Barnard Castle U12s Cup Final
BARNARD Castle U12s capped off a successful season with a resounding 43-run victory in the area cup final last Wednesday. Having beaten Hartlepool in the semi-final, last week’s opponents were Thornaby, and they were no match for the young Barney side.
Jake Goodhart top scored with 25 and was accompanied by Rory Metcalf at the top of the order who contributed 22.
They set Thornaby a target of 131 and the visitors never came close to threatening victory.
They finished on 87-2 and they were unable to score consistently against Barney’s strong bowling attack.
It was left to captain Metcalf to lift the trophy and it topped off a successful season for the team who have already won the U12s league.
The town’s U13 side also won their league as well as adding the Lowery Cup to the collection.
It shows that the potential for the future is huge, and these are the players who will be moving into the senior sides in coming years.
Raby CC highlights fantastic youth play
Raby Castle CC U15s (45-9) v Crook Town CC U15s (49-2)
THE two undefeated teams in the Durham Cricket Board Junior Leagues South-West Division met at Raby for a title decider last week.
It was a winner takes all fixture and Crook were simply too strong for a younger Raby side.
Raby captain Harry Glenton won the toss and elected to field first. It was a decision he probably regrets as Raby lost opener Ram Raj first ball of the match.
This seemed to set the tone for the rest of the match as at one point Raby were six wickets down with only 11 runs on the board.
Only Raby man of the match Joe Brookes reached double figures with a hard fought 29 not out and after their 20 overs Raby reached 45 for the loss of nine wickets.
Spinner Dan Quigley finished with five wickets for seven runs off his four overs.
In reply, Crook knocked the required runs off for the loss of two wickets in slightly more than nine overs.
An opening stand of 36 between openers Ethan Guy 22 not out and Dominick Ward (18) saw Crook close to their target.
The wicket takers for Raby were Harry Glenton (1-17) and Leo Rokk (1-10).
Despite the heavy loss, coach Matty Glenton was pleased with how the first season of U15s cricket at Raby Castle CC had gone.
He said: “Finishing runners up in the league has been a fantastic effort by the players. The players will be better and stronger for having played against a very good side tonight.
“The good news is that all but one of this year’s team are eligible to play under 15s cricket next year.”
Raby Castle CC U13s (73-5) v Dawdon Welfare CC U13 (120-5)
Raby Castle U13s hosted Dawdon U13s on Wednesday evening in a Champions Trophy match.
Raby captain Finlay Kirkup won the toss and asked Dawdon to bat first.
Dawdon openers Hart (22) and Price (31no) got off to a good start with an opening stand of 61.
Abdy, Laing and Sahin all reached double figures and after 20 overs Dawdon scored 120 for the loss of five wickets.
Raby’s fielding was once again very good with two run outs. The wicket takers were Max Anderson (1-12), Oliver Clark (1-15) and Sam Webb (1-16).
In reply, Raby lost opener Leo Rokk second ball and Harry Tellegen shortly afterwards and never really recovered.
Captain Finlay Kirkup led from the front and held the Raby innings together with his 30 not out. He received excellent support from Max Anderson (11) who was out off the last ball of the match.
After 20 overs Raby were 73-4 and lost the match by 47 runs.
Finlay Kirkup was man of the match and U11’s keeper Barnaby Tiplady took the fielding award in his first match behind the stumps for the U13s
So a disappointing result to end the season but coach Steve Caygill had this to say: “Good luck to Dawdon in the final – they were a good team with some useful cricketers. I know that the team will be disappointed with the result, but they have to remember this has been another great season for our under 13 side.
“In all we used 21 players this year, retained the league title, achieved the league and cup double and I’m sure the players have really enjoyed their cricket at Raby this year.
“A special thank you from me to the parents for bringing their children to the matches and for the help many have given me throughout the season with the coaching, umpiring and scoring.
“This was the last under 13 match for a number of our young players and I look forward to seeing them playing in the under 15s side next season.
“However, a special mention to Finlay Kirkup who has played in every under 13s match for the last three years – a remarkable display of commitment to Raby Castle Cricket Club.”
