7. 2018
December
You will recall that the Gatwick Airport Community Trust kindly awarded us a grant earlier in the summer for us to build a storage facility for the table and chairs which had been stored, much to everyone’s inconvenience, in the team changing rooms. The Trust has been very generous to us over the years and we again would like everyone to be aware of their continued support of the club.
Andy is back home and his surgeon was content that the operation has been successful. More centuries to come from the old chap?
The guys doing Community Service have been doing a great job with leaf clearing. Derek has been doing some further work on the square and it is looking really good. He is also preparing a practice wicket to the side of the artificial pitch.
The square looking really good.
Best of luck to Andy Meads who is having a serious operation at the London Bridge Hospital on the 13th December.
November
The annual Fuller’s League awards dinner was held at Sandown Park on the 9th November. We had two tables and everyone enjoyed the food and drink and the convivial MC, Roger Dakin. Chris Cowdrey was the guest speaker and he proved to be an excellent raconteur. Congratulations to Dan Jones (464 runs) and Will Bowley (26 wickets) who topped the batting and bowling for 2nd XIs in Division 2. Commiserations to Allan Cooper who took 40 premiership wickets and was just one behind the winner .
Raffle prize winners – again
Well done to Paul Hughes for arranging the Russell Haigh Golf Day at Rusper Golf Club. The event took place on the 3rd November and was well supported.
We received the disappointing news from Sport England that our application for £18,000 to refurbish the nets was not successful. We reached the final stage of the process which makes it doubly disappointing. Grants are getting harder to secure and it is difficult to know where we can get this sort of money. Applications to the London Marathon Community Trust and local waste operators were also unsuccessful.
October
The Annual Village Bonfire Party was held on the 26th October. Despite early bad weather the rain stayed off for the actual event. It was a great success and the attendance was excellent. Thanks to all club members, especially the Chairman, who helped to make the event safe and enjoyable.
Marion Hales, wife of our late President Colin Hales, recently celebrated her 99th birthday. Marion now lives at Nower Lodge in Dorking and her home in Newdigate is up for sale. She still follows the fortune of the cricket club but she is especially proud of her grand-daughter Vicky Holland who has won the 2018 Gold Medal in the ITU World Triathalon Series.
On the 2nd and 3rd October Derek and Julian came to put the square to bed. On both days they worked right into the night time to get the job done. Then, just to order, soft rain came.
September
The season ended with pouring rain on Sunday, 23rd September and the match had to be cancelled. Before the rains set in on the Saturday morning a group of Newdigate Ladies played Effingham Ladies in a soft-ball match. Much fun was had by all and the Newdigate Ladies emerged triumphant (thanks in some part to the help of four talented Effingham girls)
On the 20th September, legendary former Newdigate stalwart Dave Puddicombe celebrated his 65th birthday at the Falkland Arms. Earlier in the day he made an honest woman of Anita and they were married at the Leatherhead Register Office. Bobby Fairbrother was best man and it was good to see Julian Chamberlain.
A group of cricketers ventured down the hill and accepted a challenge from the bowls club to a bowls match. this was keenly contested and followed by drinks and a barbecue.
On the 9th September, in beautiful sunshine, we held a Junior Cricket Day. In the morning the under 9s played the under 11s and in the afternoon the under 13s played a keenly contested match against the coaches for whom Simon Holt took a 5fer! We said goodbye to Matt Dedes who flew to Australia the following morning. He gave an inspirational farewell speech to the juniors.
This was followed by a barbecue and then the Junior Awards Presentation began. Upwards of 150 people were present. Pictures and full details can be found in the junior section.
Susy Radio has given us great coverage throughout the summer. Follow the link below to hear details of our final league game.
Susy Cricket Roundup – The 2018 League Season ends
A relieved 1st XI relax after beating Hampton Hill on the last league game of the season thus preserving their Premiership status.
This was Ruky Wickremasinghe’s last game for the club as he has decided to play for Crawley Down in 2019. Since he joined the club in 2005 he has had a distinguished career. For many years he was captain of the Sunday XI but most of his success came playing for the Saturday 1st XI. In total he has scored 11470 runs and taken 426 wickets. He is the third highest run scorer in the history of the club and has passed 1000 runs in a season three times. His highest score is 142 and his best bowling analysis is 7-28. His greatest achievement came in 2007 when he scored 1674 runs in the season. The second highest total ever. We wish you well Ruky.
August
On the 31st August the CCHT syndicate spent all their Centurion Club winnings and went to see England play India at the Aegeas Bowl. They travelled first class by train and had a meal all courtesy of Newdigate CC Centurion Club. Why not form your own syndicate and possibly enjoy a similar day??
A busy weekend of cricket concluded with a 6-a-Side competition on the Bank Holiday Monday. This was played for the Peter Clark Memorial Trophy and the charity selected for the event was Prostrate Cancer UK. Six sides entered, namely Newdigate 1 & 2, Leigh, Dorking CC, Holmbush and Dorking Rugby Club. This was a family friendly event with a play area specially erected. Lot’s of good cricket was witnessed and Dorking CC emerged as worthy winners. Well done James Penfold for organising a great event.
'PROSECCO’ CRICKET
If there are any prizes going for stoicism then Newdigate must be at the top of the pile. On queue at 11.00 am on the 26th August, the morning of ‘Prosecco’ Cricket, the rain started falling and the wind picked up, but everything was ready and the girls were willing to give it a go as were the umpires and scorers.
The wind took the marquees and they ended up wrecked on top of the nets! but still they continued playing.
Two matches were played simultaneously and Newdigate Girls (65) beat Effingham (38) and Leigh combined with Newdigate Mums (54) beat the Prosecco Princesses (40). With the rain beating heavier and the temperature dropping the players were surprisingly up to playing another round. This time Newdigate Girls (59) became champions by beating Leigh/Newdigate Mums (33) and Effingham (61) beat the Prosecco Princesses (28).
With numb hands and soaking wet clothes it was decided to withdraw to the pavilion where everyone was served with warm drinks and a fabulous, traditional cricket tea.
This was followed by serious mini cricket in the pavilion and copious bottles of prosecco being drunk.
All ready to go
Leigh combined with Newdigate Mums
Prosecco Princesses
Effingham
Newdigate Girls
The wrecked marquees
Time for a warm cup of tea
Feeling better after a few glasses of Prosecco
Preparation for the 2019 season is already under way.
Here is the outfield being de-weeded.
Evette Burton and Matt Dedes have been running ‘hitting with power’ sessions at the club using very clever technology which measures bat speed etc. Here they are with a couple of lads.
Many of you will remember with great affection our good friend Dev Patel. For many years he coached our juniors and when he played for the 2nd XI he turned in some incredible performances with both bat and ball. Who can forget Dev & Dipti’s amazing curries which permeated the entire club house? He has recently been in contact with us. Unfortunately, his job has curtailed his cricketing activities. He is working for a Minneapolis based company and spends a lot of time in Japan looking after the Japanese scientific research community. He tells us that Anisha has moved to New York and Anish is working for a Dutch bank. He promises to pop in and see us when time permits.
Susy Cricket Round up: Week 16
I was truly humbled to have won the Lifetime Achievement for Services to Cricket Award at the recent OSCAs ceremony at the Oval. I felt that this was a shot in the arm for the smaller clubs and it was good to see Newdigate’s name up in lights. Thanks to James and the Committee who put my name forward. This was a truly prestigious award with nominations coming from club’s all across the county. My cousin Mike would have been proud of his little cousin. Thanks again.
John Callcut.
The week long summer camp has come to an end. Each day up to sixteen young people enjoyed cricket, football, rounders, table tennis and lots of fun and games. Thanks go to Andrew Major, Evette Burton, Matt Dedes, Imogen Collier, John Callcut and Fiona Kehl who made it happen.
Congratulations to Will Rowland. On Saturday, 11th August he scored 144 not out in a friendly match against Leigh. This was his maiden century for the club and the 14th highest individual score ever recorded for the club.
Imagine this. A balmy Friday evening at the Kia Oval. Aaron Finch is batting against Middlesex in a 20/20 match. He smashes it high into the night air. It falls into the crowd and who is underneath…. none other that Newdigate’s own Lee Brien. As befits one of our coaches he calmly held on to the catch and claimed the £1000 prize. Drinks are on you Lee.
July
On the 31st July we took a group of u9 and u11s up to the Oval to see the Surrey/Glamorgan T20 Vitality Blast match. The children witnessed a good match which Surrey just lost. With train strikes and walking along with 20,000 other people to Vauxhall station at night was, let’s say, challenging but everyone got back home safe and sound and we all had a happy day.
Allan Cooper is in the form of his life – here he is on the Play Cricket honours board again.
Well done Dan and Allan. I see our old friend Keith Fuller is still churning out the runs.
On the 23rd July the under 11s were confirmed as champions of the East Surrey Colts League Division Two when they defeated Salfords. This team has worked very hard and thoroughly deserved their success.
A message from Vice President, Jackie Bennett, who has just completed the Nijmegen Marches.
We did it!!
I just wanted to say a huge thank you to all those who have sponsored me in this mammoth challenge. It was a truly amazing experience – 4 days, 166km walked, 4 x 2:30am alarm calls, 44,480 fellow participants from 84 countries, cheered on by thousands of supporters from 4:30am through to 1pm daily and over £20,000 raised by the Walk the Walk team.
The money raised will help Walk the Walk continue to support research into breast cancer and support those with the disease. I really appreciate your support of this cause and my endeavours and promise the is the last time I’ll be fundraising for quite a while, although I can’t promise the same for the mad challenges!!
Look forward to catching up with everyone soon.
With warmest regards
Jackie
http://wtwalk.org/nijmegenmarches2018/nijmegan-challenge-2018
Friday, 13th July and we had our first rain for over a month. Junior training was cancelled.
World Cup fever comes to Newdigate Cricket Club. Good to see Penners in his waistcoat a la Gareth Southgate.
Looks like we lost!
Leading second eleven batsman, Dave Wrightson, has broken a finger. (or is it is arm?) He came back to the club looking for sympathy.
Our under 11 girls are playing in the Surrey ‘Smash-It’ League and the refreshments are amazing!
June
Congratulations to Will Bowley who is the first player in the club since 2014 to take seven wickets in an innings. He took 7-47 against Nuthurst.
JUG AVOIDANCE !!
Charlie Major 95 no and Dave Arnold 99 no
On the 6th June a group of players and friends had lunch at the Alcock Room at the Oval and watched the Surrey versus Glamorgan match. Mike Cooper was remembered and his picture placed on an empty chair.
back row: John Callcut, Richard Thompson (Chairman of Surrey CCC), Dave Harrison, Richard Constance and Chris Hobbs.
front row: Chris Cooksey, Jim Good, Dave Freeman, Nick Crawford, Bruce Elliot (Chairman of Sutton United FC), Mick Radburn.
On the pitch between innings.
May
On the 29th May the club undertook the melancholy duty to elect a new Chairman. James Penfold was duly elected and Roger Beale was voted in as Vice Chairman. It is encumbent upon all members to give them their total support.
On the 22nd May the Brocus was once again full. We hosted the Dorking Schools’ Kwik Cricket Competition for Girls and it was great to see so many motivated and happy young people playing cricket. North Downs just pipped Surrey Hills for the championship on run-rate .
After the heartbreak of last week it was good to see the club thronging with happy people who came to the club to celebrate the Royal Wedding and watch the Cup Final – shame the cricket on the field didn’t quite match the occasion. Oh well! Thanks to everyone who put in so much work to make the pavilion look so attractive and for providing the barbecue and the wonderful cakes. A memorable day.
The chapel was overflowing as people from many walks of life came to say goodbye to Mike Cooper. As expected the club was well represented and there were many ex-players present from his former club, Carshalton Cricket Club. Especially well done to Suzie Cooper who stoically read the moving tribute to Mike.
A Cricketer’s Last Boundary
Weeping willows formed an honour guard for the cricket ball writ with a noble name. A team of ten, which had once been eleven would never be the same again.
No bails united the forlorn stumps since the wicket had fallen some days ago and as the bowler delivered to the lone batsman the hushed crowd willed a six to go.
The magical sound … leather on willow, the sweet smell … of freshly cut grass. The cricketer … crossing the last boundary to a third innings that would last forever. (by Michael Ashby)
Goodbye Coops (and sorry I messed up the poem ! – JC)
Despite the rain a packed crowd came to the club for a quiz brilliantly run by James Penfold and his ‘assistant’ Matt Dedes. It was great to see the Bennetts, Wyllies, Osbornes and Millers at the club again…. and the winners , the team with a photographic memory, led by Mike Deloford and Paul Hughes!
Rains came on cue at midday to wreck the cricket for Saturday, 12th May but not before under 17 Adam Moon and u13 Scott Bloomfield came to the rescue of the 2nd XI who managed to get in half a game at Frimley. Adam hit a quick fire 83 but Scott was defiant as they put on a partnership of 85.
We have entered the inaugural Surrey Slam 20/20 Competition. Our team is called the Newdigate Bobcats and will be managed by Pierre Tartari who can be contacted on 0306 887235.
This exciting competition has been taken up by 64 teams from around Surrey and we are drawn against local teams so there will be very little traveling. We will be wearing the green shirts and trousers sponsored by Newdigate’s very own Bob’s Shop. For more information go to www.surreyslam.com.
We also had the good news that the Gatwick Airport Community Trust has awarded us a grant of £1050 to build a storage facility for all the tables and chairs which are currently stored in the changing rooms. Over the years they have been great supporters of the club and we are very grateful for their generosity.
Our application to the ECB Small Grants Scheme has been approved and the result ……. artificial grass on our balcony which replaced the old carpet.
A bank holiday with beautiful weather and at last the season is well and truly underway. The 1st XI had an emphatic win against Whiteley Village and the 2nd XI lost to a strong London Gymkhana team. The Sunday XI chased down a formidable target of 248 set by The Bushmen. Congratulations to Matt Dedes who scored 151 and Dan Jones who scored 69. Their partnership of 241 broke a number of club records. It was the third highest recorded and Matt’s score was the 7th highest score in the club’s history. It was the highest 2nd wicket partnership overtaking the previous record of 226 set by Richard Callcut and Peter Freeman in 1997.
On the 3rd May John Callcut took part in ‘On the Front Foot’ at Susy Radio. The radio station is a great supporter of cricket and broadcasts all the local results. You can hear the interview at the following link and the Newdigate bit starts at 48 minutes.
April
What a difference a couple of days make. On the 2nd May it was wet all day. Two days later we hosted the Dorking Schools’ Kwik Cricket competition. It was won by a very impressive team from St. Paul’s Primary School. The runner’s up position was very close and the Weald, Surrey Hills and Surrey Downs all had identical number of points and only total runs separated the schools with Surrey Downs just pipping the others. St. Pauls now play the winners of Leatherhead Schools and the winner plays in the County finals at Epsom College.
OBITUARY – MIKE COOPER (06.12.1945 – 23.04.2018)
by John Callcut
Many of you will have heard that our Chairman, Mike Cooper, sadly passed away on St. George’s Day.
Mike grew up in Cheam. We were cousins and we lived just five houses from each other. My mother was seriously ill when I was a boy, so for long periods of time Mike’s mother fed me and took me to school. So we grew up together as brothers spending endless hours playing football, cricket and table tennis in the garden.
Mike went to Glyn Grammar School in Epsom where he excelled at sports. He played basketball and swam for the county. He was something of a chess prodigy and at a young age he would take on ten or so opponents at exhibitions and beat most of them! He was a bustling centre forward, a very consistent golfer, hitting long and straight, but it was cricket that captured his heart. Under the tutelage of Wally Callcut at Cheam Village Warriors he became a forceful, hard-hitting top order batsman and a very good off-spinner. He turned the ball a long way but had the ability to bowl an impossible to pick arm ball. I know because I was later to become the unfortunate wicket-keeper.
He scored his first adult century at the age of sixteen and many more were to follow as he consistently finished each season at or near the top of both the batting and bowling averages for Carshalton Cricket Club. In 1976 he skippered the 1st XI to the Slazenger League and Cup double. Four years later he received the ultimate accolade for an amateur cricketer at the time and was selected for the Club Cricket Conference to play against Surrey at the Oval. I can picture him now hitting Intikhab Alam for two sumptuous cover drives! The move to the Fuller’s League saw the club gain immediate promotion to the top division. He later became Chairman of both Carshalton and the Slazenger League.
Mike originally trained as an accountant but then entered the commercial world and held senior financial positions with Hussmans, one of the country’s leading refrigeration companies. Upon retirement he took on the role of managing director of Horton Park Golf Club which he loved.
His later playing years were at Newdigate and I can recall many happy afternoons with Bill Turner as wicket-keeper, Mike at first slip and myself at second slip directing all the youngsters to do the chasing!
Mike retired from playing in 2003 (the above picture shows him leaving the field of play for the last time) and he could later be seen, along with Norma, supporting Newdigate and watching his son Allan lead the 1st XI to great successes.
I think that it is true to say that the spark went out of his life when Norma died on the 19th June 2017 but he took on the role of Chairman with much enthusiasm. He chaired just the one meeting in January and later carefully went through the Five Year Plan adding his own ideas and was very sorry to miss the Club Cricket Conference at the Oval in March due to ill health. He loved following the cricketing progress of young Oliver in Australia (being coached by none other than Michael Slater) and Sam doing well at Wimbledon Cricket Club. The fifth generation of cricketers in the family!
Sadly his health quickly declined and he spent his last days in a beautiful care home in Thames Ditton surrounded by his devoted family. Even the day before he died he wanted to know how his beloved Spurs fared and how we got on against Leigh. A small smile spread on his face when I was able to tell him of an exciting victory.
Our sympathies go to Helen, Deborah, Angela, Suzie and Allan and I say a heavy goodbye to my ‘identical twin cousin’ …as he used to love calling me.
‘All Stars’ Cricket comes to Newdigate. Monjur has put up the banner to tell the world…. spread the news.
On the 18th April, Annette, Roger and John did an All Stars Presentation at Newdigate Infants School.
After the wettest spring in memory it is good to see the outfield looking good. Here is Monjur on the mower.
Players get in to training for the new season!
We were pleasantly surprised to see nearly fifty juniors turn up for the first coaching session on the 13th April. The weather was cold and overcast but a good time was had by all…. and the bar was full!
Our hopes and prayers are with our chairman, Mike Cooper, and all his family. He is lying grievously ill in St. George’s Hospital, Tooting.
March
Saturday the 24th March was the day selected to get the club ready for the season under the NatWest Cricket Force banner. Here are a group of the helpers.
Good news – the sun has come out and it’s much warmer. More good news – our application for funding with the ECB Small Grants Scheme has been successful. We will be having artificial grass laid on the balcony to replace the tatty carpet.
Who’s for cricket ???? ………. One month to go.
If Matt is looking at this from sunny Sydney, don’t worry. We were cutting the grass two days ago in bright sunshine!
Newdigate Cricket Club – 18th March at 10.30 am
Each year the Surrey Cricket Foundation hosts a Club Cricket Conference at the Oval for the benefit of cricket clubs throughout the county. There are many trade stands and a series of workshops covering a variety of topics such as retention of players, funding, GDPR, new playing initiatives etc. etc. Such is the reputation of the conference that two delegates came up from Cornwall, despite the poor weather, especially to attend! It is a great opportunity for networking and the club was represented by Pierre Tartari and John Callcut. The Chairman was scheduled to attend but he had a hospital appointment that couldn’t be missed.
Snow swirls across the Oval (above) – some trade stands (below). Our friend Alex Slatter from Notts Sports is on the left talking to Chris Whitaker (Chief funding officer of the ECB) and our specialist insurance broker, Colin Mico is on the right.
For the 2018 season we welcome Matt Dedes as our overseas player. Matt is currently playing for Bankstown Cricket Cub in the Sydney grade league, a top order batsman who can equally turn his arm over as a spin bowler. Matt will be arriving around the 25th April.
We are so indebted to the Haigh family who provide funds for the Russell Haigh Bursary. Here are the recipients at the Surrey Cricket Centre with their coaches.
February
A Chance to Shine seminar was held at the Surrey Cricket Centre on the 27th February. Despite the bad weather about twenty clubs from the county were represented. Since its inception over three million young boys and girls have experienced cricket nationwide. Last year in Surrey 120 schools participated and 23696 children attended the sessions. We will be holding our own sessions at Newdigate Infants School, North Downs, Surrey Hills and St. Martin’s Primary Schools.
Vice President, Nick Crawford, has introduced a periodic Jazz Sunday and Constantin Mitran provides fine dining. Nick set this up as a thank you to all those people who supported him and the band when they were regulars at the Six Bells.
The picture taken from the balcony shows a fine winter’s day just before the onset of snow.
Our funding application to the ECB Small Grants Scheme has been submitted. We are hoping to carpet the balcony with artificial grass. The fund has been over-subscibed so we must keep our fingers crossed.
A First Aid Course was held at the club on the 7th February which was attended by six club members.
January
The Annual General Meeting was held at the club on Sunday, 7th January.
It was a real case of the ‘changing of the guard’ with four key members standing down and making way for fresh blood.
Roger Bailey (Chairman), Andy Wood (Secretary), Steve Jones (Treasurer) and John Callcut (Junior Co-Ordinator) had put in over 50 years of service between them. The club owes them a debt of gratitude.
Taking their places will be Mike Cooper, Jon Pritchard, Steve Kehl and Andrew Mayne. We wish them the best of luck in their future roles.
All other committee posts can be seen in the ‘Who’s Who’ section.