Wellington Cricket Club

Analysis of the final Somerset Cricket League tables with respect to Wellington CC reveals that the club’s two league sides achieved good finishes overall in the 2005 season.

The 1st XI, who play in Division One of the league’s 1st XI competition (final table below) were virtually unbreachable at home – they lost their first home match with Chew Magna on 14th May and were not beaten again all season at Courtland Road – seven wins and a tie followed.

Contrast this with an away record of only one win (at Chew Magna on 16th July) and the Red and Blacks fifth position is explained by a season which had a certain symmetry – one home loss contrasted with only one away win – making for a fifth place (i.e. half way) finish.

This is the team’s best finish since been relegated from the Somerset Division of the WECCC at the end of the 2002 season.

SCL 1st XI Final Table

Wellington 2nd XI had a fine season, but was one that was also characterised by the difficult situations that were caused by the cancellations of successive home games with Peasedown St John 2nd XI and Burnham-on-Sea 2nd XI – both these teams withdrew from the scheduled matches at Wellington through been unable to raise a team.

The potential lost points in these fixtures would have pushed Wellington 2nd XI closer to second-placed Staplegrove 2nd XI and promotion.

The team went through the second half of the season unbeaten and thus recorded their best final position since 2001.

SCL 2nd XI Final Table

The Sunday XI’s season in Division One of the Three Counties League will be covered as and when the final league tables for this competition become available.

The indoor fixtures for the 2005-2006 winter season are now out and can be found below. As you are probably aware there is to be no Wellington School based competition this winter, so the focus for the club through the coming winter months will be at the County Ground in Taunton.
Thom Trott will captain the indoor team this winter and all indoor enquiries should be addressed to either Thom or David Derrick.

Wellington’s 2005 season ended in a disappointing ten wicket Three Counties League Division One defeat at Chard last Sunday when the Red and Blacks never really came to terms with the pitch they were confronted with.

Chard had no hesitation in asking Wellington to bat first and this decision was totally vindicated as Wellington slid to 7-3 in the third over as hard luck, a great catch and some injudicious running cost them dear.
Rupert Green and Chris Kitto added 68 fourth wicket runs for Wellington that were much needed.
Kitto overcame a nervous start to make a fine 32 that saw him drive down the ground with style.
Green crafted an excellent 45 and he was looking like been Wellington’s best hope of a posting a competitive total when he was run out.
The skids then returned to the Wellington innings although Grant Davey and Ben Green did add thirteen runs for the ninth wicket.
Wellington were all out for 116 in 34.1 overs with all Chard’s bowlers doing good work for their team.

Wellington’s bowlers tried all they could, but they could not separate Crabb and N.Crew who reached the target of 118 with time and overs to spare.
Crew made an excellent 81no and Crabb a limpet like 23no as the home side took 19 points to Wellington’s five.

Wellington’s Sunday XI’s trip to Uphill Castle last weekend to take on a mixed 2nd and 3rd XI was claimed by the weather as play was abandoned after Wellington had faced 26 overs.

Played against a backdrop of dark, scudding skies and the constant threat of rain Wellington opted to bat on winning the toss and John Paine and Thom Trott made solid progress against Uphill’s opening attack.
This pair put on 23 before Humphries got one through Paine’s defences on his way to claiming 3-23 in 8 good overs.
Trott was given several lives as he was bowled off of a no-ball and was dropped off of a caught-and-bowled chance as well.
In the end he hit rather tamely to Uphill skipper Clapson at mid-off and was gone for 13.
Stuart Currall played a watchful knock of 19no and was at the crease when the match was abandoned as a draw.
Alex Sparks played a couple of powerful shots, but was well caught in close for 10 at a time when he was looking dangerous for Wellington.
At 91-6 in 26 overs tea was taken with a view to assessing the situation, but incessant rain and thundery conditions caused the game to be abandoned as a draw at 5pm.

Wellington Sunday XI rewrote the record books last weekend when they meted out a ten-wicket defeat to Somerset League Division Three side Langport on their own ground and with it posted a new club record first wicket stand in friendly fixtures and the second highest club wicket partnership ever at league or friendly level.

The game was in doubt however as a ruptured water pipe flooded one end of the ground and a short boundary was thus created with a lake running behind it.

Langport opted to bat first and after losing a wicket early got down to posting their own good score of 247-4. Excellent knocks from Paul (73), P.Curd (41), Strang (39*) and K.Curd (56*) ensured that Wellington did not have an easy time of it in the field in the hot, humid and thundery conditions.

Paul Short bowled beautifully to take 2-14 in 8 overs as his combination of flight and loop was hard to get away.
Rupert Green bowled well, but was always up against it bowling from the short end of the ground where the boundary had been brought in.
Richard Das Neves – in his last game for Wellington before returning to his native South Africa – bowled better than 1-38 in 8 overs might suggest.
Thom Trott gained some good bounce and pace and he was rewarded for his efforts when stand-in keeper Andy Perry held a chance from Langport’s Paul.
He had taken over the gloves when Sam Cook’s injured finger became too sore for him to continue in this vital position.

But Strang and K.Curd added 107 unbroken fifth wicket runs for the home side leaving Wellington 40 overs to get 248 to win – a big ask.

Try telling that to Rob Moysey and Richard Das Neves who plundered 252 runs between them in just 26 overs as they laid into the home attack with venom.
Das Neves hit 124 not out and in the process broke the club’s individual runs in a season record and Moysey cracked 110no.
Langport could do nothing to stop the incessant flow of boundaries all around the ground and out of it as well as this pair of batsmen played nigh-on perfect innings.
The Wellington run rate was around 10 per over all innings and that is surely some sort of record in itself.

Quite a game really…!

This was a high scoring game in Division Two of the Somerset League’s Reserves competition at Courtland Road last Saturday. Wellington 2nd XI prevailed and with it, scuppered Butleigh 2nd XI’s real hopes of promotion to Division One of the Reserves competition, as they needed a win to stay above promotion rivals Staplegrove.

Butleigh opted to bat on winning the toss and elected to take first use of an excellent track, and make use of it they did with a 1st wicket stand of 164 between Andrews (95) and Smith (72).
Short, Lee, Mitchell and both Rudd’s wheeled away for over after over with no success.
Martin Short’s figures of 0-29 in 10 overs were excellent in the circumstances and Simon and Chris Rudd got through several overs quickly, suddenly the run rate didn’t look so impressive, despite no wickets being taken.

The stand was finally broken by Bob Trott in the 37th over and Adrian Lee then weighed in with 2 wickets in the following over to make Butleigh’s scoring rate dwindle. They managed to get to 221-6 in 45overs, but with wickets in hand, they would have been dissapointed not to score faster – Lee took 4-47 in 9 good overs as Wellington pulled
things back nicely.

After losing a wicket at 2 Rupert Green and Alex Sparks added 91 for the second wicket and Wellington were going in the right direction.
Green struck 45 and Sparks made a third consecutive league half-century in making 69 in a quality knock from the teenager, hitting 8 boundaries.

Kevin Crout weighed in with 11 and a rapid 16 from Chris Rudd saw Wellington through to 163-5 with Simon Rudd and James Dyke joining at the crease – they took the score to 188-6 when Dyke was out.
Cue Rudd and Adrian Lee to win the game in style for Wellington as Rudd made 48no and Lee won the match in the grand manner with a six to take 31 points to Butleigh’s 16.

With Staplegrove beating bottom side Burnham-on-Sea it is they and not Butleigh who will join divisional winners Taunton Deane 3rd XI in Division One of the SCL Reserves competition next season.
Wellington 2nd XI finish fourth and this is fine effort from James Dyke, Bob Trott and their charges.

Butleigh opted to take first knock on a green wicket and were aided by some wayward Wellington bowling as 16 wides were delivered – this had a major effect on the outcome of the game as it turned out.
Thom Trott removed Gibbs for a duck that took 23 balls and 42 minutes to ‘compile’ to make the first breakthrough.
Smith looked like he meant business before John Paine got him with one that never really got up and he was LBW for 10.
Metcalfe joined Price and they looked set before Price was run out on a misfield and he had gone for 42.
Paul Short and Richard Das Neves had joined the attack by now and in combination they reduced Butleigh to 125-6 and Wellington were looking on top, but Shepperd and Durston added 47 for the seventh wicket in a stand that really dented Wellington’s confidence.
Kevin Symons eventually broke the stand, but the damage had been done you felt.
Thom Trott returned to the attack and ended up with 2-26 in 11 overs and Symons 1-45 in 11 as Butleigh closed on 191-8 in 45 overs at tea.

Rob Moysey and Mark Salter added a patient 46 runs at the top of the Wellington order as they saw off the initial burst from Hicks and Say.

But the introduction of the teasing left-arm spin of Shepperd had Wellington in a spin as the score dipped to 53-3.
Thom Trott made a pleasant knock of 24 that saw him hit over the top very well indeed, but Shepperd snared him too, well caught by Metcalfe on the boundary.
At 103-6 Wellington were in a spot of bother, but Marc Holloway was a man for the moment and he crafted an excellent 54no in 76 balls that held things together for the Red and Blacks.
Alec Short added 45 with Holloway and this raised Wellington’s score nicely, but they were never truly in danger of overhauling the 192 needed to win.
Short was run out as too was his elder brother Richard as Wellington chased quick runs and it was left to Holloway and Sam Cook to see time out for Wellington who made it to 166-8 in their 45 overs and sixteen points to Butleigh’s 32.
A record of only one home defeat coupled with only one away win sees that Wellington will finish fifth in Division One of the Somerset League this season. The away record needs to be improved on for next season and if it can then the team could really be in the hunt for honours.