It was a scorcher vs Chesham this week, and after losing the toss we were sent into the field under a blazing sun on a flat, slow deck that offered absolutely nothing for the bowlers. Chesham batted well and we struggled to find a breakthrough early on, despite keeping things reasonably tight. The turning point came through some tidy middle overs from Deepesh and a couple of crucial late wickets for the skipper, both finishing with two apiece to help peg Chesham back to 270 from their 45. Given the pitch and outfield, we were confident we could chase it down. The reply got off to a slow start, and we lost Alex Martin early to an unconventional “Lowey” that caught everyone off guard. But the Stefs steadied things, Stef S with a fluent 41, before Ian (51) joined Stef B (68) and batted brilliantly to take us into a position of real strength at 200/3, needing just 70 from the final 11 overs. What followed, though, was a classic Chenies collapse. A steady procession of wickets saw us lose all momentum and get bowled out for 234, with only the skipper showing late resistance with 14 not out. A tough one to take, and a costly day in the fines pot with eight dropped catches doing us no favours. We regroup and go again next week with plenty still to play for.

The 2nd XI travelled to Ickenham where the toss was lost and we were invited to bat first. An early setback saw Vaibhav dismissed early in the innings. However, we demonstrated remarkable resilience and refused to let these initial challenges define the performance. Jon played a crucial role in steadying the ship with a well-composed innings, providing stability and ensuring the team didn't lose further momentum. The innings was then ignited by an explosive 70-run partnership between Ali Jawad and Kiran, with Kiran contributing a rapid 40 runs. This dynamic partnership injected much-needed impetus into the innings, shifting the momentum firmly in our favour. Later, Zain added a valuable 36 runs, further bolstering the score and helping the team surpass the 200-run mark. Ali Javed continued his impressive form, registering a fine innings of 71 runs, showcasing his consistency and importance to the team's batting lineup.
Ickenham's initial partnership at the crease, which yielded a total of 78 runs, initially created the impression that the run chase would be straightforward . However, this perception was soon changed when Brian was introduced, delivered a particularly effective ball that led to the dismissal of one of the opening batsmen, thus disrupting Ickenham's momentum. Following this breakthrough, Kiran stepped up and made a significant contribution by claiming 3 crucial wickets, further impeding Ickenham's progress and placing them under increasing pressure. Rehan and Anand then followed the path, adding to the team's collective effort by each taking wickets of their own. The match was played under challenging circumstances, with high temperatures and physically demanding conditions testing the players' fitness. Despite these difficulties, 2's showed a determination, maintaining a high level of enthusiasm and commitment. I felt like we were about 20–30 runs short. With 8 balls to spare the opponents cruised to victory.

The 3rd XI travelled to Barnes to face Kew 4th XI. They lost. By a lot. No report was filed.

Over to Luke for his weekly ramblings: Hello from Cornwall, I’m sat here, on the beach yet again curating this Sunday’s match report. There’s just something about a sandy bum which gets the reports flowing. I walked past the most unbelievable cricket ground right by the sea yesterday, it was Bude North Cornwall CC!! And instantly I thought wow, this would be a truly ideal location for a C&LCC Tour to Cornwall. #getkeen #CandLTour2026! Does the committee need a tour sec? ;). Anyway, this Sunday our XI of brave men took on Little Missenden Misfits in our second running away game with Match Teas too! Sunday cricket is healing! Skippered by Brian Shipley, we were put into have a bowl first. The oppo proceeded to nail 323 from 36 overs, with the wickets spread between William Anderson, Luke Hargreaves and Ayan Patel. All three of those bowlers I’ve been told chucked ‘em down particularly well. lil Lukey also got the wicket of their best player, Billy this week too - just as he did last year!! He’s your bunny mate let him know! The total in front of us looked very daunting indeed as we tucked into our scones (or scones, depending on how poncey you want to sound!). However, thankfully our skipper for this week had some form of tactical nouse and a cricket brain, which really makes for a change - this meant that we played a timed game as we tend to do v LMMCC. Mr Shipley’s tactical mastery begun, opening the batting with the returning Majib, who hit some sorely needed runs for us and got up to 43! Little Luke got up to 15 runs in the middle order, but the game was saved by a gritty batting performance by our tail of William and Brian - who took the game to a well earned draw. Very well done yet again boys. Makes me very proud seeing the huge difference in results the team is getting this year compared to recent years. Getting over the line and earning a draw was something that we could not do last year versus this team gents, so very well done!!

So, after a disappointing 3 losses on Saturday, and a draw on Sunday, it was over to the Women on Sunday to bring back the winning feeling, and didn’t they just:

The Women welcomed Beaconsfield Women’s 2nd XI to the CCG for their season opener. Captain Emily won the toss and decided to bat. Early wickets fell as the unpredictable bounce of the fresh wicket challenged the top order leaving Chenies under pressure at 22-3. Amelia arrived at the crease with calm confidence and transformed the game. She absorbed the pressure from the opening bowlers and then played with freedom to reach a phenomenal 92 not out. Amazingly, she finished on a strike rate of 162! She was supported by Emily, contributing a vital 34 in an important partnership between the 2 totalling 99. Their efforts took Chenies to 167-5 at the close of innings. A remarkable turnaround from a shaky start and they were confident in their bowling attack. Chenies delivered an incredible performance in the field to dismiss Beaconsfield for just 83 runs in 25 overs. Beaconsfield struggled to build partnerships as wickets fell at regular intervals. Gurleen shone with figures of 3-13, while Twisha was incredible, taking 3-7. Amelia, Emily and Shayna all took a wicket each. Behind the stumps, wicketkeeping duties were shared between Sophie and Emily, both excellent and helped maintain pressure on the batters. Overall, there were many positives to carry forward from this match into the rest of the season- from well-distributed wickets and Amelia’s outstanding knock to the sharp fielding display from everyone. It was an emphatic win to start the season. Amelia was deservedly named Player of the Match for her exceptional batting performance. A big thank you to Simon for scoring and to Nick for umpiring.

Next week the 1st XI welcome Hounslow & Whitton 2nd XI to the CCG, the 2nd XI travel to High Wycombe 5s and the 3rd XI host Slough 7s. The Sunday XI have an away game at Wraysbury and the Women 1st XI have a home game against Slough 2s.

Colts:
The colts season is up and running with the usual vibrancy at Chenies on Sunday mornings alongside the sunshine.

Colts managers – please do send in your match reports for inclusion in the bulletin
U12 Lions vs Beaconsfield. The team delivered an outstanding performance marked by balance and resilience. After winning the toss, Kiyaan’s decision to bat first paved the way for a strong start from the opening pair, Charlie and Lohan. Although Lohan was unfortunate to depart early, Charlie maintained an impressive, unbeaten innings. Teja’s stylish play topped the scorecard at 32, with valuable contributions from Dhiren, Harry, and Dhani further strengthening the foundation. Kiyaan was unlucky to get a golden duck. However, he ensured that he came back strong with an early couple of wickets , while everyone in the bowling lineup showcased their skill. We welcomed Gus to the U12 lions, who bowled really well. He is still 10 and played 2 years up. Haris and Daniel were unfortunate not get a wicket. Moreover, Harry and Dhiren’s exemplary wicket-keeping—conceding only six byes—highlighted their meticulous skill. The fielding, too, rose to the challenge of a demanding venue, with well-taken catches and smart run-outs underscoring the team’s attentiveness and coordination. Historically we have always struggled at this venue with fielding. Fantastic positive spirit was on display from the parents to players which reflected in their performance. Round of applause to everyone. Our special thanks to Kaiser for his umpiring and we look forward to the next match and hopefully wrapping up the league title.

Teas / coffees and cakes will be on sale every Sunday morning in the pavilion. All cakes are home-made by Zaynab Haq and all proceeds will go directly to the club. We have a card payment machine so please do avail yourself of the fayre on sale, and save yourself the trip to the coffee shop on the way to the club.

In other news:
2025 Subscriptions are now due and available on the website. Thanks to those that have already paid. Full details at this link https://www.chenies-cricket.org/a/subscriptions-46652.html Please pay promptly and early, many of the club running costs are loaded to this time of the year so we do need funds to be coming in so that we can maintain a healthy cash flow. Also remember that you are not insured via the club if you have not paid your subscription.

Overseas Player - We are delighted that we will have the services of a fast bowler from Grenada this year. We have sorted accommodation for him but just need a job. He is looking for manual work – if you can help out please reach out to Stef Saleem on 07780 530300

Personal Coaching – if you want to find that next level in your game from personalised 1:1 coaching then reach out to Roshan Dias on 07427 926943 or visit his website here

An appeal for further help to run the club
Our wonderful club has seen unprecedented growth over the past few years. Credit goes to everyone at the club for facilitating this, but special credit goes to the management committee for working so hard to develop and grow the club.
The downside to this is that the workload upon the committee has also grown such that it is no longer possible for our officials to cope and run the club efficiently or effectively.
We are therefore appealing for members to come forward to help.

The first appeal is for someone to take up the position of Sponsorship Manager: Sponsorship is a significant yet untapped opportunity for funding at our club. We are looking for someone to manage and nurture our existing sponsors, and to proactively work to develop new sponsorship partnerships. The role could easily be shared among 2 or 3 people. If you are interested please speak to Dave Brown or Simon Hargreaves.

Our mantra is ‘many hands make light work’ and we are looking for 2, 3 or 4 people in each of the following areas to form a small team working with the committee member responsible for that area. None of these are committee positions so you don’t have to worry about coming along to meetings; all we’re asking is to get involved and help out in a way that suits you:

Our bar is going from strength to strength under the stewardship of Mick French. But he can’t be there all the time and if we are going to open more frequently with publicised hours then we’ll need volunteers to take on shifts behind the bar. If you’re interested in joining a group of volunteers who could take on shifts occasionally then please contact Mick (mickbeernut@gmail.com / 07771 866370)

An intra club Fantasy Cricket game has been set up by Alex Walker. These are great fun – you just pick a team of 6 from the club’s players and see how their points rack up for your team based upon performances. Entry is just £3. Go to http://chenies-latimer.fantasyclubcricket.co.uk/. Player prices will change each week based on form and anyone not in the database yet will be added automatically once they play a league game.

Instagram – some great work behind the scenes has revived our Instagram account and we’ll be posting regularly and aften throughout the season. Please follow us @chenieslatimercc and @chenieswomenscricket

Also make sure you have downloaded the club app and have your Pitchero account profile set up to receive communications from the club. More details here

For all club kit and clothing requirements, please visit https://www.chenies-cricket.org/a/club-kit-58457.html and contact Dave Brown to order.

Our kit supplier, Chiltern Sports, are also open if you need to acquire any playing equipment. They are well stocked with Shoes, bats, helmets, pads and gloves plus all other playing accessories that you might need. Call the shop on 01296 613399 or Richard Young on 07831 662874.