CAPTAINS REPORTS 2007
FIRST XI CAPTAIN - SIMON DIXON
The 2007 season was an excellent season for the club, of which the First team played their part. Though, ultimately just missing out on promotion, it is worth looking at the positives….we beat comfortably the top three teams in the league, and also ensured that we finished in the clubs highest league position for a number of years.
The batting was extremely disappointing this year, with very few consistent contributions from anyone in the side. Nardus was the most consistent performer with the bat, and deserved his batting title at the end of the year. Rob, Kev, Dave, Wrighty, Ben, Richey and Myself all had our moments, but these were few and far between. It should be added though, that this was primarily due to the weather more than anything, as pitches were difficult to bat on due to the inclement conditions we experienced during the year. The pitches at home were, as always, an exception to the rule, and our best batting performances were at home.
The bowlers relished the conditions in 2007, with all 4 of the main bowlers making it into the leagues top 20 bowlers, indeed Ben, Richie and Paul made it into the top six. A brilliant effort - All of them deserve a mention.
Ben deservedly won the bowling title, with 23 wickets at 10.26. An excellent return.
Richie Froggett, who bowled with his head (for once!). Seeing that the pitches were heaven sent for seam bowling, he cut his run up down and simply put the ball on the spot, causing no end of problems for the overseas superstars and colts facing him at the other end.
Paul, thought hampered in the early season with a calf problem, once again proved his worth to the side with excellent spells when called upon, especially against Hamble when he was outstanding.
Nardus again bowled well in his second season for the club, though inconsistent at times. More on Nardus in a bit.
The pace quartet were well backed up by Wrighty and Dave when called upon. Credit should be given for these guys as they do not bowl anyway near as much as they used to, but were always there if we needed back up.
The fielding was, in the main excellent. We all had our Stephen Hawking moments in the field, but in the main, no-one let the side or themselves down. Even No Hands captain even held onto one, and then almost got killed by a bus in his stupid immature celebration!!
At this point, I feel like I must talk about two players.
The first is Ben Kendrick, who has unfortunately decided not to continue playing for Hythe & Dibden following his move to Buckinghamshire.This would mean an around trip of some 200 miles just for home games, and is perfectly understandable. Though not as available in 2007 as my previous two years as captain, Ben contributed significantly to the side in the year, helping as win many a match with either bat, ball, or in some instances both.He will be greatly missed in the team and the club. Hopefully he will be able to play the odd game, and when he does, he will be more than welcome. Thank you Ben, not only for the season just gone, but for all you ve done for team since I took over the captaincy. Im sure I speak for everyone when I say all the best for your future.
Secondly, I d like to mention our overseas player, Nardus. Coming back for a second year having fallen into the old “Set him up with the scorer” ploy, Nardus had a good season for the firsts in 2007. Though the wickets, due to the rain, did not suit him, he bowled well for the majority of the season (apart from the odd yip here and there), and gave the team an option with his raw pace. His batting however was excellent, and was the only consistent batsmen in the team. His innings against Cadnam and Hamble, meant that we had a chance of promotion. A good lad to have around the club, he also helped the colts whenever he could. Nardus – Thank you for all you ve done, I hope you enjoyed your time with us, and you would be welcome back anytime.
Special thanks should go to Luke Mills. Again, as in the previous year, Luke turned out virtually every game, gave 100%, and never complained once, even though his chances of getting a game were slim. Indeed, one of the highlights of the year was his performance against Langley Manor, when without his innings, we wouldn’t even have had the slim chance of victory we had. Luke – thank you very much for you efforts this year.
Players from the Under 17s were also called upon throughout the season, more so than 2006 when we had a very settled side. James Page, Russell Moore and Rich Last all came in, sometimes at very short notice and did themselves, and the colt section proud, with not only their performance, but also their attitude. All good lads, they take their cricket seriously, and are always prepared to listen and act on advise. The future bodes extremely well for the club, and Gary must take a lot of credit for the way he has prepared the colts for Adult Cricket. Guys, thank you.
Other people to thank: Trev Vaughan for umpiring, Rob for being my vice captain again and having to put up with my drunken threats to quit (only 19 last year I think), Paul for being there whenever I needed advice and for helping Nard out when he got the “Yips”, Mike and Sean for easily the best wickets in the league, the council for easily the worst outfield, Woody for his support as Chairman, all the ladies for the gorgeous teas, Mike again, for when I needed a player at late notice, Gary for arranging the colts to play on occasion, Chiv for the website and his enthusiasm for the club, apologies Steve if sometimes I snapped at you during the weeks before a game but lets just call in “Having to deal with people at work syndrome”, and Ewan for playing when called upon.
Special thanks also to Becky, who has scored with us for a number of year (wahay…I ll leave it there…sorry Ann/Gary). She has done a brilliant job, and will be sorely missed this year.
My final thanks is to all the players who have played for the team and all the support you have given me. I feel that we have come on in the past three years, and the atmosphere is second to none. We have created and atmosphere where younger players do not feel intimidated, and want to play for us, it is greatly appreciated.
In summary, let’s move on from 2007. Though it was a huge disappointment, it wasn’t all down to the Ryde umpire who had the eyesight of Stevie Wonder without contact lenses. The reason we didn’t get promoted was because of all our games rained off, 4 of them were against teams in the bottom 5. We all know we were the best team in the league, as said by many captains throughout the season. 2008 will be our year.We all deserve it as a club.
SECOND XI CAPTAIN - MIKE BOWMAN
It was a satisfactory season finishing 4th in the league and winning the New Forest Cup In the league was 9 wins and 3 losses with another 5 games lost to the weather. Wayne Effeny led the way with the bat and Chalky White with the ball. We welcomed back Mike Edwards to the club and he had a big influence with the ball forming a good opening partnership with Richie Bunce. There were other good performances with the bat from Matt, Sean and Mike Edwards and with the ball from Pete Stevens snr and jnr.
The League season for me though was a disappointment as I felt with a full team out we were the best side in the league. But we again let ourselves down with some below par performances. Still it does show how far the second team has come in recent years to be able to say that.
In the Cup we qualified for the final with a 100% record and at the forth attempt we won the final against Milford on Sea with a great team performance. All through the Cup Competition there was good performances from the colts particularly Lee Powell, Ben Smith and Pete Stevens jnr. With Matt Howe first team bound this is good for next season and the future.
Next season due to restructuring we find ourselves promoted to South West Regional Division 2 where our aim will be one of consolidation and bringing on and developing some of the younger players.
I would like to thank all the players plus Woody, Tonya, Ann, Dawn, Goody and anyone I have forgotton for all their help during the season
Mike Bowman