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Didn’t we do well?
What a summer it has been for cricket – from England winning the World Cup to Ben Stokes’s heroics at Headingley – and it has also been one to remember at the Meadow. The 1st XI enjoyed their most successful season since 2013, finishing in 3rd place in Division 1 of the Two Counties Championship and winning silverware as Suffolk’s leading club.
After several years of struggling near the foot of the table no one could have predicted how Ben Wallis’s team would perform, but two additions have made a huge difference. Our overseas player Kudzai Maunze has been a dream. He scored over 1,200 runs, including seven centuries, and took 38 wickets. After a slow start he found his form, ironically, after breaking a finger, and since July has been almost unstoppable, reeling off ton after ton. When he only got 50 against Ipswich the shock was palpable. He has made a great impact with his coaching too - and as everyone could judge at our end of season bash, he’s got some moves! We have already signed him for 2020.
On his return to the club Dom Manthorpe has also been exceptional, making 700 runs and taking 37 wickets with both spin and seam bowling – sometimes in the same spell or even over!
Mind the windows Archie!
The 2nd team also joined in the fun, finishing in 6th place in Division 5. They have also endured some lean seasons but from almost the very first ball at Maldon in April this was to be a different story. Three wins at the start were followed by five out of six at the end, including a thrilling 1-run victory over Harwich in August. 14-year old Isaac Toombs has batted superbly all summer, scoring 500 runs at an average of 35. Elder statesmen Simon Gladwell (26 wickets) and Bloss Tampion (29 wickets) have once again carried the burden of the bowling, but they are looking at the progress of Oliver Clark with interest, with the hope of a little less work to do!
Archie Wilkinson had a few games at the back end and upstaged everyone. 90 at Ipswich was just for starters, as in the final game at Earl Stonham he produced a phenomenal innings of 181. He hit 14 sixes, almost hit his own car, did smash the windscreen of someone else’s car, and was only out going for six sixes in one over. This was the 3rd highest individual innings by a Hadleigh player of all time, and the 7th best in the entire kingdom on that day!
We also reached the finals of both T20 competitions. Our Under-19s were beaten by 44 runs by Woolpit in the final played at Hadleigh, and the boys will rue the 50 extras they gave away in Woolpit’s huge total of 194. The seniors beat Woodbridge in their Plate semi-final but Haverhill were too strong for them in the final. But both teams can be proud of how they have performed. Considering there were lengthy debates about whether we would be able to run either side, let alone both, they are great examples of what we can achieve when we put our mind to it.
The Ladies had something of a stop start season and didn’t win as many games as they would have liked, but were not always able to call on their strongest players. Nia Evans had a breakthrough season with the bat, scoring 152 runs, only being dismissed twice and finishing with a Smith-like average of 76.
Here are our 2019 award winners, in all their glory (nice shirt Simon).
From left to right (top): Dom Manthorpe, Isaac Toombs, Oliver Clark, Nia Evans, Simon Gladwell, Matt Kent.
Off the field we finally completed the pavilion project, replacing the 55-year old windows and doors, built a new paved area for players to sit (which, remarkably, they did!), and the bar, taking inspiration from the Secretary’s batting and fielding, went contactless. We held many fun events including Cocktail, Karaoke and Race nights, and had many an enjoyable evening watching sporting spectacles unfold on the new big screen.
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Much of the latter would not have been possible without the herculean efforts of our social chairman Martin Grayling. He didn’t stop working all summer, from social media content that would grace most digital agencies, to photography sessions and event management, which culminated in a fabulous end of season party under a marquee at the Meadow at which former England star Allan Lamb was the star guest. Martin deservedly won the Wilson Cup and for once was in front of his own camera!
The biggest ovation of the night was reserved for a true HCC legend, Roy Plumbly, who was presented, much to his surprise, with the club’s first Lifetime Achievement Award, sponsored by Kingsley Healthcare. We’ll let the Facebook post we shared speak for itself. It’s not only at this club that “Mr P” is so beloved.
It's been a fantastic season, one of the best. Let's do it all again next year!
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One small step for cricket, one giant leap for cricketkind
What a staggering, unbelievable game it was. It had everything – cliffhanging drama, run-outs, and THAT over. It was a real “where were you?” moment.
But enough about the 1st XI’s win over Worlington. The World Cup Final was pretty special too the day after. All day long a few hardy HCC souls watched the drama unfold on the big screen in the pavilion, with lots of juniors from two games at the ground that day popping in to watch from time to time. Hopefully what they saw will inspire these kids to follow in the footsteps of Roy, Stokes, Buttler etc.
With that champagne super over, English cricket was over the moon – and it’s been quite a good month for the 1st XI too, with four straight wins against Maldon, Worlington, Wivenhoe and Halstead. This despite plenty of availability and injury issues. Our overseas player Kudzai Maunze (pictured at Lord’s recently) has scored two match-winning centuries in those games – all the more remarkable since it has become apparent that he has been playing with a fractured thumb - yes, that thumb! Dom Manthorpe has also been chipping in with valuable contributions with both bat and ball, especially his 79 in the aforementioned Worlington game when he helped rescue the side from 88-6.
Suddenly, after last weekend’s demolition of Halstead – the only game to be played in Division 1 - leaders Witham are almost within our orbit – but only if we beat them on Saturday.
Hadleigh, we have a problem
What’s up with the Twos? We’ve lost that winning feeling. Two close-ish games chasing against Nowton and Earl Stonham have been followed by three heavy defeats in which we have only bowled a handful of overs and taken two solitary wickets. The three teams we beat at the start of the season – Maldon, Easton and Battisford – have all absolutely hammered us. We need a mid-season break (thanks to St Osyth we’ve got one, this weekend), and some new recruits to freshen things up (Archie Wilko, that’s you). A couple more wins are needed from somewhere to keep us safe from any relegation fears, but with a tough August ahead that won’t be easy.
That’s not the only thing out of tune – listen to what its done to me, if you can.
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Don’t stop me now
The Suffolk T20 Plate competition has gone well for us, with four wins out of four meaning that we have qualified – we think – for the Finals Day for the first time in September. Justin Toombs, Arran Tampion and Ryan Phillips have all made 50s in these games. The Under-19s have also started brightly in their T20 competition with three wins out of four. After finishing runners up last year they will have the chance to play in the Finals day on home soil, as we are delighted to have been chosen to host this event on Sunday September 1st. The Ladies have had a midsummer break but resume at the end of July with their last four fixtures.
August will be another massive month for cricket, with three Ashes Tests and lots of important games at the Meadow. Make the most of it – the nights are already closing in and the football season starts this weekend.
Did anyone notice the theme this month?
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Spinning around
It’s mid-season already – Glastonbury has just finished, Wimbledon has just started and the Cricket World Cup is just entering its sixth month. Did you see Kylie at Worthy Farm? Wasn’t she good? More outfit changes than an English club cricketer in April and May, and one of those rare Aussies no one, absolutely no one, wants to boo.
Well, I must admit, our teams’ respective forms have been spinning around a bit lately – especially the 1st XI (pictured above). They were unfortunate to meet Coggeshall on the day that the Essex side’s overseas player made his debut – not just any old overseas either, just someone who plays in the Big Bash for Adelaide Strikers. Cue for some of the biggest hitting ever seen at our little old ground, which could comfortably fit within the inner ring of the MCG. After a 41-run win at home to Woolpit in a rain-affected game took Ben Wallis’s side up to 2nd in the table, we were starting to dream of a tilt at the title. But three defeats later against Ipswich, Lakenheath and Mistley - all teams we had high expectations of beating - and we are back looking over our shoulders. It is a very open league this year so anything is still possible as we enter the second half of the season.
The same could be said for the 2nd XI, who finally remembered not how to win but how to lose! There is no disgrace that three of those defeats have come against the top three teams in the table, and in all three Buster Tampion’s side could conceivably have won. We got within 24 of Stowupland’s 248, while the 107 we scrambled on a ‘sticky dog’ at Harwich looked like being enough when the home side were 64-7. Isaac Toombs almost carried his bat with 93 against St Margarets – I am sure it won’t be long before we are hailing our youngest ever centurion. At the other end of the age scale bodies are starting to creak. Emergency stocks of Deep Heat and Ibuprofen are on order.
Simon Gladwell has been bamboozling batsmen with some stunning spells of off-spin recently. His 7-29 against Ipswich 2nds was we believe career-best figures for our bar manager, who banged the shutters down on Ipswich’s run chase that day. It is turning out to be an excellent season for Simon, who is taking part in his very own battle for the best bowling trophy, having also taken 6-20 against Battisford in May. As the wickets get dustier who knows what further destruction he may wreak?
Perhaps, however, performance of the month should go to someone making his 2019 debut - Ben Daniels. He wisely avoided the excesses of the cocktail evening, and while everyone else was feeling decidely Rougham, he rocked up fresh as a daisy and took the Vitec bowlers apart with 117 not out - his maiden century for the club. Fancy playing a few more Ben?
The games have been coming thick and fast for the Ladies team, for whom Nia Evans is in fine form with both bat and ball, consistently scoring in the high 20s and early 30s. Charlotte Stenning is also performing well and against Bardwell the two combined to dominate the game, opening both the bowling and the batting, as the Ladies passed Bardwell’s 120 for the loss of just one wicket. The Ladies have won two and lost three at the halfway stage of their season.
On Sunday June 9th we hosted three matches in the regional T20 Women’s County Competition, with Northants winning both their matches against Suffolk (pictured below) and Norfolk, and Norfolk beating Suffolk. It was a great day and we have been delighted to receive favourable comments from the teams about the way we hosted the event. We were so lucky with the weather, as this was the day before one of the wettest weeks in living memory!
What a month this could be. Could England be in the World Cup Final? Could they actually win it? What do you think Pete?
Pete’s not sure.
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Start all the clocks
As opening months go, this has been a very good one both on and off the field.
After a winter makeover, the pavilion is looking in as good a nick as Jonny Bairstow. The project we started six years ago is now pretty much complete, with new tables and chairs, refurbished bar and heating system to complement the changing room extension block. Even the famous old clock, stuck at one twenty-four for the last few seasons like some Orwellian nightmare, is going again.
To be fair things have been going well off the field for a while – its just the actual cricket that has been letting us down a bit. Well I’m glad to say that it’s been an encouraging start to the season for the club’s senior sides, with the worst result for the 1st XI a 1-run defeat. That was at home to Maldon, which was great entertainment for the sizable crowd at the Meadow on a scorching Easter Saturday. More “entertainment” was provided at our very first open mic night later that evening:
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Sadly the weather turned rather dramatically after that, with players raiding their winter wardrobe to take to the field. Needham Market in early May felt more like Everest Base Camp, where cricket has been known to have been played, and at least they got a game in.
What a difference a week makes:
Ben Wallis’s men shared 644 runs with Worlington. I think, considering the weather, it was less of a tie and more of a scarf. Josh Davey’s 109 was, incredibly, his first century for the club. How is that possible? Josh has been playing for us for 8 years now, and probably been one of our most consistent run-scorers in that time. There have been one or two 99s. Maybe this time he was just too cold to get nervous!
Two wins have since followed, both against highly fancied teams. Wivenhoe looked to be cruising towards their target of 195 when they were 100 odd for 1 and then 161-4. But then on came our overseas player Kudzai Maunze. It was one of those passages of play when the momentum completely changes in the blink of an eye. Kudzai took 6-11, with the last six wickets falling for just four runs.
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A trip to Witham, the home of Dorothy L. Sayers AND Olly Murs, is always a bit of a culture shock for Suffolk teams, and a hard place to get a result. But we did dear reader, thanks to Dominic Manthorpe, who followed an unbeaten 83 with 4-30 with his, er, mystery spin as Hadleigh successfully defended 222. It has been a great boost to have Dominic back in a Hadleigh shirt. He is still working his way back to full fitness but already the signs are that he will be a key player this season.
More surprising perhaps – a mystery worthy of Sayers herself – has been the unbeaten start made by the 2nd XI. Three wins and a hailed-out game meant that Buster Tampion’s team were actually top for a week! An opening day win at Maldon showcased the talents of two chaps who could easily have been playing for the Ones, Mark Simmonds and Sunil Shrestha, but the next couple were all our own work.
We were in big trouble at home to Easton chasing 173. 13-year-old Isaac Toombs then dug in and played a majestic innings of 88 not out way beyond his years, supported by his father Justin and Arran Tampion. Six wickets for Simon Gladwell and a very rare 50 for your correspondent was enough to wrap up victory over Battisford. No one is getting carried away, and a trip to leaders Stowupland will be a stern test, but this may be a season where we can at least lounge around careless and fancy free in mid-table.
Individual performance of the month undoubtedly came from Callum Morrin in the Sunday Academy game at Milden. To score 104 not out is impressive; to take five wickets for four runs in three overs (when only an occasional bowler) is herculean. Can we mention that one of his victims was our friend Tabs Willis? Oops we just have. To do it all after still being in ‘Vodka Revs’ (whatever that is) at 4am on the morning of the game is Botham-esque. We salute you sir!
So apart from the start of the Cricket World Cup, what’s coming up next month?
Well, first we have our Sponsors Day on Saturday June 8th, when we are treating our generous sponsors to a spot of lunch before the 1st XI game with Coggeshall. Then the following day we are hosting a triangular county Ladies T20 tournament at the club. This is the first time we have held such an event and we’re getting so excited we’re even laying some paving down specially! The games feature Suffolk, Northants and Norfolk and start at 10.30am. The bar will be open all day so why not pop along? It should be an excellent day.
Quote of the month (the 2nd XI captain, introducing his team to the new boys): ‘This is Gary, we only play him because he’s the Secretary.’
The Secretary
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Are you clever enough for this ? Our annual quiz night March 2nd .see poster for ticket details . Don’t delay it gets fully booked very quickly ! Includes a food too! #hadleigh #hadleighcc #quiz #quiznight (at Hadleigh Cricket Club) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bs0CFqBgq5W/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=hzn76o14ixxo
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Film night 23rd February 2 Films . Choices from next via poll on twitter .£5 per person including some popcorn . See it in our new 120 ‘’ projector screen .we might even turn the heating on ! #hadleigh #hadleighcc #cricket #suffolk #suffolkcricket #filmnight (at Hadleigh Cricket Club) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bs0ByG7AiSp/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1hrox1tlzujo4
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And next up speaking about come backs and catches are @dommanthorpe @milnes21 @ash.clark1 catch them on our YouTube channel and subscribe too #YouTube #hadleigh #hadleighcc #cricket #suffolk #cricketphotography (at Hadleigh Cricket Club) https://www.instagram.com/p/BssvQMkAsvA/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1lqd10nj66n95
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These two were on our YouTube channel today check them out by subscribing Hadleigh Cricket Club . Press the bell for updates on new videos too #youtube #hadleigh #hadleighcc #hadleighcricketclub #suffolk #suffolkcricket #twocounties #ecb (at Hadleigh Cricket Club) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bsqp16XgfS4/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=zhy1frveq1q0
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Yes ! We’re all over social media spread the word and join us! #spreadtheword #inittogether #hadleigh #hadleighcc #hadleighcricketclub #socialmediamarketing #socialmedia (at Hadleigh Cricket Club) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bsn07JzgOEF/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1r1ijfg8cam3i
#spreadtheword#inittogether#hadleigh#hadleighcc#hadleighcricketclub#socialmediamarketing#socialmedia
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This is the official Hadleigh Cricket Club Blog
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