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There
is no doubt that the season of
2007 was an unsuccessful, disappointing and frustrating one. The
only winner was the weather. In what turned out to be one of the
wettest summers
ever, it is worth noting that the 1st XI had two matches
cancelled
without a ball being bowled and five matches abandoned during the
course of the
games. Therefore, only 11 games were
played to a finish, winning 4, losing 6 and drawing 1.
The 1st XI finished in 8th
position (out of 10), the 2nd XI finished in mid-table and the 3rd
XI just missed out on promotion from division 7 of the OCA league. Finishing 8th, the 1st
XI just avoided relegation, having of course been relegated last year
from
division 1.
Ian Demain’s 1st XI discovered
that the drop into division 2 of the Cherwell League meant only a
slight
decline in overall standard of play. The
side suffered badly from poor batting displays with only Michael
Philipson, our
overseas Australian, making any big scores. He
made a massive contribution, often bowling penetrative
spells as
well. The bowling and fielding were
generally much better with seamer Olly Dimbylow leading the attack. He will be sadly missed next year. Lee Stevens, Michael Philipson, Ian Demain
and James Phillips supported well. Ian
Demain’s 7 wickets in the victory over Abingdon was surely the
highlight of the
season.
If the side is to make a serious
challenge for promotion next year the batting will have to far more
prolific
and consistent. Ian Demain’s decision to
relinquish the captaincy will, I hope, enable him to concentrate on his
batting
and if players such as James Phillips and Steve Burry are able to
increase
their run aggregates then I am sure our chances of promotion will be
greatly
enhanced.
The 2nd XI were able to
call on the services of Nick Meadows, another Australian, and in the
games he
played made an enormous contribution, including 4 ‘hundreds’. With big totals on the board, it enabled
young leg-spinner Rob Harries to be given the opportunity for lengthy
spells
and he responded well. Young seamer
Daniel Rey came into the side in late season, promoted from the 3rd
XI, and showed great promise for the future. Other
youngsters such as Nigel Hume and Luke Jones
benefited greatly
from playing 2nd XI cricket and it is to be hoped that they will
both progress next year. Mark Crone kept
wicket well and also made major contributions with the bat. Rudi du Plessis and Phil Cox led the bowling
attack and the side was captained capably by Justin Penrose.
The 3rd XI, under Steve Pritchard
and Francis Brown had a much better season, most notably for the fact
that
several youngsters were given an opportunity. The
promising off-spinners, Tom Pill and Adam Taylor
performed impressively
and they will surely step up to the 2nd XI next year.
However, young cricketers need
guidance in order to learn the game and there is a desperate need at
3rd
XI level for older, experienced players from the 2nd XI to play some
games with these developing young cricketers. Had
that happened this year, then the 3rd XI would
undoubtedly
have gained promotion.
One of the highlights of the season
was the victory over a strong M.C.C. side led by Rupert Evans. Nick Meadows made a very impressive hundred,
ably supported by innings’ from Owen Dimbylow and Steve Burry. A memorable day, played for once in glorious
sunshine and the occasion graced by the attendance of many Challow
players from
years past.
In the National Club Knock-Out (the
Cockspur Cup) we fell at the first hurdle, losing out to Thame by 4
wickets. The Border League side, playing
mainly on Sundays, and led by Lawrence Houghton performed moderately,
gaining 4
victories. Our young cricketers
certainly benefited from the experience, but too often we fielded sides
which
were too weak bearing in mind the strength of the opposition in this
competition.
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