Halstead concede, and points deducted for clubs failing to supply officials

Due to lack of available players again, Halstead were unable to fulfil their fixture with Earls Colne.

Later in the day, Gosfield and Kelvedon & Feering will both have five points deducted for being without one official, and more remarkably, Terling will have fifteen deducted after leaving Notley after one match, and having no-one there to officiate their second match.

Braintree Youth open up a lead at the top of the Division One table with their victory over Sampfords. It turned into an easy victory but was not so when they were 49-2 from eight overs before closing with 118-4. Sampfords were then kept down to 69-5. Coggeshall Hamlet did Coggeshall's hopes of retaining the Championship no good whatsoever by defeating them by two wickets. Braintree gained a last ball, one wicket victory over Bocking which did the hopes of Kelvedon & Feering avoiding the drop no good as they were then defeated by Witham by 42 runs.

Braintree College and Shalford continued their marches towards Division One. Braintree College defeated Great Totham by five wickets, whilst Shalford dismissed Little Bardfield Village for 38 to win by 49 runs. Woodham Mortimer came with a late surge to defeat Bocking Reserves by three wickets, and Three Fields comfortably defeated Terling by 43 runs.

Rayne Reserves remain top of Division Four after a 39 run victory at Margaretting's expense. As mentioned earlier, Earls Colne gained all fifteen points without having to play. High Garrett gained a painless five wicket victory over Coggeshall A. Sampfords Reserves had a miserable afternoon as they were bowled out for just 22, and then saw Woodham Mortimer Reserves reach 23-0 from just seventeen deliveries.

To complete a wonderful day for Woodham Mortimer teams, their third team bowled Braintree College Reserves out for just 42 at the Leisure Centre, and they went on to reach 43-0. Gosfield had an easy 101 run victory over Boreham III's, and Kelvedon & Feering III's gained a two wicket victory over Terling Reserves. Quite the most odd result, though not if you looked at the League tables, was achieved by Boreham Reserves against Ashdon. For this match only had nine players, and Boreham Reserves' four men pulled off a one wicket win against Ashdon's five men.

Finally, the last oddity of the day, but in all four divisions that played, the top club played the bottom club.

Current League Tables>>

February 5th 2012

Witham will not equal a record as they lose by 4, and finally Braintree win by 1.

There may only have been three matches played, but all three ended with very close finishes. Witham's hopes of making a record equalling seventh consecutive Cup Final appearance have been ended by a four run defeat to Braintree College, the Division Two leaders, in the First Round today at the Leisure Centre Witham, therefore, are the second Division One team to be put out by Division Two opposition this season, following Little Bardfield Village's victory over Sampfords. Dan Garner top scored for the College with 29, as they reached 123-5. However, what may have proved fatal to Witham was that they gave away far too many extras, 28 in total. With three overs to go, Witham appeared to have the match in their pockets, even the loss of Kaan Hawes for 36 in the tenth over did not make the College favourites as Witham only needed fourteen to win. Then with the third ball of the final over, and five needed to win from four balls Dan Khan was caught and bowled by James Garner for 36, and the College had recorded a famous victory. The last match played saw Braintree defeat Coggeshall Hamlet by just one run, with a run out off the final ball cementing Braintree's progress. Geoff Eveling, 35, Will Jackson, 32, and 26 from Ryan Vickery saw Braintree reach 119. However, the final wicket fell of only the first ball of the final over, and how costly those five missed deliveries may have become. Braintree did bowl well, and gave away, like the Hamlet, very few in additional deliveries. Halfway through their reply Coggeshall Hamlet had only moved to 48, and then only 52 from seven overs to increase the pressure. The final over began with eighteen runs need to level the scores. After a two off the first ball, then a stumping off a wide, and another two from the second ball, they could not find the required boundary, and Braintree got home by one run.

Final postscript, and I add this because of something I was told by one of the batsmen in the Braintree v Coggeshall Hamlet match. In reference to this can I please ask everyone to once again read down this column in "Common Faults", note 1 with regard to leg-side wides. It would appear from the comment made to me, that Umpires and players alike have not read or understood this.

Braintree Reserves get through by 9 runs

Braintree Reserves survived the only Reserve League Cup tie to be played today at Notley Sports Centre. Ruan Holt, with 43, and 24 from Glen Smith, helped Braintree Reserves, who only had five batsmen, to reach 94. Braintree's bowlers then made it hard for Kelvedon & Feering III's to make to much progress, though some late hitting from Gary Bellamy, 23 not out, did take their score to 85-4 before the overs ran out. Many thanks to the players of both teams, and to Boreham Reserves, who officiated, for making it to the Centre to enable, at least, one tie to be played. Something of a shame that others made little effort to help get the games played. Fixtures now have to be re-arranged at very short notice, so I guess, apart from the time it will take me to sort out, it is those teams that now may be more inconvenienced.

New balls to be used in Reserve League Cup ties

This coming Sunday the new Supaballs, which will eventually replace the Playground balls when we have run out of them, will make their debut in the Reserve League Cup ties. I am introducing them so as they can be used throughout the competition, and not be introduced midway through the competition.

February 12th 2012

The long wait is almost over

As we are now rapidly approaching the climax of the Indoor season, it will not be long before will can start filling in the blank spaces with regard to promotion and relegation, but first read the article further down this column. The first of those boxes was officially ticked off on Sunday when Margaretting were finally doomed to play in Division Five next season. Having escaped relegation because of other circumstances in recent seasons, they cannot now finish anywhere other than in last place, and with no team having withdrawn, as in previous seasons, their fate is now assured. However, play at the lower level, and in the Reserve League Cup next season, may actually help them rather than be a hindrance, as they can rebuild.

With no Division One matches on Sunday, the focus was aimed at Division Two, and the challenges for the title and promotion to Division One. Braintree College have now opened the door to Division One, and are now just a few points away from being able to make that big step up for the first time in their long Indoor career. They entered the League, in our second season, 1980-81, and for many years held the distinction of never having gained a single promotion but that run was eventually ended, but still they could not make the final step into Division One. They still do hold another obscure League record in as much as they have now played in 424 matches, and they have yet to see any of them end in a tie. Now with three games remaining they are just seventeen points away from ending this lengthy wait to play a Division One contest. Woodham Mortimer were their opponents at the Leisure Centre, and astonishingly it was the only match played there where scores of over 100 were achieved. Woodham Mortimer batted first and achieved 124-1 from their twelve overs, with Kevin Wright and Trevor Mason both retiring. The Collegians then lost Robbie Spalding in the second over, but Trevor Spalding, James Garner, and, Simon Brooks all then retired, as they made their way to 125-2 from a touch under eleven overs. Bocking Reserves, who cannot be promoted, moved into second place with a painless six wicket victory over Great Totham, for whom the drop down to Division Three is looking increasingly likely. Drew Whiting scored 39 for Great Totham, but they were still dismissed for 98. Bocking Reserves reached 99 without loss, but with Rob May, Danny McIntyre and Billy Hickman all retiring. Two of the promotion chasing teams met and Three Fields dented Shalford's chances, and maybe even those of Shalford Reserves, a division lower, by winning the contest by three wickets. Shalford only had five men and were dismissed for just 79, with Dave Brooker top scoring with 25. James Latimer then retired with 27 as Three Fields took eight overs to reach 80-3, and they are now only five points behind Shalford in the race to claim the second promotion spot. The remaining match saw Little Bardfield Village push Terling even closer to the trap door to Division Three. Terling, without a few regulars, struggled from the off and were dismissed in less than nine overs for 66. Daryl Hymas and Peter Bray took them to 67-0 in seven overs, with Bray retiring with 25 just before the winning line was crossed.

The new ball was introduced into League matches at Notley, and scores higher than those at the Leisure Centre were achieved. This is largely due to the fact that the ball comes off the bat, and the rebounds from the walls, faster than the old playground balls, and the general opinions I heard, were mostly favourable. Division Three seems to now be divided into two distinct groups, with five chasing promotion, and three battling to avoid the drop. Just fourteen points separate the top five after Sunday's matches. Shalford Reserves still lead the way after they defeated Boreham by three wickets. Boreham batted first and scored 103-5, with Neil Collins, 25 not out, and Ryan Dziadulewicz (no, my cat did not just walk across the keyboard), (and I guess it is pronounced Zia-doo-lee-witch) also scoring 25. Lee Godding, 25 not out, and Brad Green, 2 not out, then took Shalford Reserves to 105-3, and twelve more points. The form team in the division is Witham Reserves, who after losing their opening three games of the season, have now won six of their last seven and have shot up into second place, just four points behind Shalford Reserves. I have to confess to be shocked when I saw the outcome of this match, as when I left Notley, Witham Reserves were already two down for not very many, but 26 from Jack Sambrook, and 29 from Richard Howes, plus contributions down the card, saw them reach 123 being losing their final wicket at the end of their eleventh over. Four Kelvedon batsmen were then bowled as they subsided to 67 all out, with Anthony Facey and Jack Sambrook each taking two wickets. Helions Bumpstead are now third despite having lost the fewest matches, they put a dent in Rayne's hopes with a three wicket victory over them. Mark Sainsbury's 40 saw Rayne recover from being 13-2 to close on 107-5. Billy Moulton-Day with 31 not out, aided by 25 not out from Graham Page, and 21 not out from Tom Page, saw Helions Bumpstead through to 111-3 with two balls to spare. In the opening game of the day Braintree Reserves pulled off what could be seen as a surprise victory over West Bergholt. Braintree Reserves only had five men, three of whom had made only one previous indoor appearance between them. Despite all this, the match turned into a run-fest. It also saw the days' only half-centuries hit. Rob Jones scoring 62, and Oliver Grayson, son of County coach Paul Grayson, on his debut, scoring 61 not out, as Braintree Reserves closed with 156-4. West Bergholt's progress were handicapped by wickets falling, and after Steve Isaac (not a misprint) had taken two wickets in two balls, West Bergholt were only on 87-5 from eight overs. Andy Buckley, retiring, then returning but not adding to his 25. Darren Davies did then claim three points for West Bergholt as he reached 48 before he was run out with their total on 12.

In Division Four, the top teams both enhanced their positions, but whilst Rayne Reserves remain top, they need their first team to improve their position if promotion is to be achieved. They did record a 32 run victory over promotion rivals, Woodham Mortimer Reserves, but as it stands, that victory will count for nought. Rayne Reserves closed their innings on 126-1, with Gareth Fisher, Richard Banks, and Peter Dawson, all not out for either 25 or 26. Woodham Mortimer Reserves then lost Damian Fannon without a run on the board, and struggled after that. Dave Wells, 40, and Craig Marshall, 31, did give their score some respectability before they were dismissed for 94. Two wickets each for Geoff Butler and Gareth Fisher. The other two clubs in the top four, Earls Colne and High Garrett, also met, and this saw the end of High Garrett's unbeaten record at Notley this season, fall by the wayside. High Garrett did close on 86-4, but it could have been a lot worse, as with four wickets down already, two consecutive deliveries saw an easy run out, and a relatively easy catch chance squandered. Sharoze Malik then put bat to ball to score 37 not out, aided by 17 not out from Michael Porter, they at least gave High Garrett some hope. That hope increased when Steve Willsher was bowled in the opening over, but Ollie Bocking, 26 not out, and Joe Smith, 25 not out, effectively ended High Garrett's dreams as they took Earls Colne to 87-2 in less than eight overs. In the matches between the teams in the bottom half of the table, Halstead revived hopes of survival by defeating Coggeshall A by four wickets, as they chased 114-5. Ben Chaplin top scored for Coggeshall A with 38 not out, and George Pritchard, with 26 not out, did likewise for Halstead as they reached 115-2 with three overs to spare. Finally, Margaretting who had got back into plus points after their last match, but they were still left seeking their first win of the season as Sampfords Reserves defeated them by four wickets. Buck Jones, Dave Glasson, and Peter Scales helping Margaretting to close on 110, but 22 from Steve Thrower, and 30 not out from James Drane helped Sampfords Reserves reach 111-2.

Final postscript to Sunday's matches, but something of a rarity in that all twelve matches ended with the same team victorious as in the first fixture between them this season.