Horsley & Send 121
Merstham 122-9
Merstham won by one wicket
For the second week running the 1st XI won at home following a thrilling run chase.
With Horsley & Send electing to bat Merstham were quietly confident that they could get some assistance from the wicket.
Noman Javed (5-33) took two early wickets to set the tone for another excellent bowling performance, and remained accurate whilst making the most of conditions overhead to ensure the ball moved.
TweetWeybridge Vandals 153
Merstham 154-8
Surrey Championship Division Five
Merstham 1st XI got back to winnings ways, but did it the hard way during a nail-biting game against Weybridge Vandals.
With the Weybridge skipper winning the toss and electing to bat, Merstham were keen to continue their early season form with the ball.
Last weekend wasn’t so much a bad day at the office for the two Under 11 teams, but rather a catastrophic disaster where the corporate internet went down, half the sales team quit and the junior receptionist ran off to South America with the keys to the coffee machine and the contents of the company bank accounts.
The nightmare started even before a ball was bowled in the ESCL game on Friday evening, a pre-match "training ground” accident seeing Thomas Harris fracturing his elbow. Put into bat against a very strong Trinity Mid-Whitgiftian team (who were fielding some of their Division 1 table-topping side), the team then got off to a terrible start, with two run-outs in the very first over.
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The U14 cup match
Merstham’s Under 14 Falcons beat Dorking U14s in the first round of the ESCL Cup in a re-arranged match on Monday 4th June.
Dorking won the toss and elected to bat, their opening batsman making 12 off the first over before Merstham’s opening bowler Ed Cecil claimed his wicket with the last ball of the over.
Dorking continued to pile on the pressure, scoring a further 34 runs until the next fall of wicket in the seventh over, taken by Jude McRobbie.
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Second team action at Quality Street
Merstham 141
Alleyn 152-5
A disappointing batting performance and several missed catches left Merstham’s first team ruing missed opportunities against Surrey Championship Division Five top of the table Alleyn in their first timed game of the season.
Put in to bat on what seemed a damp Alleyn wicket, the top order again struggled to provide a platform on what proved to be a difficult surface.
Jason Kyte (1) and Sunny Bowry (6) both fell to the opener Tom Eadon (4-37), with Laurie Nicholson (9) and Noman Javed (15) then succumbing to the off-spinner Chad Balluza (2-24).
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In their second NEC league game, Merstham Under 11s won the toss and put Spencer in on a wicket best described as “a monster”. With further rain forecast later in the morning, the game was shortened to 20 overs per innings.
In the fourth over, Will John-Cox enforced a top edge and Lyle Wesson, keeping for the first time in a year, took a stunning catch diving forwards.
The following over, Sam Gill’s spell of tight accurate bowling picked up a wicket, and Spencer were wobbling at 9-2. But the next pair of batsman built steadily, despite our excellent bowling, and it needed a bit of magic from Rayhan Ahamadali in the 12th over to break the partnership.
TweetMerstham 143
Old Emanuel 146-4
After their first victory of the season the previous week, Merstham suffered at the hands of Old Emanuel in the Surrey Championship Division Five, losing by six wickets.
After Laurie Nicholson won the toss and batted, Ed Dawson put up a fight, battling for 80 minutes for a tenacious 44 not out.
Will Preston (27) and Gus Locke (25) rallied the hosts from 40-5 to a reasonable total of 143-7.
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Tactics talk and tea
Last season the U11s were known for their close finishes; thankfully they haven’t lost the knack in 2018, writes Graeme Law.
Unfortunately, the NEC cup game against Reigate Priory - played as a pairs game - wasn’t close. It wasn’t even close to being close.
Priory batted first and it appeared a number of the Merstham boys were still half asleep, as some of our bowling and fielding was significantly less tight than usual.
(Questions will no doubt be asked about discipline and whether a curfew needs to be imposed in the future).
Whatever the reason, Priory racked up 161-3 in their 20 overs - Seb Parsons, Sam Gill and Ruari Gibbs with a wicket each.
In reply, Merstham struggled to impose themselves against Priory's strong bowling attack and eventually managed 92-8. The innings was notable for the fact that it contained two fives and an eight (yes - EIGHT: Sam Flower - who top scored with 16 - hooking a chest-high no-ball for six).
TweetAs part of the clubs affiliation with Surrey County Cricket Club, we have 30 free tickets for this Friday's Royal London One Day Cup match vs Sussex at The Oval.
Play commences at 11am and tickets are free to any club members who have registered and paid their subs (or on direct debit scheme). Seating is unreserved, so you can sit anywhere, except the pavilion.
If you would like to take, up to 5 tickets, please contact club Treasurer, Chris by e-mail and they will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. Ticket will ideally be collected in person from the Treasurer's home or from Quality Street over the weekend.
TweetMerstham 198-7
Guildford 89
Surrey Championship Division Five
The 1st XI gained their first win of the season with a strong all round performance away at Guildford City.
Having won the toss and elected to bat, captain Laurie Nicholson (16) and fellow opener Andy Rivers (62) set off in watchful fashion before Nicholson was bowled in the 10th over.
Expectation was high for both sides on a sunny evening when Outwood Outlaws visited Merstham Magics in the Surrey Slam T20 competition.
Merstham’s U14 Falcons' first game of the season took place on Thursday 10th May at Quality Street against Limpsfield Chart.
Captained by Noah Young, Merstham lost the toss and were put in to bat. Openers Matthew Greaves and Young both fell early to the bowling of Harry Puck and Merstham were 5-2 by the end of the second over.
New batsmen Matthew Retter and Harry Younan partnered well and put on 32 runs before the third wicket fell and Jude McRobbie joined Younan at the crease.
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In a magical mystery tour of science, geography, and cross-sport mixed metaphors, Graeme Law takes a colourful look at the start to his Under 11 team's season....
Gravity doesn’t appear to exist. The ball hangs in the air, high above the tree-line in the grey sky, seemingly fixed in time and space. But everyone watching knows it’s got to come down eventually.
And when it does, someone needs to try and catch it. A catch in the first over has already been missed, and so - even though it’s only the third over - it somehow feels like this could determine the trajectory of the whole season.
TweetAs part of the clubs affiliation with Surrey County Cricket Club, we have 30 free tickets for this Friday's Royal London One Day Cup match vs Somerset at The Oval.
Play commences at 11am and tickets are free to any club members who have registered and paid their subs (or on direct debit scheme). Seating is unreserved, so you can sit anywhere, except the pavilion.
If you would like to take, up to 5 tickets, please contact club Treasurer, Chris by e-mail and they will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. Ticket will ideally be collected in person from the Treasurer's home or from Quality Street on Wednesday between 7pm and 7:30pm.
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The under 13s started the season with a win in the Surrey Cup and a first win against local rivals Horley for this age group.
The batting started well with an opening stand of 41, Adam Swan out for 27, (three short of the retirement mark of 30) partnered by Alvin Sathay.
TweetClub captain Richard Feist top scorer to lead his 2nd XI to victory, but his side's success was the only one for Merstham on a boiling start to the season.
For the first team, Gus Locke and Asim Jafferi both took wickets on the first day of the Surrey Championship, but, having held Old Pauline to a reasonable target of 183, Merstham’s batting let them down in their Division Five match at Quality Street as they coudl only must 91 in reply.
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The season is finally here! Whilst the ground at Quality Street is still a little soft, tonight's training, BBQ and Quiz Night will go ahead as planned.
Please note, the grass carpark is very soft, so to try and avoid cars becoming stuck we ask you to please park parallel to the hedge (i.e. cars facing North to South rather than East to West as is usually the case). This should avoid drivers trying to reverse up the hill and getting stuck.
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Our first team captain Laurie Nicholson, who set the club record for an individual run score in one game of 173 last season, is due to appear on the first SusyRadio cricket show of the season on Thursday, May 3.
Merstham Cricket Club is always looking for help from its members and supporters. If you can spare time to help with everything from paperwork to manning the bar on a busy Friday night junior training session, then let us know.
From time to time, we need support from professionals such as solicitors, architects, accountants and people with commercial accumen, as well as people who can help provide teas on a Saturday or Sunday or who can just score. If you have practical skills from painting and decorating to plumbing, we would also welcome your input.
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Despite the sun earlier in the week, the rain has struck back, and the ground at Quality Street is still too wet and slippery to be used this week without risking damage to the wicket or personal injury.
Unfortunately, this means cancelling tonights Junior training and the home games due both tomorrow and Sunday.
Lets hope for a turn around in the weather next week.
TweetFor general information please contact our Information Manager
If you are interested in joining to play adult cricket then please contact our Club Captain
For enquiries relating to Colts (junior) cricket please contact our Junior Co-ordinator
EasyFundrasing offer you a way to raise much needed funds for Merstham Cricket Club as you shop online.
Merstham Cricket Club is now available as a cause on JustGiving, if you are taking part in an event and wish to raise money for the club please use JustGiving to host your fundraising page.
Alternatively, to simply donate money to the club, please do so via JustGiving by clicking here (don't forget to tick the gift-aid button)!
Merstham Cricket Club is proud to be ECB Clubmark Accredited
Merstham Cricket Club now operates an online membership registration form, ALL members (playing members and social) should register annually.
There are a number of easy payment options including Direct Debit, PayPal, Cash/Cheque and Bank Transfer.
Please click here to complete your registration form for the 2018 season.
Subscribe to our monthly eNewsletter and other mails to stay up to date with the latest events at the club!
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