Little Waltham CC 1st XI – 199/7
Thurrock CC 1st XI – 198/10
HIGH flying Thurrock fell to a surprise 3 wicket defeat away at 10th placed Little Waltham last Saturday, a result which has opened up the promotion race once again. Thurrock skipper Henry once the toss and elected to bat on what looked a good pitch for batting, but a succession of poor shots, good bowling and some pitch assisted dismissals saw the visitors top order slide to 90-6, before keeper-batsman Rhys Hymas rescued the innings with an excellent, aggressive unbeaten 81 to give the away side something to defend.
After tea the visitors started well and picked up early wickets to leave the home side 111-6 with Dan Laird picking up 3-27 from his 12 overs with the visitors well placed to pick up the win. However they did not reckon on a 7 wicket partnership of 87 from Gurney (52) and Nazir (30 not out) to effectively seal the game for the hosts before Gurney fell with the scores tied before the game was sealed off the next over to leave the Thurrock side licking their wounds before next week’s game against South Weald.
Thurrock CC 2nd XI – 310/5
Havering-atte-Bower CC 2nd XI – 192 all out
Thurrock capitalised on excellent batting conditions to record a convincing win over promotion rivals Havering at Blackshots on Saturday, thanks to an excellent century from in-form opener Mason Wren who struck 116, with excellent back up from Matt Hills (57) and Jordon Warren (41). With such a commanding total on the board the hosts felt confident of defending such a target, however the home side started poorly with the ball with the visitors well poised at 100-0 in reply. Spin then became the order of the day as Steve Brooks (2-56), Wayne Simmons (2-3) and Terry Hills (5-27) ripped through the visitors batting, as a combination of scoreboard pressure and a turning pitch led to the visitors downfall as the hosts strengthened their position at the top of Division 5.
Thurrock CC 3rd XI – 179/7
St Andrews CC – 119 all out
An improved batting performance led to a comfortable win for the 3’s away at St Andrews on Saturday, thanks to a composed unbeaten 64 from Shahmeer Qureshi and good support from Craig Kemp (34) and skipper Tyrone Owen (24) which lead to the visitors posting a competitive 179/7 from their 45 overs. After tea the hosts were immediately under pressure following a parsimonious opening spell from Dan George (1-17 off 9) combined with Andrew Packer (2-42), combined with some excellent fielding to leave the hosts 69-5. All-rounder Dean Henry then produced an excellent spell of 3-20 from 10 overs to leave the visitors on the verge of victory, which was duly sealed by Dean Wright (2-28).
Thurrock CC 4th XI – 240 all out
Wickham CC 2nd XI – 234/9
Thurrock 4’s came out on top in a captivating and high scoring encounter thanks to an excellent all round performance from Iftikhar Ali who scored an aggressive 128 and took 2-21 with the ball. After skipper Colin Richardson elected to bat first on a decent track for batting, Ali and Richardson (65) combined to help put an imposing 240 all out on the board. The visitors started well and through excellent contributions from Rogers (63) and Abbott (41) they kept themselves in the hunt for victory, but composed spells from Ali and young Morgan Thompson (2-15) helped see the hosts over the line as they recorded a deserved and much needed win.
Sidcup CC Adhoc XI – 151/8
Thurrock CC Sun 1st XI – 152/7
The Sunday 1st’s travelled to a plush Sidcup ground and emerged victorious in the Sid Cup in a tight, entertaining and good spirited game. On the hottest day of the year so far, Thurrock skipper Clarke Wren lost the toss and was invited to bowl first on a hard, dusty track which soon resembled a Mumbai dustbowl. After a couple of early breakthroughs, home batsman Casey Jerrom helped rebuild the home sides innings with a well crafted 36 on a pitch offering substantial assistance for the spinners, with left armer Steve Brooks taking 2-25 and skipper Wren with 2-22 as Umar Ayub chipped with 2 quick wickets towards the end to restrict the hosts to 151. After the interval the pitch continued to deteriorate as openers Groves and Ayub fell cheaply. Mark O’Neill (30) and Bilal Qureshi (20) helped rebuild the innings before a flurry of wickets brought the home side back into the game. However an aggressive partnership between Chris Buckley (30 not out) and Rhys Hymas who biffed a cheeky 18 took the visitors close before Hymas was bowled, but Wren strode to the middle 14 needed off the last 2 overs, and proceeded to hit his second ball for 6 to calm matters as the visitors got across the line with 3 balls to go.
Havering-atte-Bower CC Sunday 2’s – 261 all out
Thurrock CC Sunday 2’s – 381/5
It was runs galore over at Havering on Sunday as the Thurrock batsmen excelled in excellent batting conditions. After winning the toss, the visitors opted to bat first, and after the early wicket of Dean Henry, the second wicket partnership of Jordan Owen and Jordon Warren put on a massive 243 with Owen making 169 before falling with 200 in his sights, and Warren for an explosive 104 including 8 sixes. Shahmeer Qureshi also weighed in with an excellent 63 as all manner of club records were threatened. As the innings closed on a massive 381/5, the visitors were understandably pretty confident of victory, but a determined effort from the home side with batsmen all the way down the prder chipping in ensuring they finished on a respectable 261 all out, with the pick of the visitors bowling being Troy Slaney with 5-39, and Billy Oggles with 2-47 as they completed a 12o run win.
