Devon Cricket Board - DCBYA Under 14s Festival Match Reports 2014

Day 1 Shropshire Pitch 3

Usually quiet first evening, Team photo, World Cup Final but they rather play footie, bed at 10.40PM and they are quiet by 11.15ish..

Up for breakfast and first in the queue and then to pitch 3 at 9.00 AM for a 10.30AM start. The players to run their warm up assisted by Jason and it goes well everyone seems in good spirit. Jamie L not playing today and what a good 12^th he is in helping do all the jobs and not a single complaint.

We win the toss and decide to bat as the pitch looks fine and it’s going to be hot.Lammers and Jamie K open, 13 off the 1^st over lovely drive Lammers, byes, wides and Jamie cuts for 4. The bounce is a little irregular but there are enough extras and 4 balls and we take full advantage. The first of Shropshire’s spinners, a slow offie. comes on early but there are still enough loose deliveries and we have 36 off 6. Great start. Then in the 9^th over Jamie tries to cut the spinner, perhaps the wrong shot as its a bit close and he bottom edges onto his stumps. A medium pacer comes on the other end and Lammers plays a well timed push to mid wicket and then one off his legs. All the time Ash is going along nicely too rotating the strike and hitting the occasional boundary. Drinks at 12 overs and we have raced to 71-1 and the same two batters take us through to the next drinks break at 25 overs, 146-1 with Lammers on 79. After drinks the pace bowlers come back on, which suits us and Ash takes a 4 to fine leg to take him onto 36. Before long he is on 48 and Lammers 92 and it will be nice if they can help each other past their respective mile stones. Ash reaches his 50 but immediately in the 31^st over knicks off, the shot perhaps a little tired, a 2^nd wicket partnership 138 – brilliant! Note to management we must not do what we did against Cornwall! Gibbsy is in and Lammers goes onto 97 and Gibbsy hits a 4 backward square. Lammers then plays one off his legs and the crowd erupts- not much of a celebration Lammers- we have it on video! Great knock again! Lunch arrives 223-2 off 34. Runs come easily after lunch 4s and 2s great shots both players, its easy at the moment. The atmosphere is a little too jovial which might not bode well for our bowling and fielding. Gibbsy 27 yorks himself, head at the ball, and Kazi is in which might suit us again but he is not quite himself not timing the ball well. Shortly Lammers 123 goes for a quick single and is run out by a direct hit, fantastic knock first chance you gave or was there one first ball(?); Mikey in. He strikes the ball well and Kazi plays second fiddle. Both hit big shots for 6 but Mikey gets out and Sam and Kazi take us to our declaration with the ball lost in the hockey pitches. 339-5 off 48 overs. The Team’s highest ever score, another mile stone? Hopefully we can defend it. Shropshire get our 2 overs.

We open with Kazi and Yabbers and after 10 overs Shropshire have 35 runs the odd 4 due to the short boundaries helping them. We need to change it though as nothing much is happening and Leon comes eventually on. Our plan to get him and AB on early and get Willow , it was Yabbers too but he opened, to bowl the important middle overs. There are still no half chances though and the drinks break comes and goes, be patient if we get two or three wickets.... Flight the ball get AB on and set the right fields.. Leon then almost immediately gets an LBW and two overs later AB takes the first of his wickets as the patience pays off as the other openers tamely miss hits to Gibbsy at mid off. AB then drops a scorcher at square leg off Leon and we have a couple of unusual miss fields. Is our field still too defensive as Shropshire are hitting in the air . There is then a very difficult stumping chance; chances are coming. Be patient. AB then has a fantastic stumping brilliant hands Sam. Leon then runs out a batter with a brilliant pick up and throw and the pressure mounts. Willow has replaced AB and he gets the next wicket caught Coops at short cover. Drinks again and we suggest they attack more and alter the field slightly and Leon then gets a caught behind by Sam off a top edge, 146-6 off 35 overs. We have taken wickets but perhaps we have had the luxury of lots of runs to play with and we will have to bowl better more dots backed up by even better fielding tomorrow. Leon bowls out and AB replaces him and in the 39^th, 41^st and 43^rd overs he gets more wickets to complete his 5 wicket haul, equivalent of a hundred at this level, 43-5 off 20 overs. Last pair in and under pressure they try a single to Lammers who coolly throws to Sam and Shropshire are all out 186 in the 46^th over Devon winning by 153 runs.

A great start to the Festival but I keep repeating myself tougher challenges to come starting tomorrow with Yorkshire who lost to Middlesex today. Parks injured, we'll see how fit he is tomorrow.

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Day2 Yorkshire Pitch 2

Monday evening goes well; supper, Team meeting with fines and then swimming; chilling time then bed. No problems. Up early off to Sainsbury’s and Jason takes the warm up which goes really well the lads appear really up for today’s challenge. We loose the toss and Yorkshire decide to bat. We would have batted too.

Kazi and Jamie Lathwell open the bowling and Kazi generates pace and Sam makes a terrific leg side diving stop. Jamie swings it and soon gets a nicks but it flies through the vacant slips region. Kazi on instruction to bowl a quick short spell bangs one in and an opener gets a nick and Sam, whose glove work is exceptional, takes the catch19-1 in the 5^th over. Bowling change in the 9^th Leon on and double change AB on in the 10^th; his1^st ball the batters take on Gibbsy on the boundary but he brilliantly throws in over the stumps and its wicket number 2, just what we needed. 5 overs later Leon gets the first of his 3 wickets caught behind by Sam, 51-3 and he gets an identical wicket by pitching up and encouraging the drive in the 21^st over, 72-4, as you know lesson here Leon, good lad pitch it up! Next over AB gets Yorkshires best batter out caught and bowled but that only tells part the story it was a pea roller two bounces and he wacked it back at AB who took a sharp catch- just as well the umpires raised such deliveries before play. 76-5 off 22. We should have had another wicket but no names mentioned we had an easy dropped catch! In the 25^thover Leon gets his 3^rd wicket bowled and next over again, wickets falling in clusters, AB gets a wicket caught Willow. 85-7. Did we now think the match was over, whatever it was Yorkshire then had a 72 partnership as Kilby and Chapple play straight and take no risks and dispatch our bad balls and there were a few! It is broken by Lammers first spell at the Festival who induced a false shot from a wide ball and Sam duly obliged. Yorkshire now had some momentum but Yabbers finishes things off with two wickets and Yorkshire are all out 193 in the last over, maximum points.

We bowled our 50 overs in 2 ½ hours good effort lads! To lunch and then we bat.

Lammers and Jamie Khan open and in the 3^rd over Jamie gets an inside edge and is given out LBW, 9-1. Three balls later Ash is bowled off his pads 9-2! Slight panic in the ranks.. Gibbsy and Lammers however survive a few scares, learn to leave Gibbsy, Lammers actually making it look easy before for some reason in the 14^th over he gets a rush of blood, charges the spinner misses it and is stumped! 59-3. It was a 48 partnership and all that hard work just thrown away? It will now be interesting to see how the lads react and it is game on as the Yorkies are now really fired up. Kazi and Gibbsy however bat sensibly before we have the next rush of blood when for some reason Gibbsy thinks there are two runs and is run out! Sam quickly promoted to steady the ship does just the opposite and takes a mad single and is run out too- 79-5 off 20. Don’t panic, relax, we bat deep but we need a partnership, take no risks but Mikey is in and he tends to play one way. However together with Kazi they go about recovering the situation and Coops out scores Kazi, both playing some powerful shots. The scoreboard ticks over, but those of us who have been involved for so long with this age group and in cricket know it only takes one ball for things to change and with the score on 163 Kazi plays an expansive shot, that’s being kind and is bowled neck and crop! Oh dear - a partnership 88.. Enter Leon. Runs continue to come but for some reason, perhaps he did not have quite as much strike, Mikey 60 then plays a loose shot, again an understatement and is bowled too! 174- 7 Kazi and Mikey are both distraught; it would have been nice if one had been there at the end, but they must realise that they have given us the chance to win. It is now up to Leon, Willow, Lathers and AB to get us there and they all bat - and they do, Willow leading the way with some super shots off the Yorkshire seamers and Leon follows suit and we are home with 3.1 overs to spare. A win is a win no matter how we get there, play ugly as the footballers say and it is brilliant that various players have made a significant contribution including Sam who had 5 dismissals and gets to be on the Festival website. Wales tomorrow Pitch 1. Another very big match!

Wales beat Middlesex and Derbyshire beat Shropshire. Devon top of the table with 38 points. Parks still injured.

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Day 3 Wales Pitch 1

The lads were slow to get up and were tired at breakfast and this mirrored itself in the warm up; the match the day before had clearly taken its toll! The weather forecast had changed overnight and there was the possibility of rain. It was humid and the ball swung in the bowling practice. If we win the toss perhaps we should ask wales to bat, not we want to bat and put runs on the board. We loose the toss, always the best option and Wales bat.

Jamie Lathwell wants to bowl down the hill and so Ash will get his chance after Kazi has bowled the first over, which goes for 10 including the first of our 38 (2 for a wide, anything don the leg side at the festival) wides! 5 off Ashleys 1^st over so 15 off two overs, not great. Kazi then bowls a maiden over but Ash goes for 8 until the 6^th over Kazi bowls Clarke hitting the base of his leg stump. Pumped up there is quite a celebration; stay in control. 31-1 off 7. in the 11^th over Leon comes on and 6^th ball has Matthews LBW; 55-2. There is then a partnership of 41 s Griffiths and Illyas bat fairly comfortably when Leon gets his second caught by Yabbers. Illyas is accumulating and putting the 4 ball away and lets be truthful there are too many and at 150off 31 Kazi back on bowls Thomas-Wheeler. At lunch it is 196-4 off 40 over, a good effort from Devon under the circumstances. The bounce and carry being irregular and having taken a number of hits, Sam Maunder decides to hand the gloves over to Mikey for the last 10 overs. Devon are put under real pressure for the first time this season as Wales look to push on and do and on 78 Illyas miss cues a drive and Gibbsy plucks it out of the air; 250-5 in the 48^th over. They finish on 273-5 which could have been far worse but challenging enough on the main square. Did we bowl and field as well have we have this season, no we did not and as I said earlier the toil of the previous day definite left its mark. We manage to bowl at 20 overs an hour again which given the conditions and runs being scored is a remarkable achievement.

Anyway we now have to bat, properly and look to score at a reasonable rate whilst keeping wickets in hand but there is the added complication that Lammers has taken a ball on the end of his left thumb and can’t bat immediately as it is swollen! Although Leon volunteers Willow is pressed into service to open with Jamie K. last ball of the first over Jamie miss judges a delivery and is caught and bowled. 2-1. Runs come slowly as Wales bowl straight and field superbly and after 10 overs we are on 35, not a bad start in normal circumstance but then we are not always chasing 273! At drinks after 16 we are on 48 so the scoring has slowed down, making our chances of a real chase more difficult. Even though it is suggested we try and push on after 24 overs we are on 74 and then the inevitable happens one of the batsmen in gets out and the pressure passes down the line. Ash is caught. 2 overs later Willow follows LBW and we are 80-3 off 27 overs, our task now challenging. Gibbsy joins Kazi who was promoted and together the Kings lads take the score onto 134 when in the 41^st over Gibbsy is coolly caught by Illyas at deep mid off. We had by now re assessed our target to 182 the runs necessary to get a loosing draw and if we can get there 200 to 225 to get batting points. Kazi 43 is stumped charging trying to get on with it and it is left to Mikey and Lammers whose thumb is now comfortable enough to try to bat to take us to 191-5 off our 50 overs. Lammers gave us glimpses of what we had missed and whilst we must not countenance “What ifs” if only he had been able to bat as even with a badly bruised thumb he made it look easy- “sheer class” one of his colleagues was heard to say.

Yes the side were tired but extras 42 (39 wides) cost us dear! How much easier it would have been chasing 230-240!! Even with Lammers injured we might have got there. We also need to be sharper in the field cut out singles and the twos when the run chase is on, bowl more dots less 4 balls and bat a little more positively so not as to get bogged down early on. If we learn these lessons then it will have been a good day at the office.

Still unbeaten we play Derbyshire tomorrow. Parks is going home for physiotherapy and the walking wounded are to play on. Lammers is going to captain the side to give Sam a rest. For next weeks match against Wiltshire we are going to have to bring in one or two players, one because Lammers has been selected for the Bunbury Festival a year early. Well done Lammers - good luck.

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Day 4 Derbyshire Pitch 3

The lads were in much better spirit and this was brought through into the warm up. At Sam’s suggestion at the meeting the night before Lammers is captain but Kazi is nominated to do the toss! He looses it and we are put it, yippy we wanted to bat.

The first ball set the tone as Lammers coolly stroked a straight delicious drive for 4 and last ball another through mid wicket. 11 off the second over and we are away 21 off 2. The score slows slightly and in the 9^th over Lammers miss judges a delivery and is bowled – oh dear. Ash and Willow bat sensibly both playing some super shots, Ash a glorious pull and the partnership grows. At drinks after 16 we are 86-1 and the instruction double the score I the next 16 overs. Ash gets to his 50, it is becoming a regular occurrence you need to take the next step, and in the 31^st over he sweeps and is adjudged LBW. 127 partnership lads- great stuff. Kazi is promoted as it is felt we need to score a little faster but on 44 Willow plays over a delivery and is bowled. Gibbsy joins Kazi and once more the bat well together before Kazi walks into a mid wicket drive and is well caught low down. 217- 4 in the 39 over. Jamie Khan and Gibbsy then push the score on with both again playing some lovely shots and 48 runs later Gibbsy plays over a delivery and is also bowled. Mikey is chomping at the bit and with Jamie, then briefly Sam and at the end of our innings Leon takes the score onto 305-7 in our 50 overs. This is the second time this week we have made 300 and this time with only a nominal contribution, but class contribution, from Lammers.

Only half a job done- the theme of the week be patient; change things around and take the pace off the ball and field out of your skins and we do. Things don’t go completely to plan, Kazi and Yabbers open, pace from the short boundary end and spin the other both doing their job but there are no real chances. Leon is introduced but gets hit in his third over and is off but the introduction of Willow in the13th over does the trick as Brotherton chips to Lammers at mid off. 55-1 Typical the ball following the one handed one! Another stand develops but with be patient ringing in their ears the lads do not panic and Jamie Lathwell comes onto bowl. The ball swings and in his 2^nd over, the 27^th over the dangerous Chapman-Lilley miss judges and chips the ball back to Jamie. Is this the opening we needed? A couple of balls later Lathers gets his next wicket caught Horn at backward point, 132-3! Next over Leon back on from the other end gets Wright to miss hit to Lammers again at mid off, 140-4; our tails are up, the noise levels grow and we sniff a chance of bowling Derbyshire out. Go for the jugular lads. Attacking fields are set, very attacking in some case and Leon bowling his full repertoire deceives Andrews with a googly which clips the top of his stumps. 141-5. With a spring in his step and Derbyshire no real idea which way the ball is turning he produces one of the spells of the season, two more googlies bowl batsmen and he has another caught and bowled and before we know it Derbyshire are 172-9 in the 38^th over. Leon is now bowled out, the umpire his end delighted to have watched him weave his web and Willow and AB need to bowl but Ash has a couple before AB gets the spirited Wilson out caught by Lammers once more, Derbyshire all out 200.

All the time our match was going on after lunch there were great celebrations form the Yorkies as they produced their performance of the week bowling out Wales and winning and helping us lead the Festival Table going into Day 5. Shropshire’s rear guard against Middlesex also helps us. We need 8 points to win the Festival or will the weather have the last say as thunder and lightening arrives about 10.00PM and it rains hard. We’ll see. We must go and play as we have all week, positively and with no fear as a TEAM and not worry about the points. We are on pitch 3 again which is an advantage.

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Festival Table After Day 4.

Devon 66 Pts Wales 52 Pts Middlesex 48 Pts Yorkshire 44 Pts Derbyshire 39 Pts Shropshire 22 Pts.

Day5 Middlesex Pitch 3

Thursday night was uneventful. BBQ, followed by Team talk, fines, moles revealed, packing and exchanging kit with our Yorkshire friends; then to bed at 10.00PM. Players up at 6.45AM without any prompting, stripped beds, tidied rooms and if players were not up to it there was no shortage of helpers. Team work! To breakfast, overnight bags into Yorkshire’s common room and to pitch 3 by 8.45AM. We had been told it would only be a 40 overs game but batting and bowling points will remain the same. Winning the match our aim and if that is not possible then the 7 points we need to win the Festival.

The warm up goes well. We decide to insert Middlesex if we win the toss as we can control things better. For the 5^th time we loose the toss and are put in! First target 200. Lammers and Willow to open and we have a quiet 1^st over by our standards, 2 then a maiden - oh this is tense not our usual free flowing selves but then Middlesex are bowling straight. 12 off the 3^rd over and with the score on 18 in the 5^th over Lammers is bowled through the gate once more. Lammers.. Ash and Willow take it on until the 10^th over when Ash plays back and is LBW, feet? 31-2. Jack Gibbs and Willow play nicely, both playing some lovely shots for 4 and in the last over (20) before drinks Gibbsy who top scores 29, is caught! Disappointing for Jack, you will get a 50 this year, but we are in a good position to push on and hopefully reach 200 or even 225 and maximum batting points especially if Middlesex help with more extras. Kazi joins Willow and they take the score onto 107 in the 24^th over when Willow is out LBW. Jami Khan and Kazi score at 4 an over as Middlesex turn the screw when going for a third, which wasn’t there as Kazi had over run the stumps, he is run out! Jamie follows shortly afterwards 132-6 off 30 and we have 10 overs to get to 200 and we have Sam, Mikey, Leon, Jamie L and AB to come. We have a little partnership but Sam is then bowled playing an expansive shot 155-7 off 35 and 10 runs later Mikey follows bowled too. No worries Leon is in great form due to his heroics the day before but Jamie L is bowled off an edge first ball and Leon is last out off a high full toss (no ball?) caught and bowled. Devon 171 all out more importantly 4 runs short of 3 points. That means we needs 5 bowling points or do we, as Wales have bowled Shropshire out cheaply and can only get 18 points! So we need to take 6 wickets and get 3 points more to win the Festival. Off to lunch.

Team talk, let’s be “patient” the word of the week. If it doesn’t happen, change the bowling around, bowl straight and no extras; do the basics that we have done all week; field out of our skins encourage each other and don’t give up. If we get those points off the last ball then we have achieved our goal!

There then followed a rather odd few overs when we over attacked and set the wrong fields particularly when Kazi was bowling and Middlesex get off to a flier. However Yabbers got the break through in the 4^th over trapping an opener LBW, his third shout, 30-1. Middlesex then put on 79 and things are not going our way. The nerves on the boundary are growing. Lammers has a bowl, so does Lathers who bowls well and Leon who they punish any short ball. Just before drinks, in the 18^th over Willow comes on and last ball of his over he gets the other opener to miss time a drive and Lammers takes the catch at mid off. 109-2. Next over the Middlesex batsmen take on Leon who not for the first time this season and at the Festival wings the ball back in and Sam does the rest. 110-3.There is a visible change to the Middlesex in coming batsmen as they start to be more cautious. Yabbers is also back on by now to give us some more control and he takes his 2^nd wicket stumped Maunder or ws it caught? Never mind it's out. 117-4 off 23. We need two more wickets! The first comes in the 26^th over when Willow gets his 2^nd wicket LBW. The tension then grows, nervous parents and relatives on the boundary let alone the Manager and Coach, as Middlesex’s score creeps along and it is not helped by the Welsh players winning and coming and watching on the bank and Malcolm stopping in the buggy to watch too. Deep inside you know that it only takes one ball but being a cup half full person that little person in your head thinks it will not! Don’t let the lads know.. We are running out of bowling options Jamie ought to come back on perhaps AB should have a bowl but do we have enough runs to play with.. AB comes on in the 34^th over, mid on and off need to be deeper but they don’t move.. 3^rd ball outside off and tossed up is miss timed and lobbed to Ash at extra cover. The world erupted, players scream and hug, parents do the same and it took what seemed ages for things to settle down. Middlesex and their parents must have wondered what had happened and we must apologies for our over exuberance, we still had a match to win.. We did get another wicket AB again Leon (sorry Yabbers I understand the card is incorrect) taking an excellent catch but in the 36^th over Middlesex hit the winning runs game over. Never have I minded losing a match so much!

Off quickly to the Presentation, quick photo and soak the players beforehand, then back to clear up and take more celebration photos.

This was this sides 4^th Festival win out of 5 they have attended, quite an achievement perhaps a Devon 1st and the third time the U14s have won the Taunton Festival in my 15 years. It had been an amazing week; the lads had been brilliant; they had played some exceptional cricket scoring over 300 twice and beating Shropshire, Yorkshire and Derbyshire comprehensively and never really look like loosing against Wales. Yes we had lost to Middlesex, oh to have won the toss, but it didn’t really matter..

Thank you Parents, relatives and friends for your support and gifts, thank you Ken our adopted mascot, thank you Wendy and Derek for scoring, thank you Deggy for coaching, thank you Ian and the Umpires, Dennis and grounds staff, tuck shop staff, caterers, Will Sykes, Jodie et al and thank you Malcolm for a splendid Festival. Thank you most of all the lads for a fantastic week. Memories are better than dreams - dream on. Good luck Lammers at the Bunbury! Wiltshire Wednesday..

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