2016 OCTOBER DINNER NEWSLETTER
Geoff Miller returns
to standing ovation
ONE of Cheshire’s best-known former players Geoff Miller OBE proved to be one of the finest speakers of recent years at the League’s 42nd annual Presentation Dinner at The Mere on Friday, October 7.
Addressing a league audience for the third time – he did so previously in 1985 at the Cresta Court, Altrincham and in 2003 at Mere, Geoff enraptured the240-strong assembly with wonderful tales of his times playing for Derbyshire, Essex and England, for whom he gained 36 caps between 1976 and 1984.
Appointed OBE in 2011 after becoming the first England National selector, Geoff, now 64, dealt hilariously with his ‘mostly modest’ contributions to the game, starting with a duck on his debut for Derbyshire against Lancashire at snowbound Buxton in 1975
He played four seasons with Cheshire from 1991-94 and was appointed a life member for services which brought 907 runs and 153 wickets.
Saying how much he had enjoyed a career spanning more than 40 years, the Chesterfield man introduced a serious note when he praised the work being done in the game’s grass roots such as in Cheshire.
‘Our wonderful game’ must be maintained
He said: “You good people here are what cricket is all about. You must help maintain our great sport in schools and clubs, through the Minor Counties and into the first-class game. I am told your clubs in Cheshire are helping young players graduate into county cricket, so you are obviously doing your bit.”
Geoff Miller earned a standing ovation from an audience drawn from all clubs in the league except absentees Alvanley, Cheadle, Congleton and Middlewich.
Short addresses were given by Adam Worrall, captain of Premier League champions Alderley Edge and Ian Millington, retiring chairman of Bramhall, who won the T20 tournament and Fair Play award.
Guests were welcomed from the Cheshire County Club, Cheshire Cricket League, Cheshire Alliance and from the principal sponsors, VIVIO, who boisterously filled a table of 10.
Eight special team and individual awards were presented, all listed on later pages of the Newsletter. An additional presentation was made to Wyn Talbot-Butler marking her 40 years’ work as Results secretary.
A cheer was raised when it was announced that Nantwich’s Ian Strachan had scored his 400th game for Nantwich.
There were 21 team trophies presented from the stage by President John Bygate.
The event was organised by League secretary Geoff Wellsteed, with Rob Sproston serving as MC.
DINNER NEWSLETTER: p2
PLAYERS OF YEAR
Chris Ashling is Premiership’s top man
TOP wicket-taker in the ECB Premier League, Bowdon paceman CHRIS ASHLING received the Keith Belford Memorial Trophy as Player of the Year at the dinner.
Former Glamorgan paceman Ashling took 62 wickets at 12.03 to garner 25 per cent of the 132 votes polled by players from all 12 clubs.
Second place with 14 per cent of votes was 2015 winner Rob Jones, of Toft, who topped the batting averages with 767 runs at 95.88 and distinguished himself by scoring his maiden first class century for Lancashire against Middlesex at Old Trafford in August.
Third spot went to the division’s leading run-scorer Ric Moore of Chester Boughton Hall with a 12 per cent vote. Ric scored 966 runs at 56.82 including four centuries.
DIVISION 1 AWARD FOR DANNY LEECH
OULTON Park batsman DANNY LEECH was presented with the First Division Player of the Year’s Mark Alcroft Trophy.
A one-club man Danny scored 833 runs at 55.53 to win 26 per cent of a maximum return of 132 votes from all 12 clubs.
Second was Didsbury’s Simon Normanton with 14 pc support, his fine all-round return being 434 runs and 43 wickets.
Didsbury skipper Nick Anderson was third with 11 pc cent of the votes, playing a key role in steering his club to the title with an all-round return of 512 runs and 34 wickets.
Alexander Jordan Hart gets Div. 2 prize
BROOKLANDS captain and all-rounder ALEXANDER JORDAN (‘Call me A.J.’) HART won the Mike Talbot-Butler Statuette as Division 2 Player of the Year.
With 10 of the 12 clubs voting, AJ gained 27 per cent support, scoring 349 runs and taking 44 wickets to help his club move up sharply to fourth place in the table.
With 20 pc of the votes, runner-up was Sri Lankan-born all-rounder Iro De Silva, who scored 628 runs and took 47 wickets to help Barrow finish mid-table in their first season.
Another of the League’s new clubs, Lindow, produced the third-placed player in Scott Howarth, whose 40 wickets earned him 9 pc of the votes.
The voting invigilator this year was 1st XI Competition secretary Ian Sharrock.
Henry Dobson is number one Young Player
HENRY DOBSON was given leave of absence from Denstone College in Staffordshire to attend the dinner and receive the John North Young Player of the Year award.
Aged 16, Henry did his best for relegated Tattenhall in Division One, scoring 446 runs at an average of 23.47, including two fifties.
Regarded as one of the region’s brightest young batsmen, Henry made his Minor Counties debut for Cheshire in July after appearing in all the county’s age group team since 2010.
His father Melvyn, a former Tattenhall chairman, spent many hours last summer driving Henry to play for Leicestershire where he enjoyed an Academy contract, but will have less travelling to do in 2017 as Henry has been awarded a place at the Lancashire Academy.
Formerly a pupil at Bishops Heber High School, Malpas where he was Cricketer of the Year in 2012 and 2014, Henry played in the Bunbury Festival in 2015, helping the North of England team win the T20 tournament.
He moved to Denstone College after being awarded a two years sports scholarship. He also enjoys playing football, table tennis, lawn tennis and badminton.
DINNER NEWSLETTER: p3
Widnes are Most Improved club
CLEAR winners of the Henderson Rose Bowl as Most Improved Club of the Year were WIDNES.
Chairman Andy Atkin collected their trophy at the dinner, his club having improved their 1st and 2nd XI placings to win both Division Two titles last summer with unmatchable points tallies of 426 and 429 points respectively This also earned them the Aggregate title – the Sandy Scrimgeour Memorial Bowl, which was presented by Elise Scrimgeour at the dinner.
With Chris Kirby and Tim Wearden captaining their two teams, Widnes also improved their placings in the Fair Play, pitch and outfield tables
Other clubs mentioned for all-round improvement were Upton, whose 1st and 2nd XIs both gained promotion, were Alderley Edge, Neston and Grappenhall, Stockport and Didsbury.
AGGREGATE TABLE (1st & 2nd XI pts. combined)
PLACING & CLUB 1st XI pts. 2nd XI pts. Total pts. 2015 placing (+ or - )
1. WIDNES 426 (Div. 2 ch) 429 (Div. 2 ch) 855 10 +9
2. OULTON PARK 367 416 783 6 +4
3. UPTON 382 385 (Div. 1 ch) 767 5 +2
4. DIDSBURY 402 (Div. 2 ch) 358 766 18 +14
5. GRAPPENHALL 399 353 752 31 +26
6. ALDERLEY EDGE 386 (Prem ch) 327 713 13 +7
7. NESTON 275 415 (Prem ch) 695 23 +16
8. BOLLINGTON 291 377 668 15 +7
10. HYDE 340 305 645 4 -6
11. CHESTER B.HALL 331 304 635 3 -8
12. BOWDON 361 264 625 24 +12
13. NANTWICH 242 369 611 2 -11
14=STOCKPORT 318 267 585 29 +15
14=WEAVERHAM 332 253 585 8 -6
16. BROOKLANDS 315 251 566 26 +10
17. SALE 317 248 565 17 level
18. ALVANLEY 261 287 548 25 +7
19. DAVENHAM 283 263 546 9t -10
20. LINDOW 245 289 534 - -
21. TOFT 249 278 527 12 -9
22. TIMPERLEY 246 279 525 1 -21
23. BRAMHALL 266 258 524 30 +7
24. CONGLETON 198 297 495 34 +11
25. MACCLESFIELD 242 275 517 19 -6
26. NORTHWICH 274 236 510 27 +1
27. MARPLE 269 229 498 28 +1
28. OXTON 242 255 497 22 -6
29. CONGLETON 198 297 495 34 +5
28. WARRINGTON 201 263 464 11 -17
29. CHEADLE 274 179 453 21 -8
30. TATTENHALL 157 227 384 7 -23
31. CHEADLE HULME 178 192 370 14 -17
32. CHRISTLETON 276 75 351 33 +1
33. URMSTON 141 176 317 16 -17
34. MIDDLEWICH 138 160 298 36 +3
Barrow 1st, Mobberley 1st, Ashton on Mersey 2nd and Bredbury St. Mark’s 2nd all fielded one team in the league and do not qualify.
DINNER NEWSLETTER: p4
T20 champions Bramhall
top Fair Play rankings
LEAGUE T20 champions and ECB National finalists BRAMHALL finished top of the Fair Play table and received the Eddie Howard Memorial Trophy at Friday’s dinner. In 2015, they had been placed equal 30th with a low mark of 3.70.
With a return of 4.03 this time, Bramhall were the only club to average more than 4 (maximum 5) finishing narrowly ahead of four joint runners-up Chester Boughton Hall, relegated Congleton, Mobberley and Upton.
John Lofthouse, who assembles umpires’ reports on players’ behaviour throughout the season, points out that six Premier League clubs figure in the bottom 10.
How they ‘faired’ …
The final table, with average marks, is as follows:
1. 4.03 BRAMHALL
2= 3.99 CHESTER BOUGHTON HALL, CONGLETON, MOBBERLEY, UPTON
6= 3.97 ALVANLEY, BARROW
8= 3.96 BROOKLANDS, CHEADLE, NESTON, WARRINGTON
12= 3.95 MARPLE, TATTENHALL, WIDNES
15= 3.93 ALDERLEY EDGE, MIDDLEWICH, SALE
18= 3.91 LINDOW, STOCKPORT
20= 3.90 BOLLINGTON, CHRISTLETON, NANTWICH
23. 3.88 GRAPPENHALL
24= 3.86 CHEADLE HULME, OULTON PARK, OXTON
27. 3.85 TOFT
28. 3.84 DAVENHAM
29. 3.82 BOWDON
30. 3.80 DIDSBURY
31. 3.78 HYDE
32 3.76 NORTHWICH
33. 3.74 MACCLESFIELD
34. 3.73 WEAVERHAM
35. 3.70 URMSTON
36. 3.59 TIMPERLEY
O Joint Fair Play winners in 2015 were relegated Bredbury St Mark’s and Cheadle, with an average mark of 3.98. At the foot of the table then at 3.57 were Chester Boughton Hall and Davenham .
GARY ZIMMER IS UMPIRE OF YEAR
WINNER of the Terry Hill Memorial Trophy as the League’s Umpire of the Year, GARY ZIMMER received the Terry Hill Memorial Trophy at the dinner.
Reading born, Gary moved to Cheshire through marriage and began umpiring for Middlewich 2nd when his son joined that club.
He volunteered for the League panel in 2012 and after passing his Level One and Two examinations, was upgraded to the Premier League supplementary panel in 2014 and the full list a year later.
Gary has continued to receive high marks and was this season chosen to stand in the Cheshire Cup final between Hyde and Elworth at Werneth Low.
DINNER NEWSLETTER: p5
Oxton have best pitch and outfield
OXTON had the best PITCH and OUTFIELD marks last season, according to reports submitted by panel umpires and stats drawn up by Grounds chairman John Bygate.
The Wirral club enjoyed an average mark of 18.64 from 11 First Division games at Townfield Lane, improving on a figure in 2015.
They were closely followed by Chester Boughton Hall on 18.56, followed by 2015 winners Christleton, 18.38 and Oulton Park, 18.14.
At the foot of the table were Northwich with a mark of 15.20, topped narrowly by relegated Congleton, 15.40,
Oxton repeated their 2015 feat by heading the Outfield table with an even higher average mark of 19.91. They were followed by Grappenhall on 19.82 and Christleton and Hyde, both 19.75.
At the foot of the table were Bollington on 15.78, Cheadle Hulme, 16.57 and Lindow 16.89
John Bygate says: “Almost all clubs made big efforts to produce pitches and outfields of the highest order and while pitch figures were generally down on 2015 this was due to the wet summer. No fewer than 30 clubs improved their outfield marks”.
He added: “We remain fortunate in Cheshire to have such fine grounds and groundsmen, but I urge clubs not to be complacent and for those at the foot of the table to re double their efforts to improve”.
PITCH MARKS
(varying number of reports indicates many matches cancelled/abandoned/wet)
CLUB Reports Average 2015 average & + or -
1. OXTON 11 18.64 18.11 +
2. CHESTER BO. HALL 7 18.57 18.80 -
3. CHRISTLETON 8 18.38 18.82 -
4. OULTON PARK 7 18.14 18.40 -
5. GRAPPENHALL 11 17.91 18.50 -
6. ALVANLEY 7 17.71 18.55 -
7= SALE 9 17.67 17.90 -
7= URMSTON 9 17.67 17.90 -
9. BOWDON 8 17.50 15.56 +
10=MOBBERLEY 7 17.43 16.40 no change
10=UPTON 7 17.43 16.40 +
12. HYDE 9 17.33 17.30 +
13=TATTENHALL 10 17.20 17.71 -
13=WEAVERHAM 10 17.20 18.00 -
15=BARROW 8 17.13 - does not apply
15=WIDNES 8 17.13 16.89 +
17=ALDERLEY EDGE 9 17 17.30 -
17=DAVENHAM 9 17 16.20 +
17=NANTWICH 9 17 16.91 +
17=WARRINGTON 6 17 17.11 -
21. STOCKPORT 9 16.89 17.60 -
22= MACCLESFIELD 8 16.88 17.20 -
22=TOFT 8 16.88 17.44 -
24. MIDDLEWICH 8 16.75 17.55 -
25. DIDSBURY 9 16.67 17.22 -
26. NESTON 11 16.64 17.27 -
27. MARPLE 5 16.60 17.44 -
28. LINDOW 9 16.56 - does not apply
29. TIMPERLEY 7 16.43 16.11 +
30. BRAMHALL 8 16.25 16 +
31. BOLLINGTON 9 15.89 17.20 -
32. CHEADLE HULME 7 15.71 16.50 -
33. CHEADLE 8 15.63 16.22 -
34. BROOKLANDS 10 15.60 16.22 -
35. CONGLETON 10 15.40 15.91 -
36. NORTHWICH 10 15.20 17.60 -
DINNER NEWSLETTER: p6
OUTFIELD MARKS Reports Average 2015 avge. + or -
1. OXTON 11 19.91 18.11 +
2. GRAPPENHALL 11 19.82 18.50 +
3= CHRISTLETON 8 19.75 18.82 +
3= HYDE 8 19.75 17.30 +
5. NESTON 11 19.64 17.27 +
6. TATTENHALL 8 19.63 17.71 +
7. NANTWICH 9 19.56 16.91 +
8. STOCKPORT 9 19.44 17.60 +
9= ALVANLEY 7 19.43 18.55 +
9= CHESTER B.H. 7 19.43 18.80 +
9= URMSTON 8 19.43 17.90 +
12. MIDDLEWICH 8 19.00 17.55 +
13. BOWDON 6 18.83 15.56 +
14. MARPLE 5 18.80 17.44 +
15=ALDERLEY EDGE 9 18.78 17.30 +
15=DIDSBURY 9 18.78 17.22 +
17. BARROW 8 18.75 - does not apply
18. OULTON PARK 7 18.71 18.40 +
19= DAVENHAM 9 18.67 16.20 +
19= TOFT 9 18.67 17.44 +