Devon League Premier Division
Saturday 1st May 2010
Bradninch v. BRAUNTON CC
The opening fixture in our return to the Premier League, after a 5 year absence, had enough twists to last the entire season. Things didn't start too brightly from warming up in the rain to losing the toss on a wet wicket and being asked to bat. Braunton welcomed Aussie Ben Reichstein into the side, who could not believe that we actually played, saying if they see pitches like that in Australia they just go home and forget it.
Scoring runs and staying at the wicket proved difficult early on and at 57 for 6 from 29 overs, a score of 100 became looked a good target. That was when Ian Roberts (39) and James Windsor (50) came together and the game started to drift back into our favour. They put on 90 in 17 overs with some great stroke play and took the score towards a very respectable total. Braunton were eventually bowled out for 161 in the final over.
We felt this was a defendable target in the conditions and a tight start with the new ball was required. However, Bradninch got off to a flyer reaching 33 from 4 overs. Braunton found it hard to stop the runs flowing with some inconsistent bowling and a couple of dropped catches. At 100 for 2 after 25 overs, Bradninch looked clear favourites to take the points. The drinks break came at a good time and allowed us to regroup and start again. The next 10 overs saw the home side slump from 103 for 2 to 109 for 7, with some tight bowling from Lathwell (2 for 31) and Baglow (5 for 39). The game was still far from over and some aggressive batting from the lower order took Bradninch within touching distance. A run out from Ben Reichstein removed the main danger and Braunton managed to bowl the home team out for 143. A great outcome on the day, but no where near the standards of last season.
Braunton 18 points.
Ladies Day
On Saturday the 20th September, Braunton hosted its first womens challenge cup at the Kelsey ground. This was in response to an amazing amount of interest at the club by the female members. With this in mind BCC is aiming to start a womans cricket section next season to play other Devon teams.
The winners of the inaugural, local tri-teams event was The Roberts Eleven. Congratulations and hopefully next year you can have even more fun in the sun.
WHITCHURCH WAYFARERS 2ND XI V BRAUNTON 2ND XI 24th MAY
Report writer’s next victim ...
Three games of the new season gone and an all too familiar situation for Braunton’s second XI; no teams below them in the league table. After last year’s form searching relegation battle and only 5 points away from safety; surely C Division standards would ensure a return to the top divisions, not dissimilar to the evolving Leeds Utd bouncebackability story. Oh no, maybe not, I’ve spoken too soon; Doncaster Rovers have stood in their way.
Some of us found the Whitchurch cricket ground with ease, others required multiple phone calls to team mates. So, for next year, please take note Liam and Luke, or is it Luke and Liam? (Ask Dave)... At the first roundabout in Tavistock, straight on, follow the road (approximately 1 mile) until you come to a post office, take a left, past a church, the ground is on your left, where the rest of your team will be waiting, some dressed in white!!!
Same again next week please!
Time for tea..., Oh..., Dave already has his!
After tea (9/10) the rest of the team were called upon, contributions were required from all, and contributions were delivered from all.
Accurate bowling from the openers Fraser James and Chris Brigdon threatened to win the game comfortably for Braunton, restricting the home side to 62 for 6. A great catch at point from Liam/Luke Kerr being a highlight. Then came the longest hour and a half in the history of cricket: The home team taking time to work out and apply the mathematics of the losing draw. Finally, at last, the breakthrough came, and victory was in sight. Reliable bowling from Jack Spicer and Robbie Elliot (both part-time long barrier engineers) were key contributions but it was the Chris Brigdon specialist full toss which won the day.
20 points! A victory by 74 runs.
Braunton 2nd XI v Ipplepen 2nd XI
Well here we go again!
I seem to remember writing last year of plucky performances, near misses,great team spirit and opposition congratulating us on the manner in which we play the game. All were true of our first league game of the season.
New captain Chris Brigden won the toss and asked Ipplepen to bat first which they did with relish. A couple of the bowlers deserve mention. Mark Johnson bowled his normal immaculate line and length picking up 3 for 17 and Brigden bowled well until Matt Quarterly took a fancy to him. In fact all bowlers disappeared out of the ground to some of the cleanest striking of a ball seen at the Kelsey Ground. He was eventually out for 92 and Ipplepen closed at 238 for 6. Young wicket keeper Tom Rowbotham deserves a mention for his performance behind the stumps on his first outing of the season.
In reply Ted Cummings and Jody Abbott opened the innings and once again I can remember writing of Ted.”this man is going to score a lot of runs for Braunton” He is!! But not today. Looking good he stopped on an on drive and dollied one to mid on. Muppet !! Mark Lathwell then came to wicket and was heard to say to Jody. “ there is no point asking you what the wicket is doing because you have only faced one ball”. Ted had rather protected his partner early in the innings or as they say “farmed the bowling”
Jody was next out to some excellent umpiring bringing first,Olly Seymour and then Tom Rowbotham to the wicket with Lathwell. Marks’ value to the club was evident in these two partnerships where he guided and encouraged the two young lads through their innings. Andy Parker batted somewhere but no one can actually remember where exactly. Mark went on to an excellent century whereupon he missed a straight one and was given out stumped by the captain dtanding at square leg.
With victory in sight Braunton managed to stumble in the last over with Mark Johnson marooned at the non strikers end.
235 for 9 at the close of play,a great game of cricket good points gained but could do better.
BRAUNTON 2ND XI V CHUDLEIGH 2ND XI 18th AUGUST
Specialist Positions ...
After a Friday night emergency ‘engagement’ involving the second choice wicket keeper and a ring - congratulations Stuart and Emma! - Braunton seconds were again missing their superstars: Tom Mitcham; selected for the West of England U14s, Gary Osborne; suffering from tennis elbow and a headache (both brought on by having more than eleven players to choose from), and Jody (did you see that catch last Sunday) Abbott; not part of the captain’s master plan! The team struggled through regardless ...
The game didn’t start well; Ollie Seymour failing again to flip a coin in the air and make it land the correct way up, and bickering amongst the top three batsman over who should open meant this crucial match in the great relegation escape was not going to be easy. The tempered situation was finally calmed by Dave Cresswell who reluctantly dropped to the number three slot.
The rain delayed match, now 35 overs per side, proved to be another improving performance by Braunton 2nds. The batsmen set the highest run rate of their season so far; Dominic Bratcher 61 and Dave Cresswell 52 taking the game away from the lacklustre visitors (fielding with their feet in the covers! 'Tha’s awfaal'). After 25 overs the score was an unprecedented 129 for 1. Having set a good foundation and with plenty of wickets in hand, the opportunity to swing the bat was all too inviting. Cameos from Seymour, Parker and Brigdon (did anyone see him stand on, bury, then fall over the ball?) set a total of 172 for 6. If it hadn’t been for Chudleigh’s own superstar ‘Extras’ (60 - 'now tha’s awfaal, tha’s shokinn!') and some ‘Manning/Kerr like’ blocking, Braunton would have come away with a massive 18 points and been within reach of safety.
As it is 13 points is a good result and the team had the honour of leaving the field to the Eastenders theme tune (what is that all about Charlie?) and the lasting memory of our ‘all rounder hero’ Ed (Jonathan Edwards) Holmes clapping to the crowd then running, hopping, skipping and jumping to the crease to bowl what could have been his hat-trick ball.
A mention to another absentee; our season long scorer, Paul Mitchum. Congratulations on passing your driving test Paul!
BRAUNTON II V HATHERLEIGH II
Marcus Wildgoose, opening bowler, occasional opening bat and today the ‘tosser’ in the absence of skipper Gary Osborne (delayed by an RTA) managed to lose the toss and subject the home side to a long and exhausting afternoon in the sun. Thanks must go to a brave Jody Abbott who fielded until the missing skipper arrived at the ground. He did ask to be positioned in the deep just in case he needed to leave the field in a hurry!
At 103 for no wicket things were looking bleak but the introduction of young Robbie Elliot brought 3 quick wickets and after 31 overs Hatherleigh were only 130 for 3. Fifteen overs later the away team reached 239 for 7 helped in no small part by 22 wides and 10 no balls. A target that always looked too big despite a track and outfield that were conducive to runs. In the field Braunton were enigmatic, a brilliant diving effort from Bracher, a comedic diving effort from Brigdon. Some great ground fielding from Parker and the other youngsters and a blunder from ‘goose’ on the boundary (2 hands Marcus!!)
In reply Braunton got of to a terrific start, Bracher and Cresswell putting on 49 for the first wicket when David ‘walked’ to a catch behind. Another stand of 49 for the second wicket when ‘Lofty’ Parker went for a rapid 35. So at the half way stage the home side were 100 for 2. But wickets then began to fall and a draw was the obvious best outcome and Dominic Bracher who had hitherto been despatching the ball to all parts now consolidated his innings and was only out in the 44th over for a very well made 87.
Braunton finished on 184 for 7 gaining 9 points, not a bad return from a match against the leaders of the division. Again showing that there is a lot of talent in this team and its league position does not reflect its true potential. With the return of Ed Holmes and Ted Cumming selection will not be easy this week.
A forlorn Jody Abbott leaving the field (Braunton II V Hatherleight II)
BRAUNTON 2ND XI V TAVISTOCK 2ND XI 24th JULY
Arriving at Tavistock only just before the scheduled start time was hardly the best preparation for a vital game in the ‘B’ division relegation battle.
No time was thus available for the usual warm up routines. Only 8 players were actually present when the game had begun, the ‘marines’ with the help of messers Abbott and Costello (sorry Brigdon) unable to find the pitch and ‘lofty’ Parker and his friend TomTom disagreeing over the post code (operator error !) Ollie was forced to bat first due to the lack of team mates and decided to send in Tom Mitcham and Marcus Wildgoose (no, honestly Marcus Wildgoose) to open the innings. After 6 frenetic overs the score was an astonishing 2 and when ‘goose’ was out in the 7th over to a jaffa of a delivery the score had moved on to 3 thanks to a wide.
Seriously the openers had coped with some fine bowling on a very helpful track giving us a platform to build on. With the arrival of Ted Cumming things livened up until he also received an unplayable ball from the opening bowler after scoring 19 quick runs. Ted is going to score a lot of runs for Braunton and is proving a good capture for the club. Captain Fantastic then came in and some good running between the wickets saw the total reach 55 when Ollie was bowled. Tom Mitcham was just starting to cut loose, two superb cover drives for 4 off the opening bowler saw him taken out of the attack. But Jody Abbott was not having this young upstart grab all the headlines and ran Tom out! To be fair Jody did go on to make amends by scoring 7. Lofty looked in great form scoring a very rapid 22 and Liam Kerr and Chris Brigdon then batted out the remaining overs very sensibly with an unbroken partnership of 22.
By tea it was raining quite hard and with the mist descending on Dartmoor the match was abandoned as a draw. Those who had optimistically turned up in shorts and flip flops were glad to get in their cars and head for home.
This weeks BCC Second XI Devon League game report is brought to you by skipper Gary OSBORNE who was side lined due to injury, but in the true spirit of BCC, especially the second eleven ethos, umpired the game.
Saturday 21st JULY 2007 Home ‘v’ Alphington.
Typical……… for the first time this season the batsmen come good, get us into a great position, and the weather intervenes!
The team selection tried to strengthen the batting line up. In was brought young Dominic BRATCHER, Chris MORRIS and the not so young Stuart EARLAM. Some might say Stuart was dragged out of retirement, truth was, I dragged him out of the bar!
Dominic and Stuart opened the batting, having lost the toss; we were put in by an opposition who probably expected a quick rollover. Dominic seemed to struggle with the pace and was playing the ball quite late, going to a fine catch at first slip fairly early on. This brought Ed HOLMES to the middle to join Stuart. This proved to be a great combination with the steady Stuart keeping the naturally attacking Ed in check while both got used to the damp track. They started slow but showed the value of keeping wickets in hand. They put on over 100 runs for the second wicket. Stuart went on 32, a very valuable contribution.
Chris ‘The Marine’ MORRIS then came out but again struggled with conditions. Wickets did fall but by now we were in the last 15 overs and the crash was on. Stand in skipper Olly SEYMOUR joined Ed and both tried to push the scoring rate up. The opposition fielding was not great, drop catches, miss-fields and a lot of bickering between team ‘mates.’ This may have led to calling for a quick single when one was not really there. It took a direct hit, and it did. The only good piece of fielding seen. The scoreboard showed Ed on 96, but this was a technical failure and the book showed HOLMES run out on 86. Olly went on to make 18 and the boys finished on 171 for 7. A good effort on a difficult surface.
Tea was taken. Only 4 overs were possible after the restart. Chris BRIGDEN and Marcus WILDEGOOSE were just getting into their rhythm. Marcus having a good appeal for LBW turned down by yours truly. (It’s still not out Marcus!) The covers were hurriedly applied but the rain just kept coming. 12 for 0. Match drawn. 9 points each.
Well done lads.
Oh, and guess who was back? Jody played too!
Gary OZ.
Match Report - Braunton II V Bradnich II - Sat 14th July
Another disappointing day for the seconds, if only the batsmen could back up some tight bowling and good ground fielding. You got the feeling that it was not going to be a good day when a catch went down of the first ball of the match, not the only one to spilled by any means. Again Wildgoose and Brigdon (3 for 41) were tight and accurate and looked like keeping Bradninch down to a very attainable target.
Langdon (4 for 54) and Osborne (2 for 37) then replaced the opening bowlers. Charlie picked up a hat-trick which no one apart from the scorer managed to spot, it coming off the last ball of one over and the first two balls of the next. Gary was as tight as ever giving nothing away!(no change there then). At the end of their allotted overs Bradninch reached 172 for 9 probably a few more than they deserved but a very reachable target.
Braunton lost opener Ed Holmes early but then consolidated with new boy Ted Cumming joining Tom Mitcham. Cumming looked very positive but departed too soon, Ollie Seymour was then needlessly run out and Mitcham was next out for a well made 31. From there on only Andy Parker made any significant contribution, scoring 22 and Braunton were eventually bowled out for only 103 off 41.1 overs.
It is all looking desperate at the bottom of the division but the players are positive that if they could just post a decent total then they can start winning games very soon. Ed Holmes took a catch and fielded with his shin scored no runs and did not bowl. Well done Ed !
Match Report - Plymouth Civil Service v Braunton - Saturday 7 July 2007
Bowling first on a helpful wicket at Plymouth the devastating opening duo of Chris Brigdon and Marcus Wildgoose had Plymouth reeling at 5 for 3 and then 22 for 4. Ed Holmes took a good catch at slip off Brigdon for the first wicket then Wildgoose picked up the next 3, 2 bowled and 1 LBW.
Then with the home side at 75 for 6 it looked as though Braunton would be chasing a very reasonable target, but Plymouth then staged a great comeback putting on 78 for the next wicket. It took a superb one handed (obviously) catch from Wildgoose and a sharp piece of work from keeper Liam Kerr to eventually bowl the opposition out off the last ball of the innings for 182.
Four wickets for Wildgoose, 3 for Holmes, 2 for Langdon and 1 for the very economical Brigdon. Chris Brigdon also took one stunning catch at gully and dropped the biggest dolly ever seen on a cricket pitch.
In reply Braunton got off to a slow start losing wickets too regularly and after 13 overs were 26 for 4. Ed Holmes and Charlie Langdon then put on 28 for the fifth wicket and Langdon and Wildgoose 22 for the sixth. Jack Spicer and Liam Kerr came together looking as though defeat were imminent but some fine stroke play from Spicer and dogged determination from Kerr saw Braunton reach 126 for 8 at the end of the allotted overs.
The Plymouth captain is amazed that this team could possibly be bottom of the division if only we could post a decent total we will surely bowl teams out regularly. The team spirit in the seconds is truly remarkable, banter on and off the pitch with the youngsters gaining experience and education on the pitch and also in the minibus on the journey home. Oh, Jody Abbott also played.
Match Report
The season gets underway on the 14th April 2007 with our first match at home on the Kelsey ground starting at 1pm. Our opponents will be Bradninch who hail from the lower half of the Culm valley in mid Devon near Cullomptom. Match reports, results and reviews will thus commence once this fixture has be played.
In the meantime support your team at the Cricket World Cup during March and April. This is the official web link to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 schedule (warm up matches start 5/3/07, opening ceremony on 11/3/07 and actual group stages start on 13/3/07). Come on England!
