The Sweep 25 Week 5: Big Bounce-back Wins For Cornwood Ones and Threes
- Cornwood Cricket club
- Jun 3
- 8 min read
Words: Simon Travers
Match Photos: Ivor Thomas
The Ones travelled to The Fortfield in Sidmouth looking to upgrade on a string of performances described as ‘poor’ by Elliott Staddon in the match preview. The Ones avoided the Oak Park pre-match drizzle as they took in the sea view. However, the Fortfield named so for a reason. Cornwood’s form against Sidmouth has recently picked up from the 8 game spell between 2013-2021 where the Ones lost 7 games by a minimum of 138 runs or 9 wickets, with one cancellation. However, Cornwood’s DCL record at the Fortfield is won 3, lost 7, drawn 1, with 1 abandonment.
Stand in skipper Matt Skeemer won the toss and elected to bat and openers Ben Privett and Chris Parker batted through the first powerplay unscathed. They built a platform for the team of 48 before the young South African seamer Ethan-John Cunningham removed Privett. With the season’s first decent batch of Devon rain falling in week, scores across the Premier League dipped significantly. It was an afternoon for both batters and bowlers to stay on task and chip away. Chris Parker led the scoring with 42 from 59 while others batters put 10s and 20s into the kitty. There was a nervous moment in the middle of the innings when Ben Beaumont and Matt Skeemer were dismissed in consecutive overs to put the Ones on 113-5. However, the collapse wasn’t on. Matthew Butterworth and George Thompson (29 from 51) played measured innings and James Richardson (29 from 25) provided a late innings injection to get the Ones to 201. Opening bowler Tom Hodgson picked up late wickets for figures of 4-39 and Ethan Chiappe took 3-45.
There was early pressure on Sidmouth with wickets in the first powerplay. James Richardson skittled Dylan Rawal, a young prospect who played youth cricket for Middlesex last year. Jack Ormsby got the big wicket of Sam Elstone, trapping him LBW. Elstone hit three consecutive tons in league and cup between the 17th and 24th of May but went for 9. Richardson then claimed a second with another LBW decision to dislodge Charlie Gaywood (30 from 23). Ethan-John Cunningham took the attack to Cornwood’s bowlers with 42 from 25. His thin edge from Ben Privett’s bowling tilted momentum towards the Ones. Privett also took a caught and bowled effort to stop Sidmouth captain Luke Bess. At 105-5, Lee Baker and Jack Ormsby tucked up the Sidmouth lower order and put the game to bed. Sidmouth managed another 44-5 in 17.5 overs to close on 149 all out, 52 runs short. Ormsby led the bowling with 10-1-35-3, while Lee Baker took 9.5-3-18-2. Those wickets place Lee Baker joint second on the Premier wicket takers charts with Elliott Staddon and Ross Acton. The Ones outlasted and outbattled for a reward of 19 welcome points.
Elsewhere in the Premier, Bradninch & Kentisbeare stayed top running the heavy roller over North Devon while Paignton stay one point behind with another impressive win against Exeter. Exmouth snuck past Sandford at The Maer and Heathcoat got over the finish line against Plymouth. The Ones rise to sixth, but are only 8 points above Sandford in the drop zone.
The Threes were also looking to bounce back after last week’s disappointment at Abbotskerswell. They faced Dartington & Totnes, a team who are into the fifth year of a remarkable losing streak. Since 2021, Dartington & Totnes have abandoned or cancelled as many as they have won with 12 matches, while sustaining 52 losses on a slide from B Division to the bottom of E Division West. The visitors put the Threes into bat and the teams cracked on despite unsettled conditions. Batting was not easy and wickets fell in a regular rhythm. Josh Whiting provided the backbone of the innings with 39 from 43. Josh has scored almost double the number of runs of any Threes batter with 172 at 34.4 so far this year. Dartington & Totnes were solid across their bowling attack sharing wickets as they bowled the Threes for 137. Justin Osborne took 4-2-5-3 as the skies brightened.
In reply, the visitors had the better of the early exchanges and 31 from Jon Perkin left Dartington & Totnes needing 57 from the last 15 with 7 wickets in hand. Mike Hodge’s second wicket opened the underbelly of the batting order and Andy Bees capitalised for figures of 9-5-12-4. The Threes took their catching chances well, including two slip takes from Adam Whiting. 81-3 became 95-8 and the damage was done. Dartington & Totnes ran out of wickets with 12 runs still needed to let another match slip. The Threes are fourth in E Division West and looking comfortable.
The Twos took their eye off the ball in a mostly self-inflicted home loss to Brixham. Put into bat in overcast conditions, the top four batters were all dismissed within 6.5 overs playing cross-bat shots. An exceptional gulley catch from Rhys Dallow did for Will Sharp first ball and the Twos were 34-6 before you could boil a kettle. Opening bowlers Bradley McKee (7-1-25-3) and Dallow (9-0-30-3) both had their best afternoons of the season so far. Craig Harris and captain Jason Hall played the straight-bat cricket the situation required to put on 48. They kept out the off spin of Pakistani first class cricketer Mohammed Shaikh. It took Brixham until after drinks to remember that at Oak Park, it is seam from the North end and spin from the South. After a bit of shuffling, Brixham got immediate reward as seamer Lee Upham (6.4-0-39-4) took a hat-trick to remove Jason Hall and the Caunter brothers. Craig Harris battled to the end for 41 from 77 before Chris Lanyon took another good low catch at Cow. Perhaps the greatest frustration for the Twos in posting a total of 121 in 32.4 overs is that Brixham only brought four mainline bowlers but they never got to the part-timers.
Things got better for the Twos in the field, mostly due to Josiah Caunter. He took a good tumbling catch at mid off to provide a late wedding gift of Matt Puttock’s first wicket as a married man. When he came into the bowling attack, Josiah took 4-20 in his 9 overs as Brixham’s momentum glitched at 83-6. Josiah’s final effort was to throw Matthew Adams out with a direct hit at the bowler’s end from cover. The Twos pushed to the end but could not remove Mohammed Shaikh. The Islamabad batsman was still adjusting to Devon wickets but remained unbeaten on 30* from 55 as Brixham reached the finish with 3 wickets intact. Brixham’s celebrations at the win point not only to their upturn in form, but also to the way the Twos have a target on their back and should expect every team’s best game moving forward. They drop to second in C Division West and only one team get promoted.
The short hop to Manadon Sports Centre to play Plymouth Civil Service & Roborough 2XI usually provides a difficult challenge for the Fours and Saturday continued that trend. High points in the field were Three-fers for Marc Whaley (3-50) and Alex Passman (3-51) and a gun run out from Eoin Hewitt. However, PCS&R’s top order vindicated the decision to bat. Adrian Vickery hit 59 from 72, and there were 30s from Thavaseelan Arulraj (36) and Phillip White (34). Chasing 233, the Fours weren’t able to build a partnership in a total of 110. There was credit though for Lennon Way with three defiant late boundaries on the way to 17. Nur Ahmed took 4-30 and Matthew White 4-14 for PCS&R. The Fours are eighth in G Division West, 9 points above the drop.
On Sunday, the Women’s Super 8s team travelled to Stoke Gabriel for their first double-header of the season. In the first game against Bovey Tracey, Cornwood’s openers Kat Frost (33* from 18 with 7 fours) and captain Helly Simpson (30* from 36) both made retirement, while Charlotte Shutt made 25* from 15 as the team scored 130-3. That was enough by 39 runs as Frost took two run outs and the team bowled tightly enough. In the second match against hosts, Stoke Gabriel, Kat Frost again proved unstoppable with (33* from 17) and Charlotte Shutt made 24 from 12 as Cornwood posted 142-4. Erica Upton was the only Cornwood bowler to take a wicket as Stoke Gabriel made 120-1. Two wins from two puts the team in the box seat of their group, with two games in hand and a better net run rate than Bovey Tracey.
Sunday was also another milestone day for the Fives as Cornwood played its first fixture in the South Devon Cricket League for 18 seasons. Six of the team fielded on Sunday were not alive when Cornwood finished 7th in Division 4 in 2007. Somewhat confusingly, the first game of the campaign was against South Devon. Fielding first, Eoin Hewitt and Lennon Way posed early questions as Jackson Evans scored 41 for the hosts. Two wickets for Noah’s Garland and Knapman, a Rocky Travers run out and three sharp catches from Freddie Joynes were highlights in a fast and furious South Devon innings of 192 in 28.4 overs. Dilip Salinda top scored for SDCC with 54 before being bamboozled by Ross Warner’s bowling. Ross and Rocky Travers, Cornwood’s own Rock and Block Connection, batted through to tea and put on 106 unbeaten for the first wicket. Rocky put away the bad balls for 50* from 43 with 11 fours. Ross made 28 from 65 before he barbequed himself. South Devon came back into it with 3-17 for Jackson Evans. However, a 38 stand from Eoin Hewitt and Marc Whaley would’ve seen the team over the line, but for Marc Whaley being run out sprinting for a third with only two runs needed. Eoin finished things off next ball and the Fives won by 3 wickets.
Half-term week for the Colts and the Under 15s headed on tour to South Wales. After all the spring sunshine, the tour started with pouring rain and a chance to explore Glamorgan CCC’s headquarters, Sophia Gardens. The team visited the club museum, media centre, dressing rooms, the square and got to have a net. The rain was terminal for the first tour match against Vale CC but day 2 brightened as the team headed to the island to play Barry Athletic. In a one sided 30 over game, Cornwood won by 130 runs with retirement 50s for Ayaan, Neel and Stanley. There were two wickets a piece for Eoin, Tom and Stanley. Highlight of the week was the game against Lisvane. In a match that ebbed and flowed, Ollie hit 47 and Samuel 34 in a Cornwood total of 174. Lisvane needed 20 from the last over, but managed 19 for the tie with some heroic batting from Kyran. The drama of a super over ensued, with Seb clinching the outcome with a double wicket maiden. Congratulations to Colts Manager Ryan Hewitt for organising the tour with his assistant coaches Julian Burrows and Simon Garland.
Next week, the Ones come home to Oak Park to host Exmouth, the Twos head to South Devon, the Threes play Plympton 2s and the Fours are home to Ivybridge 3s. On Sunday, the SDCL adventure continues for the Fives with a trip to Ashburton and there’s softball action at Delamore Park.
Comments