Brentwoodian 2019

71 The U14B team had a good season this year; we had a lot of games, and often finished on top of the scoreboard. The season started with a fine win over Bishop’s Stortford College and finished with a great win over New Hall (our biggest rival). The boys all enjoyed the season and put lots of hard work into the matches and training sessions during games and on Wednesday after-school training. We have all learnt a lot this year and improved in every aspect of the game especially our fielding and bowling. There were some very obvious changes in the players’ performances from last year, especially from Luke Farrow, who bowled some amazing spells getting wickets in almost every match and in one game he got three maiden overs, and four wickets. Nahiyan Islam also made some fine catches throughout the season, most of the time on the boundary or diving though the air and catching the ball with one hand. I feel very privileged to play with such a great hardworking team and I can’t wait for the next season, to see the team improve even further and win even more games. I am very grateful for the effort the boys have put into the season and for all the hard work and dedication the coaches, in particular Mr Clark, have made to develop the team as cricket players. By Max Kingaby U14 B Having ended the previous season unbeaten, as Essex Cup Winners, hopes were high that we could continue to perform and once again compete well in the Cup competitions. After an initial win versus Felsted in the opening match of the season, we were drawn away to St Faith’s in the National Cup round 1. Following a good batting display against a strong bowling and fielding side, where we posted 152-5 in 25 overs (William Howard 69no, Harry Douris 27no), St Faith’s managed to reach the total with a couple of balls to spare, and we were left to rue a few close calls in a very tight match. The team trained hard and got back to winning ways, recording victories against Berkhamsted, Highgate, Forest, UCS and Singapore United. The U13 also became the first Brentwood team to win the prestigious St Joseph’s College 6-a-side tournament, winning all group matches, semi-final and final, on a great day for the School. We were keen to retain the Essex Cup and in the quarter- final met New Hall. Batting first we posted 164 in 30 overs, restricting New Hall to 75 all out. In the semi-final we met Bancroft’s and after restricting their strong batting line-up, we managed to get the required runs in a timely fashion to reach the final once again. The final was delayed until the start of the new School year and we met a strong Forest side. Batting first on a tired wicket, we posted 102-9, a 42 for William Howard and a couple of cameos from George Mortlock and Zach Puchakayala the only batting returns. As ever we battled hard in the field, and had a couple of fantastic catches from Harry Douris, and wickets from the three Freddies, Thorn, Abbott and Wren, but ultimately it wasn’t enough and Forest chased down their target with a couple of overs to spare; very disappointing, but an opportunity to learn and develop for next season. A huge thank you to Mr Wright, Mr Mickelburgh and all the staff and coaches who put so much hard work into our season to help us develop and perform; we all very much appreciate everything you do for us. By William Howard U13 A This year the U13B cricket team had an amazing chemistry. We were very positive about things and had a good record, 6 wins from 8 fixtures. Our season started at Berkhamsted School with a loss by 9 wickets, generally too strong for us in all areas. Our second game was against Highgate school with a pleasing win by 8 wickets, having bowled them out for 79 with 6 different bowlers taking wickets. Victory against Forest followed the following week, some of the best batting all season and we won by 6 wickets, Callum Donovan 44* and Alex Pine 27*. In the next game against University College School, we had the best game by far all season; we won by 134 runs, having scored 150, Oren Goddard 43* being the top scorer, and then bowled them out for 16 runs, again wickets shared evenly but Leo Troubridge and Cameron Joy were exceptional. Other notable victories came against St Martin’s and New Hall. Highlights included some amazing run-outs from Thibaud Mathieson, Jed Southgate’s cameo batting vs Shenfield, the fact we used 18 different players throughout the short season without ever weakening the performances and everyone making a contribution in some capacity. Thanks to Mr Wingrove for his encouragement and support. Bring on U14’s in 2020! By Callum Donovan U13 B