers looked to push the run-rate from the get-go but Dale's dismissal of C Spain soon had them on the back foot. An excellent partnership then ensued between Cairns and Shah and it was the latter again who would prove to be the danger man having won C&EE the game at the Castle Park earlier in the month. Jason bowling first change produced his best spell of the season and bowling in partnership with Rasa essentially ensured victory for the home side as both bowled with unerring accuracy and collecting wickets at crucial times. Rasa fresh from his own batting exploits fittingly picked up the key wicket of Shah as he took what can only be described as a superb return catch off his own bowling much to the astonishment of the C&EE batsman who in truth had nailed it straight out of the middle of the bat. With Shah's dismissal the game was essentially all but over. Luke came on to bowl something of a rare spell and picked up his first wickets of the season thanks in part to his brother for holding on to two catches the first of which being a tricky over the shoulder type affair. Some powerful hitting by mid-week Cavs man Chiwora (and poor bowling) got the visitors score up to a respectable 150-9 at the close. A 65 run victory for the Cavaliers avenging their earlier defeat in the season.

Special mention to Phil Lawler at Brantham Athletic for being such an excellent host, indeed post match discussions gave hope to the possibility of some floodlit 20/20 fixtures next season which should be fun for all!

I know I speak for all in thanking Rasa for all of his efforts for the 2nd XI this year, we are sorry to see you leaving us but we wish you all the best in your future endeavours both on and off the cricket pitch wherever they may take you. We hope to see you again soon!

Box Clever

2009-08-30T23:43:00.000+01:00

A busy Bank Holiday weekend got off to a good start with a solid win over Boxted to revenge the defeat earlier in the season and, similar to last season, share the wins with our most local rivals.

The pitch conditions looked good and with clear skies we happy to win the toss and bat first but from the first ball batting wasn't as simple as expected with erratic bounce alternately threatening the hands and toes. Danny was the only batsman to master the conditions, anchoring the innings to make an unbeaten 93, with excellent support from Ray at the close. Jon R hit a memorable straight six as the late order acceleration got us up to 190, certainly much more than looked likely a few overs earlier.

The Boxted innings started badly for the home side with a wicket falling first ball to Stuart, thanks to an excellent catch by Tony. Thereafter the bowlers were put to the sword until Ray joined the attack to dismiss the dangerous Gilbert for 43 and the other top order batsmen shortly afterwards to leave Boxted struggling at 93-4.

Tony bowled his usual good line to pick up 4 wickets in the middle order, thanks to some great catching, especially by Robbie and a couple more stumpings by Phil. The last four wickets went down quickly to wrap the game up early with a win by 49 runs.

Blown Away

2009-08-23T19:00:00.000+01:00

Stebbing.... different line up, different venue, same outcome... a comprehensive defeat for the Cavaliers (only this time thankfully we didn't field first!)

In theory we could leave the match report there but I feel obliged to post something... in reality the game never really seemed to get going for the Cavaliers. Luke having won the toss and given the gusty conditions, lack of sightscreens and good looking track opted to bat first and he and Pete proceeded to get the visitors off to a decent start, both batsman riding their luck in the face of some good bowling but both also throwing in the odd decent shot for good measure. With the score on 41 Pete was the first to succumb to Winter's nagging line, length & swing in the 9th over and from then on it was another case of the Cavaliers Collapse as the visitors proceeded to slump to 55-6 with Vinnie, Jon & Alex all failing to record a run. Darren coming in perhaps belatedly at no.8 restored some semblance of respect to proceedings but as he ran out of batting partners he had little choice but to go for his shots and was bowled by Law for a cultered knock of 21. Cavaliers all out for 100 off just 26.4 overs. Woeful.

With the teas understandably not ready the sides turned round to bowl the first ten overs of the home sides reply with Darren & Rasa taking the new ball. Both bowled well and Darren got reward for his excellent line as he removed Gwyther (0) but from then on it was very much the Law & specifically Winter show as the home side cantered to the their target interrupted only by sandwiches & sponge cake...

Yet another day to forget for the 2nds who were without question thoroughly outplayed. We wish Stebbing well in Div 4 next season and trust they will enjoy the more challenging fixture ahead.

Fishy friendly ends in loss for Cavs

2009-08-22T19:00:00.000+01:00

Match Report c/o Freelancer Steve P

Friendly games are always a bit of a lottery, with the two uncertainties of how strong a team will be picked and how seriously both sides take the game. This friendly against Ardliegh pitched together 2 very evenly matched teams who both had the same desire to win whilst recognising that it was not a league match trying to play the game in a slightly more relaxed way. Well done to both teams.

I am going to leave comment on the fact that 30 minutes before the game Cavaliers had 12 players, yet we ended up playing the game with 10½!

The Cavaliers innings started at a tremendous pace at 10 an over for the first 3, but Paul Mills (12) and Alex Corcos (11) lost their wickets in quick succession. Indeed this set a trend as a string of batsmen got themselves in, only to get themselves out again. Stephen Peeling (22) and new boy Aaron (20) put on a nice little partnership of 40. When Robbie Mitchell (20) and Razza (39) were together, a total of 200 looked possible, but after they were both out that hope vanished. Bernie was the only Cavs batsman not to put runs on the board getting a golden duck, Cavs ended up with a total of 165 off 33 overs

Robbie and Dale opened the bowling and one of Ardliegh’s big hitting openers left us all thinking that the Cavs total was far too small as he started to hit big sixes. But in a similar fashion to Cavs, the Ardliegh batsmen also had a tendency to get out without posting big totals. Alex took 2 super catches at Mid off, Stephen (the Salmon) Peeling took an awesome catch in his chest from a huge clout and them followed this with a sublime slip catch, Indeed Stephen almost bagged a third catch when he could only get his fingertips to a slip catch that would have rivalled the infamous diving slip catch from our vice captain earlier in the season. Phil (the Barracuda) Wolski took a really sharp run out chance with a brilliant throw from Razza. Phil had a great game considering that he had only flown in from USA that morning and had not slept for over 24 hours. All our bowlers bowled well, all giving away between 22 and 28 runs each, the wickets were shared between Robbie (2) Ray Smith (3) and Bernie (2). In the end though Ardliegh struck the winning runs winning by 2 wickets. But on reflection it was the dropped catches that was the difference between the 2 teams, I recall one really sharp chance dropped by Ardliegh, yet Cavs dropped 5 chances, the easiest going to Robbie (the Crayfish) Mitchell, who admitted that the sun, spin on the ball and rabbit holes under his feet had no affect at all.

The game finished in farcical circumstances, the scoreboard had been updated to show that Ardliegh needed 3 runs to win, they duly got those 3 runs and as the team shook hands and started to walk off the wicket, the scorers tried to send the teams back claiming the scores are level.

So all in all and enjoyable close fought match, played in a great spirit and in lovely weather. Well done Ardliegh.

Simon Says...

2009-08-16T21:00:00.001+01:00

The Cavaliers 2nd XI duly put their defeat at the hands of St.Osyth the day before behind them with a four wicket victory away to Cressing.

Luke again deputising for Paul kept up his 100% record for losing the toss and the home side opted to bat on what looked to be an "interesting" pitch likely to deteriorate rapidly as the day progressed. Hoping to chase a small total the opening bowlers Dale & Rasa did not disappoint as they soon had the home side on the ropes collecting the first three wickets in double quick time. It was however apparent to all that Rasa was simply too quick with the new ball on a pitch that was breaking up and offering uneven bounce and so it was that Rasa's opening stint was ended prematurely as Luke opted to take a little pace off (for fear of injury) and introduced debutant Steve Reynolds into proceedings and the left armer bowled some excellent deliveries in his maiden five over spell and can consider himself unlucky not have picked up a wicket. Alex, struggling a little from his efforts the previous day, replaced Dale at the scrap yard end for a quick three over spell and though a tad expensive did pick up the key wicket of Barefield (30) thanks to an excellent catch at midwicket by Cavaliers' other debutant Craig Finch. It was at this point that the Cressing batters began to recover and accelerate the run rate and with the new ball having been lost and subsequently replaced with a far softer ball Rasa was soon brought back into the attack and with immediate effect dismissing the determined Bailey (17). Jon was subsequently asked by his skipper to bowl at normal pace and he didn't disappoint as he clean bowled the dangerous Lane (39) with an excellent delivery ... with the introduction of the very young Elwis both Rasa & Jon sportingly reverted to spin which proved nothing other than a) Rasa bowls as fast off one pace as he does ten and b) Elwis has a bright future in cricket. With Rasa struggling to control his pace Craig came on to bowl his first overs of slow left arm and was perhaps unlucky to end up bowling to Grimwood who having seemingly run out of partners had no choice but to go for his shots subsequently dispatching Craig to all corners in his second over forcing Luke's hand in bringing Rasa back into the attack again with instantaneous results as he removed Elwis. Once Jon had bowled Grimwood (43) the innings was soon wrapped up as Jon collected a further two wickets returning final figures of 9.1-0-20-4 surpassed only by Rasa who despite having had his spells shortened still maintained sufficient ryhtym and control to return figures of 7-3-13-4, the home side's innnings ending with the score on 182 off just over 36 overs.

183 was undoubtedly a significant total to chase on a pitch that was always likely to prove to be something of a leveller but on a small ground and with a strong looking batting line up a successful run chase was perhaps odds-on. However, the quick departures of both openers left the visitors struggling though Rasa quickly turned defence into attack supported briefly by Luke who then fell playing across the line (again) putting the Cavaliers onto the back foot once more. With Rasa soon following the stand-in skipper back to the pavilion for a well played 31 and Jon dismissed soon thereafter the Cavaliers were undoubtedly teetering at 55-5 and in need of some special contributions from those lower down the order. With Simon joined in the middle by Dan and with roles quickly established the Cavaliers keeper proceeded to play his best innings for the Cavaliers thus far as he closed out his own end allowing Simon to build his own innnings without the need to take any undue risks. As Simon increasingly found the boundary the home side's confidence began to wane and the prospect of a seemingly unlikely victory began to seem possible... with the sixth wicket pair having put on an excellent stand of 72 Dan (12) finally succumbed to the pitch as much as the bowling leaving the visitors at 127-6. Thus still requiring a further 56 for victory and Simon in full swing the onus fell to debutant Steve to assume Dan's role and support his more established batting partner as best he could this he did and with some aplomb defending the good balls and despatching the bad to the boundary (including a particularly nice six over deep midwicket) and so it was the the pair saw the Cavaliers home with ease, Simon bringing up a fautless half century ending unbeaten on 72 and Steve ending unbeaten on 24, a sterling effort on debut.

An odd game if truth be told down in no small part to the pitch but undoubtedly played in the right spirit for a Division Five clash ... special mention to Cressing who should take great confidence from their performance here which was in truth a marked improvement on the performance earlier in the season at the Rugby Club and this depsite missing half a dozen regulars and their normal skipper. We wish them well both for the remainder of this season and the next.

Groundhog Day

2009-08-15T21:00:00.001+01:00

Cavaliers 2nd's losing streak gathered pace with a heavy 85 run return defeat away to St.Osyth despite a few notable efforts with bat and ball... indeed the fixture was all rather too reminiscent of the earlier meeting between the two sides at the Rugby Club.

Luke deputising for Paul lost the toss and the Cavs were asked to take to the field and after the obligatory issues with players not turning up and indebted to Jon's perseverance the Cavaliers were finally able to get the match underway at around 1.30pm with XI players. In blustery yet sunny conditions Dale & Deji opened the attack and both in truth struggled in their early overs but soon settled into a good rhythm with Deji proving especially useful with his prodigious inswing ... the Toosie openers were aggressive from the off and both as a result offered early chances which were unfortunately not taken and as in their prior fixture the Cavaliers would be made to pay. With the score on 32 Deji removed the home side skipper with a delightful slower ball, however, it was undoubtedly Mangham (G) at the other end who would prove to be the key wicket. The 2nd wicket pair for the home side batted well scoring quickly and seemingly at ease, however, the bowling partnership of Tony & Bernie began to slow the run rate though it was Kevin who would prove to be the partnernship breaker dismissing Williams for 45 in his first over (courtesy of an excellent catch by Bernie a.k.a "I need a new alarm clock" Goldsmith). As so often proves the case one wicket soon led to another as Tony deservedly picked up the much prized wicket of Mangham (G) [85] leaving the home side at 157-3. From then on in it was very much the Kevin Bailey show as he proceeded to collect wickets with unerring regularity taking a further five wickets (three of which were bowled) and in so doing finally procuring for himself the much coveted "baggy green" (6-53). Special praise too for Deji (2-32) who returned to complete the overs and collected a further wicket dismissing the dangerous Fraser for 35 thanks to a smart catch from Dan behind the stumps.

Another long day in the field but a total of 250 was not impossible on a narrow pitch with a fast outfield, it was of course imperative for the Cavaliers to get off to a good start... needless to say Luke as acting skipper failed to do any such thing falling second ball of the innings (and in doing so recording consecutive ducks against the home side, amassed in a total of 3 deliveries). Vinnie on the back of consecutive half centuries strode confidently to the crease and was soon into his stride playing textbook straight drives whilst Alex at the other end followed suit (albeit with cover drives) and soon the pair had steadied the ship and had the visitors up with the required run rate. With the score on to 74-1 Alex was next man out offering a return catch to the bowler for a well played 34 (exactly the same score he recorded against the same opposition earlier in the year, spooky!). Jon entered proceedings at No4 and having attempted to play a watchful innings soon decided that the best form of defence was to play in his usual aggressive style and he soon had the fielders despatched to the ropes as both he and Vinnie found themselves regularly picking up ten an over putting together a fifty stand in short time with Vinnie duly brining up yet another fifty, undoubtedly the innings of the day. As per the prior fixture between the two sides the game essentially changed with the introduction of one bowler which in this case proved to be Fraser (S) who having batted well earlier returned with the ball to essentially decimate the visitors batting line up. Jon (38) was the first to go with his excellent innings brought to a close with the score up to 142 and hopes still high that a chase was on however it was with Jon's departure that the Cavaliers reverted to scoring in Binary with only Kevin (1) out of Mark W (Debut), Bernie, Kevin, Dan, Deji & Dale managing to get off the mark (indeed eight batsmen managed to contribute only 2 runs). Vinnie becoming somewhat stranded at the other end decided understandably to go for his shots and was unfortunate to be last man out caught at deep midwicket for a superbly crafted 70 with the score on 162 the last eight wickets having falling for just 20 runs (this was indeed a slight improvement on the first game in which the last nine wickets fell for just 17 runs).

Another poor day for the Cavaliers but memorable for the right reasons thanks to the displays put on by Kevin & Vinnie. Thankfully not too long to wait to put things right as the Cavaliers take to the road again the following day away to bottom of the table Cressing.

P.S. The stand-in skipper would like to thank all who participated for their efforts both on and off the pitch.

Sport England Grant Application

2009-08-13T18:26:00.004+01:00

I have submitted a grant application to Sport England, under their "Small Capital Grant" scheme. Graham Pryke, the cricket development officer for North Essex had heard that this scheme has a lot of cash to distribute so hopefully some of it will fall our way.

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Planning Application Submitted

2009-08-12T11:20:00.002+01:00

The planning application for our new pavilion was submitted today. The reference number is PP-00780712 and I understand that the application will be available on the Colchester Borough Council website within a couple of days. All being well we will have our permission granted before the end of the season.

The next step is to complete applications for grant money. I am planning to apply to Sport England (the rugby club got £10K for their floodlights) and Essex Community Foundation Grassroots Fund (part of the lottery distribution). I hope to complete these within the next week or so.

Further down the line I would hope to be in a position to lay the foundation next March, order the log cabin and have it erected ahead of the 2010 season.

Haq'd

2009-08-09T22:22:00.004+01:00

A tough day in the field for Cavaliers but in the end we were beaten by one guy, making his first, and probably only appearance of the season, clearly in a different class.

It was almost certainly a bad toss to lose although it's uncertain as to whether it would have changed the result. Our bowling at the start was about the worst of the season, Stuart bowled quite well but didn't get his customary swing and so although he picked up an early wicket his line was a bit erratic. At the other end Darren unusually gave away a bunch of boundaries to opener Bhaskar and so Danny replaced him after two overs with the thought that he might be bowling at the wrong end. Dan tightened things up for a while but Bhaskar and Ul-Haq were making the most of some excellent batting conditions.

For a while it looked like Colchester would be posting more than 300 but the introduction of Ray and Tony to take the pace off the ball turned things around, Tony taking both the top batsmen among an excellent 5-47. Ray was unlucky to have Simon drop an easy catch as Cavs attempted a fight back so his figures didn't do justice to his efforts. Indeed once Ul-Haq was brilliantly caught on the run by Paul the Colchester innings collapsed in a heap with only Dom Thomas playing sensibly to ensure the full 45 overs were used.

A target of 259 was not beyond our grasp, we've done it before, but the wicket was starting to break up with the ball repeatedly going through the surface. Batting was tricky but to be fair to the Colchester bowlers they didn't give any free hits. Everyone chipped in but it wasn't until Jon W went in at #6 that we saw some clean hitting as he raced to 47 with everyone willing him to make his half-century he fell to the spin of Ul-Haq. Robbie was the only other batsmen to enjoy himself; Stuart in particular was unlucky to be bowled by an old-fashioned daisy-cutter.

By fighting to the end we managed to take 5 bowling points and 4 batting points, which represents a decent return from a match that leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

Missed Opportunities..

2009-08-09T21:00:00.005+01:00

At around 9pm on Sunday the Cavaliers were handed only their third league defeat of the season this time at the hands of Colchester & East Essex 3rd's, the venue, Castle Park.

Having elected to bat first on what was a good looking track Peter & Paul made steady progress accumulating runs at around 3.5 an over. Having taken the score onto 46 Peter was the first to fall (11) however the platform had undoubtedly been set for what promised to be a competitive total. With Vinnie entering proceedings at three the scoreboard promised to tick over but Paul (22) soon followed his opening partner back to the pavilion bring Alex C to the crease. Hopes were high that Vinne & Alex C would repeat their heroics from their last batting effort together at Wickham Bishops and the Cavaliers were not to be disappointed as the pair quickly accelerated the run-rate both playing some delightful strokes with the home side seemingly waning in the hot conditions. Having quickly taken the score along to 130-2 the home side skipper resorted to bringing back his opening bowler Spain (W) in the hope of breaking the partnership and this he duly did bowling Alex C for a well played 39. With 15 overs to go and with a strong looking batting line up a total of 230 was certainly on the cards however a mixture of bad batting, good bowling and a slice of misfortune here and there led to a quick succession of wickets as Luke (9), Alex (3) and Rasa (10) all failed to provide Vinnie with the support he required who following on from his 64* at Wickham B brought up back to back half centuries (50) before being almost immediately removed by the impressive McEvoy. At 175-7 the previously hoped for 230 was a all but a distant dream and indeed a total of 200 was looking remote but sensible and latterly aggressive batting from Kevin (17*) and Bernie (11*) dragged the Cavaliers to a close of 205-7 off the allotted 45 overs. A competitive but certainly not unassailable total on what had indeed proven to be a good track backed up by a fast outfield.

Sensing they were perhaps 30 short things were always likely to prove tight and a tad fraught in the field for the Cavaliers, however, nerves were calmed by Rasa and Dale who quickly put the visitors in control dismissing both openers leaving C&EE on 18-2 with two youngsters at the crease. However as was illustrated by Kelvedon a week earlier age is irrelevant in the face of ability and McEvoy & Booth soon began to assert themselves on the Cavaliers attack scoring quickly and in some style. As the overs progressed it was increasingly apparent that it would require a moment of brilliance to take the game away from the home side and so it was that Pete got the Cavaliers back into the match taking an excellent catch at deep mid-on to dismiss McEvoy three short of a richly deserved half century. With the home side still needing 5 an over both sides felt they were in the game and two relatively quick wickets followed with the Alexs combining to dismiss Vieler (6) and Kevin bowling Foster (6) leaving the score at 116-5. With Booth continuing to score freely at the other end the odds still favoured the home side but Alex W picked up his second wicket of the day dismissing the youngster for 44 c/o a catch by Kevin and in doing so instilled the Cavaliers as the new favourites to take the match. Kevin picked up his 2nd wicket removing Reid (1) caught at mid-on by Luke and subsequently his 3rd of the day dismissing the home side's skipper caught by Alex W leaving C&EE at 175-8. Reminiscent of Peter's knock earlier in the season C&EE's Shah in the face of frequent dismissals at the other end remained resolute intent on steering his side to victory and though hopes were understandably high in the field it was clear he would prove to be the key in determining the final outcome and try as they might the visitors bowling attack simply could not oust him and so in fading light and with only a few balls to spare the home side made it home winning by 2 wickets with Shah fittingly scoring the winning runs and in doing so ending unbeaten on 43.

A good effort all round by both sides and an excellent days cricket, though the result was not as intended the Cavaliers should comfort themselves with the fact that they shall play worse and win games in this division.

Evening League Cup Final

2009-08-05T12:11:00.004+01:00

Having won Division 2 of the Colchester Evening League at the first attempt Cavaliers were up against Division 1 winners Lloyds Bank in the Allan Barlow Memorial Cup played at Elmstead Grasshoppers ground.

Jon lost the toss and we were invited to bat first on a good looking wicket in a match reduced to 15 six ball overs due to the promise of fading light. Simon and Robbie continued their opening roles with a good first over but Robbie was clean bowled by the first ball of the second over. Simon and Danny progressed well with steady accumulation of singles and the occasional boundary against some accurate bowling on what turned out to be a relatively slow, low strip. A clean strike over mid-on for 6, followed by an edged 4 from Simon started the accelation but he was caught next ball. Danny now took over the attack including a massive slog-sweep six but good outfielding saved good shots from reaching the boundary. Rasa thrashed the ball around before falling victim to a well held catch and Jon R kept finding the fielders preventing a rush of runs at the end. Without being sure what constituted a good score we were relatively pleased with our 115-3.

The Lloyds reply started slowly and indeed the match may have turned on a couple of half chances to dismiss opener Goff before he got settled. With his eye in he took Darren for 22 in his second over to turn the tide towards the unbeated Lloyds outfit. Rotating his bowlers furiously skipper Jon was unable to stem the tide but as the overs progressed and a few wickets fell we found ourselves in with a long shot in the final overs. Deji took a wicket in the 13th over, then Tim bowled a wicket maiden in the 14th with the scores tied, leaving Danny (our maiden king) to try to prevent Lloyds scoring off the final over. Despite two dot balls Lloyds scored the winning runs with 3 balls to spare.

Despite the disappointment of losing the final everyone agreed that the Evening League has served its purpose of giving members an extra opportunity to bat or bowl, indeed we used 9 different bowlers in this game.

Feering the Worst

2009-08-02T22:00:00.000+01:00

With no league fixture in Div 5 the traditional 2^nd XI morphed into the much vaunted Cavaliers Friendly XI ... subsequently falling to a heavy defeat away at Kelvedon & Feering.

Having overcome the now all too customary last minute availability issues hopes were high as the Cavaliers side took to the field with their full quota of eleven fielders!

Jason & Bernie took the new ball causing the young openers a few problems early on alas chances on this occasion were not taken with Jason failing to hold on to what was in truth a regulation return catch and neither Luke nor Dan able to snaffle an edge that bisected keeper and first slip much to Bernie's dismay. Credit however where credit is due as the home side's openers took full advantage and asserted themselves on the new ball pair ... given it was a friendly Luke came on first change to bowl his customary selection of straight(ish) ones, wide ones and really wide ones lulling Grissithe into edging one behind which unfortunately Dan was unable to hold on to. Rasa was introduced in place of Jason and bowled with his customary verve, passing the outside edge on numerous occasions but unable to make the breakthrough, both openers going on to make well deserved half centuries. It was with the introduction of messrs Walton & Bailey that things began to take a turn for the better with Rasa holding on to a good catch off Jon’s bowling to dismiss the very impressive Parsons (the youngster having made an elegant 62 in an opening stand of 149) and Kevin quickly dismissing the home sides’ no.3 for just 6. Thereafter wickets began to fall fairly regularly with the Cavs able to haul themselves back to a vaguely respectable position, Bernie’s 2^nd spell particularly noteworthy as he collected a few more wickets to add to his seasons tally.... the home side eventually finishing up on 283-8 off their allotted 45 overs.(apologies for lack of specifics but the scorebook is not quite what it could have been...)

As is tradition when facing a large total the innings started poorly though conceded this was on this occasion in the face of some excellent fast bowling with Jon and Rasa falling in quick succession. At 6-2 Luke joined Paul in the middle and together the pair began to accumulate runs without ever being in contention with the required run rate. Fair to say that both batsman played a mix bag, scratching around at times against some excellent bowling but with the odd nice shot thrown in for good measure. Having taken the score on to 72-2 and in truth having seen off most of the better bowling Paul finally fell leg before for 35 and wickets fell steadily from then on, Pete getting a good one from the very impressive Coe “early doors” and Martin unfortunate to be run out. Luke was stumped having played across the line for 36 and the only real subsequent resistance came from Steve who made a quick fire 14 including a couple of nice boundaries.

Needless to say not a great day in terms of results but the match was played in a good yet competitive spirit. The young Kelvedon side were without question too strong for the Cavaliers but hopes of a rematch later this year against a slightly weaker Kelvedon side remain if only for the promise of another tea on real plates with mini hot-dogs...

Race the Rain

2009-08-01T22:47:00.001+01:00

Within two minutes of leaving the field with a valuable win over Clacton Ramblers the forecast rain arrived washing out many other games in the area.

With heavy rain forecast for later in the day Cavaliers were happy to win the toss and bowl first although Clacton were equally happy to have the chance to bat first, possible due to a depleted bowling attack. Clacton started strongly with James and Daniels taking the score to 40 with a combination of deft strokes to the short boundary and some lusty straight hits before Darren found the edge of James's bat and Simon took a low catch and bowled Daniels in his next over. With pressure building Darren and Stuart bowled their ten overs straight through before Robbie and Ray took over. Ray took the crucial wicket of Jeffrey who gave Stuart a catch chance, missed, and two balls later played exactly the same shot to be dismissed. After that the rot set in with only #3 batsmen Cooper holding onto his wicket for any time once Amir joined the attack with twelve overs to go. Bowling a perfect line and length from around the wicket the ball spun sharply with bounce to beat the outside edge time and again to give him the best ever five wicket haul for the club. Phil did the rest with three sharp stumpings. Six wickets had fallen in the final eight overs to prevent Clacton accelerating to a decent total.

After a solid start to our innings the only question was whether we could beat the rain. Simon and Darren started solidly and by the time Darren was (finally) caught in the gully Simon was well set and tucked into the fare served up by Daniels and Jeffrey with relish. Rasa played his customary attacking innings and together the pair reached the target of 141 inside 20 overs. No sooner had we reached the shelter of the hut when the heavens opened. At nearby Castle Park no further play was possible so we were fortunate to come away with all the points.