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1st XI against Old King's Scholars on Friday, July 04, 2008 (home)
King's won by 1 wkts
King's 182 for 9 off 45 overs
Old King's Scholars 178 for 7 off 52 overs
Simon Younger 37 not out, Jonathan Turley 29, Jacob Newman 24. Ben Cooke 4 for 40. Andrew Leech 3 for 27. (For OKS, Rob Batey 69 not out and Nick Guest 6 for 48.)

This was, quite literally, an event-ful match, sadly not always for the right reasons (I shall come to that later). The unveiling of the new 1st XI best batting and bowling honours board was scheduled as the main event off the field, a victory for the School was hopefully going to be the main event on it. However, the youthfulness of the OKS side that began to assemble indicated that this was not going to be a foregone conclusion. Clearly, the OKS were intent on avenging last year's victory for the School, with no less than seven of their players dating from the post Mellor-Neeves era.

Skipper Oli Greening invited the OKS to bat and Mike Roberts and Andrew Sissons began steadily against the School's opening pair of Andrew Leech and Marcus Torr, promoted in the absence of Richard, the younger Sissons. Both Leech and Torr bowled really well but on this occasion it was the extra pace of Leech that earned the early breakthroughs, which came in his fourth over when he clean bowled Roberts and Peter McLoughlin. The left-handed Robert Batey now came to the crease and, like the opener he used to be in his schooldays, he began to establish himself and settle the ship. The School, although spendthrift with extras, were not going to make it easy, though, and a superb forward-diving catch by Tom Fearnall prised Andrew Sissons from the crease off the bowling of Ben Cooke. Charlie Aston came and went in the same over, well held by Jacob Newman at slip, and though Calum Rigby struck some pleasant shots, Cooke persuaded him to attempt a pull to one that kept coming in to him, only for the stumps to be broken. Twelve runs were added before lunch, but the School had had a very successful morning which was reflected in the scoreline of 98 for 6. With the honours board about to be unveiled, Andrew Leech and Ben Cooke were vying for the best bowling of 2008, Leech being credited with the unusual dismissal for a fast bowler of a stumping, when Dave Atkin wandered out of his crease as he attempted to play the ball and keeper Glenn Coppack hit the stumps from 20 yards. A true Boughton Hall wicket, as Atkin later pointed out.

After a few words from the Headmaster, Adrian Neeves and Harvey Mellor - masters i/c 1st XI cricket from the mid-1970s to the mid 1990s - unveiled the new honours board. The OKS side included three players whose names appear on the board - Andrew Sissons (twice), Dave Atkin and Tom Bellis (twice). Which were the best ever performances and whether the 1st XI on the day included the bowler who would produce the best performance of 2008 were moot points. Certainly, although competition for this year's best batting was understandably stifled by PJ's 139 not out against Rydal, the possibility of overcoming Richard Sissons' 4 for 17 against the Forty Club is very much a 'live' contest.

A remarkably subdued Tom Bellis rejoined an ever more assured Rob Batey after a splendid lunch (thanks to Mr Beasley and his staff and also to CAOKS for erecting the marquee). The rivalry for best bowling performance was negated by some splendid rearguard OKS batting and only one more wicket fell - that of Bellis, again well caught by Newman at slip off Cooke. As Andrew Leech ruefully pointed out, modern bowling restrictions are weighted in favour of the slow bowler, but even he conceded that Ben's return of 4 for 40 off 16 was a fine achievement and he was a little unlucky not to collect a 'five for'.

The sad event referred to earlier occurred shortly after the arrival at the crease of OKS captain Jeremy Brummitt. As he set off for a run, his Achilles tendon snapped - "like a gunshot" he said - and poor Jeremy had to be carried from the field. Medical examination confirmed that his Achilles tendon was ruptured and he will need surgery next week. We all wish him a full and speedy recovery. Dave Atkin took over the captaincy of the OKS and the eighth-wicket partnership of Batey and Wainwright prospered, both batsmen injecting entertaining and necessary impetus. What turned out to be a perfectly-judged declaration came at 178 for 7 after 52 overs. Leech and Cooke had been the wicket-takers but Torr, Dyne and Turley all bowled tidily and there was good support in the field, catches being held, and good stops being pulled off by the likes of Ciaran Willis, Andy Dyne and Tom Fearnall.

Ben Cooke and Jacob Newman, the school's third opening pair of the season, established a solid platform, putting on 40 before Bellis had Cooke caught behind by Rigby. Bellis had been the destroyer of the OKS in this match last year and in the minds of the 1st XI was perhaps the greatest threat. Yet it was the wily left-arm spin of Nick Guest that proved the undoing of so many of the School's batsmen. Glenn Coppack played the ball back to a grateful Guest and Jacob, having once again done all the hard work and reached 24, allowed a field change by Atkin to worry him sufficiently to offer a catch. Greening, Dyne, Leech and Fearnall all looked to bat positively but surrendered too cheaply and Guest added to his haul in a post-tea spell of 8-3-19-6.

If I am honest, I wasbeginning to fear that my disappointment and sharp words on the journey back from Wrekin the other day had had little effect. 70 off the last 15 overs was perfectly do-able ... but with just two wickets in hand? It needed some magic. And some magic is what Simon Younger and Jon Turley conjured up. Simon batted with a discipline and belief he has not shown before in the 1st XI, something perhaps stemming from his unfortunate dismissal on Monday and his lowly position in the batting order today. Simon had something to prove - and in his last game for us this season he certainly did so. But Simon needed a partner, someone to hold an end up, yes, but at over four an over - at times, more - also someone who could put bat to ball. Step up, Jon Turley. Jon's sturdy defence is well-known but it was his attacking play (he hit three 4s and two 3s) and invention that were revelatory. His reverse sweep for 4 when Atkin  had the field seemingly impregnable brought a loud and deserved cheer. Both he and Simon showed great sense in their shot selection, calling and running between the wickets as they added 69.

Off the last over the School required 6 to win. Turley struck a 3 and two byes were run. Scores level. But, in attempting the winning run off the penultimate ball, Jonathan was run out, despite his human cannonball head-first dive. Ciaran Willis now joined Simon Younger, who was on strike for the last ball. Batey in, bowls, anything could happen, Simon swishes and misses. It's not on target, though, and it's too quick for wicket-keeper Calum Rigby to take, crossing the rope for four byes.

An absolute thriller and a deserved victory in the end for the School. Loyalties are often divided in this match but on this occasion it would surely be true to say, as the President of CAOKS remarked, that "Cricket was the winner!" (I promised I'd quote you, Steve.)  

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1st XI against Wrekin College on Monday, June 30, 2008 (away)
King's lost by 9 wkts
King's 106 all out off 43 overs
Wrekin College 110 for 1 off 19 overs
Richard Sissons 33 not out.

This is a new fixture for us so we did not know quite what to expect. Certainly, the setting at Wrekin is spectacularly lovely and the spacious pavilion has a timeless quality about it.

Although Wrekin does have covers they had not been used after Saturday's game so the track marked out for our game had been exposed to weekend rain. The toss - won by Wrekin - therefore turned out to be significant and the King's opening pair quickly found themselves battling for survival on a spiteful wicket that was exploited to the full by both Wrekin pacemen.

Ben Cooke and Tom Pearson-Jones did admirably well, using soft hands, hitting the bad ball and running hard between the wickets. Tom survived a chance he hit in the air round the corner but he couldn't survive an LBW shout from Van Brede and King's were 25 for 1 in the eighth over of a 105-over game. When Ben Cooke also fell to Van Brede and captain Jacob Newman came and went in the very same over, King's were looking very fragile at 34 for 3 with only twelve overs bowled.

Things didn't get any better as a succession of batsmen came to the crease only to depart for not very many after varying lengths of stay at the crease. The lower order showed some spirit, carrying the attack to the Wrekin bowlers as the pitch began to ease. Andy Leech struck two sweet boundaries and seemed to be entirely comfortable. Off-spinner Hammond induced Leech to play one back to him, however, and his innings was over all too soon. Meanwhile Richard Sissons batted in similar fashion, choosing which balls to punish and which to block, and doing so to very good effect. At number nine he turned out to be our top-scorer with a chanceless and well-made unbeaten 33. It was largely thanks to Richard that King's progressed from 76 for 8 at lunch to 106 all out, though mention should also be made of Jonathan Turley, who held out for quite some time before he got a snorter from Van Brede in his second spell. All out for a little over 100 in 43 overs.

Confidence cannot have been high but King's did their best to conceal their doubts and both opening bowlers were really fired up. Sissons in particular bowled superbly and he was perhaps unlucky to pick up just the one wicket. Although there were plenty of shouts and occasional false shots, by now the pitch was much more benign (especially after the heavy roller had done its job during the change of innings). The spinners were unusually profligate and could not add to the wickets tally and nor could a more miserly Marcus Torr. Although Richard Sissons returned for a second brief spell, Wrekin were by then well on course for victory which came a little before tea was due to be taken in the nineteenth over.

This was most definitely not King's finest hour and we know that excuses will not suffice. We must take responsibility. As Coach Walker put it, (with very few exceptions) we didn't turn up. There remain four, hard games this season and the standard has to be picked up. It would be a pity for a side with so much potential to squander it and allow the season to fizzle out. Earlier today PJ, perhaps thinking ahead to future exploits at Harrow, was quoting Old Harrovian Winston Churchill. Taking a leaf out of his book and to paraphrase the great man: "We must never surrender!"     

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1st XI against MCC on Friday, June 27, 2008 (home)
King's scores tied by 0 wkts
King's 177 for 8 off 40 overs
MCC 177 for 7 off 43 overs
Ben Cooke 2 for 20; Tom Pearson-Jones 69, Andy Leech 30.

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1st XI against Free Foresters on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 (home)
King's lost by 117 runs
King's 147 all out off 28 overs
Free Foresters 264 for 8 off 49 overs
Andy Dyne 3 for 68; Tom Pearosn-Jones 49, Jacob Newman 45.

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1st XI against Birkenhead on Saturday, June 14, 2008 (away)
King's lost by 75 runs
King's 208 all out off 40 overs
Birkenhead 283 for 3 off 40 overs
Andrew Leech took 2 for 33 and scored 44. Andrew Dyne 49; Marcus Torr 31 not out.

Birkenhead won the toss and eagerly took the opportunity to have first go on a good, bouncy batting track. When Lancashire 2s player, David Hurst, clipped the first ball sweetly off his legs for 4, it looked as though King's were going to be in for a hard afternoon. And so it proved.

But there was an alternative script that very nearly got written. Andrew Leech, buoyed by recent successes and the prospect of promotion at his club, bowled quite superbly and, although runs came freely at the other end, after half an hour he had reduced Birkenhead to 42 for 2. Hurst was then joined by North of England batsman, Andrew Clarke. He looked very out of touch, however, and Hurst was beginning to look less secure. And then he offered a chance. It was a very hard chance, the ball coming down from a great height and with the fielder running across a 'hilly' part of the outfield and close to a fence. 50 for 3, with Hurst out and Clarke looking uncertain, and I would have fancied King's chances. Unfortunately, it was not to be and the game swung towards our opponents.

Hurst and Clarke, batting with ever more assuredness, put on 178 for the third wicket. Hurst was eventually out for 121, well caught by Marcus Torr off Richard Sissons, who showed character in coming back strongly in his second spell. Ben Cooke bowled well without reward but, as with other bowlers, more defensive field settings are needed at a slightly earlier stage against batsmen in the ascendant. And though there were honourable exceptions - Sissons, Torr, Williams spring to mind - fielding overall was not at its best today. Birkenhead's final over took the score from 267 to 283 as Clarke tried (but just failed) to reach his century, but the effect on our morale was just the same and heads were down in the King's dressing room before tea.

The King's openers, Ben Cooke and Tom Pearson-Jones, began steadily, taking the score to 40 before Cooke was caught in the slips. The slips and keeper had already spurned a few offerings but this catch was to begin a spate of similar wickets as Birkenhead bowled short and sometimes wide and King's batsmen offered catching practice. Tom Pearson-Jones made a patient and well crafted 24 before succumbing in this fashion. The other route to success was surely to carry the attack to the bowlers. Andy Dyne can always be relied upon to take this route and he did not disappoint on this occasion. Although a little more restrained than usual, his 49 included seven 4s and was, as his innings always are, highly entertaining.

By this stage Dyne was batting for his own and King's pride - King's were not going to win. The lower order, though, followed his lead (and my pleas) to get something out of the game for themselves and for the team's future. Ben Williams made only a handful of runs but he looked comfortable and showed that he has the potential to be a 1st XI batsman of quality. Simon Younger rode his luck (we need to cut out that leading edge shot) but his 16 included some lovely strokes and footwork. It was Andrew Leech and Marcus Torr, though, who were most successful in responding to the situation. Their clean hitting, positive approach was very good to watch and signalled that these two fifth-formers have very bright futures as 1st XI all-rounders. They couldn't win us this game, but there will opportunities for that in the future and I am sure they won't disappoint.

King's lost the game, beaten by a side containing two extremely good batsmen. There is no disgrace in that. Indeed, there was much in this game for us to be positive about. My counterpart at Birkenhead thought our bowling attack the strongest of any school they have played this year - his words, not mine. A team score of over 200  was perfectly respecable off 40 overs and  runs were shared around, indicating strength in depth. The ninth wicket partnership of 68 between Andy Leech (44) and Marcus Torr (31 not out), for both of whom this was their top score so far, showed promise for the future. These were really positive things which we can take out of this game and which we should focus on before our next - equally challenging - game agianst Free Foresters.

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1st XI against Rydal on Saturday, May 10, 2008 (home)
King's won by 147 runs
King's 251 for 1 off 30 overs
Rydal 104 for 8 off 30 overs
Tom Pearson-Jones 139 not out; Ben Cooke 76.

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1st XI against The Forty Club on Wednesday, May 07, 2008 (home)
King's won by 1 wkts
King's 111 for 9 off 0 overs
The Forty Club 110 all out off 0 overs
Richard Sissons 4 for 17; Tom Pearson-Jones 3 for 18; Andy Dyne 3 for 20.

A thriller! A victory for the school with one wicket standing and just eleven balls remaining. Glenn Coppack's 17 not out was calm and assured (great - and brave - footwork to come down to meet the ball with men crowding the bat and the bowling tight) and Richard Sissons, the hero with the ball, gave his team-mates an object lesson in how to bat - at no.11. His 14 not out was equally welcome, contributing exactly half the 28 runs for the ninth wicket that saw King's home.

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1st XI against Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby on Saturday, May 03, 2008 (away)
King's lost by 2 wkts
King's 105 all out off 35 overs
Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby 106 for 8 off 38 overs
Jacob Newman: 32

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1st XI against Stockport Grammar School on Saturday, April 26, 2008 (home)
King's won by 116 runs
King's 202 for 5 off 40 overs
Stockport Grammar School 86 all out off 36 overs
Ben Cooke 73; Andy Dyne 51*.

1st XI complete 4th victory from 4 matches played so far this season.

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1st XI against Wolverhampton GS on Wednesday, April 23, 2008 (home)
King's won by 133 runs
King's 223 for 3 off 35 overs
Wolverhampton GS 90 for 8 off 35 overs
Tom Pearson-Jones 113; Oli Greening 3 for 24. Glenn Coppack 3 catches and a stumping.

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1st XI against King's Macclesfield on Saturday, April 19, 2008 (home)
King's won by 28 runs
King's 159 for 8 off 40 overs
King's Macclesfield 131 for 9 off 38 overs
Tom Pearson-Jones 41, Andy Dyne 35, Andrew Leech 32.

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1st XI against Chester County Officers CC XI on Wednesday, April 16, 2008 (home)
King's won by 103 runs
King's 167 all out off 37 overs
Chester County Officers CC XI 64 all out off 29 overs
Andrew Dyne 54

It was when I had to scrape the ice off the car windscreen this morning that I really knew the cricket season was upon us. Still, cold as it was (and it WAS cold), at least we had a game. Thanks must go to Alen Roberts, King's Head Groundsman, for kindly arranging a fixture against his club, Chester County Officers, when our original opponents let us down. (Thanks, too, to Mr Cooke for scoring the first innings in impossibly cold conditions and to Messrs Neeves and Routledge for assisting me with umpiring duties.)

King's were invited to bat first and debutant Tom Pearson-Jones made an instant impression, making an attractive 31. His pull for six was enjoyable but it was an off-drive all along the ground for 4 that had the cognoscenti nodding approvingly, given the sodden state of the turf. Tom's calling and running between the wickets set a very good example and he literally 'made' runs this way. Ben Cooke was his opening partner and he looked to be in no trouble until he received one from the opening seamer who just moved one enough to find the edge of Ben's bat. Enter vice-captain, Jacob Newman, promoted now to no.3. Jacob, too, looked to be in no difficulty and he compiled a solid 23 before the April pitch persuaded him to offer a simple return catch to the bowler.

Glenn Coppack was another batsman to be promoted and although he is certainly capable of doing well as a top order batsman, this was not his day. A partnership of 32 followed between two senior players, Andy Dyne and captain Oli Greening. Like PJ before them, they called and ran positively and looked to score off every ball. Oli's 21 came up very quickly and he was the dominant partner when, unfortunately for King's, he was castled. Andy Dyne took up the challenge, however, and in his inimitable fashion he hit and nudged and bustled his way to a splendid 52 while a succession of partners came and went at the other end. Of these, new-boy Andy Leech was most noteworthy. His 11 runs at no.10, and the way he made them, suggest that he won't be batting at no.10 forever. Simon Younger looked like he might make a few but it was not to be. Although King's could not manage to use up all the allotted 40 overs, their 167 was a pleasing total in the conditions and the boys went to tea happy.

The new ball was given to Andy Leech (running up the hill) and he made his point in the first over by taking the wicket of one of the opposition openers, caught and bowled. Two more wickets were to follow and Andy finished with excellent figures of 6-1-26-3. Oli Greening opened up at the top end (captain's prerogative, Andy!) and although he took a while to settle he was right to persevere for he picked up two good wickets (both bowled), the second of which was a real peach of a ball. The remaining wickets were shared around. Fifth-formers, Richard Sissons and Marcus Torr, showed much promise and were rewarded with one and two wickets respectively. Senior pros, Andy Dyne and Ben Cooke, each grabbed one, and Jonathan Turley bowled economically but without taking a wicket on this occasion.

There was an energy and purpose about King's in all departments of the game and not least in their fielding. Anything remotely catchable was taken (Marcus did well even to get his fingers to one, which I don't count - although the fines master may see things differently) and the throwing quickly improved after a couple of run-outs were missed and the team adopted the advice of new coach Damian Lewis to cheer one another on and encourage one another to do better. Certainly, the side's athleticism in the field owed much to Monday's hour-and-a-half intensive training. Crucial, as ever, in this was the wicket-keeper. Like all good wicket-keepers, one hardly noticed Glenn and although his name does not appear on the scorecard his role in the team's success was essential.

It was the best of starts for the team and though there are improvements to be made in some areas (let's cut down further on the extras, please), confidence should be high going into Saturday's game against King's Macclesfield.

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2nd XI against Ellesmere on Wednesday, May 07, 2008 (home)
King's won by 30 runs
King's 140 for 6 off 30 overs
Ellesmere 110 all out off 30 overs

What a splendid way to bring the 2^nd XI season to a close: a 30 run victory

under a sunny, blue sky with a warm breeze wafting across the playing field.  This is how we all imagine playing cricket.  In the end it was a comfortable victory, but one which the team worked hard to achieve.

King’s batted first and after a slow start the opening pair of Turley and Fearnall gradually upped the pace and began to score at a steady rate of four runs per over.  Just as Fearnall was getting into his stride he fell victim to a long hop which he pulled powerfully into the hands of square leg with the score on 58.  Andrew Roberts came in and together with Turley they maintained the momentum. 

After our slow start it looked as if 130 might be a good target on a slow pitch with a fair amount of bounce if the bowlers chose to apply t