2008 Review
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2008 Review Index
Under 13s
XI Report
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At age group level, results can vary
considerably from one year to the next. 2007 had been a successful season
for this age group but with the loss of a number of the older players to
the Under 15’s, 2008 was going to be a year for consolidation. A number of
the key players from the previous year (George Brown, Conor Wyatt, Mike
Barnett, Jason Sami and Matthew Goodlad) returned to be the nucleus of the
side and these would be joined by last years Under 11 key contributors,
Sam Wood and Christopher Brace. It was hoped that some new members would
make up the team and provide some telling contributions during the
summer.
Unfortunately, despite the commitment
from the players, the season was a difficult one (as expected) and despite
beating Llantwit Major in the National Knockout Cup, there was only one
victory and seven loses out of the 8 league matches completed.
The season started with an abandoned
match against Penarth followed by two defeats, firstly at home to Pentyrch
and then away to Cardiff. Whilst the defeat to Pentyrch was somewhat
comprehensive (87 runs), the defeat to Cardiff was far from it. Cardiff
batted first and made 116 from their 20 overs. In reply, Cowbridge got off
to an excellent start with both Sam Wood and Christopher Brace scoring 30
retired. They were ably supported by the middle order of Conor Wyatt and
Arthur Blick and with 19 runs required from the final 3 overs, victory was
on the cards, particularly as hard hitting George Brown was still at the
wicket. However, boundaries became difficult to achieve in the final overs
as all 9 Cardiff fielders were dispatched to the boundary (by the
opposition coach) and Cowbridge, as a result fell 4 runs short of
victory.
The Cup victory against Llantwit Major
followed with excellent contributions from George Gibson and Mike Barnett
with the ball and Sam Wood with the bat. Llantwit Major batted first and
were dismissed for just 58 from 19 overs with George Gibson taking a hat
trick and finishing with figures of 3 for 4 from 3 overs. The 8 wicket win
was set up by Sam Wood (34 retired) and was a great result for the team
against the local rivals!
Unfortunately the next few weeks saw
more losses for the young side, firstly away to Lisvane by 6 wickets, then
at home to St Fagans and finally away to Radyr by 5 wickets. Despite these
three successive defeats, there were good contributions with the ball from
Jonathan Harvey, Ellis Davies and George Gibson and with the bat from
Matthew Goodlad, George Brown and Christopher Brace.
The only league victory of the season
was also against Llantwit Major. Batting first, Cowbridge made 89 from
their 20 overs with Sam Wood top scoring with 22 and George Brown making
13. Llantwit Major were dismissed for 69 with Jonathan Harvey taking 3 for
9 and Christopher Brace, 2 for 8. The fielding was of the highest order by
all, however it was Jason Sami who excelled taking two excellent catches
“close to the wicket”, much to the annoyance of the vocal opposition
supporters!
The final two matches to be played also
resulted in defeats. Cardiff secured the double by 6 wickets and Pentyrch
achieved a convincing 98 run win. Despite these two losses, it was good to
see that the notable contributions came from the younger members of the
team. Cai Evans and again George Gibson were excellent with the ball and
Arthur Blick and Jonathan Harvey made telling contributions with the bat.
In addition, there were all round contributions throughout the season from
Jack Griffiths, Ollie Williams and Conor Wyatt.
I would like to thank the team for
making the season an enjoyable one despite the difficult year we had. The
majority of these players will remain at this age level for the 2009
season so with some good weather, a bit of luck and some new recruits, the
signs look promising.
I would also like to thank my assistant
coaches for their help during the season along with the parents for
taxiing to and from matches. I am particularly grateful to David Lloyd and
David Wood for their continued support throughout the season, either
scoring or umpiring.
Thank you one and all.
Jonathan Smart
Under 13 Coach
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