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Under 10 District Festival at Kings

Front Row: Jamie Bremner, Ashley Babbage, Solo Tomlinson, George Malpass, Aaron Tuck, Ewan Gegg Back Row: Jack Poulson, Finn McCarthy, Sam Helme, Will Attwooll and Adam Hopkins.Ben North (absent)

Once again, the Kings Festival saw 12 boys line up to represent the Stroud District against the other 6 Districts.The first game was against Leadon Vale, and batting first the boys kept the score ticking along evenly, reaching 153 for only 2 wickets. This included a wonderfully controlled 47 from Ewan Gegg, and was supported well at the end by Sam Helme’s 22 not out. So with a reasonable total to defend, the bowling got off to a good start, with Adam Hopkins getting awarded a second ball LBW from a straight ball. Things remained tight throughout after that, and despite wickets falling the boys couldn’t slow the run rate enough to be comfortable. Then with some big hitting at the end, Leadon Vale reached the target with 2 wickets and 9 balls remaining. Bowlers worked hard to be as economic as possible, with Finn McCarthy (0-9), Ashley Babbage (1-7) and Ewan Gegg (3-10) off their 3 overs. Nearly, but not quite! On the Tuesday Stroud faced the Cotswold team. Again batting first, the game seemed to take on a similar pattern. The run rate was again reasonable through the innings, with Ewan Gegg carrying his bat to a deserved 63. The total reached 151 for 4 and saw Adam Hopkins join in with 28 runs. Defending this total was hard from the start, with both openers finding a good rhythm early on and nearly reaching 100 without loss. Good bowling from Adam Hopkins and Ashley Babbage slowed the run rate down in the middle, and was built upon by Ewan Gegg ( 0 for 9 ) and Jamie Bremner ( 1-7 ) off 4 overs each. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough, and Cotswolds reached their total of 152 for 3, with 2 overs left, and their opener on 84 not out.After a Wednesday rest, we lined up against Cheltenham. Winning the toss again, we tried third time lucky batting first. With a few boys getting chance to bat near the start, the runs plodded along, with a few wickets dropping too. George Malpass hit a stubborn 13 near the start, and this was backed upp well down the order by some good hitting from Jack Poulton (12), Ewan Gegg (19) and with Ben North (20) and Adam Hopkins (16) both not out at the close, leaving us 149 for 7. This was always going to be difficult to defend, as we’d seen over the previous 2 matches, but things started well with us keeping the run rate down well and saw Adam Hopkins pick up 2 wickets from some line and length bowling. This was followed up by some great fast bowling from Ashley Babbage ( 6 runs off 5 overs, including 3 maidens ) and Ewan Gegg’s first 4 overs picking up a wicket for only 10 runs. Then the game swung away from us with some fielding slips, mistakes and leg-side bowling getting punished, and eventually saw them reach the target from 4 overthrows with only 10 balls and 3 wickets left. Still only nearly!In the final game, and with a change in tactics, we opted to bowl first against the team from Gloucester. Despite some good bowling from Adam Hopkins ( 10 runs off 3 overs ) and Ashley Babbage ( 5 runs off 3) , wickets were hard to come by, and it wasn’t until the 12th over that we got a break through with Will Attwooll picking up 2 wickets in 5 balls. Their opener then found his game and slowly pushed the score up and up, reaching an excellent 93 before being bowled by Adam off the last ball, and leaving us to chase 190 to win. We set about reaching that total in a positive way, but lost several key wickets before the 10th over drinks. Batsmen got themselves in, but then out unfortunately hitting shots straight into fielder’s hands. Sam Helme (24) and Finn McCarthy (25) kept it interesting, and on the required run rate till late in the game, but eventually tighter bowling kept the total just out of our reach, with us ending on 150 for 8 off the 30 overs. Although the games didn’t go our way, it’s been great to see all the boys enjoy and grow their time over the week. A big thanks to all of them (and to all the supporting parents) from Dave and Andy for their efforts and commitment through the festival.

Partridge Homes to sponsor Stroud Youth Cricket

The Stroud District Youth Leagues have received a massive boost with the news that Partridge Homes (Cotswolds) Limited is to be its sponsor for this season.. Partridge Homes managing director Chris Partridge (pictured right) is a well known figure in local cricket circles having been a Frocester stalwart for many years and also a regular in the Gloucestershire Over 50’s team."I’m really pleased at being involved again with youth cricket", he explains. "A few years ago I set up the SDCA under 11’s league and then ran it for 8 years. That and having been involved in youth coaching have given me a good appreciation of how much enjoyment youth cricket gives. Chris’s construction company is a family business and has a history going back over 90 years in the county. Today Partridge Homes (Cotswolds) Limited specialises in building executive homes in Cheltenham, Cirencester, Bath, Painswick and Cotswold villages. Dave Howell adds; "Sponsorship enables us to ensure youngsters get their medals and trophies at the season end and we are able to keep the costs of running the league for clubs at a minimum. Chris has always been an enthusiastic cricketer with a strong interest in the youth leagues and we are delighted he will be working with us in the coming summer".

Cricket Coaching Mats

There is now an extra saving of £25 off the Swaledale cricket coaching mat as advertised on this page. Please visit the website for further information

Cricket Club Grants

Did you know (or had you forgotten that...) the Lords Taverners scheme allows you to purchase (or FREE for Kwik Cricket kit) a bag of kit for Youngsters for just £25 EVERY YEAR. In addition we have some info on small grants opportunities and other Grant Aid. If interested contact admin@sdca-cricket.co.uk.

Scoresheets

We will no longer be supplying U11 or U13 scoresheets. However if you require them you can download them as word documents in zip format here