U14 Griffins – League Matchplay in the U15 SJCC Tier 1
Off to a bad start in the U15 league having to concede the first fixture vs Horsley and Send due to lack of players, a theme for the season unfortunately. Our first game was against Ashtead, where we won the toss and elected to bowl. Ashtead struggled to 128-8 in their 30 overs, Tom Price and Owen Flower both picking up 2 wickets. A classy 40 from Ben Temperley put us in good shape but lost regular wickets leaving Ollie Hamilton and Tom Price to hit the winning 2 off the penultimate ball. Hard work, but off to a winning start.
Next up were Ascot who batted first, only managing 117-9 from their 25 overs, with Felix Porter the pick of the bowlers with 4-15 off his 5 overs. After being 0-1, 20-3 and 28-4, Charlie Pitts run a ball 36 and Felix’s 30 off 26 meant we battled back into contention. Needing 36 off the final 4 overs with 2 wickets in hand it was left to U13 Priyesh Patel to hit the winning runs with 2 balls to spare.
Wimbledon were our next victims, batting first Esher posted 159-5 with Alex Frewer, 45, Ram Kolanu, 35 and Charlie Pitts all in the runs. After a solid start from Wimbledon, Esher’s bowling proved too strong with Alfie Webb picking up a superb 5-30 and Ayan Sohail with 3-32.
Esher were top of the league after 4 games and looking forward to welcoming Cranleigh to Old Paulines. Esher stuck Cranleigh in to bat and they scored a very gettable 139-5 from their 25 overs. Felix Porter once again the pick of the bowlers with 2-12. An innings that never got started, wickets falling regularly, only Charlie Pitts, Noah Luxman and Alfie Webb showing any form of resistance until we succumbed to a measly 117 all out, a game that we may rue come the end of the season.
East Molesey next, with honours even in our previous 2 encounters. Molesey only got 111-9 in their 25 overs, surely not enough. Wickets shared with Aaryan Desai, Max Webb, Tom Price and Priyesh Patel all taking 2 each, Priyesh only going for 9 in his 5 overs! Richie Page played a swashbuckling innings with 30 from 32 and Ed Reilly looked classy on his way to an unbeaten 23, proving the strength in depth of this squad! A win by 1 wicket, with 2 balls to spare, we were always in control…
What a day at Chertsey, Mark P was behind the bar, Chertsey batting first and only posting 111-8 in their 25 overs, Jaanzabe Jamali and Tom Price picking up 2 wickets a piece. Ram Kolanu and Charlie Pitts made light work of the under par total and Esher won by 7 wickets, on the charge again up the league.
Lingfield at home next and surely another 4 points in the bag… Complacency is a bad thing in cricket, unable to take regular wickets, Lingfield posted 167-7 in 25 overs which looked impressive. Only Noah Luxman looked anything like composed on this surface and we ran out of steam, only getting to 157-8 in reply. Special mention to Dilan G (U13) for his great effort at the end, hitting 19 off 13 balls with some clean striking and a late rally from Alfie W, 19 off 15, was all too little too late.
Back to winning ways vs Normandy winning comfortably by 68 runs, posting 136-8, Jaanzabe Jamali 54 from 56 with 9 fours the highlight. We bowled Normandy out for 68 with Alfie Webb, Tom Price and Charlie Pitts all taking 2 wickets. A feisty affair with Walton at Imber Court much to big Al ’s delight, Walton struggled to 116-8 from 25 overs, Tom Price expensive with 3-44 and a cheeky over from Barney R (U12) who had only just got out of bed! Richie Page 41 from 39 and Charlie Pitts 28 from 23 hit 10 fours and steered us home in quick time winning by 5 wickets with 8 overs to spare!
Guildford proved too strong for us on the day, posting 153-6 from a light affected 23 overs. Tom Price and Felix Porter both with 2 wickets each. Esher never got going and were behind the rate from the off limping to 101-9, losing to the league winners is no disgrace in the year up…
It was nice to end the season on a high, playing our one and only league game at New Road, Old Whits didn’t provide much opposition to be honest, however that didn’t stop Ram Kolanu who plundered 14 fours in a brilliant 89 from 73 balls, taking us to 158-6 in our 25 overs. Old Whits were bowled out for 65 in 18 overs, Priyesh Patel and Ayan Sohail both sharing 2 wickets a piece this time.
The season was punctured with mixed availability however this allowed over 23 boys to play in an U15 league, providing great opportunities to stretch their skills against some tough opposition.
U14 Surrey Cup Run
We started with a bye and a concession from Ripley followed by a home tie vs Ashtead, who had us reeling at 55-5 in the U13 first round the year before! Esher were put in to bat at New Road and managed to score 132-5 from our 20 overs. No one really got going but solid contributions from Richie P, 37, Alex Frewer, 32 and Max Rawlinson, 22 gave us something to defend. Ashtead never threatened that total with some tight bowling up front from Jamali and Ayan Sohail, Ayan the pick of the bowlers with 2-8. Even Alex Frewer got to turn his arm over! Esher won by 29 runs
Epsom were our next victims. Esher once again posted a sub-par score of 134 all out from 19.4 overs on a tricky pitch, Noah Luxman looked stylish for his 40* off 33 and Josh K (U13) showed the U14’s how to bat with a rapid 30 from 14 balls including 5 marvellous fours! The game was played in wonderful spirit epitomised by a dog stopping play for 5 mins and then the same dog trying to disrupt play again, only for Tommy Price to float one up for the batter to reverse sweep in the direction of the dog to distract it! Esher were always too powerful with some miserly bowling from Porter and Sohail, the former returning season best figures of 4 overs, 2 maidens 3-8.
Next up were Stoke D’Abernon, the first game I haven’t attended in the cup for 3 years, I left it in Mark P’s safe hands… Esher put Stoke in who scored 122-6 from their 20 overs, surely not enough with our powerful and deep batting line up. Aayan Sohail (U13) with the best figures, 2-8 from his 3 overs. At 46-2 it was looking OK, at 74-5 we hoped we had enough in the locker. At 101-7 and 103-8 things had started to unravel. We needed 20 from the last 2 overs with only 1 wicket in hand. Jamali hit the first ball of the 19th over for 6, 14 off 11, the pendulum was swinging. 9 off the last, 1, 2, dot. 6 needed from 3 balls, Aayan Sohail is dropped on the boundary and the ball trickles to the rope, it’s a 4. Two needed from 2, a scampered single and the scores are tied, the last ball is a bye, and Esher perform their greatest escape yet. Mark P said it was never in doubt…
Big crowds, supporters and players from other clubs came to watch this game vs Banstead in the semi-final at New Road. Banstead won the toss and chose to bat posting 118-5, excellent tight bowling by Felix Le Vesconte and J Jamali up front. 118 was never going to be enough and when their premier bowler was dispatched over the nets for 6 by Charlie Pitts, Esher never looked back. Richie Page and Max Rawlinson steered us home with 4 overs to spare, a very strong display indeed!
The final was held at Valley End with the biggest boundary I had ever seen. Esher were put in to bat by Valley End and were off to a slow start, Charlie Pitts the only one to have a strike rate above a hundred in his 22 from 19 balls. Regular wickets were falling with little support for Max Rawlinson, 41* managing to scrape to 118 all out. It was a big pitch but if they got off to a flyer our 6 year unbeaten record in the cup was in jeopardy. In the end, hostile bowling up front from Felix Le Vesconte and J Jamali, followed by season best figures from Tom Price, 4 overs 4-13 and Ayan Sohail 1.4 overs 3-6 meant that Esher ran out comfortable winners by 48 runs in the end.
A huge thank you from me to all the parents for all their support throughout the season, we even had a few first time scorers come out of the woodwork which was great to see. Thank you to Duncan and the coaching team and of course Lek and her team serving the Rose/Beers… A big thank you to the U13’s for bailing us out so often to ensure we fielded a full team, I think we had over 10 U13’s represent the U14’s during the season, along with an U12! Special mentions to ever present Mark L for his superb season, Matt P, Gav and Clive for their scoring support and SJ for her relentless Sponding.
End of Season Awards
- Player of the Season: Ram Kolanu
- Batting: Ram Kolanu – 731 runs in the season @ 36, 4th highest in the club.
- Bowling: Tom P – took 17 wickets @14
- All Rounder: Felix Porter – Power hitting, superb bowling and 13 victims in the field
U14 2nd XI (Mark Lappin)
Another successful year for our U14 2nd XI was sandwiched by two matches: both away at Valley End; both played on Bank Holidays; both separated by the entire four months of Summer; and both with somewhat different outcomes. 2022 proceedings began with a tier 1 match on a blustery Monday afternoon, with Esher winning the toss, electing to field and soon regretting it. Valley End posted 195-6 from 30 overs with Esher’s bowlers suffering at the hands of their middle order. We responded with a solid 39 from opener Ed Reilly and a run a ball 57 from Max Webb but fell 58 runs short in a match that seemed to last forever.
A swap to the U14 County Cup soon followed with an away trip to Chessington, who chose to bowl on a pitch less predictable than the British weather. After an umpiring controversy and the wicket being ‘re-set’ to 21 yards, Esher were reduced to 21-5. Charlie Lappin made an assured 26, whilst getting frequently hit from length balls rearing up around his head. Esher scrambled to 90, but despite 3 for 16 a-piece from Ed and Owen Flower, Chessington won by 4 wickets with 4 balls left, including a batter [erroneously and hilariously] doing a lap of honour when miscalculating the winning runs. Next was Guildford and a grandstand finish. Excellent batting from captain Alex Kay (27), Sunny Sharma (21), Freddy Lister (18) and a 50* from U13 player, Jayden Flower, saw Esher post an imposing 168 off its 25 overs. A couple of wickets from fast bowler, Ollie Fenton (3-24), helped reduce Guildford to 25-3 and Esher were cruising. However, Guildford had other ideas, reaching 155-6 with 2 overs left. Ben Stuart-Reckling’s (2-16) excellent penultimate over meant a final showdown and more umpiring controversy with the call of a fielding circle no-ball tying scores with 1 ball left. Charlie held his nerve taking a wicket off the final delivery to secure a tie in a match that could have gone any which way.
A Friday night away at Banstead will be remembered for the delayed start (late finishing tournament); weather (drizzle never stopped); and result (Esher snatching defeat from the jaws of victory). Solid bowling from Alex (2-14) and Sunny (2-10) meant Esher was only chasing 113 from 20 overs. A sound start, followed by Aaryan Desai’s pyrotechnics (34 from 26), preceded an England-esque collapse with the last 8 wickets disappearing for 35 runs and a 16 run defeat. Hopefully something better was round the corner… A change is as good as a rest, and so proved the adage with Esher playing its first ever ‘100’ match at New Road against Hampton Wick Royal. The format of a maximum 20 deliveries (for both bowlers and batters) seemed to agree with Esher, who controlled the tempo and held our visitors to 92-4 from its 100 balls. Ed (23*) and Alex (38) then put on a rapid fire 69 first wicket partnership helping to see Esher home in only 56 balls.
A comfortable tier 1 win on Father’s Day followed at Imber Court against a decent Crown Taverners outfit after a few wobbles, with Charlie (21) propping up the middle order after decent early work from U13 Priyesh Patel (19), followed by an accomplished all-round fielding display delivering a 29 run win. A tough defeat away at Ewell, followed by excellent 27 run and 5 wicket wins at home to Ashtead and Stoke D’Abernon underlined Esher’s inconsistency in the league. So back to the ‘100’ we went…. An away match at Thames Ditton on a hot summer’s evening followed with the hosts putting Esher in, and soon wishing they hadn’t. Alex (25) and Ed (20*) once again proved their appetite for this format of only facing 20 balls. Able support from Max (16*) and Owen (10*) set a target of 104. Charlie set the tone with an early LBW, via an appeal that could be heard miles away and Harresh Jayanathan (2-5) worsened TD’s misery. Alex rotated the bowling expertly to strangle their batting and deliver a 15 run win.
Back to the league and a horror show at home to Ewell. This was easily Esher’s worst performance of the year, resulting in a 10 wicket loss after only scoring 82-6 in 20 overs. Nobody was truly spared from some very encouraging words from the manager! If anyone thought that maybe this was a year to focus on the 100 competition, then they did not have long to wait. Walton Upon Thames was up next in the quarter finals. Winning the toss and batting seemed like the ideal plan for a match starting in the evening on a wicket so dry it better resembled Mumbai. With an outfield like glass providing excellent value for your shots, Ed once again showed his pomp in this competition. This time he blazed 42* from 20 balls including two 6s. Support from Aaryan (17*), Priyesh (23*) and fellow U13 Shiv Patel (16*) took Esher to 127-3. More controlled bowling by Shiv (2-2), the standout, left Walton stranded on 93-4 and another comfortable Esher win. With leagues completed, it was now all about the 100, albeit with a month’s gap before a very tasty semi-final clash at home to Cranleigh in late August. Scoring runs for fun in The Hundred and always electing to bat, Cranleigh shocked Esher by winning the toss and choosing to field on a night where light would disappear later on. Cranleigh’s bowling was pretty good too, leaving Esher wobbling on 27-3 and 45-4 after a quick opening once again by Ed (17 off 12). Deyan Patel delivered a superbly crafted 22*, marshalling the innings and setting Cranleigh 108 to win. They were off to a flyer with 54 off the first 40 balls, but with 3 wickets down thanks to James Allsop and Ed, runs were drying up. The game was in the balance, but with the light fading fast and Dillon Rai, Max, Aaryan and Deyan grabbing wickets, Cranleigh were falling behind the run rate and when Fenton Elliott took catch off Max to close out the 10 run win, mayhem ensued in the dressing room.
So back to Valley End, where it all began for the Hundred Plate final, only this time to face a Sutton team that also had an impressive cup run behind them. Alex won the toss and elected to bat and Esher flew out of the blocks again with Ed (37) and Alex (10) setting the platform. Boundaries were at a premium due to the 70-yard outfield, and with the run rate slowing and wickets falling to some consistent bowling, Esher somewhat stalled to 110. Sutton started brightly with 40 coming off the first 30 balls and confidence was high before excellent fast bowling from James, had a nick behind to the keeper and two balls later, superb boundary fielding from Max executed an amazing split second run out. Wickets started to fall regularly to the bowlers and with the pressure on Sutton, two more run outs closed out the game and a 26 run win for the inaugural U14 100 Champions, Esher CC.
As ever, massive congratulations to the boys, but of course none of this was possible without the help Tony Rai and Hayden Flower amongst many others. However, a special mention goes to Dan Webb as he was with me through it all this year, scoring, umpiring, supporting and helping – A big thank you.
End of Season Awards
- Player of the Season: Ed Reilly
- Batting: Ed Reilly
- Bowling: Aaryan Desai
- All Rounder: Fenton Elliott
- Clubmen: Priyesh Patel and Shiv Patel (both U13)