Oh Jimmy Jimmy!!

Sawston matched the sparkling weather with some sparkling performances as they recorded three excellent wins, including fourth consecutive for the firsts and seconds. Individually we also saw a six-fer, an eight-fer and a century!

The first team’s day started badly when they lost the toss and opponents Wisbech had no hesitation in deciding to bat on what looked like a belter at Spicers. This was the Rams first Cambridgeshire EAPL derby since 2021 and the first meeting against the Fenland side since their ‘perfect summer’ of 2019. The visitors were soon in trouble as James Vandepeer performed his usual ‘party-piece’ by grabbing an early breakthrough. The Sawston seamer has bowled well but without much luck this term; on his return from a back injury that side-lined him for about two-thirds of the 2022 campaign.

On Saturday one became two as two of Wisbech’s most prolific batters, Gary Frear and Josh Bowers, with almost 45k of career runs between them were both dismissed by Vandeeper with the visitors sitting on just seventeen. Ryan Clark and Danny Haynes briefly threatened a counter-attack playing some attractive shots with a lightning fast outfield that gave them full value. However, Vandeepeer then completed a five-fer as he snapped up Haynes, Seabrook and Wisbech skipper James Williams as the Fenland side lurched to sixty-six for five.

Worse was to follow as Ben Claydon (2-10) replaced the wicketless (and unlucky) Alex Evans. Vandeeper picked up Garner for his sixth, before Claydon undid Clark (28 from 47 balls) and Gowler in quick succession. Vandepeer then dismissed Bruce, thanks to a trademark full-length dive from Heath, and Haynes to finish with an incredible 8-39 as the visitors lost their last six wicket for a poor twelve runs as they were dismissed for just seventy-eight. His career best figures takes the Sawston bowler to within one of two hundred victims.

There was brief hope for the visitors as a lively spell, in which he picked up Callum Guest before breaking Kieren Mackenzie’s thumb, resulted in the impressive George Bruce (1-34) reducing the reply to seven for one. However an in-form and fluent Luke Spears (38 from 36) and Mackenzie took the Rams, either side of the lunch break to sixty-eight before Spears chopped on to give Kieren Haynes (1-32) a wicket. Clark then picked up Mackenzie (27 from 46) before the Ben’s, Claydon (4 no) and Clilverd (10 no from four balls) closed out the game for a seven wicket win for the Rams. The Rams fourth consecutive win took them back to the top of the table for the first time since week one of EAPL.

A resurgent and multi-title winning Swardeston continue to shadow the Rams matching the Rams to make it four from four with the red ball (v Horsford). The game of day didn’t disappoint as Copdock and Mildenhall shared the spoils in a game where all three results were possible in a tense finish.The contest was perhaps only unstaged by Great Witchingham’s thrilling five run victory over Frinton. There were high scoring draws for Bury v Witham and Saffron Walden v Sudbury.

The Sawston second string scored an impressive win away at Warboys, as two sides in the top three met. The Rams who were not at full strength were dealt a late blow on Friday night when Louis Kimber’s pull out meant Callum McLean was taken by the first team. Recent history was also against them as they had suffered two defeats to St.Ives and Warboys last season.

However, this still left them with teenager Yousuf Choudhary within their ranks. He joined stand-in skipper Matthew Hague after makeshift opener Jake Raven had departed with the score on eleven, The pair added one hundred and seventy seven runs in a second wicket partnership before Purse (3-50) picked up the antipodean pair of Hague (65 from 94 balls) and Christy O’Brien in successive balls. Choudhary’s superb knock (133 from 105 balls, 15 x 4 and four maximums) was finally ended by Purse with the score on 228. Matthew Worsdale (26) continued his excellent recent form and the returning Scott Stanford (31 not out) ensured that the Rams posted an imposing 300 for five. Stanford even finding the time to hit his ex-teacher Kevin Gilder for a maximum! Ahmed (1-33) and Milner (1-60) picked up the other wickets.

The home reply was soon in tatters as Sean Ward (3-18), Sean Jenkins (1-14) and James Petzer (1-13) had removed the top five with just thirty-six on the board. Jake Raven with ten miserly overs (1-16) further squeezed the reply. Worsdale (1-26) and Ollie Humphreys (1-28) kept the home side under the cosh. Only Ahmed (34 from 60) offered any serious resistance as the innings closed on 122. The win gave the Rams their own fourth consecutive win and kept them top of Whitings Two with local rivals Burwell and Exning and Saffron Walden enjoying victories to keep them on the heels of the Sawston side. St. Ives slipped to fourth.

Third team skipper Jake Ellis enjoyed a stellar day returning career best figures of 6-15 as his charges enjoyed their first ever victory in Junior One cricket with a twenty-seven run win at Bassingbourn. Ellis had earlier won the toss and decided to bat. He was rewarded for this decision as ever-green opener Wes Potschul (58 from 74 balls) and thirteen year old Henry Cotton (25) shared a decent opening stand. Jo Latham (40 from 33) on his return from University added some fireworks to get the Rams to 199 for 7 in their forty overs. Bhavin Zaveri (3-28) and Nuwan Anthokorala (2-29) were the most successful of the home side’s bowlers.

Whilst Ellis was the undoubted star of the Sawston attack he would have been equally delighted with the return from injury of Prashant Yadav (1-33) and the performance of two more of his outstanding youngsters eleven year old Vivaan Kilaru (1-30) and fourteen year old Nima Saeb-Parsy. Boricha (36) and Anthokorala (19) were the only top and middle order batters to get starts. The un-named Bassingbourn number ten added an unbeaten 50 to get the home side to a respectable 172. The promising win lifted the Rams out of the bottom two.

The Rams fourth team thanks to an opening century partnership from Richard Molton (59) and Marcus Wetzl (30) and a half century from Sean Gardiner (56) and a decent knock from Andy Leonard (35) saw the Sawston and Babraham fourth team post an impressive 262. Teenager Dylan Everson posted a best, in adult cricket, of 20 not out. Max Ayliffe (2-29) and Michael Foulkes (2-44) were the most successful of the visitors bowling attack. The visitors from Bassingbourn II’s certainly enjoyed another excellent surface at Babraham Park as opener Tom Andrews (68 from 67) and Nick Storey (95 from 83) put the weakened Sawston attack to the sword. The visitors denying the Rams a clean sweep on a Saturday afternoon, but saving the Rams Chairman from the requisite Chairman’s round! Alex Myles (2-48) and Ted Liles (2-28) who denied Storey his century were the most successful of the home side’s bowlers. This defeat alongside the injuries to Guest and Mackenzie were the only clouds on a marvellous summer’s day

The Rams cup eleven progressed to Round three of the Bertie Joel Conference Cup when they defeated Surrey Premier league Banstead by ninety runs on Sunday, at Spicers. The hosts were missing a few through injury, county duty and for other reasons. Skipper Dan Heath however must have been delighted that his mix of first and second team players put in some fine individual and one excellent collective performance.

Dan reversed a worrying recent trend when he won the toss and had no hesitation in deciding to bat on the hottest day of the season so far. He opened up with former first teamer Matthew Hague and first team number ten James Vandepeer, who was rested from bowling duties following his career best performance on Saturday. To be fair to the quickie he has batted decently in a rear-guard effort this season and also has experience at the top of the order. After that ‘billing’ he was sure to fail and indeed he was dismissed for one with the score on seven.

Hague was joined by Luke Spears who is now rediscovering some of the form that made him one of our top player’s in 2022. The pair added ninety-three before Hague was out for exactly fifty (from 64 balls). Yousuf Choudhary (29) followed up his second team century yesterday to add seventy-one with Spears. Spears followed shortly with his seventy coming off ninety-six balls. The middle and late order managed to take the score from 177 for 4 to 238 for 9, as second teamers Scott Stanford (18 no) and Matt Worsdale (21) followed up their useful contributions from Saturday. Archie Beckley (4-46) and Harawal Ahmed Wassam (2-49) were the most successful bowlers for the visitors.

Banstead despite losing Stainer and Rowe were handily placed at 100 for two, with Sean Ward and Hague picking up their first wickets, at the end of the twenty-fourth of the scheduled forty-five over contest. However Callum McLean (1-30) dismissed Wassam (16) and Jake Raven (1-35) then dismissed their dangerous captain Neil Baker (58 from 84) in quick succession. When Mark Smith picked up another three wickets had fallen for just seventeen runs. The visitors never recovered a Smith (2-38), Ward (3-22) and Hague (2-17) continued to take wickets before the innings closed on 148.

The Club’s fourth team somehow managed to field two sides over the weekend and made their first ever appearance in the Lower Junior Cup. Only Joe Latham’s twenty-four, Richard Molton (14) and Jake Ellis (11) could make it to double figures and they could only muster 93 for 9 in their twenty over allocation. The visitors shared the wicket but Johan Luckhoff (3-17) took the spoils! It was always going to be a tall order against a side two divisions higher but Jonathan Windsor (3-16) cause some early panic before Sean Cooper (36 no) and Natarajan Chandrasekhar (18 no) saw the visitors home for a six wicket win.