But Orsett A look strong favourites for the title folllowing another positive performance, this time at the expense of Belhus B. Orsett reached 137-4, for whom Joe Mitchell was undefeated on 45 not out, the highest individual score of the event to date. Offering reliable support were Tom Haden, 18, Jack Plom 19 not out and Connor Boreham with a fine 23. In reply, Belhus were dismissed for just 28 runs as Will Gibbon claimed two wickets for five runs and Plom picked up one wicket from two overs without conceding a single run.

Rayleigh enjoyed a six-wicket victory over the Belhus A team. Max Jones with 20 not out and Matthew Dobson with 25 not out, made light work in chasing down the Belhus score of 63-6, for whom George Maidment top scored with 22. Mark Fogg also reached double figures with 10 in a much improved batting display from the previous week, despite the problems caused by Rayleigh’s Conor Slough, who emerged with bowling figures of 3-19.

Fixtures (Friday 3rd February): 6pm -Horndon on the Hill v Orsett A; 7pm – Belhus B v Orsett B; 8pm – Stanford le Hope v Belhus A.

The first game of the evening saw Thurrock A dismissed for 36 at the hands of Orsett A, for whom Wayne Gibbon took two Thurrock wickets at a cost of just eight runs, then Tom Haden ensured there was no mistake as his 16 not out completed a comfortable win by five wickets. Charlie Hodge picked up the lone Orsett wicket to fall and conceded just six runs in the process. Stanford le Hope enjoyed a run-fest at the expense of Orsett B. Jack Carter and Ethan Thomas both hit 30 not out, then, after the Willats’ achievement and support from Carter with 2-9, the Orsett second team crashed to 18 all out.

Rayleigh posted 124 for the loss of three wickets against a spirited Belhus B team. Matthew Dobson hit 25 while Max Jones and Connor Slough were both undefeated on 26 and 25 respectively. But with Mirza in full flight and Matthew Wakeling contributing 25 not out, Belhus reached a creditable 89 for the loss of four wickets at the close, though still fell short of their target by 35 runs. Slough was the pick of the Rayleigh bowlers with 2-15.

Next Fixtures (Friday 13th January): 6pm – Belhus B v Horndon on the Hill; 7pm – Thurrock B v Orsett A; 8pm – Stanford le Hope v Rayleigh.

The Chance to Shine organiser at Belhus Cricket Club is Cliff Cansdale who said: “In the current financial climate it’s amazing that we have been able to secure more funding than last year and we must thank the Cricket Foundation for their backing. Already we have seen an increase in the number of young players attending our club as a direct result of our coaching in schools. We are also exploring the possibility of extending our delivery still further for 2012, but this will depend on the success of a future funding bid from an additional local source”.

Steve Peyman, Operations Director at the Cricket Foundation, said: “Our clubs are the backbone of Chance to Shine and are critical to the success of the programme. The club organisers help to coordinate the delivery of high quality coaching and, as a result, 26,977 children have joined local clubs over the first seven years of the plan”. The Cricket Foundation, an independent registered charity believes that team sports – and cricket in particular – can help youngsters develop as people. Peyman continued: “Cricket promotes leadership and teamwork and teaches youngsters how to win and lose respectfully, giving opportunities for both girls and boys”.

England’s Graeme Swann said: “I went to a school which did not play cricket but I was lucky enough to have been given the chance to play by my dad. But there were millions of youngsters out there who were never given the opportunity to play and that is sad. What Chance to Shine has done is fantastic and if, through them, we unearth another Ian Botham, Kevin Pietersen or Freddie Flintoff then great; but the main aim is just to get more people playing from an early age and encourage them to take part at whatever level they are comfortable with”.

Chance to Shine is a £50million charitable campaign supported financially by the England and Wales Cricket Board, Brit Insurance, Slazenger, The Lord’s Taverners and the Marylebone Cricket Club and many other companies and private individuals, as well as the Government through Sport England.

Stanford’s cricketers kicked off their 125th anniversary celebrations with a winter cricket match at Stanford Recreation Ground.

A variety of warm clothing, hot soup with rolls and plenty of other warming “items” were the order of the day! The match was a 7-a-side interclub affair with the emphasis on celebration rather than serious play.

But there was an historic significance in this event as exactly the same took place 25 years ago at The Rec to signal the start of its Centenary celebrations in 1987.

Planned highlights of the year ahead include:

Early 2012: Special 2012 Fixture Book
To include normal fixtures etc. plus statistics from the past 125 years, a timeline of the Club and many other interesting photos and articles

March: Memorabilia Evening
Players past and present will get together in the Clubhouse to look over items of interest with many amusing (and tall!) stories likely to be told.

April: Tour to Spain
A week-long tour to the Barcelona region where three matches will take place as part of the club’s pre-season training

During 2012 Season: Special Cricket Match
To celebrate 125 years there will be a special one-off match against a prestigious side

July: Cricket Festival
4 days of cricket against a variety of sides, both local and far afield

August: Stanford-le-Hope Community 5K & Fun Run
5K Race and Fun Run that starts and finishes at Stanford Recreation Ground. This community event is being organised in partnership with a local running club, Phoenix Striders.

September: 125 Dinner Dance at Langdon Hills Golf Club
This grand event will round off the year in style when we hope that the current members will be joined with some illustrious faces from the past

In addition to the above there will be many other cricket and social events, with something planned for each month of the 2012 season. With both the 1st and 2nd XI scheduled to play in the Shepherd Neame Essex League’s 2nd Division this season, it is going to be a significant year for the Club which it would like to share with the local community.

There are four people that feature in both years, John Hicks, Mark Nuttall, Peter Victory and Jon Fuller.

Also amongst the wickets was Josh Jones of Rayleigh. He took all three Thurrock A wickets in a triple-wicket maiden to finish with 3-16 as Thurrock A ended their innings on 84, for whom Harry Dove and Jack Bundock scored 25 not out and 30 not out respectively. Rayleigh reached their target for the loss of three wickets, in a much-improved batting performance from that of the previous week. The Rayleigh run-makers were Craig Smith, 10, and Alex Belcher, undefeated with 16 runs.

Meanwhile, Stanford le Hope joined Orsett A and Horndon by remaining unbeaten in this under fourteen tournament. The second of two wins for Stanford came with a comfortable five-wicket win over Thurrock B, thanks to 19 not out from Ethan Thomas. Thurrock B were dismissed for 44 with Stanford reaching 45 for the loss of one wicket. The competition resumes on Friday 6th January 2012. Further details available at www.sedcb.org.uk

Petts also hit a fine 31 not out as Horndon defeated Rayleigh by 70 runs. Luke Smith gave valuable support with 28 not out to enable Horns to close on 97 for the loss of three wickets. In reply, Rayleigh were dismissed for just 27 runs. Orsett B had little trouble in overcoming Thurrock A by six wickets. Thurrock A were all out for 46, despite the best efforts of Billy Kirk, who scored ten runs. Hearn and Dylan Rose were the two undefeated batsmen for Orsett B, with 16 and 17 runs respectively.

Belhus B reached 38 runs for the loss of four wickets against Stanford le Hope, who made light work in reaching their target after just 5.1 overs for the loss of just one wicket. Braydon Scarlett top scored for Belhus B with 13 not out, while Stanford’s Callum McCarthy hit 15 not out in his team’s five-wicket win.

This week’s fixtures (Friday 16th December): 6pm – Belhus A v Horndon on the Hill; 7pm – Stanford le Hope v Thurrock B; 8pm – Rayleigh v Thurrock A. Full league table and further details are available on the South Essex District Cricket Board website at www.sedcb.org.uk

Bilal Qureshi top scored for Thurrock B with 25 not out, proving that anything his younger brother, Shameer, can do in the U12 event, Bilal can at least match him. Thurrock B reached 98 for the loss of just one wicket, but despite their best efforts they were unable to prevent Thurrock A from reaching their target with just five balls to spare and two wickets in hand. Billy Kirk hit 24 not out for the A team, ably assisted by Charlie Hodge, who contributed 21 runs.

The evening’s final game saw the two Belhus teams in action. Belhus A racked up 105-2 from twelve overs, as Mark Fogg hit a stylish undefeated 26, while Mathew Lewis struck 25 not out and Eathan Morris chipped in with eleven runs. In reply, Belhus B were shot out for 35 after just 6.1 overs as George Maidment took 2-6 for the A team. The competition has a dedicated webpage at http://www.sedcb.org.uk/indoor-cricket/2011-12-youth-indoor-u14-grays

Fixtures for Friday 9th December: 6pm – Stanford le Hope v Belhus B; 7pm – Thurrock A v Orsett B; 8pm – Horndon on the Hill v Rayleigh.

The competition is organised by Cliff Cansdale of the South Essex District Cricket Board, who watched the events unfold at Grays School. He said: “This was the final match of the final week of league competition for this particular age group. And what a game it turned out to be. We have no records of this ever having been achieved in any of our competitions before, we believe that this is unique”.

Daniel’s feat ensured he finished the competition with a batting average of 184.

Orsett A rattled up 114 for the loss of three wickets thanks to an undefeated 25 from Dylan Rose, while Alfie Buttle contributed 18 useful runs. In reply, Thurrock B responded with a creditable score of 86 for the loss of three wickets, leaving a deficit of just 18 runs, which turned out to be the closest game of the evening’s U12 competition.

Thurrock A also went past the century mark, scoring 122 for the loss of only one wicket, while their opponents Belhus B replied with 73 for the loss of two wickets. Shahmeer Qureshi top scored for Thurrock A with 27 not out while Jake Chegwidden and Joseph Surrey were also undefeated on 16 and 19 respectively. For Belhus B, Ciaran Gunning was their top scorer with 11 not out.

This week’s fixtures (Friday 18th November): 6pm – Orsett B v Thurrock B; 7pm – Horndon on the Hill v Belhus B; 8pm – Belhus A v Thurrock A.

The Belhus “A” team achieved a six-wicket win over their “B” team counterparts, as Joe Dalton picked up two wickets for just two runs from three overs, while Eathan Morris picked up one wicket for only six runs, also off three overs.

Belhus “B” were restricted to 46 for the loss of five wickets. Joshua Reynolds then hit an undefeated 15 for Belhus “A” as his team achieved a comfortable win with six overs to spare, ending on 47 without loss. Thurrock “B” remain undefeated from two games; they resume action this week after all the teams, apart from the two Belhus sides, enjoyed a half-term rest.

This week’s fixtures: 6pm – Belhus “A” v Orsett “A”; 7pm – Thurrock “A” v Orsett “B”; 8pm – Thurrock “B” v Horndon on the Hill.

Horndon on the Hill played their first game in the competition and promptly posted the highest score of this year’s competition to date. 116 runs were contributed for the loss of just two wickets with significant undefeated scores from Daniel Stone and Callum Newton with 28 and 26 respectively. Thurrock “A” reached 59 for the loss of just one wicket for whom Shahmeer Quereshi top scored with 19 not out.

Belhus “A” also began their fixtures with a 47-run victory over Orsett “B”. Joshua Reynolds scored a fine undefeated 27 for Belhus “A”, while there were two fine all-round performances from Robbie Millbank of Orsett “B” and Eathan Morris of Belhus “A”. Millbank took 2-26 and scored 11 not out, while Morris hit 12 not out and took four wickets for just 14 runs, the best bowling figures of the event so far. Belhus “A” scored 110-3 and Orsett “B” replied with 63-5.

This weeks fixtures: 6pm – Thurrock “A” v Orsett “A”; 7pm – Belhus “A” v Horndon on the Hill; 8pm – Belhus “B” v Thurrock “B”.

Thurrock “B” had a close one-wicket victory over their club colleagues in the “A” team with Josh Clarke instrumental in the win by picking up two wickets at a cost of just 15 runs. For the Thurrock “A” team, Jake Chegwidden had a fine all-round match, scoring 15 runs and taking 2-21, while Shahmeer Quereshi gave valuable support with the ball by matching Clarke’s bowling figures. Meanwhile, Orsett “A” defeated their “B” team by four wickets, largely due to some impressive batting by Alfie Buttle, 25 not out and Jordan Cunningham, 21 not out.

But Lewis Rice, Louie Hornsby and Carl Rice had batted equally well for Orsett “B”, scoring 25, 13 and 10 respectively, all three batsmen being undefeated. The pick of the bowling in this game came from Robbie Millbank with two wickets at a cost of just eleven runs.

Scores: Thurrock “A” 81-6, Thurrock “B” 83-5; Orsett “B” 89-1, Orsett “A” 90-2.
This Friday’s fixtures are: 6pm – Orsett “A” v Belhus “B”; 7pm – Belhus “A” v Orsett “B”; 8pm – Horndon on the Hill v Thurrock “A”.

Michael Fogg struck an impressive 103 not out for Belhus but the result was always in doubt until the final few overs when Richard Day turned his arm over for some rare leg-spin.  In fact Day was on a hat-trick as Goresbrook edged ever closer to a mammoth Belhus score, but he closed with figures of 2-35 from six overs.  Fogg, not content with his century, steamed in from the Chafford end to pick up 2-44 from seven overs.  Goresbrook had a centurion too, in opening batsman Alfred.  He made exactly 100 runs until he was caught by Ryan Wells just a metre or two inside the boundary rope at mid-wicket off the bowling of Day.  This proved to be a major turning point in the game, as, with Alfred at the crease, a Goresbrook win was looking on the cards.  Earlier, Belhus opener Jim Robertson added 61 runs in his usual stylish way, while middle order batsman Daniel Dreher chipped in with a healthy 33 runs until he was bowled by Harris (2-65).  In support of Alfred for the visitors were Irvin, 55, Harris, 26 and Friend with 32.

Dartfordians 1st 192-5
Belhus 1st  193-9

The Belhus opening pair of Ryan Wells and Michael Cansdale blitzed a highly competitive visiting attack at North Stifford on Sunday to the extent that Belhus were 138 without loss after the first seventeen overs of their innings.  Wells hit a magnifient 76, his knock coming from 68 balls and included one six and an incredible thirteen fours.  Cansdale hit four sixes and seven fours in an innings of 64, as these two put on 140 for the first wicket.  Second change Dartfordian bowler Franklin bore the brunt of the Belhus batting, conceding 46 runs from three very expensive overs, at which point he was rested.  Of those 46 runs, all but 12 came from the Wells willow as Franklin simply could not find the right length.  In Franklin’s last  over, Wells smashed five fours, the remaining ball at least produced no score.  The remaining Dartfordian bowlers kept asking questions and they got their just rewards as Belhus collapsed from 140 without loss to 174 for eight wickets as no other Belhus batsman reached double figures.  When Mike Randall made the slightest of contact with the ball to become the ninth wicket down, caught at the wicket with 182 on the board, last man Brian Edwards joined Connor Elliot with eleven runs still required.  After a few nervous moments, Belhus narrowly avoided snatching defeat from the jaws of victory though credit must be given to the Kent side’s Bygrave who finished with 4-15 from eight extremely tidy overs while Shah picked up four wickets too, at a cost of just 24 runs, also from eight overs.

YT popped in to speak to Brian Edwards about the season and the future prospects.