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Tuesday 25th July 2017 at Benwell Hill Cricket Club.

Having lost the toss we were asked to have a bat on what looked like a firm slightly green wicket which was expected due to the amount of rain we've had recently. We got off to a slow but steady start due to some decent bowling from the opposition; this all changed in the 6th over Matthew Tanney was bowled for 4. Dent went 1st ball of the next over for 20 with the score on 26. After 10 overs we were reasonably well placed at 39-2 with Lewis Tanney and Callum Milburn looking set. Unfortunately any momentum that was gained quickly stopped dead with the fall of wickets as Lewis went for 7 parsons for 4 and Callum for a well-made 27. This left Paul Milburn and Stu Rosser to rebuild for a couple of overs before Milburn fell for 16. Stu finished unbeaten on 7 leaving us about 20 runs short at 95-6 after 20 overs. J. Warner was the pick of Whickham’s bowlers with 4-30 off his 5 overs.

We would need early wickets which didn't materialise with Warner getting off to a quick start with 2 6s in the 2nd over. Whickham made steady progress reaching 69-1 in the 12 over. 2 quick wickets in the 13th over from Lewis Tanney with a run out and a Matthew Tanney wicket in the next 3 overs left Whickham on 88-5 after 17 overs. The game was won in the next over when Warner completed a man of the match performance by hitting the winning runs and ending up 58 not out. The Tanney brothers being the pick with 3 wickets between them.

Congratulations to Whickham who were the better team on the day.

Big thank you to Benwell Hill for allowing our club to play at your ground.  

Thanks from skipper David Dent go to all the lads who have played there part in a good cup run his season. We have lots of potential in the squad so there's no reason why with a little good fortune we can't go 1 better next season.

1st team play Whickham CC on Tuesday 25th July at Benwell Hill CC in the Wilson Cup.

2nd team play Whickham CC on Thursday 27th July at Blyth CC in the Enid Farmer Cup. 

Both the 1st and 2nd team games were called off due to the rain and the pitches not being fit.

1st were due to be at home against Blyth and 2nds were away to Berwick.

Our 2nd team travelled to Howick CC for the weather delayed semi-final, we restricted Howick to a low score and we chased it down for the loss of only a few wickets.

The final is at Blyth CC on 20th July we play Wickham CC its a 6pm start.

Having won the toss captain David Dent asked Warkworth CC to bat first on what looked like a good wicket that would stay consistent throughout the whole 40 overs of the game. Having decided to open the bowling with Dean Greaves and off spinner Scott Maddison we got off to a steady start thanks to some tidy bowling. Greaves returned figures of 3-17 and Maddison 1-21 of their 5 overs which left the visitors on 41-4 at the halfway stage of their innings.

Lewis Tanney and Dent himself then replaced the opening bowlers and continued there good work finishing with figures of 3-37 and 3-27 respectively. Warkworth CC were all out for 113 in the 20 over.

In reply Dent and Matthew Tanney fell cheaply leaving us 4-2 after 2 overs. Callum Milburn and Lewis Tanney then fought hard to rebuild the innings steadily with some excellent running between the wickets. At 39-2 after 10 overs we had fallen behind the run rate but this was when Callum took the game by the scruff of the neck and along with Tanney took us to within touching distance of victory. Lewi fell for 29 leaving us needing 12 to win off 4 overs. Callum finished 72 not out from 50 balls which included 5 4s and 3 6s to see us safely into the final with18 balls to spare.

The Wilson Cup Final is to be played at Benwell Hill CC on Tuesday 25th July 6pm start against league new comers Wickham CC.

We welcomed GEMS to the recreation ground looking to avenge our loss from the opening game of the season. Paul Milburn had failed to recover from an ankle injury so Jay Little came in to replace him, Jay has scored well for the 2nds this season and thoroughly deserved his place in the side. Hoop master Cory Milburn is still 2 weeks away from full fitness so Owen Jarvis kept his place.

The skipper lost the toss (classic Harwood) and we were asked to bowl (also classic Harwood). The water had managed to creep under the covers during the week and there was a noticeable wet patch on a good length, so we were pretty pleased with the outcome to be honest.

Mukhtar opened up with Mansoor, and having learnt from previous encounters we deployed a deep cow corner for Mukhtar and set about our work. In a crazy 10-minute spell, GEMS soon found themselves 19-2 thanks to some poor running between the wickets. Both batsman hit drives to Lewy Tanney at mid-off and attempted to steal a quick single, given that Lewy is one of our better fielders he is the wrong person to try this against. Both were swiftly run out and both were sent walking back to the changing rooms and it hadn’t even been 4 overs.

This brought together Javed Mirza & Zhoaib Shahid, who are not only GEMS best batsman but also two of the best players in the league; we knew that if we could get through them then we had a good chance of limiting their score. They knew it as well and dug in for a period, not looking to score and attempting to consolidate their position. After a good 10 over contest between bat and ball, David Dent made the key breakthrough getting the wicket of Shahid caught and bowled for a patient 6 off 32 deliveries to leave GEMS 46-3.

Dean Greaves soon got in on the action taking the wicket of Qureshi in the next over, caught Harwood at short leg, points to vice vice captain Adam Peacock for the field placement. GEMS reached 54-4 at drinks.

Mirza along with Ahmed continued to dig in and put on a 50 partnership to drag the total up towards 100, whilst frustrated with a lack of wickets we were not overly worried as both batsman weren’t looking to score and the run rate was under control.

Lewy Tanney turned the tide of the game with two quick wickets, carrying an ankle injury he shortened his run up to bowl some gentle dibbles and seemed to benefit with greater control. He eventually proved too much as he took two wickets in one over, the highlight being a clever slower ball to bowl Mirza for 49 (83). He only discovered how to bowl a slower ball after watching Dent take a wicket with one the week before.

Scott Maddison would usually come on to bowl at this point but with the Tanwich in full swing wickets continued to fall and he had to wait, Matthew Tanney took the wickets of Javed and Ahmed in close succession to carry on his bowling form from previous weeks. With both of our opening bowlers out injured for the foreseeable future, Matty re-discovering the bowling side to his game has been a real asset for us

Lewy Tanney rounded off proceedings by stealing a wicket off a full jimmy to take his combined match tally to 5, caught in the boob by Jay Little out on the square leg boundary. GEMS finishing their innings 144 all out.

Dent & Peacock opened up and Dent got off to a flier hitting 3 early boundaries to reach 27-0 inside the first 4 overs, a lovely full toss outside off stump first ball helped settle and nerves. Denty’s nemesis Mukhtar got him soon after with a shorter ball that managed to find a way through falling back off the thigh pad to hit leg stump, Dent gone for 15 off 18 balls.

Peacock & Little rode their luck in a streaky 60 run partnership both being dropped twice in an entertaining 15 over spell. Runs did continue to flow however, with Little particularly strong down the ground and Peacock scoring well through the leg side. Peacock was the next man to go, falling 6 runs short of his 50 as he offered up a simple leading edge straight to mid-off. In a classic batsman’s huff, he proceeded to blame his dismissal on his partner for a lack of strike, nothing to do with poor shot selection obviously. Little fell not long after bowled off a good quicker delivery from Mirza for 24.

Lewy Tanney & Cal Milburn saw out the game in no time. With some impressive running form the pair, the game was quickly over and we reached the total in the 33^rd over.

Man of the match definitely goes to Lewy Tanney for 28*, 3 wickets, 2 run-outs, best sun burn & best dressed male at the evening do.

Ashington RCC 30 points, GEMS CC 3. points

ARCC 2nds made the journey to Monkseaton 2nds looking to continue the form that sees them sitting second in the league after the first round of fixtures.

After a week of persistent rain, at the toss, the wicket looked rather green and damp but with overhead conditions meaning that the wicket would dry further during the game, skipper Rosser decided to ask Monkseaton to bat first ARCC 2nd bowlers continued where they had left off and soon had Monkseaton under pressure with early wickets and soon it was clear that the Monkseaton batsmen were looking to complete the 40 overs at the cost of scoring runs. With a mixture of dropped catches and the approach of defend at all costs, Monkseaton finished 51 - 9 at the end of their allocated 40 overs.

When ARCC 2nds came into bat, the total was passed for the loss of one wicket in 7 overs with Steven Parsons hitting 30.

This was a comprehensive victory but also a frustrating one. The team needs to learn that focus and concentration needs to be 100% at all times no matter how the game is progressing and chances must be taken. Dropping any points in fixtures like this could mean the difference.

Monkseaton CC 0 points Ashington Rugby CC 29 points

Next up is a home game against Tynemouth 3rds on July 15th. 

Our 1st team Semi Final against Warkworth CC had to be called off at the Rec.

Ground a tad damp after 2 days of solid rain.

No need for a ‘toss justification’ segment this week, Harwood won and for the second week running chose to bowl first. The ground had recovered well from several days of downpour but with the wicket looking soft and cloud cover overhead, bowling first was the obvious choice. With Cory Milburn still 5/6 weeks away from full fitness, Owen Jarvis took Trevor Elliot’s place in the starting 11.

Jarvis is the first product of Matthew Tanney’s Midweek All-stars to progress through and play in the first team. Matty has done a fine job this season using midweek cricket to give everyone a chance to bat/bowl and through his efforts, the club has found a number of new players, we are now feeling that benefit and it is great to see.

Dean Greaves took the new ball alongside David Dent, a bald men’s opening fraternity. Greaves has been reliable as ever this season, rarely going for above 3 an over; however it would be fair to say he hasn’t quite been at his destructive best and doesn’t have as many wickets as he usually would at this stage. Well he put those fears to rest this week, causing all sorts of problems for Cramlingtons’ batsman as he ripped through the top order.

Bramley, Pulman, Marshall & Barnes were all dismissed without troubling the scorer to leave Cramlington 50-5 and in serious trouble. Greaves didn’t swing the ball as much as he normally would which actually made him even more dangerous as Batsman played for the swing. The highlight being an absolute peach to Jonathan Marshall pitching leg and hitting top of off.

Dent played second fiddle for the most part however he chipped in with the key wicket of Craddock who had hit a series of boundaries and raced to 18 off as many balls. A canny slower ball doing the job hitting middle and off.

The game drifted for a while as Tony Kay & Brian Walker steadied the ship for a while, we were definitely guilty of taking our foot off the gas in a stagnant period of 10 overs or so.

No fear as resident burglar Scotty Maddison donned his stripy black and white jumper to help clean up the tail, Matthew Tanney also chipping in with the key wicket of Kay – caught behind for a very good 37 in the circumstances.

Andrew Storey had an on and off day with the gloves as he mixed sublime takes with a few fumbles stood up to the seam bowlers. We very much enjoyed the moment when he missed a leg side stumping opportunity only to be chirped by the umpire himself at square leg for missing out!

Cramlington finished 137 all out, and as the sun started to dry out the surface we felt they were about 30-40 under par.

Adam Peacock was promoted to open the batting alongside Dent as he desperately searched for some form. The pair started tentatively, but for the first time this season Ashington got the opening partnership we so desperately craved and for once had a solid foundation from which to build from. The pair batted sensibly, respecting the new ball bowling of Livingstone & Ingram whilst still hitting boundaries at regular intervals to alleviate pressure and keep the scoreboard ticking. Dent was particularly strong down the ground in the opening exchanges hitting a number of boundaries over mid-off.

With both openers seen off and drinks in site a rush of blood saw Dent go for another drive over the top to a ball too short of a length, he was caught at mid-off by Walker off the bowling of Parker for a well-made 30. Paul Milburn joined Peacock in the middle and continued where Dent left off, however an injury curtailed his stay at the crease and he was forced to retire at drinks on 13 not out.

In the meantime, Peacock reached his first 50 of the season much to the delight of everyone at the club. No winter nets and a few early season dismissals had led to what only can be described as a case of the batting yips. Scores before today read 4,0,3,0,0,16 and Dean Greaves had just as many runs as him! Hopefully he can now come into some form and help our push for a Europa League spot at the end of the season.

As drinks came, we had reached 103-1 needing only 35 left to win with 9 wickets remaining. The task ahead was for Callum Milburn & Peacock to see the game off and not get too carried away. 2 quick wickets would have but pressure on a fragile lower order so balancing aggression with defence was key.

Specifically - Callum focused on battling his inner demons to try and not hit every ball for 6 and Peacock tried to not try and howk everything through Cow corner now that he’d finally hit a few boundaries. The pair succeeded and we reached the required total in the 31^st over mark.

A much needed win for the team and we can now draw a line under what has been an extremely disappointing first half of the year. We now look forward to doing ourselves justice for the rest of the season. Thanks to Cramlington for a game played in good spirits and it was nice to see them stay and enjoy the sunshine for a few drinks afterwards.

Next week see’s us host GEMS who are completely unpredictable and utterly destructive when they want to be. Should be a good game.

Ashington Rugby CC 30 points Cramlington CC 2 points

2nd Team game was as called off at Cramlington CC, water logged pitch ??

It was a game we need to be played if we were looking to push for top spot in the league especially with all the other games getting played. 

Cramlington CC 5 points Ashington Rugby CC 5 points