Surrey Cricket Championship | ECC Week 1 Report

The newly promoted Effingham 1st XI’s first game of the season saw them lose a thrilling encounter against their rivals for the title last year, Chobham.

Sent into bat first, the Ships posted an under par 174 all out, with multiple batsmen failing to turn starts into big runs. Benji Thomas (32) and Jordan Bond (39), the top two run scorers for the side last year put on 62 for the second wicket, with this unfortunately ending up as the largest partnership for the home side.

Defending 174 was always going to be a tough task, yet the father-son opening partnership of Anthony and Dominic Brown, along with the newly acquired Ben Shaw, made plenty of early inroads to leave the visitors 56-5. Shaw’s dismissal of Ben Storey, a key batter for the opposition, seemed particularly vital, though he was helped by a spectacular diving catch from Jordan Bond.

Although Shaw, making his league debut for Effingham, ended with impressive figures of 4-47, the opposition captain and the Chobham lower order managed to steady the ship well and keep them in the game. That said, they were still 23 runs short when the ninth wicket fell, making the match-winning partnership between their numbers 10 and 11 all the more painful.

Second XI

Similarly the 2nd XI’s fixture at Godalming ended with the Ships as second best. Winning the toss and bowling first, the season got off to the best possible start with Dom Carpenter making the most of a calamitous mix up to pick up a run out on the first ball.

Despite taking wickets at regular intervals, the Godalming innings was anchored by a steady 97* from their captain batting at three, who was able to steer the hosts to a formidable 202-6 from their 45 overs. Adam Burlison was the pick of the bowlers on the Effingham side, picking up a miserly 3-18 from his eight over spell.

In response, Effingham chased bravely while never getting fully ahead of the opposition. Promising looking knocks from Carpenter (41) and Harrison Green (45) didn’t materialise as the match-winning contributions they were threatening to be, and despite a late flurry of runs that helped the Ships claim their 5th bonus point of the match, Godalming had just enough on the board to secure a 22 run victory.

In all, it was a disappointing start for both Saturday XI’s, but both sides should feel confident that they have the groundwork laid for concurrently successful seasons.

Effingham 1st XI 174 all out lost to Chobham 1st XI 178-9 by 1 wicket

Effingham 2nd XI 180-8 lost to Godalming 2nd XI 202-6 by 22 runs