2004 Season 1st XI Match Reports

Chris Bunce the visiting skipper had won the toss and at that stage must have been rueing his decision. The wicket was slow as can be expected in late April and the accurate Brentwood bowling took the upper hand. Whitehall was his usual miserly self and his new-ball opening partner Morgan Rushbrook made a pleasing debut, bowling a controlled spell.

The introduction of Jon Walford and Ian Belchamber did little to loosen the shackles on the Old Boys batsmen. Indeed both bowlers claimed a wicket as the visitors declined to 16-3. Lucas and Briggs attempted to provide some semblance of stability to the innings, but did so whilst scoring slowly. After 23 overs the score was 47-3. Richard Walford brought an end to the partnership when he had Lucas well caught behind by Benjamin Cocklin. Paul Sutherland also bowled well and was rewarded with his first wicket of the season when clean bowling Robert Johnson for a golden duck. A late flurry by Chris Sawyer who bludgeoned 32 runs in 27 balls helped the visitors to their final score of 118-7 off their allotted 45 overs. Jon Walford finished with the best bowling figures of 1-3 off 5 overs.

Although facing a low total and against 3rd Division opposition, Brentwood knew batting would not be easy on the slow wicket. So it proved, as Brentwood lost 3 wickets very quickly. Ben Debenham, Jon Walford and Tony Jones all lost their wickets in the first 9 overs. MCC Young Cricketer Rushbrook was showing a good deal of application, but when he was caught-behind off the bowling of Slaughter, Brentwood had slipped to 39-5. However the next two batsmen, Richard Walford and Sutherland batted with determination, taking time to play themselves in before beginning to eat in to the Southendians total. Walford was taking the lead role, until with 30 runs still required he chipped the ball straight to extra cover. However Sutherland took up the mantle and with help from Whitehall they reached the required total with 9 overs still to play.

This was an impressive early season display from Brentwood. The fielding and bowling was of a very high standard and the fortitude showed by the middle-order batsmen will serve the side well in the coming season. Next week Brentwood travel away to play either Loughton or Buckhurst Hill in the second round of the League Cup.

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1st May

Brentwood 1st XI - 238-4 (40 overs)
Buckhurst Hill 1st XI - 124 all out
Brentwood won by 114 runs
Shepherd Neame Essex League Cup 2nd Round

Report by Richard Whitehall

Brentwood travelled to 3rd Division Buckhurst Hill on Saturday for the 2nd round of the Shepherd Neame Essex League Cup. Their opponents entered the match buoyed by their surprise victory against Premier League side Loughton. Brentwood knew this game was a potential banana skin and that they would have to be on top of their game if they were to triumph.

Under leaden skies Kamal Prabhaker, the Buckhurst Hill captain, won the toss and decided to field first. Jon Walford and Ben Debenham opened the innings for Brentwood and were soon dominating the bowling. The pair scored at above four runs per over from the start of the innings as they pounced on the frequent bad balls bowled by the home side. Walford was the dominant scoring partner and reached his 50 in the 18th over with the score on 87. Debenham also showed an array of shots as the runs continued to flow. The two made batting look easy on a pitch which was later proven to be unhelpful to stroke play. Debenham was the first out having scored 65 in the opening partnership of 176. Morgan Rushbrook then joined Walford without having a detrimental effect on the scoring rate. After a number of lusty blows from both batsmen, Walford was finally caught in the deep by Ian Russell. He had scored 107 and looked in the sort of form to indicate more centuries will follow as the season progresses. The Brentwood innings finished on 238-4 off their allotted 40 overs.

Buckhurst Hill were aware that the total set by Brentwood was a formidable one on such a slow wicket. The home batsmen seemed intent on playing shots from the first over but were unsuccessful against Brentwood's opening bowlers, Richard Whitehall and Morgan Rushbrook. Phil Gray was the first wicket to fall when caught by Paul Sutherland at extra-cover off the bowling of Rushbrook. Ian Russell joined his captain at the crease and began to show some of the form which had helped him score 90 the previous week. He scored two boundaries off a Whitehall over, which led the Brentwood captain to replace himself with off-spinner Sutherland. With Rushbrook bowling frugally at one end, Buckhurst's batsmen were forced to take risks against Sutherland. The Antipodean rose to this challenge and removed the home side's danger men. Prabhaker was superbly caught by Tony Jones, Russell cleaned bowled and when Pakistan international Faisad Iqbal holed out to Nigel Mackay in the deep, Hill's chance had disappeared. Their innings petered out and they limped to a final score of 124 all out as Ian Belchamber, Richard Walford and Jon Walford continued the good bowling. Sutherland finished with figures of 4- 24 and Rushbrook 2-20.

A very professional performance had seen Brentwood into the Quarter-Finals of the competition for the second year in succession. On Saturday the league campaign starts when Colchester & East Essex are the visitors to the Old County Ground.

Saturday also sees the Club's first social event of the season in the form of the annual School Disco. Doors open at 8pm, entry is £5 and members and guests are all welcome. School uniform must be worn however!

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15th May

Chingford 1st XI - 138 all out
Brentwood 1st XI - 139-1
Brentwood won by 9 wickets

Report by Ian Belchamber

Brentwood's first game back in Division One following an absence of two years ended in a comfortable nine wicket victory.

Captain Richard Whitehall was unsure how the pitch would play and was somewhat grateful when he lost the toss and was asked to field. Whitehall, himself took the new ball along with Morgan Rushbrook, making his Essex League debut. Chingford's opening batsmen Hill and Nilesh Odedra had trouble getting the ball past the infield, but the score ticked along with a number of wides and no-balls, but the pressure was enough for Whitehall to snare the wicket of Hill. The introduction of Sutherland further stemmed the flow of runs and with Rushbrook, followed by the introduction of Jon Walford, the run rate never rose to much more than 2 runs per over for the first 30 overs.

It wasn't until the introduction of left arm spinner Ian Belchamber in conjunction with Sutherland that the wickets began to fall. Belchamber grabbed the scalps of Chingford's two first class cricketers, the Odedra brothers, and then Sutherland began to take wickets. Chingford's only batsmen to really get going was their wicket keeper who flayed a quick-fire 37. After 52 overs Chingford managed to get to 125, but as this never looked like being enough, Chingford skipper Hill sacrificed two bonus points and continued to bat. However, Sutherland wrapped up the Chingford innings soon after, finishing with the impressive figures of 6-38 off 22 overs.

Brentwood were looking for a solid start, but Ben Debenham was given out lbw early on for zero, during a good opening spell from Dyers. However, once Jon Walford and Rushbrook took the shine off the new ball, the Chingford attack appeared somewhat bereft of ideas. Neither batsman took the attack apart, but with grit and determination, they headed towards the small total. Once the last twenty overs started, the result never really appeared in doubt as the two batted solidly and safely. They denied Chingford any points at all as the two finished the game off with 8 overs and nine wickets to spare. The partnership was worth 130 runs with Walford finishing on 77 not out and Rushbrook 40 not out. The result should give Brentwood confidence for the campaign ahead.

Manager Jeff Salt was delighted with the performance of the entire side. "While the performances of Sutherland, Rushbrook and Walford will undoubtedly grab the headlines everyone played their part. The pressure put on Chingford's batsmen by the bowlers and fielders certainly set up the platform for this victory."

Next week Brentwood entertain Harlow at the Old County Ground. The game starts at 1.30pm.

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22nd May

Brentwood 1st XI - 175-9
Harlow 1st XI - 176-9 declared
Match Drawn

Report by Richard Whitehall

Brentwood hosted Harlow in the first home league game of their season. Brentwood had won their first three competitive games whereas their opponents had lost all of theirs. However in a tight game, with a lot of good cricket played, Brentwood could only finish with a draw and were forced to share the points.

On a flat dry wicket Richard Whitehall won the toss and elected to field first. Whitehall opened the bowling himself in partnership with Jonathan Walford. Walford was deputising in this role for Morgan Rushbrook who was performing ground staff duties at Lords. In typical Scrooge-like fashion Whitehall bowled his six over spell for only five runs. However it was Walford who bowled the wicket-taking balls, claiming the wickets of both of the Harlow opening batsman. After 15 overs Harlow were only 31-2. Paul Sutherland replaced Whitehall at the pavilion end and for once failed to find his form immediately. Harlow number 4, 6ft 7 inch Simon Baulcomb used his big stride to great effect and drove a number of boundaries. Left-Arm spinner Ian Belchamber replaced Walford after 26 overs of the innings and immediately trapped Baulcomb lbw for 37. The breakthrough sparked Sutherland out of his slumber and he took 3 wickets in quick succession. Bhavan Thakkar the Harlow overseas batsman continued to bat patiently and reached his fifty with 10 overs left and the score on 135-5. Despite accurate bowling from the Brentwood spin twins Thakkar continued to navigate the ball into the gaps in the field and was sensibly supported by the tailenders. In a slow end to the innings, Sutherland picked up another two wickets, including an excellent diving catch by Dean Goddard, and finish with figures of 5-83. Harlow declared after 52 overs with a score of 176-9.

Brentwood considered Harlow's score to be below-par on such a good wicket. However they were already missing regular number 3 Rushbrook and their batting was further depleted with the news that Tony Jones, who had injured his hand in the field, would only be able to bat in an emergency. Brentwood's confidence was diminished further in the first few overs of their reply as Jon Walford, Ian Belchamber and Paul Sutherland were all dismissed early on to leave their innings teetering at 23-3. Ben Debenham and Richard Walford set about rescuing the situation batting carefully against accurate bowling from Green and Baxter. The two guided the score to 82-3 as the innings went in to the last twenty overs. However Walford was caught-behind off the bowling of Lenihan having scored 35. Nigel Mackay and Paul Larner continued to provide Debenham with support as the opener passed 50, but neither of the middle-order batsmen could add a significant score. Whitehall joined Debenham at the wicket with 54 still required off 8 overs and 4 wickets left. The captain hit a couple of boundaries to bring the total closer, before Debenham was bowled by Baxter having scored 59. Ben Cocklin provided support for Whitehall who continued to play aggressively targeting victory. When Cocklin was well caught and bowled by Green, Brentwood still needed 10 to win off 8 balls. Baxter bowled the last over and Brentwood scored three off the first two balls before Goddard was stumped by Mackenzie off the fourth ball and Brentwood's hopes of victory were over. The injured Jones scored five off the last two balls so that Brentwood could claim an extra batting point, but they still ended up 2 runs short of victory.

Brentwood were disappointed with the result having played very well for most of the game. It is clear that the more competitive cricket of Division 1 will require Brentwood to play at their maximum level for longer periods of games if they are to turn good performances in to victories. On Saturday they travel to local rivals Orsett.

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29th May

Orsett 1st XI - 175 all out
Brentwood 1st XI - 200-6 declared
Brentwood won by 25 runs

Report by Richard Walford

Third placed Brentwood played second placed Orsett at School Lane on Saturday in a tense match that went down to the very last ball.

Brentwood won the toss, and on a soft looking wicket, chose to bat first. The away side got off to a poor start when Jon Walford and Belchamber departed in quick succession. Opener Ben Debenham found little support and when he departed for 29 the innings was in tatters at 60 for 6.

Skipper Whitehall promoted wicket keeper, Ben Cocklin, up the order, with strict instructions to hold an end up whilst Aussie Paul Sutherland would try to increase the slow run rate. Not all went to plan though as Cocklin was soon stroking the previously tight Orsett bowling to all parts as well as running some excellently judged singles. Sutherland also hit out and even with the field well spread they both managed to consistently hit boundaries including several big sixes.

Brentwood reached 200 with both batsmen undefeated, Sutherland once again saving the day with 72 and Cocklin on his highest league score of 65. Orsett were understandably subdued after seemingly having the match sown up.

Brentwood started with the old ball and spin twins Sutherland and Belchamber soon had the Orsett batsmen in all sorts of trouble. Wickets fell at regular intervals, the most crucial wicket being that of Orsett skipper Kevin Sargent who tried to take on the arm of Goddard on the boundary and was run out by some distance. This brought Moon to the crease and he immediately played positively against the spinners.

Whitehall replaced Belchamber and wickets continued to fall around Moon as he continued to attack. Cracknell came to the wicket and was defiant in defence as he and Moon chipped away at the Brentwood total. The introduction of Jon Walford into the attack tipped the advantage back towards Brentwood though as he quickly removed the dangerous Moon for 77 and it all came down to the last over with Orsett's last pair at the crease and the score 175.

The first 5 balls were kept out and the game seemed to be heading for a draw until Jon Walford managed to summon up the perfect yorker to finish the game on the final ball, bowling the Orsett tailender and giving Brentwood maximum points. The pick of Brentwood's bowlers were Sutherland with a marathon 27 over spell to claim 4-67 and Walford finished with 3-18.

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5th June

Hadleigh and Thundersley 1st XI - 183-9
Brentwood 1st XI - 230-8
Match Drawn

Report by Richard Whitehall

On a hot sultry day Brentwood drew with Hadleigh to remain in second place in Division One. Brentwood fielded a depleted side, with Ben Debenham, Ben Cocklin and Morgan Rushbrook all unavailable. However, the team brushed aside these problems, performed well and were unlucky not to come out of the game with maximum points.

The wicket at Hadleigh was very dry and looked like it would break-up as the game progressed. In light of this, Brentwood captain Richard Whitehall won the toss and elected to bat first. Jon Walford made a positive start to the game hitting 3 early boundaries before he was clean bowled by the Hadleigh opening bowler. Steve Taylor and Glen Leech assembled a watchful partnership as it soon become obvious scoring runs quickly on this wicket was going to be difficult. At the drinks interval, with the home side having bowled 26 overs Brentwood were 76-1. With wickets in hand this was a good start and Brentwood's primary target of 200 was well within reach. As the batsmen began to increase the run-rate wickets fell including Taylor, who was given out lbw for 37. Richard Walford, batting at number 4, played some expansive shots and saw Brentwood past the 150 mark. He was eventually dismissed having scored a composed 55 with the score at 171-6 off 45 overs. This brought together Mark Tyler and Whitehall. League debutant Tyler took control of the partnership and dominated the opposition's bowling attack with some remarkable clean hitting. Brentwood swiftly arrived at 200 and Tyler himself reached 50 from yet another 6 having faced only 20 balls. After 52 overs, Whitehall declared with Brentwood having scored 230-8.

The wicket seemed to be favouring slow bowling and therefore Brentwood declined to take the new ball and opened the bowling with spin-pairing Ian Belchamber and Paul Sutherland. Sutherland, continuing his remarkable early season form, was first to break through when wicket-keeper James Reilly executed a neat stumping. He then quickly took a second wicket before Belchamber had the Hadleigh number 3 caught behind by Reilly. Although the home-side had lost three wickets, their Indian first-class cricketer Devan Ghandi was still at the wicket and therefore they still had a strong chance of victory. The two Brentwood spinners continued to bowl well, but Ghandi batted intelligently and led Hadleigh to 104-3 with 20 overs remaining. Brentwood put pressure on Ghandi's batting partners, who began to wilt as Belchamber and Sutherland collected another wicket a piece. At this stage Hadleigh needed to score at 7 runs per over and had only 9 overs left. In a remarkable bowling display Sutherland then dismissed three Hadleigh batsmen in consecutive deliveries to claim his first ever hat-trick. Suddenly victory for Brentwood became a strong possibility, particularly when the antipodean off-spinner took his 7th wicket of the day and Brentwood's 9th with 6 overs remaining. Captain Whitehall then took the new ball and bowled himself, Jon Walford and Sutherland in an attempt to take the last wicket and claim victory. However, Ghandi stood firm, completed his century, took Hadleigh past 175 and denied Brentwood the win.

Brentwood claimed 12 points from the game in what was a strong team performance which included excellent individual contributions by Richard Walford, Tyler and Sutherland. However, with Hornchurch winning their game on Saturday, Brentwood remain second in the division but are now only 1 point ahead of the third placed side. Runaway division leaders Wickford are the visitors to the Old County Ground for a top of the table clash on Saturday.

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12th June

Brentwood 1st XI - 204-8
Wickford 1st XI - 205-4
Wickford won by 6 wickets

Report by Richard Whitehall

Brentwood's impressive start to the season came to an abrupt halt on Saturday as they were soundly beaten by division leaders Wickford. With Hornchurch beating Orsett, Brentwood slipped down to 3rd place and out of a promotion spot.

Wickford won the toss and elected to field first. Unfortunately usual Brentwood opener Ben Debenham had to leave the ground shortly before the start of the game and so wicketkeeper Ben Cocklin was pressed in to service as an emergency opening batsman. Cocklin was partnered by Jon Walford and the lack of understanding between the pair was evident in the fourth over when Cocklin was run-out for 0. Walford began to dominate the Wickford bowlers and took advantage of the excellent wicket. He soon moved to 30 before hitting a Jamie Went long-hop straight in to the hands of Batch at square-leg. This brought Richard Walford to the wicket to partner Glen Leech. The two batted watchfully against some tight bowling from Went and Deller and after 26 overs the score was 83-2. Wickford were taking a long time to bowl their overs and were forced to resort to their change bowlers. This was the cue for Brentwood to start attacking, which both Leech and Walford did with relish. However Leech was caught by Bate at first slip off the bowling of Deller for 35. Indian all-rounder Danesh Kayani, making his seasonal debut, was next batsman in. Both Kayani and Walford continued to take the attack to Wickford and with 10 overs left Brentwood were 157-3, with Walford securing his second successive league fifty. In what was to prove a crucial section of the game, Brentwood lost both Walford and Kayani to unnecessary run-outs and Shane Surujbally to a catch at extra-cover in the space of 3 overs. Paul Sutherland briefly put momentum back in to the innings with a quickfire 23, before he too was run-out. The Brentwood innings petered out after 52 overs with a disappointing total of 204.

Although their score was 30 runs less than they would have expected, the fact that Wickford had taken 3 hours 45 minutes to bowl their overs meant that if Brentwood bowled well they would be able to exert considerable pressure on Wickford. However, this was not to be the case as their usually reliable bowling attack mis-fired. Brentwood elected to continue bowling with the old ball and used their spinners Paul Sutherland and Ian Belchamber. Wickford openers Kim Beazleigh and Chris Gladwin batted positively and boundaries were scored with ease. The one early wicket for Brentwood came when Belchamber dismissed Gladwin who was caught by Debenham at mid-wicket after mis-hitting a slog shot. Beazleigh was not to be deterred and with the run-rate over 5 runs an over, Brentwood Captain Richard Whitehall changed to a seam bowling attack using himself and Jon Walford. 2 overs later they took the new ball. Although this did not slow down the run-rate, the batmen, in particular number 3 Matthew Bate, began to look more uncomfortable, playing and missing regularly. Bate then edged to first slip where Whitehall spilled the chance off Walford's bowling. Kayani replaced Walford but the left-arm seamer also failed to slow down the Wickford batsmen, with Bate now getting in to his stride. It was Whitehall who finally made the breakthrough when Beazleigh failed to spot a slower ball and offered a straight forward return catch. Sutherland was immediately brought back in to the attack and for the first time in the innings the Wickford batsman began to lose confidence.. Batch was well-caught by Cocklin off the bowling of Sutherland and Deller then run-out by a quick throw by Belchamber. Bate remained at the other end and was now batting more fluently, punishing wayward bowling which was all too frequent. With four overs to spare Bate hit the winning runs to secure a 6 wicket victory for Wickford. Bate finished 90 not out.

Brentwood are now in 3rd place in the division behind Wickford and in-form Hornchurch. The top two play each other next week and with Brentwood hosting lowly Walthamstow, it could prove to be a vital weekend if they are to maintain a promotion challenge.

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19th June

Brentwood 1st XI - 173-1
Walthamstow 1st XI - 169 all out
Brentwood won by 9 wickets

Report by Ian Belchamber

Brentwood returned to winning ways once again with a comprehensive 9 wicket victory. With other results working in their favour, the result leaves Brentwood just three points off second placed Hornchurch with them to play next week.

Skipper Richard Whitehall won the toss on what looked a high class batting wicket with a quick outfield. However, that did not stop Brentwood getting off to an awesome start as openers Whitehall and Jon Walford bowled both accurately and aggressively. Due to a side strain, Walford was only able to bowl very gentle military medium pace, however the Walthamstow bowlers were unable to force him away. Wickets tumbled early and frequently and this pushed Walthamstow into dire peril at 36-6 before a comeback was staged by Cartwright and Hafeez as the ball became old and was not moving as much. Whitehall replaced himself with spinner Paul Sutherland, and between Sutherland and Walford Brentwood continued to build pressure. Once Hafeez was out, the innings began to fall away once again, and as Walthamstow looked for the extra bonus points at 175, Sutherland struck to bowl the opposition out. Walford finished with figures of 21 overs, 4 maidens, 4-59 and Sutherland returned 3-56. Whitehall's lively opening spell brought him figures of 3-17.

With the high standard of the wicket and outfield, that total looked far too small and so it proved as Walford and Ben Debenham, having seen off a lively opening spell from Hafeez and Harris, worked their way towards the total. Debenham played the vital anchor role as Walford, having failed in his last three innings, found his old form as he drove and pulled with magnificent power. Just as Brentwood were heading towards a ten wicket win, Debenham fell to Harris as he looked to finish things in style. His 57 came off 117 balls, but it was just the support Walford required. This brought Morgan Rushbrook to the wicket who struck the winning runs leaving Walford 104 not out, from 132 balls.

The victory was exactly the confidence boost required as Brentwood look to avenge the one wicket defeat Hornchurch inflicted upon Brentwood in the Evening Standard Cup a month ago.

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26th June

Hornchurch 1st XI - 187-7
Brentwood 1st XI - 186 all out
Hornchurch won by 3 wickets

Report by Ian Belchamber

After 6 and a half hours of cricket, the entire match between promotion rivals Brentwood and Hornchurch came down to the last delivery, with Hornchurch requiring one run for the victory and for Brentwood a dot ball would mean closing the small gap between second and third. Despite Jon Walford bowling an unplayable bouncer, the Hornchurch batsman Whitlock made it home after 'keeper Ben Cocklin shied at the stumps and missed.

It was rough justice for Brentwood following a very similar occurrence in the Evening Standard Cup earlier in the season, and it was particularly rough on Cocklin, who had top scored with 33 when Brentwood had just come into a spot of trouble.

On losing the toss, captain Richard Whitehall was not too upset at being inserted into bat, and things looked promising as Jon Walford looked at his fluent best. However, he was caught behind for 16 off the dangerous looking South African import, Dreyer. There then followed a progression of wickets as batsmen appeared to be set for big totals before losing their wicket just as it appeared that they had done the hard work.

This was until the lower middle order came to the wicket with the score on 68-6. Brentwood knew they had the strength in depth in their batting line up, as number 11 Ian Belchamber had in fact scored a fluent 30 against Hornchurch opening the batting on their last meeting. However, once more, the batsmen got themselves in before getting out with Matt Westwood scoring 28, Paul Sutherland 25 and Ben Cocklin an impressive 33. Cocklin's batting has come on leaps and bounds this year and he is showing a maturity and patience which has proved crucial on numerous occasions this season. Once Cocklin was out it was left to Whitehall and Belchamber to guide the side past the extra bonus point at 175 and to bat out the entire 52 overs.

It was Whitehall and Walford who took the new ball, and bowled with great accuracy in keeping the Hornchurch openers behind the required rate. Former First Class cricketer Adrian Rollins looked in dangerous form, but nonetheless was offering chances, which Brentwood could not take. The introduction of antipodean Sutherland for Walford added extra pressure, and with Whitehall his normal metronomic self in a mammoth 16 over spell, the Hornchurch batsmen went further and further behind the rate. Following the dismissal of Rollins, Hornchurch brought the dangerous Chris Sains to the wicket, who required a runner following a groin injury, and he was soon run out as he seemed to forget that he needed to be in his ground as well as the runner!

This then brought Whitlock, whose innings in the Evening Standard did as much as anyone to win the game, to the wicket. He seemed to carry on where he left off previously and with 30 runs required from 3 overs, he produced a combination of clever running and big hitting to reduce this to 14 from 7 balls. This then came down to one off one, which was duly accomplished thanks to the run to Cocklin.

The defeat leaves Brentwood adrift of the promotion positions. They face bottom placed Chelmsford, who despite their position should not be taken lightly, as they themselves have several potential match winning players.

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3rd July

Chelmsford 1st XI - 234-7
Brentwood 1st XI - 236-6
Brentwood won by 4 wickets

Report by Richard Whitehall

Following last weeks poor result against Hornchurch, Brentwood bounced back with a convincing victory against Chelmsford on Saturday.

With a victory necessary, Brentwood skipper Richard Whitehall had no hesitation in choosing to field first when he won the toss. It was clear from the outset that the weather conditions were going to have a significant effect on the game. A strong wind blew down the ground behind Whitehall as he opened the bowling. The captain immediately extracted prodigious movement from the wicket and caused problems for both opening batsmen, Tim Jones and Nick Prowting. However, Jon Walford, Richard Walford and initially Paul Sutherland all struggled to bowl consistently into the wind from the other end. Chelmsford scored at a brisk rate as the batsmen took advantage of too many loose deliveries. Whitehall made the initial breakthrough when Prowting was caught by Matt Westwood diving to his right at third slip having scored 22. Sutherland had begun to bowl more consistently and was rewarded with the wicket of Dalrymple who was bowled for 5. Whitehall then caught and bowled Iliffe, but unfortunately strained his hamstring in the process and was replaced by Jon Walford having gained figures of 2-32 off 13 overs. Tim Jones reached his fifty and now cut loose, batting with increasing confidence and hitting boundaries on both sides of the wicket. Jon Walford and Ian Belchamber took the majority of the punishment and with 10 overs left Chelmsford were 190-4 and a huge total looked likely. Richard Walford got rid of the dangerman Jones who was caught by Ben Debenham on the boundary. Jones had scored 107, ensuring Brentwood were made to pay for two earlier dropped catches. Brentwood now raised their level of performance and put pressure on the new batsmen, with both Walford and Sutherland bowling accurately. The innings was declared after 52 overs with the score 234-7.

Brentwood knew that the target was achievable, but a rainstorm just before tea had made the wicket more difficult to bat on. Brentwood were further hindered by two subsequent interruptions for rain, which took 30 minutes off their innings. Lawrence and Hare opened the bowling for Chelmsford and bowled accurately to make scoring runs difficult. Jon Walford was first out, when bowled by Hare for 13. Mark Tyler was promoted up the order to bat number 3, with the aim of scoring quick runs. This he did with three boundaries off Hare, but he soon perished when lbw to Lawrence, also having scored 13. This brought Morgan Rushbrook to the wicket to partner Ben Debenham and the two began to build what proved to be the crucial partnership of the game. Both batsmen had to bat with caution given the conditions, but also score at 6 runs an over. The two did so successfully and forced Chelmsford to gamble on taking the new ball with 24 overs left and 140 runs required. Tim Jones replaced Hare, but Lawrence continued to bowl. However neither bowler could stop the Brentwood pair from scoring at the required rate as first Debenham and then Rushbrook reached their fifties. Lawrence bowled Debenham with the opener having scored 65 and for the first time the required run-rate went above 7 runs per over. Richard Walford was then caught-behind, again off Lawrence to bring Sutherland to the wicket. The Australian immediately hit his stride with a four over mid-on to start an innings which provided crucial support for Rushbrook who was still scoring easily at the other end. Sutherland was then bowled by Lawrence with 2 overs to go and then Steve Taylor was run-out attempting to get Rushbrook on strike. As the match entered the last over 8 runs were still required and new batsman Matt Westwood was on strike. Two runs off the first ball and a single off the second put Rushbrook back on strike with 5 runs needed. With no signs of nerves Rushbrook sashayed down the wicket and hit Lawrence over deep mid-wicket for 6 to win the game.

This was an excellent win by Brentwood who batted extremely well in difficult circumstances. However they will know that improvement in their bowling and fielding is necessary if their promotion push is to be maintained. Currently they are in 3rd place, nine points behind Hornchurch who are 2nd.

Comment from web site administrator: This week I am very pleased to be able to post some pictures from the game (mainly of Ben) courtesy of Gavin Ellis at www.tgsphoto.co.uk. High quality prints can be ordered via the web site link. Click on the small images for a larger version.

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10th July

Harlow 1st XI - 127-9 declared
Brentwood 1st XI - 128-7
Brentwood won by 3 wickets

Report by Richard Whitehall

Brentwood's recent impressive form pushed them back into the promotion spots as, for the second week running they won the game in the final over.

The fact the game was completed at all was a credit to both captains, the umpires and the Harlow groundsman as a total of 2 and three quarter hours playing time was lost due to the rain.

With the game starting at 3.15, the side batting first could only bat 35 overs or lose their batting side, Brentwood won the toss and immediately inserted the opposition into bat. However the start to the innings was not as they had hoped with Richard Whitehall seemingly unable to control the ball in the heavy conditions. He quickly replaced himself with New South Welshman Paul Sutherland, who immediately made an impact in his usual controlled aggressive style. His tying up of one end allowed Joe Fryd to make the breakthrough as he bowled the dangerous McKenzie. However, with the impending doom of heavy rain clouds, Whitehall changed tack and switched to spin from both ends to get through the overs as quickly as possible. This tactic worked like a dream as left arm spinner Ian Belchamber made an impact straight off as he picked up three wickets in quick succession. Sutherland then joined the party as he picked up the crucial wicket of Thakkar, who had already been dropped on two occasions. The Harlow lower middle order seemed bereft of ideas of how to play the two spinners as the ball was turning and bouncing sharply. Baxter pulled off a brief cameo, before Belchamber turned one through the gate.

Wickets continued to tumble, but the Harlow batsmen sneaked past the crucial 125 mark, allowing skipper Baulcomb to declare. Credit must not only go to the two spin bowlers, who both finished with 4 wickets apiece, but also to James Reilly, keeping wicket for the 1st team for only the second time this season, who not only took two stumpings, but also kept the number of byes down to 5, which considering the amount of turn the two bowlers were getting was a great effort.

The Brentwood innings got off to a steady start, but lost Walford for just 10 with the score on 16. This brought Mark Tyler to the crease to try to keep Brentwood ahead of the required rate. This he did as he pulled off a number of astonishing blows to all parts of the ground. With the weather not looking like it would hold for much longer, Whitehall promoted himself in a slogging role. However, the experiment did not work as he was run out by yards on his third ball faced. As the rain drew nearer, Brentwood's run rate went further and further up as they knew at least some time would be lost. When the rain eventually arrived, luck would be on Brentwood's side as it only lasted 12 minutes, therefore depriving Brentwood 4 overs of batting. When they eventually made it out, the game was evenly poised with Brentwood requiring 57 from 8 and a half overs. Glenn Leech immediately took responsibility as he smashed the first two balls for four before holing out to deep mid wicket. Wickets continued to tumble until with 15 balls remaining, Brentwood required 15 to win as Belchamber joined spin twin Sutherland at the crease. Belchamber immediately took command as he played two of the shots of the day, firstly a cut through point followed by a cover drive. Brentwood then required two off the last over, which they pulled off with no further hiccups.

The result lifted Brentwood over Hornchurch, who could not complete their game against Chingford - an ideal result for Brentwood. Next week they have a double header as they face Orsett at home in the League followed on Sunday by their League Cup Quarter Final against Gidea Park and Romford, starting at 1pm.

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17th July

Brentwood 1st XI 178-9 declared
Orsett 1st XI - 120 all out
Brentwood won by 58 runs

Report by Richard Whitehall

Brentwood significantly improved their promotion prospects with a convincing win over Orsett on Saturday. With other results in the division being in their favour, they lie in 2nd place 16 points clear of Hornchurch and a similar distance from leaders Wickford.

The Old County Ground was hit by a heavy storm just before the start of the game, which probably influenced Orsett's decision to bowl first when they won the toss. The visitors opening bowlers extracted sideways movement from the wicket, with Ryan in particular impressing. Jon Walford was unperturbed by the difficult conditions and dominated the bowling, scoring a quick fire 36 before being yorked by an in-swinger bowled by Ryan. It was clear that the rain-affected wicket was going to be difficult to score runs on quickly. Morgan Rushbrook batted well in partnership with opener Ben Debenham and the pair took the score passed 100. However Rushbrook was out for 26 and then Debenham for 27 as Brentwood tried to increase the scoring rate targeting a score of 200. Richard Walford contributed 22, before he too was dismissed and Brentwood seemed to be paying the price for batsman getting a start but not going on to reach a significant score. Mark Tyler once again provided impetus at the end of the innings scoring a quick fire 27, but the usually reliable lower-middle order couldn't continue his good work and the innings was finally declared on 178-9.

Due to their respective league positions both teams needed to press for a victory. It was Brentwood who immediately took the upper hand in the contest. Paul Sutherland and Jon Walford opened the bowling and took two wickets apiece within the first 12 overs to effectively end Orsett's hopes of securing a win. Stuart Moon continued to take the attack to Brentwood, scoring 29 runs quickly, but was well caught by Tyler at deep-mid-wicket off the bowling of Sutherland. Morgan Rushbrook took over from Walford as Brentwood looked to press home their advantage and win the game. Rushbrook successfully made the breakthrough when dismissing Henry who was caught by Ian Belchamber. Sutherland took two wickets in quick succession to claim yet another five wicket haul and leave Orsett 8 wickets down. Brentwood Captain Richard Whitehall took the new ball and brought himself into the attack to partner Rushbrook in the hope of finishing the game. The plan was successful although it was Rushbrook who took the two final wickets as Orsett were bowled out for 120.

With both Wickford and Hornchurch failing to win, this result puts Brentwood in a strong position as they try to reach the Premier League.

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18th July

Brentwood 1st XI - 194-7
Gidea Park & Romford 1st XI - 172 all out
Brentwood won by 22 runs
Shepherd Neame Essex League Cup Quarter-Final

Report by Ian Belchamber

Brentwood beat Premier League Gidea Park & Romford in the League Cup on Sunday to reach the Semi-Final for the second year in succession.

Brentwood were put into bat first by GPR Captain Barry Hyam on a wicket that the previous day had been difficult to score runs on. Brentwood batted well despite some accurate bowling from Luke Davey, Joshi and Andy Churchill. Ben Debenham scored 39 before being bowled by Churchill and he was aided by Morgan Rushbrook (30) and Richard Walford (20). Top scorer was Matt Westwood who scored 40 runs towards the end of the innings as Brentwood increased their scoring. Glen Leech was 16 not out at the end of the allotted 45 overs with the total on 194-7. Davey was the pick of the bowlers with 3-34.

Richard Whitehall bowled superbly at the start of the innings having openers Mel Hussain caught by wicket-keeper Benjamin Cocklin and James Redwood caught by Ben Debenham at extra-cover. Bowling in tandem with Rushbrook the run-rate was kept down as Whitehall took two further wickets dismissing Collier and the dangerous Churchill. He finished his 9 over allocation with figures of 4-15, undoubtedly his best bowling performance of the year. Hyam and Davey began to edge GPR towards the target until Hyam was run out by Westwood having scored 44. Cocklin then claimed his second excellent stumping of the game, when Collard was drawn down the wicket by Ian Belchamber. Joshi tried in vain to get the visitors to the victory total and the game could have gone either way as it approached it's climax. However continued tight bowling created the pressure that meant the batsmen had to attempt increasingly adventurous shots and suicidal running between the wickets and Brentwood bowled them out for 172 to seal the semi-final place. This was an impressive team performance with contributions from every Brentwood player on the pitch.

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24th July

Hadleigh & Thundersley 1st XI - 250-8 declared
Brentwood 1st XI - 238 all out
Hadleigh won by 12 runs

Report by Ian Belchamber

Brentwood said a fond farewell to antipodean Paul Sutherland as he departs on a trip to Africa, followed by his homeland, but they could not say goodbye in the style he deserved. A fine individual performance from former Indian Test cricketer Dev Gandi ruined his day.

Gandi, coming in at number 3 never looked in any trouble and managed to despatch Sutherland for over 100 runs at over five runs per over as he made 108 from just 111 balls. With others chipping in around him, Hadleigh made it to the 250 mark, a formidable total, even on such a flat batting wicket. It was only spinners Ian Belchamber and Sutherland that ever looked particularly dangerous, although Jon Walford was certainly unlucky not to pick up any wickets in his spell with the new ball. Sutherland finished with 4-104, a fine effort bearing in mind he was playing with a broken finger on his spinning hand, and Belchamber 3-62.

Brentwood's innings started in circumspect manner, as their aim was to have wickets in hand for the final 20 overs, where they were looking to chase around 130. However Ben Debenham was first out to an unusually rash shot as he tried to push the score along. The promotion of Mark Tyler in a pinch hitting role against the Hadleigh spinners Desai and Gandi failed as he drilled the ball back to Gandi who made the catch look extremely comfortable. A partnership between Jon Walford (56) and Glen Leech (66) then ensued which put Brentwood in a decent position. However the dismissal of Jon Walford, followed soon after by his brother Richard put pressure on the Brentwood middle order. Matt Westwood handled this well as he played perhaps his best innings for the club with a punchy 43, but as the run rate continued to rise, wickets tumbled at a regular rate, and final pair Ben Cocklin and Ian Belchamber could not quite make it.

The result leaves Brentwood still in second place but the loss of Sutherland will be a major blow. It is now time for others to step up to the plate.

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31st July

Wickford 1st XI - 238-4
Brentwood 1st XI - 279-5 declared
Match Drawn

Report by Richard Walford

Promotion rivals Brentwood and Wickford clashed in a hard fought draw on Saturday with the main beneficiaries being third placed Hornchurch who moved into second place, as the bat dominated the ball.

On winning the toss, Wickford asked Brentwood to bat and, if they had held two early chances, would have quickly been into the Brentwood middle order. Openers Jon Walford and Ben Debenham survived the early seam movement and then capitalised on this early luck though, and were soon in complete control with an opening stand of 160 which was scored at an excellent rate to set the foundations for a big total.

Debenham eventually departed for a solid 69 trying to increase the rate further, and this brought Rushbrook to the crease. Normally a new batsman at the crease slows the rate, but in this instance the rate increased further with both batsmen striking some huge blows to further put the Wickford fielders under pressure.

Walford looked set for a big hundred, but was unfortunately stumped on 99 trying to steal the single for his century. The opening partnership of Walford and Debenham has been a key factor in Brentwood's promotion push this year.

With wickets in hand for the last 15 overs, the middle order pushed on and Brentwood managed to secure an extremely competitive 279 for 5 at the end of their 52 overs with Rushbrook (32) and Mark Tyler (27) ensuring a solid finish.

In response to the large total Wickford openers Letch and Beazleigh attempted to be positive against a seaming new ball, with some early success, but some high quality bowling from Morgan Rushbrook put things back on an even keel. The introduction of spinner Ian Belchamber into the attack further increased problems and once the openers had departed for 39 and 33 respectively, the Wickford middle order struggled to up the tempo.

A flurry of wickets brought Gladwin (58) and Deller (52) to the crease with 20 overs to go, but both batted sensibly to ensure that Brentwood could gain no further bonus points on them and saw off Brentwood's bowlers with ease. The game finished as a draw with Brentwood taking 9 points from the match compared to Wickford's 6.

The result leaves Brentwood in third place 4 points behind Hornchurch and 23 points behind Wickford.

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7th August

Walthamstow 1st XI - 282-5 declared
Brentwood 1st XI - 217-8
Match Drawn

Report by Ian Belchamber

Brentwood produced one of their poorest displays in the field for some time as they fought out a hard earned draw against relegation candidates Walthamstow. However, despite only accumulating 6 points from the game, they closed the gap on second placed Hornchurch to one point going into next week's game against the promotion rivals.

Walthamstow won the toss and elected to bat on a wicket that looked as though it could wear during the game. However, Brentwood got off to a fine start as Ben Rocklin snaffled opener Hunter off the bowling of Richard Whitehall who then followed it up with the wicket of Cartwright. However, Binnie was looking in good form, and while he rode his luck, as he was dropped in the gully, he and partner Norris started accelerating the innings. Things were looking dangerous for Brentwood, until a delivery from Rushbrook leapt off a length to catch the top of Binnie's bat to give Jon Walford a simple catch at backward point. However, Norris and Oram kept the run rate at a high rate with Belchamber in particular coming in for some tap as too many four balls were bowled. With a lightning outfield, most of these went to the boundary. Norris eventually picked up his hundred in the final over of the innings to leave the score on 282, probably 80 runs too many for skipper Whitehall. While Richard Walford was unlucky to return wicketless, it was Whitehall who was the only bowler to finish with the creditable figures of 4-53 off 12 overs.

Brentwood's reply got off to the worst possible start as the consistent Ben Debenham middled one into the leg side only to hit short leg in the chest for the ball to rebound into his hands. One would have thought this a fluke, except he almost pulled off a similar catch off Jon Walford later in the game, so credit must be given to the short leg fielder.

The entrance of Rushbrook at number 3 gave the innings some momentum as he outscored Jon Walford significantly. Brentwood were in a strong position at 80-1 until Binnie pulled off a spectacular one handed catch at gully to dismiss Walford for 32. This brought a tumble of wickets as the Brentwood position was taken from good to bad until Brentwood fell to 140-6 going into the last twenty overs. Rushbrook was the unluckiest as the signs of wear and tear to the wicket became more prevalent. A ball pitching half way down the wicket never got more than a couple of feet off the floor bowling Rushbrook as he had no chance to amend his position for the pull shot. It was left to Whitehall and Matt Westwood to resurrect the innings, and they pushed the score along nicely, until they too fell in a short space of time, Hunter holding on to a fine caught and bowled and Whitehall playing onto his stumps.

This left Brentwood out of the game, only able to look to hold on to the draw. Rocklin and Belchamber were looking fairly assured, Rocklin only disturbed a couple of times. The first instance was when he was dropped by Binnie, a comparatively easy chance to his first and the other was when a ball of full length that Rocklin correctly chose to play forward to, bounced and missed his head by a matter of inches, only to carry on and beat the despairing wicket keeper - another example of the wear to the wicket. The two however were resolute enough to deny Walthamstow a much needed victory.

The overall performance must be stepped up next week, as not only do they have the promotion contest which could determine their promotion quest, but they also have their League Cup Semi-Final against Upminster. The weekend could define Brentwood's season.

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14th August

Brentwood 1st XI - 168-7
Hornchurch 1st XI - 234-8
Match Drawn

Report by Ian Belchamber

Brentwood kept their promotion possibilities alive despite being on the wrong end of a draw against rivals Hornchurch. With three games left, and a maximum of sixty points available the seven point deficit is easily catchable, but with tough games against the improved Chingford, Chelmsford and Colchester remaining, Brentwood will need to be on top of their game at all times to finish in the coveted second spot.

Stand in skipper Jon Walford was surprised on losing the toss to be invited to field first. It did, however open up the possibility of a Brentwood win. They got off to a fine start as openers Morgan Rushbrook and Joe Fryd removed Murray and the dangerous Robert Rollins. However, Scott Davis and Chris Sains quickly put Brentwood onto the backfoot with an assured partnership until Rushbrook got one to keep low and bowl Sains. Sweeney then kept the momentum of the innings going and in partnership with Davis, Hornchurch were set fair for a big total. The introduction of Graeme Walker, on his return from a year's sabbatical stemmed the flow of runs and added pressure onto the Hornchurch batsmen. There then followed a run of wickets as Walker removed Davis, Sealey and Whitlock. Dreyer then came to the crease with only a couple of overs left and blunted a quick 13 in little time. Walker finished with a creditable 3-56 and Rushbrook 3-58 from a mammoth 17 overs.

Despite the sizeable total of 234, Brentwood still felt they were in with a shout if they could get off to a good start and skipper Walford led the way with some imperious shots, particularly one memorable cover drive. However Walford found he could not get the support he required as the bowling attack of Dreyer and Drum were proving to be tricky customers. While Walford reached his fifty and the rest of the top six all got starts into double figures, none of them could carry it on past twenty, and the wickets continued to fall. Brentwood realised they were out of the game at 140-5 and the resolute Steve Taylor hung around for 14 overs and saw Brentwood past the 150 mark until he fell to one bowled round his legs.

While Hornchurch did get the better of Brentwood, they will surely regret bowling a mere 40 overs back in 3 hours. If they had bowled more, they may have found they could have taken promotion away from Brentwood. 13 overs per hour is slow at Test match level, never mind club level.

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15th August

Brentwood 1st XI - 238-8
Upminster 1st XI - 145 all out
Brentwood won by 93 runs
Shepherd Neame Essex League Cup Semi-Final

Report by Ian Belchamber

Brentwood reached the League Cup Final for the first time in their history as they despatched Upminster by 93 runs.

Brentwood elected to bat on a wicket that looked as though it may take turn later on, and openers Jon Walford and the promoted Graeme Walker got off to a steady start, and despite some edgy strokes by Walker, both players went past fifty in an opening partnership of 144 from just 27 overs. From here Brentwood expected to get a total in excess of 260, but wickets started to fall as the Brentwood batsmen looked to accelerate the score. The final total of 238, while being disappointing was none the less formidable.

The opening stand was to show its true worth in the Upminster innings as the new ball accounted for the top five for just 27 runs, with openers Joe Fryd (2-27) and Morgan Rushbrook (3-17) doing all the damage. All the wickets were either bowled or caught behind, with Jon Walford picking up two excellent catches. Brockman and Tyler steadied the ship, but knowing they could not afford to lose any more wickets, they quickly found themselves behind the run rate. Left arm spinner Ian Belchamber was unlucky not to pick up more than his solitary wicket, but it was the introduction of man-of-the-match Walker who brought the game towards its conclusion. Firstly he broke up the partnership of Tyler and Brockman, and then quickly removed the rest of the tail. He finished with 4-21

Brentwood face the winners of the other semi-final between Woodford Wells and Walthamstow, with the final on Bank Holiday Monday.

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21st August

Brentwood 1st XI - 196 all out
Chelmsford 1st XI - 214-8 declared
Chelmsford won by 18 runs

Report by Richard Whitehall

In a match which Brentwood knew they had to win in order to retain any realistic chance of promotion, captain Richard Whitehall was disappointed to find only nine other players waiting upon his arrival at the Old County Ground. Brentwood schoolboy Chris Boon was duly called in to make his 1st team debut at short notice in what was clearly not an ideal start to this crucial Division One encounter against Chelmsford. Happily matters took a turn for the better when Whitehall won the toss and elected to bowl on what looked to be a slow, damp wicket that had been left uncovered during the overnight rain. This was to be the key factor in a match that severely dented Brentwood's promotion hopes despite the best efforts of Brentwood wicket-keeper batsman Ben Cocklin.

Chelmsford opening batsmen T Jones and M Prowting got off to a watchful start against the Brentwood bowlers playing few scoring strokes and seeing the ball pass the outside edge on a number of occasions. Rushbrook made the first breakthrough, having Jones caught at the wicket, reward for a tight opening spell where the batsmen never seemed comfortable. The fall of the first wicket brought Dalrymple to the crease and he immediately asserted his authority with some well-timed drives through the covers. As the run-rate increased Whitehall turned to spinners Graeme Walker and Ian Belchamber to try and curb this acceleration. The Chelmsford batsmen continued their free scoring strokes off both bowlers with some clean hitting through the offside until Prowting played one shot too many and Walford took a good catch at slip off the bowling of Belchamber. This brought C Prowting to the wicket in what was to be a solid partnership, keeping the score board ticking until Dalrymple fell for 73 against the bowling of Belchamber, having made batting look easy on a bowler-friendly wicket. The Chelmsford middle order continued to bat sensibly with useful contributions from C Prowting, P Jones and Thurston in an effort to reach 200. The Brentwood bowlers Belchamber and Walker continued to bowl well each finishing with two wickets. An impressive fielding display from the Brentwood side saw Chelmsford restricted to 214 with three run outs in the closing stages from a combination of good work by debutant Boon, Belchamber and wicket-keeper Cocklin.

In reaching the target of 214 the Brentwood batsmen knew they would have to bat well on a wicket ideally suited to the slow Chelmsford bowling attack. Opener Ben Debenham fell early to the slow bowling of Lawrence leaving Jon Walford and Morgan Rushbrook to rebuild the innings. Both players batted well with a combination of clean hitting and fluent stroke play and looked comfortable against the Chelmsford attack. Walford then fell to a tumbling catch at square leg whilst sweeping and the end of this partnership signalled the start of a Brentwood collapse. Richard Walford, Rushbrook and Walker fell soon after to leave Brentwood on 80 for 5. Mark Tyler and Matt Westwood were brought to the wicket against what was still tight bowling. With the score at 97 for 5 going into the last hour Brentwood now needed six an over for the last 20 overs. Some clean hitting from Tyler saw 18 taken from the next over with one of two sixes breaking the sightscreen at the Pavilion end. Westwood then fell to a tight LBW decision and Tyler perished in the next over, leaving Brentwood reeling at 130 for 7.

Skipper Whitehall and wicket keeper Ben Cocklin came together knowing that a repetition of some of their previous partnerships would leave Brentwood in a winning position. Both were playing well when Whitehall holed out to mid-off having made 11 leaving Cocklin to shepherd the lower order. Cocklin batted superbly playing shots around the park and running well between the wickets although he lost partner Belchamber LBW in unfortunate circumstances having clearly hit the ball. With 15-year old Boon now at the wicket Cocklin threw caution to the wind hitting a huge six into the car park and then a four to bring up his 50. Still 18 runs short of the Chelmsford total, Cocklin was the last man to fall after a herculean effort to win a match where Chelmsford performed better with both the bat and the ball.

Brentwood must now field their strongest team in their last two fixtures and hope that other teams slip up in a last ditch promotion effort.

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28th August

Brentwood 1st XI - 161 all out
Chingford 1st XI
Chingford won by 5 wickets

Report by Richard Whitehall

The start of the game was delayed due to the closure of the M25 and at one stage it seemed that Chingford would have to start the game with only 2 players. However they were up to 10 players by the eventual start and were asked to field by Brentwood captain Richard Whitehall who had won the toss. Mark Tyler was promoted up the order in a pinch hitting role, which he managed successfully, moving quickly to 25, before he played one attacking shot too many and was caught at mid-on. Jon Walford took up where Tyler had left-off and a high score appeared to be on the cards despite the wet wicket. However Walford was dismissed for 38 when chasing a wide delivery and the Brentwood innings began to falter. Only when Ben Cocklin was joined by Richard Walford did a competitive score look likely, but both players fell in quick succession and Brentwood were eventually all out for 161.

This score was competitive in the conditions, but 20 runs less than Brentwood would have hoped for following the start they achieved. Whitehall decided not to take the new ball and bowled his slower bowlers Richard Walford, Graeme Walker and Ian Belchamber. All 3 bowled some good overs, but also too many bad balls and Chingford were able to score at the required rate. As wickets began to fall the pressure on Chingford increased and only Indian first-class player Niraj Odedra looked confident in the conditions. However Brentwood were unable to dismiss Odedra who went on to score 78 not out as Chingford achieved their target with 3 overs to spare.

This loss means that Brentwood have to settle for finishing in fourth place in Division 1 as the last promotion spot is now between Hornchurch and Chingford.

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30th August

Brentwood 1st XI - 198-7
Woodford Wells 1st XI - 201-5
Woodford Wells won by 5 wickets
Shepherd Neame Essex League Cup Final

Report by Richard Whitehall

Following Saturday's disappointment Brentwood faced Woodford Wells in the League Cup Final. This was the first time Brentwood had reached the final.

Brentwood were asked to bat first and had to face the Wells opening bowling duo of Devon Weekes and Gary Gease under heavily laden skies which meant the ball swung around for the only time during the day. Jon Walford and Ben Debenham batted watchfully against the pace duo and after 11 overs the score was 33-0. Woodford's captain Mark Webber then came on to bowl his innocuous off-breaks and took the wicket of Debenham who was unfortunate to be stumped off the wicket-keepers pads. Morgan Rushbrook joined Walford and the scoring rate began to rise until Rushbrook was given out stumped, much to the surprise of the Brentwood supporters and Rushbrook himself. Mark Tyler batted at number 4, but found run scoring difficult. Jon Walford reached 50, but was then out stumped, which led to two further wickets as Graeme Walker and Matt Westwood were dismissed in quick succession. With the Brentwood innings in trouble Tyler and Ben Cocklin enjoyed an important partnership before Tyler was run out for 35 with the score 141-6. Richard Walford joined Cocklin and the two added 54 important runs before Cocklin was bowled having scored an excellent 46. The innings ended two balls later on 198 with Walford 31 not out.

It was clear from the opening overs that Gease was the dangerman for Wells, The Australian batted positively from the start, hitting a number of boundaries, with Richard Whitehall taking the brunt of the onslaught. By the end of the 12th over Woodford Wells had scored 60 without loss. The introduction of spin-twins Walker and Ian Belchamber began to slow down the scoring rate and Walker took the first wicket. As the required scoring rate began to rise back above 4, the opposition batsmen were forced to take risks, unfortunately Brentwood couldn't take advantage as 2 difficult catches and a stumping were missed. However the pressure was maintained by the spinners and Belchamber took an excellent return catch to dismiss Gease for 81 before quickly accounting for the wicket of Semper. Jon Walford was introduced into the attack and bowled exceptionally well. However thanks to their excellent start Wells needed only 41 to win with 8 overs to go and were able to pick-up singles to bring the target even nearer. With 4 overs to go the opposition batsmen knew a couple of boundaries would seal their victory, these duly came off the bowling of Whitehall who was hit for 15 in an over. It was Walford who was hit by Weekes for the winning boundary over extra-cover.

Brentwood showed superb battling qualities in the match and should be proud of their effort. However as had happened on Saturday and too often in the last month only 3 or 4 of their players had good games at the same time, which makes achieving victories very difficult.

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4th September

Colchester 1st XI - 205-7 declared
Brentwood 1st XI - 207-4
Brentwood won by 6 wickets

Report by Richard Whitehall

There was a very end-of-season feel to Saturday's game at Castle Park. Both sides entered this last game of the season knowing they could neither be promoted nor relegated.

John Ivulich won the toss for Colchester and decided to bat first on a good looking wicket. However his opposite number, Brentwood Captain Richard Whitehall, took the spoils in their personal battle when he had Ivulich caught by wicket-keeper Benjamin Cocklin having scored 9. Ian Flanagan soon followed and Colchester were 23-2 when Brentwood Schoolboy Dayan Gulrajani was introduced into the attack on his debut. The young leg spinner showed no sign of nerves as he bowled an accurate 15 over spell, taking 3 wickets for 57 runs. Gulrajani was ably supported by the nagging Richard Walford and fellow debutant Paul Webb. When the impressively consistent Webb deservedly clean bowled Austin for 43, Colchester had scored 155 runs. A late flurry by Savill (52) took the home side towards 200. Whitehall gave the ball to Dean Goddard to bowl the last over of the innings. Goddard who had taken two wickets in consecutive balls to win the 3rd XI game last Saturday completed an unlikely hat-trick when Morrision fell for his top-spinner and holed out to Jon Walford at deep-mid wicket. Colchester declared at the end of he 52nd over having scored 205-7.

Brentwood had 3 hours to chase what looked like a modest target. Jon Walford showed his intent early in the innings with a characteristic boundary off McQueen. The opener went on to dominate the Colchester bowling and quickly reached his fifty off 72 balls. At the other end Ben Debenham was also batting confidently until he was caught behind off the bowling of Gibbs. Walford was supported by his brother Richard, Under-16 Nick Childs and Peter Morgan, but it was the opener who continued to dominate the innings. His 100 was reached in 117 balls and he remained undefeated on 127 when Morgan hit the winning runs.

Brentwood's season finished with a 4th place finish in Division 1 and being runners-up in the League Cup. This is a fine achievement and above what they would have expected at the start of the season. However the second-half of the season has been relatively disappointing and highlighted weaknesses that will need to be improved upon if they are to mount a successful promotion campaign next year.

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