Let it rain runs!

The Rams travel into Essex on Saturday where they face Witham. They will be keen to get back on track after last week’s loss. They will not take Witham lightly despite last year’s crushing victory in Essex. The home side have had, like a few sides, a bit of a mixed bag of results with two cancellations not helping the cause. They have had two wins, perhaps significantly both at home, against Horsford and Saffron Walden. With Essex in Blast mode they may have Nick Browne, who has had a decent County Championship so far and Jamal Richards available. The Rams may be not so lucky with Noah Thain although Essex’s only game in the weekend is at Chelmsford on Friday evening.

Witham will be frustrated with the weather as they sit seventh in the table, they probably set their sights on improving on their best finish to date when they finished fifth in 2023. They further strengthened their side in the Winter by recruiting a Kiwi all-rounder, Luke Georgeson, who also holds an Irish passport. The Rams can manage to trump them with our Kiwi-Irish-Croatian Christy O’Brien! Other than that, the spine of the side will look familiar to the Rams with Michael Godwin and Chris Huntington up top with Browne. They have built up their seam attack in recent years with the recruitment of Chris Garrard and Matthew Wareing. Their spin section will be headed up by the consistent and reliable Greg Stephens and the all-rounders spearheaded by skipper Jake Wakelin, Cody MacDonald and of course Georgeson.

With Wayne White and George Darlow away on school duties the Rams are forced in to making changes again. With Essex’s only game of the weekend being at Chelmsford on Friday night there is a timely return to action from Noah Thain. Charlie Lewis also returns to bolster the batting. With the skipper, Dan Heath, also missing out Julius Jackson steps up from the twos. Callum Guest takes the armband and Lee Thomason takes the gloves. The Rams involved with Cambridgeshire face an unenviable trip north after the game to Northumberland with the Bedfordshire boys better off with a hop into Lincolnshire.

The new title favourites Mildenhall face another examination of their credentials when they visit fourth placed Bury. Two of the other top four meet at Horsford where Copdock hope to stretch their unbeaten run to eight games. There is a Norfolk derby as Witchingham travel to AB Wanderers, who themselves will be keen to get off the bottom of the table. Swardeston will be hoping to get some cricket in and travel to the unpredictable but inform Frinton. Saffron Walden visit Sudbury looking to build on last week’s win.

The seconds face another tough challenge with a few faces missing as they entertain Eaton Socon. This will be Socon’s first visit since 2019. They still boast a few familiar faces in Jon Carpenter, Joe Dawborn and Ollie Jeffries (who has returned after stints with Burwell and Mildenhall). They are probably disappointed to find themselves, unusually, lower down the table in seventh but they are still a good all-round side at this level.

The third’s have another tough looking trip away to their Foxton counterparts. Rams skipper Jake Ellis (formerly known as ‘The Prince of Horseheath’) will use local and family knowledge to assess the conditions as the game is being played at Horseheath. I suspect the third team’s fortunes with revolve around the availability of the seconds just as much their own.

The fourth team hope that the sun stays out so that they can renew that keenest of rivalries with the ‘old enemy’ from across the river, Whittlesford. Again availability of the sides above will have a big impact on the fourths. The end of the exam season and the returns from Universities will no doubt boost the player pool in a week or so’s time.

Its Bertie Joel time for the first team on Sunday but once gain Minor Counties calls will give skipper Dan Heath a few selection headaches as well as some opportunities for the other squads. They face Hertford from the Hertfordshire Premier league. The visitors have had an indifferent start and are currently eighth of ten in what look like a handy division.