With the anticipated return to grassroots team sports from March 29th, we anticipate and are exited to believe there will be a full summer of cricket in 2021. As such we have published our subscription fees for 2021 with links to an electronic payment with Go Cardless.
Christleton Cricket Club are excited to announce that in partnership with the fantastic Jamie’s Cricket Academy we are offering 3-day cricket camps at Little Heath. The camps are for boys and girls aged 7-13 years of age and cater for those new to the sport and existing players. Read more here…Summer camps 2020
GD 12 matches would have taken place on the iconic date of 4th July and we send the warmest of greetings to our readers in the USA.
We are delighted that the UK Government has given the green light for recreational cricket in England to return from Saturday July 11.
The latest update from the UK Government signals progression from Step 3 to Step 4 of ECB’s roadmap to return for the recreational game, meaning competitive cricket matches in England with adjustments to respect hygiene and social distancing would be permitted.
ECB has maintained a constant dialogue with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) throughout this process and the UK Government have stated that COVID-secure guidance will be published in the coming days.
Guidelines are already prepared for the return of recreational cricket and following the Prime Minister’s comments, will now be finalised and published early next week. READ MORE ON PAGE 2…..
The halfway point of the season has arrived. There is still no match action to report as yet and no mention of cricket getting any more green lights in this week’s round up of things we can do again. The week has been a busy one on the administrative front with a swathe of new safeguarding policies being updated. Many thanks to Safe Hands welfare officer Nick Davis and to website administrator Pete Roberts. Christleton CC is committed to ensuring all children (i.e all persons under the age of 18) participating in cricket have a safe and positive experience. You can read more about safeguarding on the club website here. Cricketing activities at the club continue to be at stage 3 with training taking place in maximum groups of 6. The cricket world hopes to move to stage 4 soon with an in-crease in the numbers deemed safe. This just needs the green light from HMG. Further news of current cricketing items of interest can be found on page 2 of the newsletter. Whatever you are doing at present, stay safe, look after those around you, keep moving and stay in touch. I will look forward to seeing many more of you on the ground before too long.
The summer solstice is upon us and we have a cornucopia of glorious evening light for cricket. The annoying problem here is that we still have no actual cricket. However, we do have full bookings for nets and training at both junior and senior levels. Well done to everyone who has organised this and to those who have been training. Appetite for the game seems keener than ever which is tremendously encouraging. Several votes of thanks go out this week to people whose actions are making such a positive contribution to the club. Christleton Parish Council have given us a 3 month rent holiday and we are very grateful to our parish councillors for offering such a warm and meaningful gesture in these far from normal times. Big thanks also to our friends at BK Electrical for sourcing and fitting a high-grade CCTV system for us. This system can see what you’ve got in your sandwiches. Or at least, the images it provides are crystal clear, and in view of our recent history, we’re very glad to have this extra security. Lastly, thanks to our village Police/PCSO service for working so strongly with us to try to reduce instances of anti-social behaviour in our area. Whatever you are doing at present, stay safe, look after those around you, keep moving and stay in touch. I will look forward to seeing many more of you on the ground before too long. News of current cricketing items of interest can be found on page 2 of the newsletter.
Game Day 9 of this (hopefully) unique season has arrived. We’re only 2 games away from the half-way point and by the time we reach that milestone we will be past the longest day of the year. People will be about to remark that ‘the nights are drawing in’ and we will not have seen a ball bowled. Of course team sport is about building character and it has been heartening to see such a positive response from our members and supporters. Far from being despondent, net bookings are high and everyone is in good spirits. Club officers are working their socks off at this time. Many thanks to Vice Chair Pete Roberts for his tireless hard work in getting practice up-and-running again. Junior coaching starts again next week albeit in a socially distanced way, and junior supremo Mark Inchley has worked into the night to try to balance the desire to play cricket with the strict ECB conditions for practising, such as ’one ball, one skin’. Safe Hands Nick Davis is on the scene making sure we consider welfare issues in everything we do. Vice-Presidents have responded to the club’s position of having hardly any income by starting to send their annual contribution. Mandy has the interior of the club looking as never before. And of course, our groundsmen have the place looking magnificent: what youngster isn’t going to want to run about out there after what they’ve been through in the last few weeks? So there’s a lot of good news: we just need HMG and ECB to turn on more green lights and we’ll be ready. Whatever you are doing stay safe, look after those around you, keep moving and stay in touch. I will look forward to seeing many more of you on the ground before too long. News of current cricketing items of interest can be found on page 2 of the newsletter.
Hands up all those who were wanting some rain because ‘the garden needs it’. Having had a few days of rain and wind, enough is enough, bring back the sunshine please. We have now reached what would have been Game Day 8, past a third of the way through the season and steaming on towards half-way. Fixtures this week would have seen us playing Wirral for the second successive week. Just as well we got on so well with those guys last year.. News of current cricketing items of interest can be found on page 2 of the newsletter. There’s more movement with regard to possibilities for practice. Also, I’ve included below the text of CCCL Chairman David Humpage’s letter to clubs so you are aware of the County league’s standpoint.
Read the full newsletter here which includes
Another weekend is here. It is once again a time of settled, beautiful weather that is crying out for a game of cricket. The wicket would be perfect and it would be boundaries all round. It’s enough to break a batsman’s heart. Time is moving on and we have now reached what would have been Game Day 7 as a May of fantastic sunshine comes to a close. Looking back through the records there are many cases of May abandonments and cancellations. Sadly, the lack of action this year is for different reasons. Game Day 7 would have seen us in action against Ashton-on-Mersey and Wirral. The 2ndXI game would have seen the two teams with the best end-of-season form pitted against each other. Our best wishes go to members at both clubs. News of current cricketing items of interest can be found on page 2 of the newsletter. Here, we’ll continue with a browse through some exciting end-of-May matches of the past.
Time is moving on and we have now reached what would have been Game Day 6, which is the Bank Holiday week-end. Game Day 6 would have seen us in action against Barrow and Ashley. It is undoubtedly the fixtures against our neighbouring clubs that I am missing most, and the game against Barrow is always competitive and played in the right spirit. No action for us to report on so far in 2020, but there is a pinprick of light at the end of the tunnel with HMG acceptance of cricket nets being acceptable as a suitably socially-distanced form of exercise. Some members have already started to practise again which is very good to see. News of the net practice procedures and the rest of the current cricketing items of interest can be found on further below in this the newsletter. Here, we’ll continue with a browse through some exciting May matches of the past.
On GD6 of the 2001 season we were away to a club appearing for the first time in our fixture card.
The hosts won the toss and took first knock on their picturesque ground ’The Beets’ that nestles into an elbow of the River Mersey. Club stalwart Matt Macgibbon did something highly praiseworthy and very unusual for the home club by carrying his bat throughout the innings, watching all 10 wickets fall at the other end. He finished with 65* out of a total of 95. Well played sir. The Swans bowlers sharing wickets that day were Greg Malkin (2) Matt Parkinson (2) and Dave Hill (1). Chief architect of the hosts down-fall was the affable Aussie Eric Godwood with 5-19.
Obviously, we now all like Australians having watched Amazon Prime’s The Test, which is essential lockdown viewing. However, we really liked Eric back in the day and he had a great impact during his time with us.
After tea, there were one or two wobbles but the to-tal was eventually chased down for 4, with near 20 scores from yours truly, Eric, Dave, and Ian Rule. The last two named batsmen were unbroken at the end in a stand of 40 that clinched the points.
By the end of the season the Aston-on-Mersey men would have seen enough of Eric as he rattled through the top order in the return game with an even more impressive return of 4.1-2-4-6, making 11-23 in the season.
This was indeed quite a season as we were 2nd XI and aggregate champions that year
Two years ago we had a great win at The Flacca. Josh M-J asked the hosts to bat first and they racked up an impressive score of 237-8. Great bowling efforts from Shavaiz with 5 wickets and Kiwi Josh with 3 gave us a glimmer of hope of the win.
After tea, the chase hit choppy waters at 34-4. At this point Atif Bajwa forged an alliance with Zain Abidin. Zain provided the essential support with 56* while Atif played a quite remarkable innings that will stay long in the memory of those lucky enough to witness it. He is a superb timer of a cricket ball, striking the ball very cleanly with fast hand-speed. He is a classy and powerful player. He scored 142* off 117 balls that day, with 15 fours and four sixes. Atif’s 142* is the second-highest 1stXI innings in the club record book. The unbroken 5th wicket partnership of 204 between Atif and Zain is a club record. Well played Swans– a great win.
Friday’s winds were highly unusual in their ferocity. Trees in full leaf are easily damaged, and so it proved when large branches of a tree were blown into the next door field. Can you identify it? Also, think long and hard before fielding at the football end– you may have some little friends to contend with.
The 2ndXI entertained Davenham 25 years ago. It was a wet May that year and the club had no covers as yet. Sticky wickets were commonplace and most club bowling records come from the 80’s and 90’s. On this day the men from Butcher’s Stile were asked to bat and were all out for 93. there was a wicket apiece for Dennis Reeves, Neil Glover, Bob Lewis and Bob Ellis. However, destroyer in chief that day was the original Silver Fox, club legend Gordon Price. Gordon made his debut in the 1947 team. Here, 48 seasons later, he bowled his spin with extreme cunning and control to finish with an analysis of 8-1-16-6. Eight victims were caught and the catchers make an interesting list: 3 for Neil Glover, 2 for Dennis Reeves and 1 for Bob Lewis. Did these bowlers not trust anyone else? Catches for Derek Bell and Andy Miln completes the list of those who snapped up the chances.
It was not a run-fest after tea but the Swans made controlled progress towards the target with 20’s from Bob Ellis and Andy Miln. It is always good to see fathers and sons enjoying cricket together and, on this occasion, Neil Reeves 22* and Dennis 10* were there at the end to see us home at 94-4 and a 6 wicket win.
Going back in time to the 2019 season, on the corresponding weekend we were at home to Frodsham in our first-ever game against the Moor Lane men. The 2nd XI were just moving into top gear at this point in the season. When asked to bat first on Terry Dandy’s flat pitch, the Swans did not need asking twice. Rob McNally 21, Harry Morris 33, and Joe Layder 34* all provided valuable support to the afternoon’s main contributor, Russell Crowley. The Baggies supporting veteran displayed a wide range of
shots in scoring an admirable 102. After tea a miserly and accurate bowling attack wrapped up the visitors innings for 78, leggie Dave Phillips (netting yesterday– keen) finishing with a bamboozling 3-9.
You can see Russ pictured below in Matt Jones’ (man with the Canon) excellent photo. Young Swans please note:
This week’s ECB update is a Bank Holiday edition with lots of excellent content.
Together Through This Test is a nationwide campaign shining a light on the work undertaken by the game in response to COVID-19 and highlighting new resources available to the public.
The link below gives full details of the campaign, including links to an emotive (and very good) video narrated by Stephen Fry, and plenty of lockdown games and activities for children that can be played in small spaces.
www.ecb.co.uk/video/1670476/the-wait
This week’s other ECB email has lots of relevant information…
See www.ecb-comms.co.uk/1FT6-6VODJ-D6SSQJ4NB2/cr.aspx
Full details can be found here:
Resumption of recreational cricket practice
Everyone is welcome to practise but please read all of the information thoroughly. The safety of everyone is our overriding priority.
Last week I asked you to name the bowlers in 2nd and 4th position on this list. Here they are, together with all 2nd XI 9-for or 8-for’s. The players below should be proud of their outstanding performances.
Since 1978 we have been playing league cricket in Cheshire. Name the 3 clubs we have played most 1st and 2nd team games against.
1st with 120 fixtures is ………………………
2nd with 108 fixtures is …………………….
3rd with 98 fixtures is ………………………
Take care and stay safe everyone
If you wish to use the excellent facilities provided by Christleton Cricket Club you will need to be either: a paid up playing member; a qualified Christleton Cricket Club coach; or a qualified Christleton Cricket Club support worker. Coaches and support workers must be registered with the club child welfare officer and also paid the nominal membership fee for 2020.
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