Petersfield Under 15s win the league

                  

PRESS RELEASE

Petersfield U15 Cricket Team Clinch League Title

Whilst all the results are not yet in, Petersfield Under 15 Cricket Team have taken an unassailable lead at the top of their division. Five teams contested the SE Hampshire U15B league this year (Hayling Island the 6th team dropped out after Petersfield beat them by over 160 runs) with each team playing each other home and away in 20 over per innings matches.

Petersfield won 6 of their league 8 games amassing 117 points in the process (out of a maximum available of 168). Petersfield beat Portsmouth Community and Portsmouth both home and away and won 1 and lost 1 against both Steep and United Services Portsmouth. A number of the Petersfield matches were nail bitingly close, losing to Steep by 1 run at home and beating Steep by 4 runs away, beating US Portsmouth by 2 runs at home and losing in the last over away and beating Portsmouth Community at home in the last over. Dave Squires and Paddy May, the Petersfield coaches were noticeably greyer by the end of the season!

Petersfield played brilliantly as a team and Alex Squires the Petersfield Captain hailed the team spirit and the positive attitude as key factors in the success of the team. In total 18 players played for the team over the course of the season, including 8 under 13 players, and all of them played their part in the success of the team.

Over the course of the season 15 players bowled for the team taking 40 wickets between them with 13 of them taking a wicket. The four leading bowlers Alex Squires, Ollie Simpson, Dan May and Ben Turk took 26 of the wickets.

On the batting side 17 of the players batted at least once and scored 884 runs between them with Gabriel Broadhurst scoring 260 runs in 7 innings giving him a batting average of 130 (having to retire with a 50 on 5 occasions). Dan Parry scored 145 runs at an average of 20. Ollie Simpson and Ben Turk also scored individual innings of greater than 40.

In terms of fielding 26 catches were taken by 10 different players with Dan Parry, Rory Claasen and Joe Mayell each taking 4 catches (Joe Mayell taking 3 of them as wicket-keeper). Ben Anscombe took 1 catch and made 2 run-outs.

Players that played for Petersfield U15 in 2013

Alex Squires, Ben Anscombe, Josh Bird, Gabriel Broadhurst, Joe Clarke, Kit Classen, Rory Classen, Matt Friend, Ned Harvey, Tommy Mathews, Daniel May, Joe Mayall, Will Morton-Scott, Dan Parry, Tom Pocock, Harry Richards, Oliver Simpson and Ben Turk

And this is the table

P w l Bat P Bowl P Pen Pts Petersfield CC 8 6 2 36 21 0 117 Steep CC 8 4 4 23 15 0 78 United Services Portsmouth CC 7 3 4 21 16 0 67 Portsmouth CC 6 3 3 18 16 0 64 Portsmouth Community CC 7 2 5 12 12 0 44

Petersfield U15 v Portsmouth Community U15 - 24th July 2013

Petersfield U15 Match Reports

Petersfield U15 v Portsmouth Community U15 - 24^th July 2013

Result:

Portsmouth Community U15 – 112 for 5; Petersfield U15 – 116 for 7

Petersfield U15 won by 3 wickets

Petersfield U15 beat Portsmouth Community U15 by 3 wickets to go top of the league, although at one stage it looked for all the world as if Petersfield were going to lose. Alex Squires the Petersfield captain won the toss and decided to mix it up by electing to field first so that although Petersfield would be batting in the gathering gloom they would know what score to chase.

Ben Turk (1 for 18) and Alex Squires (1 for 20) bowled very accurately and restricted Portsmouth Community to 18 from the first 4 overs. Dan May (0 for 22) and Harry Richards (1 for 19) carried on where Turk and Squires had left off so that although Portsmouth Community were not losing any wickets they were not scoring freely. Joe Mayell, behind the stumps, caught Bowen for 15 in the 10^th over (bowled by Richards) to take the first wicket. A smart bit of fielding from Joe Clarke saw Cummings run out without troubling the scorer in the next over. Joe Clarke (0 for 20) replaced Richards and carried on bowling accurate and dangerous swing bowling. Ben Anscombe (1 for 9) replaced May and bowled some very controlled off spin which caused the Portsmouth batsman no end of trouble and he took a well-deserved wicket with Dan Parry taking a superb reflex catch at silly mid-off. Turk and Squires came back to wrap up the Portsmouth inning each taking a wicket in their second spell caught by Mayell and Claasen respectively. Portsmouth ended up on 112 for 5 with their score assisted by 42 extras (although to speed the game up wides and no-balls were worth 2 runs with no extra ball). It was expected that this score would be no problem to the normally free scoring Petersfield.

Gabriel Broadhurst, who is in superb form, and Dan Parry opened the innings for Petersfield. With Andrews (0 for 20) and Palmer (2 for 11) bowling with real control and lots of movement off the pitch Petersfield were struggling to gain their normal momentum. In the 4^th over Palmer accounted for both Broadhurst (9) and Ben Anscombe (0). Two overs later Dan Parry was caught by Bowen off his own bowling for 3 off 17 balls. Joe Mayell and Rory Claasen started a mini revival putting on 15 before Mayell was bowled by Bowen for 4 with Claasen run out soon after for 9. Tommy Matthews playing his first game for the U15 took the attack to Portsmouth before he was bowled for 5. This brought Joe Clarke and Ben Turk to the crease. With more than half the overs gone and Petersfield on 53 for 6 it looked like Portsmouth Community were going to gain revenge for their defeat to Petersfield earlier in the season. However Joe Clarke and Ben Turk had other ideas. Clarke played the perfect foil to the aggressive and hard hitting Turk with the pair of them putting on 38 runs before Joe Clarke was bowled for 5 (in 13 balls) by Max Cummings who had swapped his normal wicket keeping gear to become a bowler. This brought Captain Alex Squires to the crease to see if he could save the day for Petersfield. Squires (6 NO) and Turk (42 NO) saw Petersfield home with 3 wickets and 1 over to spare. Turk batted beautifully to guide Petersfield home and although he batted aggressively it was all proper cricket shots.

This match brought an end to the Petersfield U15 season. Overall it looks like they will win the league winning 6 of their 8 games (although 5 of their games (including both losses) were very close games. The U15 should be proud of what they have achieved this year.

Teams:

Petersfield: G Broadhurst; D Parry; B Anscombe; J Mayell ⁽⁺⁾; R Claasen; T Matthews; B Turk; J Clarke; A Squires ^(*); H Richards; D May

Portsmouth Community: L Andrews; C Bowen; M Cummings ⁽⁺⁾; W Turner; L Palmer ^(*); F Leslie; J Andrews; T Loader; E Palmer; L Salch

http://petersfield.play-cricket.com/scoreboard/scorecard.asp?id=11822165

Petersfield 3s win again!

Petersfield CC - 3rd XI vs Herriard - 3rd XI

Result:  Petersfield CC - 3rd XI Won by 6 wickets

Date:  Sat 27th Jul 2013

With the weather forecast not great Petersfield had decided if they won the toss that they would field to give them the best chance of forcing a result. Captain James Stratford-Tuke duly won the toss and put Herriard in.

Herriard Captain Wayne Good (9) and young left hander Matthew Deadman (46) got Herriard off to a flying start scoring before Ben Turk (3-56 off 7) had Good caught after mistiming another powerful shot on the off side. Ben was struggling with his length and line but would get revenge later on. Oscar Windebank had Brody Good (9) caught by Ben Anscombe at mid wicket  after he had skied an attempted pull shot. After Ben Turk was withdrawn from the attack Dave Squires (4-22 off 10) joined Oscar in trying to pull the run rate down and create some pressure on the Herriard batsmen. Despite his first over going for 11 Squires bowled a tight line and was causing all the batsmen problems with swing and movement off the pitch. His first wicket came as opener Deadman tried to pull another shot on the onside but was caught by Ben Turk at a deep mid on just where the bowler had placed him. This gave Petersfield the belief that they could restrict the visitors to a gettable total. Squires continued to tie the batsmen up in knots with a nagging line and length. Rob Straw (1-11 off 3) replaced Oscar and had Adam Soper (8) caught at gully by Rob Anscombe from a rising delivery, having bowled his best 3 overs of the season.

In the next over Squires then got 2 wickets in 2 balls as he first removed Vernon Butcher (1) and then bowled a yorker to remove Jamie Yates first ball. With the opportunity for a hat-trick on the cards the Petersfield captain bought his field in but despite bowling another yorker Adam Warner (33) survived as despite being hit on the pads the ball had just pitched outside leg stump to finish the double wicket maiden over. The scoring rate rose again but with Josh Knowles (13) starved of runs by Squires at one end it never got out of hand despite Warner playing some nice shots at the other end. Squires finished off his spell by taking the wicket of Josh Knowles in his last over, meaning his last 9 overs had gone for 11 runs and 4 wickets.

Opening bowlers Ben Turk and Oscar Windebank (1-26 off 9.2) returned to the attack to try and finish the innings off. Ben then removed 2 of the last 3 wickets returning to his normal good line and length which has served him so well this season in colt and adult cricket. Warner was removed in bizarre fashion as he played an offside shot only to miss the ball and hit it in his follow through to be caught at midwicket! Ben then removed Dean James as he was caught by Paul Clarke at point. The innings ended when Harley Beddon was run out by Ben Anscombe as he calmly got the ball to the bowler to leave the young lad well short of his ground. The score was 156 thanks to some good cricket from Petersfield who held all their catches.

After Tea and with the clouds coming over Petersfield seemed intent on running quickly turning good shots into singles. Captain Good (3-33 off 10) removed first John Windebank (10) and then James Stratford-Tuke (17) in successive overs to leave Petersfield 39-2. Paddy May (48 not out) and Ben Anscombe (1) then took the score to 58-3 before young Ben played on to a ball that was too close to him to cut. Ben’s father Rob (16) joined May at the crease and proceeded to be the perfect foil to May’s powerful offside hitting as he ran the Herriard fielders ragged placing the ball into the gaps. He was then caught behind by a good catch from the keeper as he got a faint edge to give Good his 3rd wicket. This left Petersfield potentially tottering on 84-4.

Oscar Windebank had been challenged by his father to stay in and play a sensible innings and gave him the incentive of a pound for every run he scored over 40! May and Windebank then started to calm their teammates nerves with some lovely hitting although both players had let offs as Herriard unlike Petersfield failed to hold the catches they were offered. With the weather closing in and the light drizzle starting both May (8 fours) and Windebank (43 not out, 5 fours and 2 sixes) saw Petersfield home to give them maximum points (24) and keep them in 2nd place in Hampshire Cricket League Regional Division 4 NE.

Captain Stratford-Tuke was very pleased with the result and pointed out what a fantastic team performance it was with everyone contributing in one way or another to another league win.

Man of The match - Oscar Windebank for his 43 not out, 1 wicket and 2 catches.

Honorable mentions to Dave Squires and Paddy May

Moment of the Match - Dave Squires’s 2 in 2 balls.

Scorecard.

http://petersfield.play-cricket.com/scoreboard/scorecard.asp?id=11731587

Us Portsmouth U15s v Petersfield U15s

US Portsmouth v Petersfield U15 - 15^th July 2013

Result:

Petersfield U15 – 141 for 4; US Portsmouth U15 – 142 for 4

Petersfield U15 lost by 6 wickets

Petersfield U15 lost to US Portsmouth by 4 wickets although the match was actually closer with US Portsmouth winning with only 4 balls to spare. Played on a glorious evening down at the Clarence in Portsmouth it was a great advert for colts cricket. With short boundaries and a lightning fast outfield it was always likely to be a high scoring match and although Petersfield were pleased with their score there was a concern that the team were about 20 runs short.

Gabriel Broadhurst and Dan Parry opened the batting for Petersfield and rapidly put on 74 in only 9 overs before Dan Parry was caught off the bowling of Saunders going for one too many big shot. Soon after he was out, Gabriel Broadhurst had to retire having him yet another 50 (in 35 balls) for the team (his 6^th 50 in 7 innings). This brought Ben Anscombe (15 NO) and Josh Bird (17) to the crease. With US Portsmouth bowling very accurately the scoring rate slowed and by the time Bird was out a further 9 overs had been bowled and 49 runs had been scored. In the last few overs Anscombe, Rory Claasen and Joe Mayell brought the score up to a more than respectable 141 for 4 with Joe Mayell hitting 2 huge sixes in successive balls during the last over. The pick of the US Portsmouth bowlers was Jack Williams who took 2 wickets for 21 runs. Whilst the Petersfield coach was pleased with the batting display, he was concerned that Petersfield might have been 20 runs short of a defendable total bearing in mind how quick the outfield was and how short the boundaries were. Cameron Quirke and Harry Giles for US

Portsmouth started their reply slowly with some very accurate bowling from Ben Turk (0 for 19) and Alex Squires (0 for 22). After 8 overs, US Portsmouth were on 39-0. At this point Cameron Quirke accelerated hitting 21 off 1 over before having to retire for a 36 ball 50 that included 9 fours and 2 sixes. Joe Clarke (0 for 36) and Dan May (1 for 24) bowled very tidily and with more luck could each of had a couple more wickets but they maintained the brakes on the US Portsmouth innings so that after 12 overs US Portsmouth were still only just after half way towards their target. To try to take the pace off the ball Alex Squires, the Petersfield captain brought on the spinners (Gabe Broadhurst and Kit Claasen) and Broadhurst immediately took the wicket of Hare with Alex Squires taking a good catch. With 2 run-outs in the latter overs US Portsmouth needed 38 runs off 4 overs with most of their wickets in hand. At this point, and under some pressure, the Petersfield fielding went downhill with catches dropped and fielders missing balls that went for boundaries. US Portsmouth took full advantage of this with Browning scoring 26 off only 17 balls before he was run out, Smith scoring 12 not out off 8 balls and Turnbull scoring 26 not out off only 14 balls. With their impressive acceleration US Portsmouth deservedly won by 6 wickets although with 4 balls remaining it remained a tight match.

Teams:

Petersfield: G Broadhurst; D Parry; B Anscombe; J Bird; R Claasen; J Mayell ⁽⁺⁾; B Turk; A Squires ^(*); J Clarke; D May; K Claasen

US Portsmouth: C Quirke; H Giles; Hare; Browning; J Williams; Turnbull ⁽⁺⁾; G Smith; C Lyster; M Shepard ^(*); Gratham; E Saunders

Charity Day final report.

Once again a big thanks and especially to everyone who helped out on the day. especially to

Dee Salmon - who organised mountains in advance, Chaz Collett for the Comedians & Geogina Bushell - that's the organising committee. I'd also like to mention everyone who helped out on the day we had about 20 other helpers and of course the 15 players who all paid not an insignificant amount to play on the day. Finally Kukri, Gunn & Moore, Mike Gatting & the ECB, Chris & Stuart Broad, Hants CC, Sportslocker, The Flying Bull,  Lavant Rowe Hair for donating prizes & the comedians for turning up.

The final figures has come out at £3381.12 which is being donated to motor neurone research via the broad appeal.

Thanks to everyone who donated, raffled or generally turned up and ate or drank to contribute to the total

Petersfield 2s vs Liss

MATCH REPORT: Petersfield 2s vs Liss
The 2s came off second best in this high scoring encounter but, with skipper Frank Straw leading the way with his second century in less than a week, showed plenty of defiance and fighting spirit despite going down to defeat by 87 runs.
Liss won the toss and chose to bat first on a lively wicket, baked hard in the current heat wave. Petersfield did well to remove run machine, Richard Please Jnr, for a comparatively modest 38, caught behind by Thomas off Chris Salmon after Liss had got off to a flier. Indeed at one point Liss were wobbling with 4 wickets down and the score still in the seventies – but that was as good as it got for 'Field.

Helped by no fewer than 8 dropped catches (there may have been one or two more), the Liss middle order went on the rampage, the ball dispatched at increasingly frequent intervals to all parts of Glebe Meadow.
Liss rode their luck to some extent and the ‘Field bowlers struggled to get their lengths right, but this was an incredibly destructive display of power hitting, appreciated by most of those watching (except the Petersfield players and the grumpy pensioner in the flats beyond the long-off boundary, who had to keep retrieving the ball from her garden).
Liss eventually finished on 332 for 8 off their 42 overs, a record score in the league for the club.
There were some brighter moments for ‘Field in amongst the carnage. Chris Wood, with 4 wickets, was twice on a hat trick; Thomas picked up two stumpings; and, at one point, the combined age of the off-side field was over 250 years (a new club record)…
Things went from bad to worse when Petersfield began their reply, slumping to 16 for 5 at one point. But from this nadir, Straw (134 no) and Richard Stephens (48) dug in hard, stopped the rot and then played exceptionally well, putting on a partnership of 137.
With good support from Rob Allerston (30), Straw showed that it wasn’t only the Liss players who could belt it out of the ground, threatening the cars in the car park with some huge hits and making the ‘Field umpire very glad he had parked as far away as possible.
Petersfield closed on 245 for 6 in their innings, which was an amazing effort in the circumstances.
So, a defeat, yes, but hats off to Stephens, Allerston but especially Frank Straw for a gutsy, brutal display with the bat that featured 18 fours and 4 sixes, and must surely be a strong contender – already – for innings of the season.
PS. Spare a thought for Chris Salmon, who, after the early collapse, was at last looking forward to a long bat going in at 9 – and stayed padded up, not needed, for at least 35 overs....

Match Report – (Double Header) Burridge U9 v Petersfield Panthers U9 Sunday 14th

Match Report – (Double Header) Burridge U9 v Petersfield Panthers U9 Sunday 14^th

With the season building to a climax Petersfield Panthers U9 Cricket team travelled to Burridge CC for a crucial double header. Burridge, finalists at the recent Hampshire Zooters tournament were lying in second spot in the SEHCA league a few points behind leaders Petersfield who had faltered recently, loosing their last two games. The captains tossed up in the blistering heat and Petersfield elected to bowl in what promised to be a close encounter. Zac Franklin and David Evans opened the bowling and restricted Burridges big hitters well in the first few overs. This set the tone for the rest of the innings as Peterfield bowled tightly to restrict Burridge to 267 on a ground with a short boundary and a lightening outfield. Petersfields recent problems have been rooted in the failure to get off to a good start but this time Louis Wadsworth and Tom Griffin saw them through to 25 without loss off the first 4 overs. Seb Browning and Zac consolidated well – only loosing one wicket in their 4 overs and the scores were level by the time last pair Mark Butcher and Fergus Mclean came into bat and took the score to 315 to secure what in the end was a comfortable victory. The result and the heat seemed to take its toll on the Burridge team and the second match ended with Petersfield winning by over 100 runs. Jack McKechnie with 3 wickets and David Evans with 28 runs were the top performers. A final win in the last game of the season against Purbrook should secure top spot for the Panthers.

Petersfield Sunday v DACD

Result: Petersfield CC - Friendly XI Won by 182 runs

Date:  Sun 14th Jul 2013

Start Time: 14:00

Ground: The Heath, Petersfield

When captain Marcus Sampson won the toss the Petersfield players settled into their seats to listen to the last throws of the Ashes test and DACD wilted with temperatures soaring into the early 30s.

Usual openers Marcus Sampson (8) and Jack Hannam (4) found it tough going as DACD bowled a tight line with a couple of maidens but with Andy Branes (56) at the wicket the run rate soared as he hit the bowling to all parts to score his runs in around 35 balls with 5 sixes and 5 fours. Frank Straw (105 retired) joined Matt Salmon (9) at the crease after Andy and Jack fell in quick succession. Matt was looking to continue where he left off (50 not out)  yesterday but got a ball that scooted along the ground,taking his frustration out on a boundary marker which took the full force of his anger. Dave Squires (33) joined Frank at the wicket having been bumped up the order to number 6.

Frank and Dave proceeded to put on 76 for the fifth wicket with some heavy scoring from Frank (18 fours and 3 6s) ably supported by Dave (six 4s) who hit anything short or too full to the boundary. The fun did not last as Dave glanced at the scoreboard to see he was on his equal highest score and for some inexplicable reason played an expansive drive to a straight ball to be knocked over by Beale (3-52 off 8). Ben Turk making his Sunday XI debut came out to support Frank and scored a 20 ball 15 runs before nicking one behind to the keeper.

Nick Woodruff came and went without troubling the scorers (rumour has it he was more focused on the tea he was providing). Frank then went to his maiden test century with a six over cow corner which the fielder nearly caught but dropped over the line. With the score on 237 Petersfield looked to turn the screw on the flagging DACD players.

Alex Squires (12 not out) and Ed Davenport (18 not out) played some great cricket shots to move the score along to 270 off the 40 overs.

After Nick’s great tea Petersfield took to the field but if anything it had got hotter and muggier.

It was decided on a dusty and very dry pitch that the opening bowlers would be spin queens (sorry kings) Nick Woodruff (0-31 off 5) and Andy Barnes (2-6 off 4). Andy picking up the wickets with some nice mix of drift and faster deliveries but Nick was unlucky not pick up a wicket.

Alex Squires (1-2 off 2) and Ed Davenport (2-23 off 3) then got in on the act with the wickets from pace rather than spin. Ed in particular bowling very fast if a tad erratic. Guy Andrews (29) was playing well until Marcus asked if it was ok for sub Gabriel Broadhurst (Andy Barnes had to leave unfortunately) could have a bowl. Guy was heard to say as long as he does not bowl like Shane Warne. In his first over Gabe proceeded to pick up 2 wickets as he got bounce and turn from his leg spin. Ben Turk was bowling well at the other end as the two 13 year olds squeezed DACD even more. Gabe picked up another wicket as the batsmen got a nick to a wide delivery to give keeper Sampson 2 catches and a stumping. Ben Turk (1-7 off 4.3) picked up a wicket he deserved as he moved on to 25 wickets for the season. Tim McBain then picked up the final wicket as he bowled the batsmen off the inside edge (never a good idea to cut a spinner). If he and Ed could bowl the ball straight they would be very dangerous.

Man Of the Match - Frank Straw

Moment of the match - When it was announced England had won the test and then having to wait for the DRS decision to confirm it.

http://petersfield.play-cricket.com/scoreboard/scorecard.asp?id=11731574

Sarisbury u13 |V Petersfield u13

Result:  Sarisbury Athletic CC - Under 13 Won by 1 wickets

Date:  Sun 14th Jul 2013

Start Time: 10:00

Ground: Alottment Road Playing Fields

As the weather continued to be glorious Petersfield travelled to Sarisbury hoping to continue their good form. Petersfield captain Gabriel Broadhurst won the toss and elected to bat on a dry pitch.

Petersfield survived the first over with Broadhurst hit a cover drive to get the team up and running. This I am afraid was as good as it got for the first 8 overs as the top order were decimated by the line and length of Sarisbury left arm seamer Dylan Peacock (3-10 off 3). With his opening partner Callum Saunders (2-17 off 4) they reduced Petersfield to 17-5 with 12 overs left. The modes of dismissal were nearly all the same as Petersfield forgot to play themselves in before trying expansive shots (something for the coaches to work on).

Joe Clarke (27) came to the crease and despite watching another wicket fall started to build a platform for the Petersfield bowlers to bowl at. He was very ably supported by the lower order who nearly all hung around with Joe. He was eventually out to Luke Perry (3-16 off 3).

Kit Classen (8), Harvey Baker (8) and Will Milner-Smith (5 not out) all contributed to Petersfield  reaching a score of 87 with Kit Classen only getting out off the last ball of the innings trying to add some vital runs. The batting of Joe and the lower order showed great resilience and as per the Ashes test match showed the top order how to build an innings.

Although 87 was a modest total for Petersfield (who I think have scored over a hundred each time they have batted first this season up to this point) it gave them something to bowl at. With the pitch getting drier by the minute in the 30 degree temperatures, captain Broadhurst sprung a surprise on his coach by opening the bowling with his opener batting partner Ben Anscombe (maybe looking for a bit of revenge). Ben Anscombe (2-17 off 4) bowled a lovely line and length and accounted for both openers. The second a superb catch on the boundary by Kit Classen as the dangerous Jack Nolan (19) went for a slog sweep over square leg’s head. After a bit of a debate the catch was given as Kit judged the catch perfectly just an inch or two from the boundary line. This gave Petersfield renewed hope and when Kit then followed up the catch with the run out of Luke Perry the pressure was on Sarisbury.

Unfortunately Petersfield had not counted on skipper Jamie Dunn ((30 retired) who played a very nice innings to guide his side to within sight of victory despite Will Milner-Smith (3-23 off 4) bowling very nicely to remove the middle order. With Jamie retiring, Calllum Saunders (14) took up the challenge before being bowled by Joe Clarke (1-5 off 2) with a slow bouncer. So it came down to the last over with 4 runs needed and Petersfield needing 2 wickets. Gabriel decided that he would take the responsibility of bowling this vital over and 2 balls into it he got his reward as Dylan Peacock trying to loft the ball over midoff danced past the turning ball and was stumped by Jack Butcher. Out came under 11 James Fredrich with the field in and desperate for the last wicket he calmly played out the 3 ball of the over with a stout defence. The next delivery was slightly fuller and with flourish of Kevin Pietersen took a big stride down the wicket and swept the ball perfectly to the boundary for 4 to win the game with 2 balls to spare.

Both coaches agreed that this was a fantastic advert for colts cricket and that at 10:30 the game was likely to be over by 12 and we could all sit and watch England beat the aussies but as in that game it went to the wire. Credit should go to both sides for not panicking despite the situations they both found themselves in during the game

http://petersfield.play-cricket.com/scoreboard/scorecard.asp?id=11758436

Man of the Match - Joe Clarke pushed very close by Kit Classen

Moments of the Match - Alfie Casson’s fielding at extra cover

Petersfield 3s v Holybourne 2s

On the hottest day of the year promotion chasing Petersfield 3s took on top of the table Holybourne 2s at Penn's Place. Confirming what Petersfield suspected Holybourne won the toss and bowled!

Stand in Captain John Windebank was going to do the same to make use of the new ball but it was Holybourne who got use of the new cherry. Opening bowlers Dave Bowers (1-29 off 10) and Charlie Walters (3-21 off 10) had the ball swinging around like it was on a piece of string with Walters bowling classic left arm over the wicket deliveries to a right handed bat removing both Paddy May (3) and Paul Clarke (10) with late swinging deliveries taking out the off stump. John Windebank (26) was holding up Holybourne's progress with a steady and belligerent knock including some powerful drives, one of them picking out Holybourne's Elliott Milner (age 13) which the young lad did well to get a hand too and stop rather than catch.

With the fall of John's wicket it was left to young Ben Anscombe (28) to show the rest of the middle order that runs could be made on the dry pitch at Penn's, playing his most fluent innings of the season so far coping with the returning Walters, Mark Smith (1-19 off 9) and Robin James (3-33 off 10). Unfortunately for Petersfield the same could not be said of the rest of the batsmen as they all came and went over the next 25 overs or so with only Dan Parry (12) (did well after a very late 11th hour call up) and keeper Joe Mayall (11) hitting any real attacking shots. Ben unfortunately ran out Rob Straw (1) trying to keep the strike when there really was never a run on as he hit it straight back to the bowler. Despite this Anscombe batted well and got Petersfield up to 108 off 39 their overs.

Despite the modest total, Petersfield took to the field hoping they could repeat some of their bowling performances from this season and put the Holybourne team under pressure.
Ben Turk (2-9 off 5) opened the bowling and bowled fantastically again proving what a talent the 13 year old is. Unfortunately his strike partner Oscar Windebank (0-26 off 5) could not repeat his pre holiday form as a rutted foot hole put him right off his stride, even changing ends could not remedy this.

Because of this Captain John turned to first Dave Squires (1-26 off 7) and then Alex Squires (1-23 off 4) to break the partnership between Rob Milner (11) and opener Mark Smith (46 not out) which young Alex managed to do with a slower ball which was hit high to Paul Clarke at mid wicket who took a good catch despite it being in the air for a long time. Dave Squires removed Robin James (4) soon after caught by Dan Parry again at midwicket to give Petersfield some hope of bowling Holyburne out. Alex continued to bowl really well having 2 or 3 edges go wide of keeper and slip. With his father also having no luck at the other end as balls continued to come off edges in the air and not go to a fielder, Holybourne edged towards their victory target. Ben Turk returned and had Dave Bowers out LBW but with Mark Smith continuing to play very nicely at the other end, Holybourne reached their target in 23 overs to consolidate their position at the top of the table. Both teams will hopefully meet next season in Division 3 North East as despite the loss they remain in 3rd place as this was a very friendly (if competitive) game of cricket and was a fine advert for the league.

Credit should also go to stand in skipper John Windebank for the way he led the side on a sweltering day and the way he did not let his young side's heads drop. With just a bit more luck and a few more Petersfield runs on the board it could have been a very different result!

Man of the Match - Ben Anscombe for batting so maturely for a 13 year old
Moment of the Match - the Petersfield team's surprise when we lost the toss and were asked to bat.

Scorecard
http://petersfield.play-cricket.com/scoreboard/scorecard.asp?id=11731570

Petersfield v Gosport Monday 8th July 2013

Petersfield v Gosport Monday 8th July 2013

Result Petersfield won by 64 runs

After a washout 10 days earlier Petersfield travelled to Gosport on a glorious Hampshire evening. Petersfield who only had 10 men due to call ups from the under 15 team who were playing local rivals Steep on the same day lost the toss and were asked to bat first.

On a dry pitch Petersfield got off to a fast start with Ben Turk (30 retired) in particular hitting some very powerful drives through the on and off side. Alfie Casson (1) had been promoted to open after a good display in the game against Purbrook looked nervous and was out in the 4th over having not faced a lot of the strike, despite his obvious disappointment he had done the job his coach had asked him to do and allow Ben to play his shots. Captain Matt Friend (24) joined Ben at the crease and the pair of them set about the Gosport attack with Friend hitting an enormous 6 to the square leg boundary on the way to his 24. With the score on 68 and not long after Ben Turk had retired, Friend was clean bowled by Aaron Smith trying to hit another drive to the on side. Joe Clarke (18 not out) and Ed Miflord (19) continued to take advantage of any wayward bowling as the Gosport attack suffered in the sun with too many wides and short balls. Ed Milford hitting some really nice shots to the leg side in his 19 runs before he was run out just after a break in play, strangely as the pair had discussed doing nothing silly in the break!

Jack Butcher and Cameron Porteous came out to try and push the score along and supported Joe Clarke as the run rate dropped, this was partly due to the new Readers ball having split from the onslaught in the first ten overs. Both Jack and Cameron were clean bowled by Jacob Harris to leave Petersfield on a slightly below par 115 given the start they had.

After a quick break and with the sun setting Petersfield went about defending the total with real aplomb as Ben Turk (4-18 off 4) and Joe Clarke (2-19 off 2) completely blew away the Gosport openers and middle order as the first 6 wickets went down for 34 runs in 8 overs. Every wicket was clean bowled with both lads getting the ball to swing and seam causing the mayhem in the Gosport batting.

Matt Friend (1-6 off 2) and William Milner-Smith (2-4 off 2) finished off the tail as only Ieuan Harrison (15) reached double figures, deftly guiding anything wide down to 3rd man before he missed a straight one from Friend. Will picking up two wickets with his very effective medium pace left arm round the wicket with 2 wickets in the last over.

Gosport finished on 51 -9 off 10 overs having lost one of their players due to illness.

This was Captain Matt Friend’s last game as he jets off to America for a holiday missing out on the last 2 games. He goes with the thanks from the players and his coach after leading the team with great skill and leadership.

Men of the match - Ben Turk and Joe Clarke for their great all round performances

Moment of the match - Matt Friend’s 6 which was as big as anything seen this season.

Scorecard
http://petersfield.play-cricket.com/scoreboard/scorecard.asp?id=11760377

Steep U15 v Petersfield U15 - 8th July 2013

Petersfield U15 Match Report

Steep U15 v Petersfield U15 - 8^th July 2013

Result:

Petersfield U15 – 152 for 4; Steep U15 – 148 for 5

Petersfield U15 Won by 4 runs

Petersfield U15 beat local rivals Steep with a narrow victory by 4 runs in an exciting and tense match played at Steep on 8^th July. This was revenge for Petersfield who had lost the home fixture against Steep by 1 run back in June. It was an excellent game, a credit to both teams, with 300 runs scored during the evening for the loss of 9 wickets with 36 fours and 2 sixes hit.

Petersfield won the toss and elected to bat on a glorious summer evening at the picturesque Steep ground. With short boundaries and a lightning fast outfield it was always likely to be a high scoring match and this it proved to be. Dan Parry, one of the Petersfield openers, was in blistering form hitting 6 fours in a 24 ball score of 35. He was caught out by Zac Guyer off the bowling of J Pound trying 1 too many off side attacking shot towards the short boundary. This brought Ben Anscombe in who played an excellent supporting role to Gabriel Broadhurst who took over the attacking Dan Parry role. It was no surprise when Broadhurst had to retire for another undefeated 50 scored his 51 runs in 49 balls hitting six fours. Josh Bird joined Ben Anscombe and they pushed the score along nicely before Jack Noble trapped Ben Anscombe for 10. This brought Joe Mayell to the crease who scored a rapid 9 off only 6 balls before he was clean bowled by Billy Barnes going for another big 4. Rory Claasen came out to bat and followed up where Joe had left off hitting a glorious 4 to the square leg boundary before sacrificing himself in a run out on the 2^nd to last ball of the match. In form Ollie Simpson came to the crease for the last ball but at the non-strikers end. He forced Josh Bird to run a cheeky single off the last ball of the innings leaving Josh Bird undefeated on 15 off only 15 balls and Petersfield with a good score of 152 for 4 off their 20 overs. Whilst all the Steep players bowled and fielded well particular mention must be made of J Pound 4 overs 1 for 21; Christain Hedicker 4 overs 0 for 21 and M O'Kelly 3 overs 0 for 17.

Whilst the Petersfield coach was pleased with the batting display, he was concerned that Petersfield might have been 15-20 runs short of a defendable total bearing in mind how quick the outfield was. Steep started their innings in a very positive style and 27 for the loss of no wickets off the first 3 overs. Steep lost their first wicket with the score at 38 when J Pound hit the ball firmly to Josh Bird off the bowling of Tom Pocock (4 overs 1 for 29). The Steep batsman used the pace of the Petersfield opening bowlers of Pocock and Simpson to guide the balls into the gaps and towards the short boundaries and so Alex Squires (4 overs 1 for 29) the Petersfield captain decided to take some of the pace off the ball by bringing himself and Harry Richards on to bowl. In his excellent first over Squires took the wicket of Guyer caught by Joe Mayell at mid-off for 1. In the last overs of their bowling spell both Richards and Squires were targeted by the Steep batsman going for 13 runs and 14 runs respectively. With both bowlers the extra balls created by wides or no-balls were punished with boundaries. To try to take even more pace off the ball Squires brought Ben Anscombe (4 overs 1 for 17) and Will Morton-Scott into the attack. Both bowlers bowled well although Morton-Scott did suffer from the short leg side boundary. Jack Noble the Steep opening batsman (and cousin on Petersfield's Broadhurst) hit Morton-Scott for a huge six to bring up his 50 retiring on 51 (the same score as his cousin) off only 37 balls. At 120 for 2 off 15 overs Steep were the favourites to win. M O'Kelly was batting very aggressively scoring 36 before he was run out following a mix up with his batting partner Ethan Francis (24*). Tom Pocock, Ben Anscombe and Alex Squires all bowled tight last overs to leave Steep needing 12 off the last over from Ollie Simpson to win the match. Ollie bowled with real pace and accuracy and with a further run out and despite an edged 4 off the second to last ball Steep required 5 to win off the last ball and Simspon rapped Francis on the leg for Petersfield to win by 4 runs. The match was a good game to watch and was a credit to both teams and a great advert for colts cricket.

Teams:

Petersfield : G Broadhurst ⁽⁺⁾; D Parry; B Anscombe; J Bird; J Mayell; R Claasen; O Simpson; T Pocock; H Richards; A Squires ^(*); W Morton-Scott

Steep: J Pound; J Noble; Z Guyer; M O'Kelly; E Francis; P Seamen; J Bowden; C Hedicker; B Barnes; +1; +1