Shaji steals the show!

SBCC somehow managed to keep their unbeaten run going when they defeated Bury St. Edmunds in their first ever EAPL home match. They were pleased to win the toss and bat on another fantastic day of baking hot sunshine. The home side were buoyed by a decent crowd for their 11 am start, boosted by many of the Club’s 2nds and 3rds having a watch before playing their own games.

The home side set off at a canter on a deck that seemed to offer good pace and carry and some lively early bounce. Last week’s centurion Waqas Hussain (28) was just going through the gears when he was deceived by a slower ball, which also bounced a bit more than he was expecting, when he was dismissed with score on 49 just before the end of the sixth over. Michael Cafferkey (45) backed up his score of last week as he joined James Vandepeer (27) before the latter fell with the score 69 as the runs continued at a pace. The top three all scoring at better than a run a ball. Callum Guest joined Cafferkey and SBCC having survived Ali Allchin’s initial impressive burst looked well set at 126 for 2 in the 21st over. It was looking like, both, that they would score and need to score 300+. However, the wheels came off and they suddenly found themselves at a perilous 144 for 6. Tim Moses (20) and skipper Dan Heath (30) managed to get the score beyond 200, as Allchin returned to help himself to 4-36. Bury allrounder Justin Broad had earlier sparked the batting collapse with 2-19 from seven excellent overs.

At the break 208 seemed a few short of par on a decent track and lightning outfield and SBCC’s excellent attack would need to be at the very best to stop third placed Bury leapfrogging them in the table. Although they lost their own early season centurion Broad, dismissed by Moses, Bury too raced along to 71 for 1 at better than a run a ball as wicket-keeper opening batter Alfie Marston (65) and Chris Benjamin (35) went well.

After the loss of Benjamin, with Tommy Hams picking up his first wicket for the Club, and despite the continued presence of Marston they were able to starve him of strike, dry up the scoring rate at the other end and start to chip away by taking regular wickets. Spin twins Guest (3-32) and George Darlow (3-31) were at the centre of this as they returned almost identical figures from their ten over allocations. The loss of Marston signalled a collapse from 133 for 3 to 171 all out as Moses picked up his second wicket (2-42) before Cafferkey picked up the final Bury wicket.

The result means that SBCC remain joint top with Southern Section favourites Sudbury as the only unbeaten sides in the division, Bury remain third. Next week SBCC host 2019 EAPL Champions Frinton.

SBCC 2nds completed another very comfortable win to back up last week’s win against Horseheath and sit unbeaten at the top of Group D of the reduced CCA league. Kane Munday returned to haunt hosts Barrington, as he hit an 89 ball 109. Barrington were more than a little relieved that he didn’t repeat his double ton from his previous visit! Marc Pearson (34 from 25 balls) and last week’s third team batting hero Sean Jenkins (25 from 14) helped the visitors post 239. With Hugh Bryant 2-25 perhaps the pick of the bowlers, to add to two catches, he received excellent support from Scott Douglas (3-45) and Sam Carrington (3-46). The medium pace and spin of the latter duo perhaps suggesting that pace off was the way to go.

SBCC skipper Nick Griggs (2-23) perhaps picked up on the hint as he opened up with himself and pace ace Sean Ward (3-18) to leave the Barrington reply in tatters at 44 for 5 at the end of the sixteenth over. The enforced change od bowling brought no relief as Scott Stanford removed the prolific Scott Douglas on the way to taking two for nine as he and Jake Raven (3-9) ensured the home side could only muster 2 batting points on their way to 74 all out. This win left SBCC 25 points clear at the top of the table.

Despite some excellent bowling performances from the Club’s top two sides it was left to 18 year old Mervyn Shaji to steal the show as he took 5 wicket for 1 run before his figures were ‘decimated’ ending up with 5 for 5! as SBCC 3rds met the other unbeaten side, Lt. Shelford, in Group O.

Sumit Siddarth’s (74 from 91 balls) and Chris Kerby (29) had provided the backbone of SBCC’s 191 for 8, despite two wickets apiece for Slack, Flack, Sykes and Harrod. Shaji’s demolition of the Lt. Shelford top order was supplemented by some terrific fielding, including two excellent catches from Torin Phelps, who also helped himself to a wicket (1-28) before Jonathan Windsor with (2-9) help to ensure that Drew Scott-Dawkins (37) was in vain as SBCC dismissed the visitors for just 73 to go clear at the top of the table.