First U12 League Game

This week saw the first U12 league game played at home against Sutton Coldfield. Put in to bat Sutton set about some too short bowling scoring at 8 an over throughout to post a total of 158-4. Wicket takers were Matt Gimson thanks to a good catch from Matt Bell, Harry Daniels took 2-21 including a stumping by Sebb Henn-Allen and there was a run out. Our batsmen then had to face some very tight bowling from Sutton who showed how bowling a full length made scoring runs difficult. Jack Madahar tried hard to up the run rate hitting 5 fours in his top score of 35 and Seb also made double figures with 2 fours but at the end of our 20 overs we had made 96 - 4.

Remaining U12 fixtures are

24th July Away Aston Manor
31st July Home Handsworth
7th August Home Walmley
14th August Away Aston Unity

U13 Match Reports

Apologies to eager blog readers for late posting of recent U13 match reports but even Saints are sometimes sinners!

Saints U13 v Sheldon Marlborough

Hatrick debut for Josh Culling.

Following on from the previous two wins against the good work continued against Sheldon Marlborough with another good team performance. Saints batted first on a hot sunny morning and got off to a solid start with an opening partnership of 42 between Jack Moore (7) and Michael Evans (24), the runs were continued by John Keighley (16) Tom Cooper (13) and Jack Salmon (11) giving a total of 96.

Good tight bowling by all 8 bowlers used saw Sheldon bowled out for 59. Pick of the bowlers were Josh Culling who on his league debut bowled 4 overs , 1 maiden and took an all bowled hatrick for 4 runs, Marc Masters also in his debut took two wickets in two balls as well.

Saints v Handsworth

Saints came up against a strong Handsworth side who bowled very accurately to restrict us to a total of 70-4 with Tom Cooper 39 not out the main run getter. Although we bowled tidily our total was never enough to pressure Handsworth who reached the target in the 16th over for the loss of one wicket taken by Ryan Sharma.

The next game was due to be against Highcroft who unfortunately didn't turn up due to a fixture mix up at their end giving us our 4th victory of the season.

Saints v Aston Manor

Aston Manor provided stiff opposition as our bowlers toiled in the heat against one particularly strong batsman whose 83 not out helped them post 173 for 3 with Jack Salmon , Ryan Sharma and Josh Culling taking a wicket apiece. Batting was just as hard with Aston Manor's spinners making life difficult for all. Aston Manor's 83 not out batsman followed up with a hatrick and despite double figure innings from Jack Moore, Jack Bingham, Jack Salmon and Ben Shough we were all out for 73.

Saints v Sutton Coldfield

The final league game of the season played this week saw us take on Sutton Coldfield on the hottest day of the year. Batting first we lost two early wickets but recovered to post a score of 95 - 6 thanks to Jack Salmon (17), Jack Moore (16) Jack Bingham ( 14) and John Keighley (11). A strong Sutton opening pair soon took control and Sutton reached the target for 2 in the 14th over, Harry Daniels taking both wickets.

So in summary 3 good wins 1 walkover and 3 defeats showing the importance of not bowling short particularly on our home slope. Thanks to all who have played and tried hard.

U9 North Birmingham Tournament Report

Saints Under 9 side competed in the North Birmingham club Tournament at Walmley on Monday and demonstrated the talent within this age group. In their first match they struggled against an experienced Walmley team and lost by 30 runs. For many of the kids, this was their first competitive match and although they bowled and fielded well, they struggled batting in particular running between the wickets. Having talked through how we could improve the kids performed superbly against Sutton scoring a useful 249 runs with William George, George Westlake and Oliver Tarr all hitting the ball cleanly. In response Sutton were well behind the rate with Harry Taylor and Nat Longhorne bowling particularly well but a great innings by the Sutton captain, hitting 3 fours off the last over meant Saints lost off the last ball of the match. The final game against Aston Manor saw Saints determined to win and they did so comfortably by 20 runs. The bowling stars were James Morley and Andrew Robson, as Saints restricted Manor to just 221 runs. In reply Saints batsman cut loose with entertaining knocks from Raul Ram and Arjun Goswami. Saints finished 3^rd in the tournament and will play later in the year in the Warwickshire County Cup.

U11's Finish in Style

The Saints U11's played their final match of the season on a drizzly Monday
against Handsworth U11's. Jack Madahar (Captain) lost the toss, and
Handsworth decided to bat. They posted an impressive 288 for 7, with the
pick of their batters being Bertram with 13 and no outs. The Saints did not
bowl well, with the pick of our bowling being George Gibbons with three
wickets, Jack Madahar with 2 wickets and Mat Heller chipping in with 1
wicket. After some 'choice' words of encouragement in the break by the
Captain, The Saints posted a brilliant 316 for 4 wickets, the pick of the
batting being Mat Heller with 22 and 2 outs, Bradley Russell, Harvey George
and Ben Trewick scoring 10 and no outs, and a superb 20 and no outs by Jack
Madahar to take us over the line in some comfort. This represents a
fantastic season for us, curtailed by the bad weather to four matches, of which
3 were won! The competitive spirit in the team speaks volumes about the
youngsters, who have developed into a strong and capable team. Vive La
Resistance! - Jas, U11 Manager

A Good Week!

A good results week this last week on Monday the U11's beat Sutton Coldfield, on Wednesday the U13's beat Walmley and on Friday the U9's played their first game and beat Atherstone convincingly by a 100 runs. Congratulations to all involved particularly all the players, well done everyone keep up the good work and keep practising hard. Come On You Saints!!

Great start to league season by U13's

The U13's team have started their league season in tremendous form with beating Water Orton and Walmley in the first two games. Having lost to Water Orton in the Spirit of Cricket Cup this defeat was avenged in the league. Saints posted 81, after an uncertain start which left us 23-5, thanks to a steady 27 from Jack Moore with good support from Rohit Wouhra with 12. Brilliant fielding by Jack Moore with a quick pick up in the covers and direct hit at the bowlers end ran the Water Orton opener out.All of the bowlers then bowled accurately to restrict Water Orton to 68 - 8. Tom Cooper picked up 3 - 19 , John Keighley 1- 21 Harry Daniels 1 - 5 but the pick of the bowlers on the night were Ben Shough and Jack Salmon who both bowled exceptionally tight 4 over spells with Jack 4-1-7-0 and Ben bowling 4 overs for only 5 runs and 1 wicket. A good all round team performance.

This week's game saw us play old rivals Walmley who won the toss and elected to bat. Again some good all round bowling, especially John Keighley and Ben Shough who both bowled 4 overs for 8 runs and took a wicket apiece, and energetic fielding particularly from Tom Cooper making diving stops in the covers restricted Walmley to 81-5. We unfortunately lost a wicket first ball of our innings but Tom Cooper 16 and John Keighley 35 ( 4 x 4, 2 x 6) together with late support from Harry Daniels 6 after a mini collapse saw uas reach the last over needing 3 runs to win with 2 wickets in hand. Rohit Wouhra smashed the first ball high to long off, the catch was dropped and a single scored. Josh Longhorne stroked the next ball through midwicket for four and was promptly mobbed by the rest of the team. Another good team performance and great result. An honourable mention for keeper Seb Henn-Allen who has kept admirably in both games despite some variable bounce - only 3 byes in total in both games combined.

Next game home Wed 28/6 v Handsworth.

U11's beat Aston Community

FOSCC U11's played Aston Community on the 12^th June at home. After winning the toss, FOSCC decided to bat, and after a shaky start, managed to post 262 runs, thanks largely to Matt Heller's 19 and no outs, and our dear friend Extras added over 30! FOSCC bowled and fielded superbly, with Ben Trewick taking four wickets for very little, Matt Heller bowling superbly (3 Wickets) and a fiery Jack Madahar (3 wickets) added much needed support, restricting Aston Community to 193 runs. Everybody appeared to enjoy themselves, and we all look forward to the next match with great anticipation. Thanks also to all of the parents who turned up! - Jas.

Four Oaks Saints Juniors CC U11

Four Oaks Saints U11's played their first match against Aston Manor away, having been frustrated over the cancellation of their previous three matches due to the bad weather. Having lost the toss and been put into bat, they posted a credible 242 runs, with the pick of the batting being Jack Madahar scoring 22 including five fours and no outs. He was ably supported by George Gibbons with 10 and no outs. Despite a very good bowling performance, the home team posted 255 runs with the pick of the bowlers being Harvey George. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, and look forward to the next match!

U13 v Walmley - Cancelled - Rain

Tonights U13 friendly against Walmley has had to be called off due to the rain.

U13 v Water Orton - Game Off

Tonight's game v Water Orton has been cancelled due to water logged pitch.

U15's Win Cup Match

Congratulations to the U15's team who comprehensively beat Streets 2 Arena in their cup match on Sunday. Don't have details of scores as yet but will post them as soon as I get them. Well done lads.

U15's First Match of the season.

The Under 15s kick off the Junior season playing in The Portman Cup v Streets 2 Arena at home on Sunday (around 9.45 start). We have a comparatively young side at this age group and would welcome your support.

Regards

Neil

P.S. I am looking for team managers for U17s and U15s preferably 2 for each side, let me know if you want to get involved

Junior Open Evening.

Thanks to everyone who attended the Junior Open Evening and first night's coaching of the new season last Friday it was great to see so many old and new faces raring to go, despite wellies being needed more than boots! Parents were just as enthusiastic in the bar so all bodes well for a great season ahead. See you all Friday - don't forget your white shirts please.

Junior Open Evening This Friday.

Hello and welcome to a new exciting cricket season with Four Oaks Saints CC. It must be the cricket season because it is raining!

This Friday 21st April is Junior Open Evening at the club on Clarence Road starting at 6.15 pm

We will be discussing our coaching strategy as well as providing a coaching session (weather permitting). We look forward to welcoming you and your whole family and wish everyone an enjoyable season.