The Cricketer dives into a selection of the best stories from around the club cricket scene
Club Life: Cricket on Clifton Suspension Bridge, young stars, and Enid Bakewell
Shenfield Cricket Club are celebrating their 100th anniversary season in 2021 and have a host of marquee events throughout the summer to mark the occasion, including matches against England over 50s (August 1) and the MCC (August 22), the second of which kickstarts their cricket week festivities.
However, Essex allrounder Dan Lawrence has already gifted the club the greatest anniversary present of all.
In making his international debut against Sri Lanka in January, he completed Shenfield's XI of 'opposition players who have gone on to play for England', joining Robin Hobbs, Keith Fletcher, Graham Gooch, John Lever, Derek Pringle, Nasser Hussain, Monty Panesar, Ravi Bopara, Reece Topley and Ben Foakes. And what an XI it is!
Reminiscing about some of the internationals stars to grace the club, long-serving member David Castell said: "Shenfield played against Essex in a couple of benefit games in the late seventies and early eighties and the teams included England legends Gooch, Fletcher, Lever and Pringle. In the first match the Essex team focused on entertaining but in the early eighties, Essex took the game against Shenfield more seriously as they had a one day cup quarter-final the next day. They gave Shenfield a 175-run head start and fought hard. We emerged as narrow winners on handicap but Essex went on to win their cup match the next day.
"[We] came across Nasser Hussain when he was a 13-year-old playing for Ilford Sunday 2nd XI. Even at that point we strongly suspected he would become an England player – but we thought he’d be a front line leg spinner rather than batsman and England captain.
An Essex XI at Shenfield CC
"Robin Hobbs [the Essex and Glamorgan leg spinner of the 1960s and 70s] played alongside his son for Hutton 2nd, 3rd and 4th XI in the 1990s. Shenfield have played three times against Robin and have won two out of three.
"Monty Panesar played for Shenfield in 2019 taking 24 wickets at an average of 14.71. Monty qualifies for our England XI as he also played against Shenfield - for Hornchurch in 2018. Shenfield got the better end of a rain-affected draw when our skipper Jack Kliber scored a ton and Monty was limited to 1 for 33.
"And Dan Lawrence spent most of his life living in the grounds of Chingford Cricket Club where his father is the groundsman. He hit his last ball against Shenfield for a six and has become the latest player that Shenfield has helped to England success!"
Earlier in June, The Cricketer received a letter from Jessamy Keily, wishing to thank James Mitchell, David Stevens and Bonnie Stevens for their efforts in building a women’s section from scratch at Puddletown CC.
"A few years ago, me and my husband, James Mitchell, moved to Dorset when he got his dream job working for Dorset Cricket Board as a youth participation manager and we chose Puddletown as our club thanks to the friendly welcome we received.
"With endless support from our fantastic chairman, David Stevens, and his wife Bonnie, the club has secured funding for a grass wicket, which coincided with the men’s first team being promoted to Division One. The small junior section has boomed, with over 100 children now playing or training weekly.
"Personally, the greatest story has been the women’s section – the Wagtails – which is now one of the biggest in Dorset. Thanks to Puddletown’s investment in James' seed of an idea, over 30 women and girls are now members, playing softball, hardball, representing the men's sides, and we have an arsenal of qualified female coaches! The village always knows when we are on the cricket ground due to the cheering and laughter – we just can’t get enough!
"The cricketing bug has well and truly spread throughout the area thanks to the outstanding club members and volunteers. I couldn’t be prouder to be no longer a cricket widow but a fully-fledged fan with games of my own to play."
To find out more about Puddletown Wagtails, click here
Puddletown Wagtails
Looking for a fun Sunday with the girls but can’t agree on what to do? Tarleton Cricket Club near Preston might just have the answer.
On July 4, the club are hosting a women’s softball cricket festival with over 200 women and girls in attendance for an afternoon of cricket, barbecues, entertainment and more. It’s fun, it’s fast, and there’s no cricket ability or experience required!
Sound like fun? Entry is £40 for a team of eight and entries must be received by June 25.
To enter, contact Damian Owen on 07900373572
Address: Tarleton Cricket Club, Carr Lane, Tarleton, Preston, PR4 6BU
Date: Sunday 4, July, 12:30-5pm
Taking photos during Calmore Sports Club's four-wicket victory over Sparsholt in the Voneus Village Cup Hampshire regional final, Bob Selley beautifully captured the highs and lows of club cricket.
Photo credit: @bobscc
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