First thing to do with the U13 is to congratulate the boys who represented the High Peak in the 40/40 games, I just wish we had had some 40/40 friendlies before they had to play these games as I think that they were on a hiding to nothing but also think that the experience has helped them no end. Will James and Hammond, Chaz, George, Paul and Joe all played for the High Peak side.
Moving on to the U13 league, to be honest, I am not a big fan of pairs cricket at this age and, hopefully, the league will decide to revert to proper cricket at this age in future years. The rules were as they were however and it was great that we were in with a shout of getting to the play-offs. The highlight of the league season has to be the win against Dove Holes (my finger nails have only just started to grow back properly) but there were also some players who showed remarkable improvement from last year and I would like to name of a couple of them – Mark Cooper has always played and trained hard and his improvement in the bowling department was great to see this year as was the improvement in Ivan’s batting as the season progressed. Scott Gregory and Luke Guess also impressed as they realised that they needed to protect their wicket more which is a lesson that many of the other boys discovered later on in the season.
The major highlight for me though is to see all of the boys progress well this year, especially with regard to the way that they went about their business during the 40/40 games that we played. We played 4, lost two and won 2 (we actually beat Compstall although we didn’t know it on the day!). It was amazing to see how differently the boys batted during the 40/40’s in comparison to how they batted when we were playing pairs cricket. Many congratulations to George Stone for being the first of our boys to achieve a half century and to Ivan and Chaz for getting into their 40’s for the first time!
It has been commented by many of our opposing coaches that if this group of youngsters stick together then the future of cricket in Chapel will be bright indeed! Hopefully the league will see sense next year and revert to the 4 age groups of U11, U13, U15 and U17 so that we can continue to develop our youngsters through their own age groups rather than them having to jump in the deep end and sink or swim!
We are always looking for new players so if anyone is aware of someone that may want to play (particularly in the U17 age bracket) then feel free to point them in our direction!
Finally, a big thank you to the parents of all of the boys, without your support it would have been impossible for the boys to have progressed in the way that they have. I accept the charge that I may have overplayed the boys during the season but hopefully you have enjoyed it as much as I have and, more importantly, hopefully the boys will have enjoyed their time off the x box (whatever that is!). We are also seriously indebted to Ian Durham for giving his time to us this year – the boys will learn more from one session with Ian than they would have learned from me on my own in a whole season!
Thank you
Mike
U13s
7th August Chapel vs Compstall
Chapel entertained Compstall in a friendly 40/40 game on the weekend and it turned out to be a true nailbiter!
Compstall batted first and Aaron Chesvert got the away side off to a great start knocking 35 in quick time although wickets fell regularly at the other end, including two wickets in successive balls to Chapel’s George Stone. Callum Abbot then batted for 25 overs to hit an unbeaten 50 and Nile Atiyah chipped in with 15 to boost the Comsptall total to a very respectable 155 for 6.
Chapel would have to go into unchartered territory if they were to chase down such a total and the innings got off to a solid start thanks to opening pairing of Joe Cook (30) and Paul Bacon (5) but three wickets in quick succession put Chapel floundering on 72 for 4. George Stone and Ivan Heathcote then came together in the 11th over and whilst Heathcote used the boundary to build his innings (44), Stone was very comfortable with picking the ones and twos up whilst punishing the bad ball. Heathcote was out in the 37th over with Chapel still needing 10 runs for victory but a flurry of late wickets left the home side one run short of the Compstall score.
Credit must be given to Stone as he batted for over 30 overs in a very controlled innings and the partnership of 74 that he put on with Heathcote brought Chapel tantalising close to their target. The game was played in great spirit and thanks to both teams and parents for playing and viewing the game in such a sporting way.
U16s
League Table
20th June Buxton vs Chapel
Ben Marsden of Buxton made a significant impression on the Chapel boys as he caressed his way to a very mature 103 out of a total of 141 for 4 Buxton total. Marsden opened the innings and, for the first few overs was relatively quiet - little did the Chapel team know what was about to hit them! Once Ben had got used to the pace and line of the Chapel bowlers he unleashed a barrage of shots, virtually all along the ground as he smashed 14 boundaries plus two enormous sixes before sportingly retiring once he had reached his magical milestone. A tremendous lesson to old and young about how to build an innings. Unsurprisingly, none of the Chapel bowling figures flattered although Oliver Cooke did manage to get a two wicket return by bowling full and straight.
The Chapel innings got off to a poor start as wickets fell regularly and only Jamie Wood (33) managed to get into double figures although Will Hammond and Oliver Cooke batted out the last 5 overs to ensure that Chapel batted through their 20 overs for 82.
13th June Chapel v Hayfield
Chapel entertained an experienced Hayfield side at Willow Drive and the visitors batted first. Despite some hostile bowling from Jamie Wood 1-40 the Hayfield innings got off to a sound start with J Coverley getting used to the conditions and batting through the whole innings for 58 not out. Hayfield skipper, M Proctor joined his colleague and hit some massive sixes as he top scored on the evening with 69 not out. Pick of the Chapel bowlers was Ben Shelmerdine who, although not taking a wicket, returned figures of 0-25 which was very economical in the context of the game as Hayfield finished on 160 for 2.
The Chapel innings started slowly as Hayfield used the benefit of their experience and Chapel were soon 3 down with only 8 runs on the board. Joe Berry (15) and Charlie Edwards (11) began to rebuild the innings before Charlie was out caught at square leg. Joe Berry was then joined by in form Jamie Wood and they added 49 for the 5th wicket. Jamie continued his onslaught and finished on 63 not out as the Chapel innings closed on 114-7.
A tremendous game of cricket however and credit must be given to Hayfield for the sporting way in which they played the game.
23rd May Whaley Bridge vs Chapel
The home side batted first and D Mullholland scored 19 for Whaley before being caught by Leo Griffiths off the bowling of Jamie Wood (1-9), Oliver Cook was the other opening bowler for Chapel and he took 2-23 in a blistering 3 over spell. The Whaley innings never really recovered despite a spirited 22 not out from Steve Weston. Joe Cook made his bowling debut for Chapel and returned figures of 1-7. Chapel team were set 70 runs for an unexpected victory.
Despite some great bowling from H Holden and D Mullholland the Whaley bowlers were not able to break the Chapel opening partnership until the 12th over when Joe Berry (19) was trapped Leg Before by Charile Kitchen. Joe's opening partner Ben Shelmerdine continued to bat responsibly as he caressed the ball around the ground picking up ones and twos at regular intervals before he was dismissed with 4 overs to go for 14. Chapel captain Jamie Wood then took to the crease and scored 15 in quick time including the match winning hit of the day that ended up on top of the Whaley pavilion.
Congratulations to Joe Cooke, Charlie Edwards, George Stone and Paul Bacon who have all been selected for the High Peak U13 team.
U13s Celebrate a Wicket
U13s 2011 Squad
U13s
6th July Whaley Bridge vs Chapel
The Chapel team travelled to Whaley Bridge and were apprehensive about the game as several key team members were absent.
Chapel batted first and Will James and debutant Jim Henderson got off to a great start with James crashing 2 boundaries and the pairing put on 19 runs crucially without the loss of any wickets. Oliver Cook then came to the crease and hit a mighty maximum as his partnership with Will Hammond moved the Chapel score onto 245. Ivan Heathcote and George Stone then hit 6 boundaries between them as they put on another highest partnership of 35. Mark Cooper and Paul Bacon also hit boundaries whilst protecting their wicket and the Chapel innings finished on a creditable 288 for the loss of 5 wickets. Will McIlveen and Charlie Kitchen were the pick of the Whaley bowlers returning figures of 1-4 and 2-8 respectively.
In reply Whaley Bridge only lost 1 wicket in the first 8 overs but their run rate was not up to the required level and they soon found themselves playing catch up. Oliver Cook and Will James bowled characteristically well which put additional pressure on the incoming batsmen. By the time the last pairing of Will McIlveen and Charlie Kitchen came to the crease Whaley needed 42 for an unlikely victory but Chapel ace Paul Bacon bowled a great spell of two overs taking 2 wickets, one being off the last ball of the game - a tremendous caught and bowled victim that required courage and flexibility to stop the ball hitting the ground.
Chapel won by 30 runs as Whaley finished on 258 for 5.
29th June Chapel vs Hawk Green
Chapel entertained Hawk Green at Willow Drive on Wednesday evening and were given a real lesson by the league leaders. Green batted first and despite early wickets being taken by Joe Cooke (4-13) and a tight hostile spell by Oliver Cook the Hawk Green batsmen were able to get their side off to a positive start. Chapel managed to get Hawk to lose 7 wickets during their innings and were very much in the game until E Young came in last for Hawk Green and blasted 29 runs including a maximum and 6 boundaries to leave the Hawk Green score to finish at 272.
Chapel knew that they would have to bat out of their skin to get close but Joe Cook and Will James were both out early on and second pairing of Oliver Cook and Leo Griffiths did likewise as the Chapel innings plummeted into the red. Ivan Heathcote, George Stone, Mark Cooper and top scorer Charlie Edwards (7) were the only Chapel batsmen to protect their wicket as the home side played catch up. The Chapel innings finished on 229, a loss by 43 runs, this leaves them in joint second place in the league competition.
24th June Dove Holes vs Chapel
Chapel travelled to Dove Holes on Friday 24th June in a top of the table clash with both sides only returning one defeat each so far this year.
Dove batted first and found the going tough early on as Oliver Cook and George Stone took early wickets. Will Martin found the boundary with some lovely shots but Paul Bacon took a cracking catch at square leg and Charlie Edwards had a hand in two run outs (one a direct hit from cover) for Chapel that pegged the Dove innings back. Enter Dove Holes answer to Freddie Flintoff, Phil Etchells! Phil hit the boundary with remarkable ease and ended up scoring 32 in quick time to leave Dove in a position to set a challenging total but Oliver cook came back on for his second spell and took two wickets to peg the innings back. Dove ended on 255 having lost 8 wickets.
Chapel knew that they had to bat sensibly to get close to their target and things didn’t start well as George Stone was bowled in the first over. Stone the proceeded to repair the damage with his partner Paul Bacon and both batsmen hit a couple of boundaries to get the Chapel innings back on track. Oliver Cook then batted with Will Hammond for Chapel and, despite losing one wicket the pair hit 4 boundaries between them but Chapel were still behind the clock. Ivan Heathcote then batted and retained his form of previous weeks, hitting boundaries for fun and ending with a majestic maximum off his last delivery! The Chapel innings was poised on 256 with 8 overs to go and Chapel knew that all they needed to do was to defend their wickets for a memorable victory. Charlie Edwards and Mark Cooper defended well and when Dove resorted to bringing back all-rounder Phil Etchells for his second spell as a last throw of the dice, the Chapel contingent had their hearts in their mouths as Charlie and Mark defended ball after ball until Charlie unleashed a boundary to set up a nervous finish. The final Chapel pair were Joe Cook and Luke Guess and they knew exactly what was needed as they came to the crease with Dove needing 3 wickets to win, an early wicket gave Dove hope but when Cook gave a very difficult caught and bowled chance that was grounded the writing was on the wall. There was no further incident in the last two overs and Chapel won by 11 runs. A tremendous effort from both teams.
