2019 - Captains’ Log

At the end of yet another wonderful season at Acton C.C, our four captains reflected on their respective seasons…

 1st XI, Sahil Kher

After the highs and heartbreak of last season, the ones were always going to go one of two ways - we were either going to dominate the league or suffer a classic “second season” where we would struggle to hit the standards of 2018.

 As it turned out, we were a bit of both...but with a happy ending! A strong start lulled us into a sense of complacency, which then led to a shocking run of 7 games where we lost 4 and should have lost another one. The Uxbridge defeat was particularly painful, and it was safe to say that promotion looked a distance away after the first 9, and that there were a few people at the limits of their emotional bandwidths! But a remarkable cup run (Wanstead away, Blackheath away and Hornchurch at home) lifted spirits and reminded us that we were actually a very decent side after all. Cue an unbeaten run in the back 9 (and 11 overall) including 4 wins in a row in weeks 13-16 against the teams fourth, third, first and second that effectively secured promotion. There were some remarkable performances along the way in those games - AB’s run of 31 wickets in 6 games, my 147 and 110* were alright, Raj Raikar’s consistent spells up top, Jambo leading the way with his experience when he deservedly got back into the side, and Josh Fisher really settling into his groove with bat and ball. The CCC run was also special. For a club of our size to get to the semi-finals of a big regional cup and earning the respect of some heavyweights along the way was special, and it really felt like the whole weight and history of the club was behind us for those few weeks. Next year...

 Lucas Carlisle (VC extraordinaire), Matty Reeve, Josh Fisher, Alex Brennan and Raj Raikar stood out in the stats, but the secret was really that every man of the 17 who played in the league provided a big performance at some stage or the other. Experienced players like Nasir Mehmood were in and out but were excellent when picked. 

 The challenge next year, of course, is to build on the successes of this year. We’ll (potentially) lose a stalwart in Scotty Kojak, but players like Ammar Arshad will have bedded in, and we will look to make a couple of quality additions to our core. Players like James Kendall and Ameya Joshi have the potential to develop even more as first team players, and some more young blood would be nice. Our first target is to consolidate ourselves as a Div II side. Along the way, if we pick up a few wins early doors, there’s enough in this side for us to believe we can make a promotion push, but we’ll take it a step at a time. We’ll also focus on a couple of cups and give them a real good go. Constant development and a desire to improve have to be our mantras, but we’ll have fun and a beer after like always. I cannot wait (after a holiday, a couple of months of lying in on Saturday mornings and...er...watching QPR!)

 A final word of thanks to all those who make it possible - Beefy, Hells, Vanessa, John and the Committee.

 Player of the season: Alex Brennan

Cup player of the season: Raj Raikar

Performance of the season: Sahil Kher vs. Wembley

 2nd XI, Dan Waddell

This season always promised to be a tough one for the 2s, and so it proved. Two poor teams were relegated last season, to be replaced by two good ones - one of them, Shepherds Bush, (who had finished 2nd to Osterley) went on to win the league. This meant our margin for error was pretty slim. Arguably, we played better cricket than the last couple of seasons (and won more points) but it wasn’t to be.

 There were a number of good performances - Jambo was great with the bat until summoned to the 1s, Mitch got in numerous times without ever getting that big score he looked like getting, while Murph showed flashes of his 2018 form. Ameya showed us what he can do when he came down, while Yogi played a vintage knock v Richmond. With the ball, there were stand-out performances by Kendo v Highgate, JR at Highgate (and elsewhere), JB at home to Bush, while Mushy, Neil, Boo, Jordan and the evergreen Jambo all chipped in with good performances.

 Ultimately though, it wasn’t enough to keep us up. All good things come to an end and other cliches. But next year brings new and different challenges, and hopefully a chance to compete at the top of the table rather than the bottom. I’ve no doubt we’ll relish it.

 Player of the season: John Reeve

Performance of the season: James Hunt vs. Highgate

3rd XI, Reece Noble

Needless to say, it’s been a tough year for the 3’s. After winning promotion to the top division in 2018, we really struggled to be able to put together complete performances against some consistently high-quality opposition.

 In saying that, we showed patches of the high-quality cricket I know we are capable of. Highlights of the season were most certainly two dominant victories against Highgate and Richmond.

 Along the way we saw some moments of individual brilliance. On the batting side of things, a match saving ton to Raj Chauhan and a typically classy 100 to Dave Piper certainly stood out, with a number of other batsmen passing 50 throughout the season.

 Undoubtedly the strongest facet of our game this year came from our bowlers. The consistent hard work of Neil Lederman, development of Harman as a genuine threat with the new ball and the addition of Jack to our club often had us in strong positions throughout matches.

 Whilst disappointing to be back in 2nd division next season, I believe this will give us a great opportunity to get back on the winners list consistently and develop strong cricketers to further the growth of our wonderful club.

Player of the season: Neil Lederman

Performance of the season: Raj Chauhan vs. Richmond

 4th XI, Peter Ruis

Another strong season for Acton IVs, finishing second, maintaining a sequence of top two for the last four seasons.

 Unfortunately, promotion was not to be due to different league rules this season (our first in the Middlesex League).

 123 points was a fantastic total and would have won the league in many seasons but Twickenham proved to be literally unbeatable, fully deserving the title Last ditch victories in beating both Chiswick and Indian Gymkhana stood out as our opponents clutched defeat from the jaws of victory. Batting-wise there were noteworthy performances from Nimit Arora 422 runs at 46.89, Peter Ruis 344 runs at 31.27, and Namit Pandey 244 runs at 40.67. The wickets were shared by Harman Singh 18 (12.89), Peter Ruis 14 (17.21) and Andy Guiton 13 (15.23). Individually, two centuries for Nimit Arora, 5 for 70 for Mark Doogan in his first season, and Harman Singh’s 7 for 49 were the highlights

 As ever a great contribution from Acton under 18s with Miles Murphy, Ed Bennett, and Zack Maile stepping up.

 Player of the season: Nimit Arora

Performance of the season: Harman Singh vs. Chiswick