2001

A well attended and lively AGM heard Tim Keighley announce that Powell's Shopfitters, of Andover, had agreed to sponsor the 1st X1 for £2,000. This was some very welcome geood financial news as earlier Phil Knight (Hon. Tres.) had begun the proceedings with a fairly gloomy Financial Report, which saw the Cub return a deficit for the second year in succession. Following on, the Chairman, Brian Funnell's report was dominated by the parlous financial state we are in. Several radical suggestions were made chief among which was the proposal that certain members be approached to give the Club an interest free loan in order to get rid of this deficit. In the end after considerable discussion, the decision was made to make the annual subscription fee £70 but to ask members to make a further, voluntary, donation to the Club of £25.

Captains' reports. There was a general theme to the captains' reports throughout the evening which was the way in which previous positions had been consolidated yet ultimately there was a sense of disappointment at final results. Jerry Hayward, retiring 1st X1 skipper, reflected on a season in which only four Saturday games were won. However, there was much satisfaction from reaching the mid-week cup final, even if the result was a let down. However, if the last four seasons were to be judged as a whole then we must be proud of the position the 1st X1 have managed to secure.

Stuart Clackson commented on how much turbulence had seen many young players promoted to the 2nd X1 and how they had performed well, although consistency had been lacking. It was certain that they would continue to develop but he could foresee that the unsettled nature of the team might continue into 2002.

Paul Collin's report was read out in his absence by the Chairman. He commented on a poor start to the season but then the team went on a ten match unbeaten run and ended up as runners-up in the league to be promoted for the second year in succession. There were also some other comments made by Paul which the threat of libel prevent us from publishing.

John Baxter reported that the 4th X1 ended in a mid table position. It was a small concern that the 4th X1 had become almost a 'Vets' team as many youngsters, who would normally play at this level, were being pulled through to play for the higher teams.

Alan Ellwood's 5th X1 had ended another successful season in which they only just missed out on promotion. Another cause for celebration had been the bowling of Fran Andrews who had won the League Bowling award.

The reports from the Sunday X1 skippers were all agreed on one thing that the younger members of the club had come through and were making significant contributions. The seconds reported their reason for success in winning the Border League for the third year on the trot.

For Officers of the Club go to the 'Officer' section above. Saturday Captains were as follows: 1st X1 Cpt: R. Miller, 2nd X1 Cpt: T. Keighley, 3rd X1 Cpt: A. Page, 4th X1 Cpt: J.S. Baxter, 5th X1 Cpt: G.A. Ellwood.

Andy Hooper spoke about the developments in the Pavilion saga - go to 'New Pavilion Progress' above for details.

Indoor nets begin at 7.30pm on the 1st Friday in February at John Hanson School.

The Players' Meeting was delayed as the present 1st X1 skipper wished to watch the performance on TV of a certain, Kylie Minogue, a female singer of Australian origin. When it finally got under way there was lengthy discussion about the state of the Club and positive ways of moving forward. JB, deputising for John Copleston, began by outlining the season just gone and pointed out that in, what had seemed, a mediocre season still left the club in a position that many clubs would give "their eye teeth for", ie 1st X1 member of Gold League and went to the final of the mid-week cup, 5 full senior elevens who fulfilled every fixture, 3rd X1 won promotion up to County 3 and the best run colts section in Hampshire.

The meeting didn't have any powers to make decisions but did come up with several recommendations for the Club to consider at the AGM. Sunday cricket came up for discussion and it was pointed out that with the possible change to U15s club competition being held on Sundays in 2003 then a third eleven could become even more difficult to run. It was also brought to everyone's attention that the number of all day games played by the 1st X1 made it difficult for players with families to play on a Sunday.

Cricket week - there was a proposal that cricket week be moved to occupy the week following the second May Bank holiday. It was felt that more players would be keen to play at this end of the season and it would help early season integration. It was also proposed that a sub-committee be formed to run cricket week. This would comprise the managers of each day's team and a co-ordinator.

More involvement was asked for in coaching youngsters in mid week. If every member of the 1st & 2nd X1 gave up one night then each player would only have to do one a year. There was also a call for a greater coaching involvement in the post 15 age group with coaches being encouraged to help players through difficult phases of their seasons.

Captains:- Jerry Hayward and Stuart Clackson announced that they would not be standing as captains this year. There was a long discussion on the role of captains in general and possible successors. It would be unfair to put out names here.

It was proposed that one early season match day be given over to a 'Trial' style match for potential 1st/2nd X1 players.

Brian Funnell announced the dates for League AGMs. The Hampshire League AGM is particularly important as it will involve the winding up of the league and the setting up of the new Wessex league.

September 22nd: The last match of the season ended with glorious sunshine at the May's Bounty, against Basingstoke. The home side put out a strong side, featuring six 1st X1 players. Andover had Jerry Hayward and Matt Hooper along with a selection of 2nd/3rd/4th/5th X1 players. Mike Adams opened the bowling and suffered the bowling nightmare. Unable to direct the ball he ended up bowling a twelve ball over which cost 25 runs. Matt Guilfoyle then injured himself trying to stop a boundary and suddenly the Andover bowling resources were looking thin. JB and Matt Hoops then bowled in tandem for 17 overs each. JB claimed 5 wickets as Basingstoke finally closed on 236 - 6 from 42 overs. The Andover youngsters put up a spirited reply with Mark Copleston leading the way scoring 31, Mike Adams regained some confidence and ended in credit with 26, Jerry Hayward made 24. However, Basingstoke's defensive fields meant that runs were never easy to come by and it was left to Matt & Ali Hoops to bat out the final overs for the game to end in a draw.

Sunday 16th September: The Club signed off the season at London Rd in some style with a comfortable win over Hursley Park. Mark Copleston with 85 and Tim Brown with 86 led the way with a stand of 160 for the third wicket. The Andover total of 203 for four was too many and Hursley were dismissed for 120+. Terry Neale - 3, Matt Hooper - 2, Andrew Clark - 2, Chris Hadfield - 2 and Mike Adams - 1 were the wicket takers. JB, who was skippering, the side had to make a call from the middle to the Pavilion on his mobile 'phone during his umpiring stint to arrange drinks as nobody seemed to be responding to his signals to that effect. Only one more game next weekend away to Basingstoke. For details of all the Autumn activities see below.

Thursday 13th September: All matches are off this Saturday. Sadly we had contacted Bracknell to tell them we could only raise one team this week and were honouring our 1st X1 fixture at home, whereupon Rowledge contacted us to call the game off as they couldn't raise a team. At the moment the home game against Hursley park at London Rd is still on for Sunday.

Sun 9th September: The Seconds duly completed their third consecutive Border League Championship by beating Thatcham at London Rd. Andover scored 230, with 70 from James Green and 43 from Dale Green. Thatcham got off to a good start but fell away once the 'cheating' opener had been dismissed. Three wickets in one over for Andrew green wrapped the innings up.

Saturday 2nd September: 1st X1 lost their final league game at home to South Wilts by five wickets. meanwhile on the Isle of Wight the 2nds managed a remarkable win by 80+. Batting first Andover scored 246 with a 'ton for Ian Gardner and 46 for Stuart Clackson. Then just when Shanklin thought they were getting on top of things the secret weapon was unleashed and Dale Green brought on to bowl. His first over went 4ww... and he ended up with five wickets to bowl Shanklin out for 160.

August 25th:1st and 2nd X1s are defeated. Congratulations to the 3rd X1 who score 275 with 'Smiler' getting 80+ and thus ensuring runners-up slot and promotion to County Div. 3. 4th X1 come back from 38-5 to beat Portchester by 4 wickets. John Cop, Richard Channon and Terry Neale the heroes of this great comeback. Result of the day has to be the 5th X1 who end an excellent season for them by beating top of the table Draper Tools.

August 20th: Cricket week starts today with a game against Chase Sports. Tomorrow sees the return of the District X1 led by Pat Littlehales, Wednesday its the turn of the Staggerers, Thursday is the President's Match whilst Friday sees the match against our old friends from Southend on their way home from their tour of Devon.

August 18th: "The rain it raineth every day". 1st/2nd/3rd & 4th X1 games all had to be abandoned. Perhaps the most frustrated were the 4ths who had bowled out Sherfield-on-Loddon for 63 and reached 8 without loss after two overs. Everyone hung around for as long as they could before going home. What made it doubly frustrating was that had they started again with the minimum number of overs to make it a game, Sherfield's score would have been reduced to 30 and Andover would have needed just 23 to win from a further 18 overs!!! The 5th X1 managed a nine wicket win. Liam Poore again demonstrating his growing potential with 40.

August 11th: An awful day for results. 1st/2nd/4th & 5th X1s all lost. The only joy came from the 3rd X1 who are now right in the frame as they push for promotion. Next week's match against Chawton will be a crunch game.

4th August: This was the weekend from hell. A total of twenty five players from the senior section were unavailable due to work or holiday commitments and as a result there were some strange decisions having to be made as to where players ended up spending their Saturday afternoons. The 1st X1 gave a debut to Mark Copleston whilst the identity of the 2nd X1 skipper wasn't decided until 12.45pm. Club Captain John Copleston is to be congratulated for the gargantuan effort on Friday night in seeing to it that all five fixtures were honoured with a full compliment of players/umpires/scorers. Finally the gods of cricket using what passes for humour and wit had the last say as the 2nd/3rd team games were washed out. 1st X1 put up a brave fight at table topping Havant but lost. 4ths lost to their own division title challengers but the 5ths won away against the Steamers.

News of the Tour by Tim 'Two Boxes' Brown

Andover embarked on their Devon cricket tour on Monday 30th July, playing 4 games of cricket in 5 days. The first game at Kilmington saw Andover rattle up 281 for 5 with Stuart Clackson making 92, Tim Brown 71 not out and Luke Pragnell 52. In reply Kilmington replied slowly to the good opening bursts from Neil Shield and Andrew Green. The hosts lost regular wickets to the bowling of Andrew Clark (5 for 55) but dropped catches cost Andover a win and Kilmington closed with 191 for 9. However, a pleasing start to the tour.

On Tuesday Andover took on Clifton Village from Notts at the pretty Sidmouth cricket ground. Andover batted first and managed to accumulate 240 for 8 dec. thanks to Marc Kavanagh (74) Neil Shield (52) and a quick fire 33 from Tim Brown. This score looked a testing one but Bob Chapman, a former player for Worcs and Notts, scored a very fast half century and Andover soon found themselves on the back foot. Clarky once again bowled well taking 6 for 67 but Andover's bowlers lacked control and Clifton's target was reached for the loss of 7 wickets

With no game on the Wednesday due the cup final at the rose bowl, some players return to spectate and some spent a splendid day at Exmouth beach in the blazing sunshine, with regular updates coming from the Rose Bowl!!

The returning players were greeted by heavy rain in Exeter on Thursday and with little prospect of much play the feeling in the camp was to sit in front of the tv and watch the AUSSIES hammer England to all parts, however the Heathcoat captain phoned tour manager Jock Ellwood and informed him every thing was ok. Indeed that turned out to be the case because play finally got under way an hour late with Andover making 201 all out; Kavs 60, James Green 30 and Luke Pragnell 23. Ian Gardner (4 for 26) and Ali Fleming !!!!!!! (3 for 44) bowled well to restrict the home side to 175-8 in reply as the tail held on well.

On the final day, at Warminster the party turned up to find one incredibly short boundary one side. This was to Marc Kavanagh's advantage as he smashed his way to century (106). He was well supported by Clarky !!!!!! (47) who got off the mark with his first ever "six" Andover finshed on 261 for 6 and after some early expensive bowling from Ali Fleming (19 from first over !!!!) Andover soon restricted Warminster to 201 all out and Luke Pragnell claimed a spot for club all rounder taking 4 for 43. He helped by Rob James 2 for 32 and Tim Brown 2 for 17 amused the crowd with a spell consisting mostly of bowling impressions.

On a lighter note several things took place on tour worthy of note, including a rather nasty cooking accident in whch Dale "the snail" Green burnt the toast he was cooking for breakfast. This led to almost the entire Exeter fire brigade being called out. Also it didn't turn out to be a good tour for Dale as he and oldest son James, along with Neil Shield were refused entry to a night club, minutes after the younger Andrew Green had walked straight in past the bouncer on the door.

All in all a great tour for all involved, good cricket backed up with a lot of drinking, even if it was only reef and Smirnoff ice!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

August 1st: The sun shone late into the evening at the Rose Bowl, Hedge End. Andover vs Lymington, neither team had ever won the mid-week trophy, now sponsored by Southern Electric but still known by many as the ‘Echo Trophy’.

Andover had flourished throughout the early rounds by batting first and posting large scores so when Jerry Hayward won the toss and decided to bat it came as no surprise to anyone. However, the Lymington bowlers had not read their script and they were soon applying a vice like grip on the Andover batsmen. Wickets fell regularly and no one was able to break free of the shackles. Kavs tried manfully to make his mark and was the top scorer for Andover. When the innings finally closed on 95 the outlook was grim.

Lymington began in a hurry and ended the whole innings quickly with the necessary runs coming from just 14 overs for the loss of one wicket.

It was a great disappointment for everyone but the team must take pride in their performance in getting to the final at all and it must have been a great thrill to play at the Rose Bowl. In years to come when the memory of the game has faded the memory of playing there will not have done.

Well done guys – the club was proud of the way in which you went to the final and of the way in which you conducted yourselves in difficult circumstances.

July 30th: Ian Brunnschwviller (above watching his Australian counterpart, Wade Seccombe) hit the winning runs as Hampshire went to their historic two wicket victory over Australia. The whole club is absolutely delighted for 'Brunschy', (he ended up 10 not out) who has been such a hit in the 1st X1 this season.

July 29th: 1stX1 lose to Thatcham in the Border league. Set to score 215 Andover seem to be cruising when four wickets go down for next to nothing. In the end our lot are bowled out for 160+. Seconds win the corresponding fixture at Thatcham with Liam Poore scoring his first senior half century. Selection was held this morning, however, don't look at the team lists because there are still too many questions to be answered before the final teams will be known. Don't forget cup final on Wednesday. Coach to the game will leave London Rd at 4.30pm.

July 28th: 1st X1 earn a draw against Bournemouth. Set to score 236 Andover end on 174-5. Jerry gets fifty something. All a bit dull really but that's the way it goes with this all day cricket. Bournemouth won the toss and decided to bat, they can't expect the batters just to throw their wickets away for the sake of a 'jolly good game'. We didn't write the rules of the competition. No doubt if the roles were reversed they would have gone after the runs with gay abandon regardless of whether they won or lost such is their Corinthian Spirit. The seconds go for over 300 and are bowled out for 80 odd, so we'll draw a veil over that one. The 3rds win at Mottisfont. No details yet. 4ths and 5ths both lose. It was a poor week for selection and the lower teams were always going to struggle.

July 22nd: On Saturday we haven't had a day when all the teams have won but the Sunday teams provided their own 100% day today. 1st X1 have a big win over Eversley. Ian Gardner hits 122* in an unbroken opening stand of 260 with Dale Green, 104*. Is this the biggest opening stand in the history of Andover CC? Eversley are bowled out for 190. 2nds have a comfortable win at Andover against Odiham 1st X1. Winning by six wickets with Mark Copleston scoring fifty. The 3rds were involved in an exciting game at Odiham, just winning by 18 runs. Set to score 144 to win Odiham seem to be in control as the final five overs begin. Twenty to win and four wickets left. JB and Terry Neale put the brake on and also take wickets, with the final wicket going down from the first ball of the 19th over.

July 21st: The 1st X1 won at Liphook with a century for Mark Miller. Dean Woodhouse took four wickets as Liphook were dismissed for 156.

In the local derby with Amport. Mark Kavanagh and Stuart Summers, playing his first game of the season, got the seconds away to a great start with 120 for the first wicket. The later batsmen didn't quite capitalise on this but they still managed to reach 200. Amport who are in a sorry state were bowled out for 60 odd.

The Fourth X1 managed to regain their focus and end a barren run by soundly defeating Liss 2nds. Only set to score 137, there was a certain amount of money placed that Liss wouldn't get fifty. Four wickets for Ken Richardson, three for Terry Neale seemed to put the issue beyond doubt with Liss floundering at 14-7. Tension ran high as their score crept up into the 40s. However, despite some dubious bits of cricket, which have been noted by the committee investigating match fixing, Liss were dismissed for 49. Several eastern looking gentlemen in large cars were seen to be leaving the ground at the end of the game.

Sunday 15th July: 1st X1 have a comfortable win over Marlbrough in the Border League. James Green with 50+ and Robert James with 80+ lead the way. Seconds have their game called off as Marlbrough can't raise a second team. Thirds go to Old Basing and lose in the final over.

Saturday 14th July: 1st X1 have much the better of a draw with Hungerford. Unfortunately it didn't resolve anything at the bottom end of the league as both teams earned 9 points. Seconds had a good win against USP. Clacko scored 91 and Ali Fleming 80+ as together they featured in a big stand for the 5th wkt. 3rds won easily at London Rd against struggling South Newton. Steve Williams leading the way with 64. No change of fortune for the 4th X1 who went down by 6 wickets against Fareham. Only Alan Brown, 64, made anything like a significant contribution. 5th X1 won again - no details at present.

Thursday 12 July: The 1st X1 made it to the final of the mid week cup by defeating Havant at London Rd in an exciting encounter. Andover's score of 176 off 23 overs owed much to Mark Kavanagh who hit 65 and then to skipper, Jerry Hayward who struck 26, including four huge sixes, from the final over. Havant got away to a slow and steady start but accelerated in the middle of the innings and seemed to have swung the game their way. However, good bowling from Ian Langdown, Roger Miller and Sam Miller made the game very difficult for Havant and eventually they ended up 20 runs short. At the moment we don't know who the final will be against as the other semi was rained off on Tuesday.

Sunday 8th: The final of the Hampshire U13 Club Competition was played at the Hampshire Rose Bowl. Andover won the toss, elected to field and had opener Oliver Knight bowled by Faisal Abbas in the first over. Ben Walker was then joined by Philip Cooper and both played carefully until Cooper was bowled by James Moss for 10, when the score was 30, in the tenth over. Liam Worrow, trying to increase the scoring rate, made a quick 12 before he was run out. Walker retired for a well crafted 30* and Romer finished on 13* in the BAT Sports total of 95 – 6 from 20 overs. The wicket takers were Abbas 2-7, Moss 1-16 and Oliver Williams 1-18. Andover’s openers Williams and Moss made a good start until Moss was well caught by Worrow off the bowling of Walker for 12 in the fourth over. Williams played some superb shots, hitting six fours, before retiring on 31*. The job was left to Abbas 32* and Chris Hadfield 9* to see Andover safely home without the loss of any further wickets and with more than three overs remaining. The Andover U13s, representing Hampshire, now play the U13 Club winners of Middlesex or Berkshire later this month in the ECB U13 Club Championship.

1st X1 beat Cove at home. Robert James hit 76 out of 235 and there was a second fifty for the week end from Ali Hooper. In reply Cove ran the 1st X1 close but finally lost out by 40 odd runs. The 3rds had a tough time against Falkland 2nds. JB bowled all the way through the innings as Falkland rattled up 189-6. In reply Andover were 21-8. But sensible batting from Mark Powell and especially Andrew Guilfoyle ensured some respectability as Andover reached 74 all out. JB followed his marathon bowling effort with an innings of typical stubbornness to be last man out for 35 having opened the innings.

Saturday 7th July: 1st X1 got out of jail thanks to the weather. Facing a total of 300+ the rain came and ended the game so they get a draw. The seconds hit 250+ and bowled out Eastleigh for 127. Andrew green celebrated his 17th birthday by taking a wicket with the first ball of the innings, getting Colin Day caught by Mark Kavanagh. The thirds had a very comfortable win. Hitting 230+ and bowling USP 1V out for just 39. The Fourths came a cropper again at London Rd. John Copleston hit 81 out of 176 for 9 only to see Bedhampton 2nds win by seven wickets. Jock's army goes marching on with a good win. They too clocked up over 200 and then Phil Knight (Big Eff) claimed a hat trick as the Wildern & Mansbridge were dismissed for just over a hundred.

Sunday 1st July: Andover beat Fair Oak in the final of the Winchester District Cricket Clubs Association U11 Oliver Cup last Sunday at Easton & Martyr Worthy CC. The competition is played in an 8 a-side pairs format with both sides starting at 200 runs, scoring additional runs but loosing 5 runs for each wicket. Fair Oak won the toss, elected to field and soon had Andover in trouble with Harry Warren starting with a double wicket maiden. Andover finished on 312 after their 16 overs having lost 3 wickets with Tim Lewis top scoring on 22* well assisted by John Palmer 14*, Ali Cheyne 13*, Fred Kelly 13*, Jonty Hadfield 10* and David Floyd 5*. In what was always likely to be a difficult run chase Andover’s bowling proved too strong on the day and Fair Oak finished on 175 with Jonty Hadfield 4-2, Fred Kelly 4-10, Tim Lewis 3-6, Ali Cheyne 2-15, Luke Catton 1-2 and John Palmer 1-12 taking the wickets with two catches to wicket keeper Jos Clark.

1st X1 lose by a handful of runs at Falklands whilst in the corresponding fixture in Andover the seconds go to a seven wicket win. Set to score 180 the Father and Son combination of Dale and James Green put on 141 for the first wicket. Two quick wickets fell before Nick Hooper put the matter beyond doubt.

Saturday 30th June: The 1st X1 went to South Wilts and came home worthy winners. Batting first they hit 256, Dodge Miller leading the way with a half century. There were good contributions from Jerry Hayward and Ian Brunnschwviller. South Wilts were bowled out well short of the total with Ian Langdown making up for his failure with the bat, taking five wickets. The whole club breathed a huge sigh of relief at this news and the mood back at HQ was bouyant. The seconds were involved in another tight, high scoring game which, this time, they didn't manage to pull off. Set to score 232 to win the ended up 7 short. John Oostendorp who had led the way with 84 was the last man out. The thirds were struggling at 86-6 before Mike Adams and Paul Collins took charge. Mike getting 80+ and 'Smiler' 94 to take Andover to 286!!! Andy Hooper then claimed five wickets in a comfortable win. The Fourths went down for the second time this year losing at home to Hollybank by 46 runs. A lack lustre batting display from Andover being the cause. The Fifths seem to enjoy batting second they went to Capital and bowled them out for 102 winning by 6 wickets to continue their push for promotion.

An assortment of Andover CC reprobates at the club on the recent Hawaiian evening. Are these the men you warn your daughters about?

Tuesday 26th: Andover play in the semi-final of the Southern Electric Contracting Cup at London Road on 10th July after a hard earned 2 run win over Flamingos last Tuesday night. Batting first the Town club lost 2 early wickets but rallied well thanks to Sam Miller (61), and a typical Mark Kavanagh knock of 42 in 21 balls. Neil Staddon weighted in with 32 and skipper, Hayward knocked 13 off the penultimate over which saw Andover finish on 168 for 6. Flamingos started slowly through tight bowling form the 2 Millers but change bowlers Langdown and Matty Hooper took punishment as the home side started their assault on the target. Hooper went for 59 from six while Langdown went for 46 from 5.2. Roger Miller bowled his 6 overs for 16 runs, while Sam took 3 for 31 from his 6. Flamingoes needed 3 runs from the last 2 balls but could only manage 1 thanks to some excellent fielding from Jeremy Hayward's side.Sunday 24th: Bob Catton was injured whilst attempting to take a catch against Hook. Bob has split the webbing of his right hand and needed several stitches. He will be missing for the foreseeable future. Sadly the 3rds lost against Hook, who had put our a powerful team. Andy Green scored fifty as did Terry Neale.

Saturday 23rd: Sadly no change in fortune for the 1st X1 who went down, yet again, to a strong BAT. Bowled out for 159, BAT knocked off the runs for the loss of just one wicket. The seconds had an exciting game against Basingstoke which ended in a tie. Set to score 235 Andover arrived at the final ball with just 2 runs needed to win. Only a single could be secured to leave honours even. The thirds slaughtered Ramsdell. After last week's ton, Dale Green suffered the complete reversal in fortunes and went first ball ofthe game. Andover recovered to end up with 195 and bowled Ramsdell out for 70 odd. The Fourths went to Denmead and chalked up 217-4. JB leading the way with 77*. In reply Denmead could only reach 67 as Mark Copleston recorded his best return in a senior match with 6-25. The Fifths beat Locks heath by six wickets. Asked to score 102, after some good bowling from Will Manning, James Green, standing in as a last minute replacement, hit 47* to steer Andover home.

Sunday 17th: 1st X1 defeated against Swindon but there was an away win for the seconds, for whom Dale Green scored a ton.

Saturday 16th: The weather got in the way today. No play at all for 1st/3rd/4th or 5th X1s. 2nd X1 batted first against Penton and scored 219-9, Clacko 57 and Funbags 30. Penton made an excellent reply and had got to 151-2 with Roy Burch 59 and Matt Smith 61 and then the heavens opened and Penton won by virtue of a faster scoring rate.

Tuesday 13th May: Terrific batting from Ian Langdown (69), Neil Staddon (51*), Sam Miller (35) and Jerry Hayward (27*) took the 1st X1 to 199 - 3 off 22 overs against South Wilts. In reply the home side could only master 136-6, Russell Rowe 61, Matt Hooper 3-31. There was also an encouraging bowling performance from James Manning who bowled his five overs economically. He was hit for 10 in his first over but kept his head and recovered well. The quarter final draw has pitched us against Flamingoes of Eastleigh.Sunday 10th June: Two more Border league defeats home and away to Falkland. 1st X1 lost by 6 wickets and 2nd X1 by 30 odd runs.

On a Saturday when the club was at its strongest we still managed a mixed bunch of results. 1st X1 again had difficulty batting and went down to a disappointing result against Bashley. Better news for the seconds who beat Calmore 2nds with Rob James getting 89 before 'Gards' ran him out. The 3rd X1 were also back to something like strength and knocked off 170+ to beat Wickham at London Rd. Dale Green leading the way with a half-century and four wickets for Rob Oostendorp. Sad news at the lower end of the club with both the 4ths and the 5ths losing their unbeaten records. Very lack lustre performance from the 4ths who staggered to 142 after being 9-3 but lost by six wickets and the 5ths were dismissed for just over 100 and lost by 8 wickets.

Sunday 3rd June: The day began with Jerry Hayward discovering that he his car had been stolen overnight from the car park at London Rd Sadly the rest of the day seemed doomed from then on. In the cup game 1st X1 recorded 238 - 3 in 45 overs only for Winchester to pass the score for the loss of four wickets. There was a ton from Roger Miller and a first fifty for the club from Neil Steddon. The seconds also lost at Basingstoke.

Saturday 2nd June: Any body with shares in a telephone company must be delighted with the way in which the Captains of Andover Cricket Club are doing their best to ensure a good return on their investment. In a week which has seen more drop-outs than a university campus in November the lower elevens were beginning to struggle to find players until the burst water main at Charlton flooded the ground and the 5th X1 had to be cancelled.

The 1st X1 suffered at the hands of Havant. Batting first they could only reach 135. Havant won by seven wickets. The seconds won at Bournemouth by three wickets so breaking their duck. The thirds lost away at Midhurst by three wickets and the Fourths won a tight game at London Rd No2 by just six runs.

27th May: Only one team in action today. A second consecutive fifty from Tim Brown helped Andover to a score of over 200. In reply New River were dismissed for 130ish. Andrew Green claiming three wickets.

26th May: A bad day at the office. Only the 4th X1 and the 5th X1 managed a win today. 1st X1 beaten at Bournemouth. 2nd X1 put to the sword by Ventnor who score 270+ for the loss of just one wicket. 3rd X1 dismissed for 60 odd but take 5 wickets in return, all five going to Ken Richardson. Is this the London rd No 2 wicket back to its spiteful worst. At Old Hambledonians the 4th X1 post 230 - 7. Tim Brown getting 65* and Sean Gallagher weighing in with 30. In reply the old boys manage 209 all out. Good debut for Ed Jackson who bowled very tidily. The 5th X1 chase 215 and get them for the loss of nine wickets. Excellent all-round team performance. Mat Guilfoyle demonstrating his growing maturity with four wickets and a fifty.

Tuesday: A good victory over Hook & Newnham in a very high scoring match. Andover 160 in 21 overs. Ian Langdown and Sam Miller leading the way. Hook eventualy had to settle for just 139. Although while their South African star was giving Andy Mac and Clarky some considerable tap a win for Hook looked possible. Once he was out, stumped off Langdown the game was up.

Sunday: Two victories. 1st X1 beat Salisbury Wanderers very easily. Runs for Kavs and Gards. 2nd X1 beat Hungerford in the Border League. JB got 59 out of 123 all out. Luke Pragnell made a return to cricket in this game and got 19. Hungerford all out for 110. Liam Poore claiming five wickets.

Saturday: 1st X1 have recorded a comfortable win against Liphook by five wickets. Ian Langdown hit a half century as our boys chased 113. Although the 1st X1 lost five wickets getting this modest total it has to be said that a couple of wickets did go down with the winning score in sight.

The 2nd X1 were well and truly stuffed at Redlynch & Hale. Bowled out for not very many and then only taking three wickets.

The 3rds lost by nine runs. Chasing 220 to win they fell just short but there was an encouraging innings from James Manning (50) and he took three wickets - so lots of fantasy league points there.

The 4ths beat Waterlooville 3rds easily. John Cop. getting 98 before being bowled, out of a total of 175. There were then wickets for Ken Richardson (3), Keith Williams (2), John Baxter (3) and Alan Brown - yes that's Alan Brown who got two!!

The 5th X1 beat Compton & Ch. Ford by five wickets - Jock's army goes marching on.

A ton for Ian Langdown provided the backbone for a 1st X1 score of 230 at Hungerford. In reply Hungerford closed on 187 - 7. There were 3 wickets for Andy Clark, who was making his 1st X1 league debut, Andy Hooper, making a return to the 1st X1 after a last minute drop-out and Matthew Hooper.

The 2nd X1 would be able to make a claim to being the first team in the country to feel the effect of the changes to the Laws of Cricket as outlined in the 2000 Code. This now requires all teams to hand a list of nominated players to either umpire before the start of the game. Unfortunately one of the 'nominated' didn't show up. Paul Collins acted as a substitute for the time when Andover were fielding but wasn't allowed to bat. In the past no one would have said anything and Paul would simply have become part of the team. Sadly this lack of an eleventh batter was to prove vital as Andover, who had worked hard to dismiss Fareham & Crofton for 171, fell just a handful of runs short. This was despite only needing sixteen from the final eight overs.

The 4ths began their league campaign with a 59 run win over Bursledon. Mark Copleston, scoring his maiden senior half century was the star turn in a total of 179 - 7. In reply Bursledon could only muster 120 all out with Andrew Green taking 4 - 30.

Alan Ellwood had a very difficult job in raising a team for his game at Colden Common, however, his reward was a splendid victory. Ken Brown led the way with a personal score of 70 and Alan himself made his first fifty of the season. Another Andover Colt making his senior league debut, Chris Hadfield, was the star bowler with four wickets.

Sunday Cricket: You wait for ages for one ton and when it arrives there's always another one right behind - or in this case two. Roger Miller and Mark Kavanagh both hit hundreds as the 1st X1 rattled up over 300 against Gosport in the National K.O. Andover ran out easy winners. With the 1st X1 involved in this match Dale Green took a mixed bunch with him to Swindon where they put up a brave performance but eventually lost by just two wickets. Good batting from Ali Hooper and Rob Oostendorp. Four wickets for Andrew Green and three for Mark Adams. Alan Ellwood's team lost by eight wickets at home to Swindon 2nd X1

Oh dear - the first league games didn't go entirely to plan as far as the first team are concerned. They succumbed to a nine wicket defeat at the hands of Burridge. Andover were put in and scored 181 - 6. Some good showing from Roger Miller and new boy Ian Brunswviller. However, the expected increase in the scoring rate never came. Burridge then strolled to victory with loads of overs to spare. The only other Andover team, the 3rd X1 in action managed a very comfortable win over Portsmouth 3rds. Dale Green hit 49 - to qualify for the first jug avoidance fine of the season, in a total of 233. Ian Williams, making his first appearance in the 3rds got off the mark with an all-run four and ended up with 37. Another ex-1st X1 player, Andy Hooper weighed in with four wickets to add to his ten not out and an early bid for the club all-rounder slot.