31st May 2001 - RAINFORD CONCEDE ECHO KO MATCH
Friday's Liverpool Echo KO match away at Rainford has been conceded by the home side. Never a very satisfactory way to progress in any tournament but at least it saves us a long Friday evening journey to the other side of Liverpool. Andy Woolley the acting skipper for the tie was bitterly disappointed with the news especially considering the fact that he had assembled an unusually very strong side. "I think they got wind of the talent that would have been on show and bottled it" he said. That's as maybe, perhaps the next round will offer a greater challenge. I've not got any details yet.

30th May 2001 - MIDWEEKERS VICTORY BY DEFAULT - BY CLIFF SMITH
This weeks opposition cried off.. must have heard about Douggie Chadwick's seering pace... so we gain further 2 points.

30th May 2001 - JIM IN THE RUNS AGAIN FOR CHESHIRE OVER 50'S
I've only got scant details at the moment but I do know that Cheshire Over 50's beat Staffordshire Over 50's in their County Championship game last week. I understand that Jim Marshall was once again in the runs with 40+ (I hope to get more details soon)

30th May 2001 - SARAH IN ASHES SQUAD
Our own Sarah Collyer has been selected in a 12 strong England sqaud to play against Australia this summer. There will be two, four day test matches and three one day internationals (two of which will be covered by SKY TV). The full itinery is as follows;
4 DAY TEST MATCH: Day 1, Sunday 24th - Final Day, Wed 27th June, at Shenley Cricket Ground
1 DAY INTERNATIONAL: Friday 29th June, Derby (Live on Sky TV)
1 DAY INTERNATIONAL: Monday 2 July, Northampton (Live on Sky TV)
1 DAY INTERNATIONAL: Tuesday 3rd July, Lord's
4 DAY TEST MATCH: Day 1, Friday 6 July - Final Day, Monday 9 July, at Headingley
If you can make it to any of these games why not give Sarah some support.

28th May 2001 - WINS FOR ALL FOUR TEAMS
There was plenty to cheer at Parkgate on Saturday night with all four Neston teams recording wins. The 1st XI extended their lead at the top of the table with a comprehensive 78 run victory at Nantwich. The win broke a run of 38 league games without a success when batting first.

Simon Marshall on his return to the side was the hero with the bat with a superb knock of 68, ably supported in the main by in-form skipper Phil Davis (35). The pair shared a second wicket partnership of 71 against one of the leagues better fast bowling attacks. Wickets did tumble towards the end of the innings but Brian Beaver and Martin Noakes shared a useful stand to allow Davis to declare at 187 for 8 off 55 overs.

Nantwich suffered a dreadful start to their innings when opener Armitage was run out without facing a ball, Jack Smith's direct hit from the boundary giving Neston just the lift they were looking for. Chris Hackett sent Kettle's leg stump cartwheeling out of the ground soon after and followed that up by having Milne caught behind by Beaver. Dave Jones proceeded to pick up his regulation five wickets one of which was Maynard (58) who had offered the only real resistance in the Nantwich innings. Jones' last wicket was the crucial match winner which came with 8 overs still remaining and the home side well short of their target on 111. With second placed Didsbury only able to draw Neston extend their lead at the top to 29 points. [Scoresheet] [Match photographs]

The 2nd XI bowled Alsager out for 181 at Parkgate with Dickie Thorn returning the excellent figures of 7 for 39. Skipper Nigel Davies (32*) and Don Hurst (32) both made useful contributions in the Neston reply but it was Nick Beazley who was in imperious form with a match winning 61 not out. The 5 wicket victory was sealed with several overs to spare.

The 3rd XI had the most difficult game of the day but they too ended up with the spoils in a hard fought and dramatic one run win over Chester Boughton Hall's 3rd XI. Batting first Russ Thompsons side were thankful for Merton Wellington's 47 in their disappointing total of 149 all out. As it turned out it was just enough and with Mark Strong returning figures of 5 for 49 and the evergreen Douggy Chadwick picking up 3 for 34 Chester found themselves needing two to win with their last pair at the wicket. Chadwick's vast experience won the day and his fourth wicket of the game gave Neston their hard earned victory.

Things were a little more comfortable for the 4th XI against their Chester Boughton Hall counterparts. Brian Murphy continued his good run with the ball picking up 5 wickets as the visitors collapsed to 83 all out. There was a welcome return to the side for Gary Davies who wasted no time in showing that he's still got what it takes by knocking up a rapid 49 not out as Neston cruised to a 7 wicket success.

It's a busy weekend this week particularly for the 1st XI. They have a league game at bottom placed Oxton on Saturday coming sandwiched between a visit to play Rainford on Friday night in the Liverpool Echo Knockout and a home tie against Birkenhead St Mary's in the Cheshire Cup on Sunday. The 2nd XI play Oxton at home, the 3rd's are also at home, to Upton, whilst the 4th XI travel to Brooklands.

25th May 2001 - YOUNGSTER MAKES HEADLINE NEWS
Some great performances for the 4th XI and the midweekers over recent weeks has brought the local press down to Parkgate to feature 11 year old David Hurst. Click for a larger image.


23rd May 2001 - MIDWEEKERS STEADY START TO SEASON
Division 1 - Chester and District Midweek League
This report from our new journalistic recruit, Cliff Smith
3 weeks into our 14 week season - W1 D1 L1

Week 1
Lose to Mynnyd Isa in next to last ball of their 20 overs after great spell of 5 overs from 10 year old David Hurst who took 3-3 with 3 maidens. Opposition a little embarrassed!. Father Don Hurst is our top scorer with 30 n/o.

Week 2
No game, our pitch unfit. Nice to get 1 point from HGCC, the best team in Division 1

Week 3
Travel to Ashton Heyes, near Delamere and score 99-4 with Don Hurst again top scorer with 41 and Johnny Brown helping out with 26. Johnny then takes 4-20, Douggy Chadwick takes 3-15 and dismiss opposition for 76 with 1.1 overs to go. Entertainment for the evening : catch taken by Peter Chester after a juggling display, deep on the boundary

20th May 2001 - MARSHALL AND PEERS GET CHESHIRE CALL UP
Neston veterans Jim Marshall and Ken Peers will turn out for Cheshire Over 50's on Thursday in their County Championship match against Derbyshire at Shipton Hall. Jim has already made his mark this season with an unbeaten 53 in Cheshire's 8 wicket victory over Staffordshire in a warm up game last week.

20th May 2001 - SKIPPER LEADS HIS SIDE TO VICTORY
Neston skipper Phil Davis hit an unbeaten 69 to lead his side to victory against Chester Boughton Hall at Parkgate yesterday. After losing the toss Neston found themselves in the field once again but it wasn't long before opening bowlers Chris Hackett and Stan Clifford had exerted a stranglehold on the Chester batsman. Hackett picked up the early wicket of Chris Fleet and with Eddie Roberts struggling to score freely the visitors found themselves struggling along at less than two an over. Dave Jones captured the vital wicket of Aussie Heath Pritchard with his very first delivery and when two run outs followed Chester were very much on the back foot. Steve Ogilvey pulled things around a little for the batting side but Chester had little option to bat through to their allotted 60 overs reaching 162 for 7.

Once again the Neston innings started brightly with Jack Smith looking in great form. Disappointingly for himself and the large crowd he was surprisingly bowled for 29 just as it looked as if he could go on to make his first significant innings of the season. Stan Clifford also looked in great form with some crashing boundaries but he too misjudged a short delivery and was trapped LBW. Andy Woolley fell foul of a tricky long hop and contrived to hit it straight down the throat of square leg and there were slight jitters soon after when Steve Egerton was also trapped LBW, although "Hawk Eye" later suggested that he was a trifle unlucky. All the time skipper Davis was quietly accumulating runs and reached his fifty with a towering six over mid-wicket. He was joined by Chris Hackett and between them the victory was duly sealed with 4 overs and 6 wickets in hand. [Scoresheet] [Match photographs]

At Chester the 2nd XI also ran out comfortable winners with Dickie Thorn (5 for 44) and Mike Philpotts (3 for 21) dismissing the home side for 130. In reply Neston reached their target with the loss of 5 wickets, Don Hurst top scoring with 38.

The 3rd XI made light work of their opposition at Oxton who could only manage 142 all out. The wickets were shared around with two each for Doug Chadwick, Mark Strong, Steve Cook and Dave Carter. Paul King (42) led Neston's reply and saw them to victory with 7 wickets in hand.

Jim Hughes tried everything to rescue the 4th XI's game against Warrington from pure tedium, but sadly failed. Neston reached 209 for 8 declared with Johnny Brown (59), Tudor Williams (42) and Ben Thomas (33) top scoring. Warrington were unwilling to chase the total and settled for a very boring draw at 151 for 5. [Match photographs]

This weekend the 1st XI travel to Nantwich whilst the 2nd XI play at home against Alsager. The 3rd and 4th XI's meet their counterparts from Chester Boughton Hall with the 4th XI at home.

13th May 2001 - NESTON GO TOP
Neston's convincing 7 wicket victory over Hyde at Parkgate yesterday brought them a maximum 25 points and top spot in the ECB Cheshire County Premier League. The late withdrawal of both Aussie Jack Smith and Dave Collyer through illness had little effect upon the performance with more than adequate replacements coming in the form of Kim Pinnington and Dickie Thorn.

For the fourth time this season Neston bowled first, this time at the request of the visitors. With the County game at Leicestershire finishing a day early Hyde were able to field Lancashire's Ryan Driver but he was made to struggle for runs by some excellent opening bowling from Stan Clifford and Chris Hackett. Driver reached 28 before Hackett deservedly picked up his wicket when he had him caught behind by Brian Beaver. Stan Clifford went on to bowl 18 overs and pick up two wickets whilst the Leagues leading wicket taker Dave Jones captured another four victims in his ten over spell which only went for 6 runs. With great support from the fielders Hyde were never able to get a foothold in the game and were eventually dismissed for 104.

In reply it looked like openers Phil Davis (39) and Stan Clifford (45) were going to inflict a ten wicket defeat on the visitors. As it turned out both were dismissed along with Steve Egerton. It was only a minor set back and three quick fire boundaries from Jim Marshall soon sealed a comprehensive win.

Neston's 25 points leapfrogs them over Chester Boughton Hall and into top spot at the top of the table. The two sides meet at Parkgate this coming Saturday. [Scoresheet]

The 2nd XI were also victorious although their game at Urmston was a close affair. The home side set a challenging target of 200 for 8 with Martin Noakes and Ken Peers each picking up a brace of wickets. Neston's reply owed much to the contributions of Ben Thomas (28) and Gareth Peers (33) but the real hero was Adam Bass whose 54 not out was the match winning knock. The winning runs came with only 2 wickets and 3 balls to spare. This Saturday the 2nd XI travel to Chester Boughton Hall.

Russ Thompson's 3rd XI completed a hat trick of wins with a massive 144 run success at home to Brooklands. Alan Reeve (84) and Steve Hasell (65) piled on the agony for the visitors allowing Neston to declare at 247 for 5. Once Doug Chadwick had picked up three early wickets the game only had one conclusion. Mark Strong took his chance to pick up four victims the last of which wrapped up the game with 11 overs to spare. [Scoresheet] [Match photographs]

7th May 2001 - CHESHIRE CUP VICTORY
The 1st XI returned to action yesterday when they took on Oxton in the first round of the Cheshire Cup. Neston were without Aussie Jack Smith who was ineligible and Brian Beaver who was unavailable. Simon Marshall returned to the side and Gareth Peers stepped in to keep wicket.

Neston batted first but found the going tough against some tight bowling. Simon Marshall (21), Andy Woolley (20), Steve Egerton (32) and Jim Marshall (21) all chipped in but wickets kept falling at regular intervals. Eventually Neston reached 137 in their 40 overs, not a bad score on a difficult wicket. What was needed was a good start with the ball and it was Dave Collyer who provided it with a double wicket maiden in the very first over. Oxton were forced on to the back foot and never recovered. Collyer ended up with figures of 3 for 8 off his 8 overs and with Chris Hackett picking up 3 for 18 off his opening 8 over spell the game was well under Neston's control. Simon Marshall, Dave Jones and the ever willing Stan Clifford duly finished proceedings with Oxton all out for 61. [Scoresheet] [Match photographs]

Neston now play hosts to Birkenhead St Mary's in the next round.

Also in action on Sunday were the 3rd XI in a Jack Gardner Trophy Match against Ashton on Mersey. Russ Thompson (60), Alan Reeve (70) and Steve Hasell (35) all made hay in the sunshine as Neston rattled up 238 in their 45 overs. Ashton offered little threat in return and were dismissed for 54 with Simon Stokes picking up 3 wickets.

6th May 2001 - NESTON SETTLE FOR DRAW
Neston's 1st XI had to settle for a draw at Alderley Edge yesterday but picked up 10 points in the process to keep them in second place in the league table.

The match initially followed the same pattern as the previous two weeks with Phil Davis winning the toss, electing to field and the opposition batting for 60 overs for 168 all out. Dave Jones picked up another five wickets with the only real resistance coming from Alderley's skipper Steve O'Shaughnessey (88). Unfortunately whilst the two previous games had seen Neston victorious by 4 wickets it was third time unlucky as they were eventually forced to settle for a draw with the score at 152 for 9. Phil Davis (57) and Andy Woolley (37) had earlier led a spirited fight back from a precarious 7 for 2 and Jim Marshall kept hopes alive late on with an entertaining cameo of 21, but all to no avail. After the match Davis was relatively happy to have avoided defeat with a reasonable return of ten points for the draw. [Scoresheet] [Match photographs]

The 2nd XI shared a similar type of game at home to Grappenhall. Peter Barber (33), Kim Pinnington (41) and Graham Lea-Swain (29) were Neston's main contributors in their total of 162 for 6 declared. Grappenhall struggled against the wily spin of Dickie Thorn (3 for 36) and gave up the chase at 149 for 8.

The 3rd XI romped to an impressive 8 wicket victory against Chester Boughton Hall. Nick Carter (3 wickets) and Mark Strong (4 wickets) were the pick of the bowlers in Chester's total of 173 for 9 but it was the batsmen who stole the limelight particularly Pete Chesters (63), Alan Reeve (39) and Mark Garrett (59 not out) as Russ Thompsons side cruised to their target.

Equally impressive were the 4th XI against Warrington, even without their inspirational skipper Jim Hughes who is out with a serious little finger injury. New boy Brian Murphy led the way with 72 as Neston reached 200 for 8 declared. After his 3 wickets last week 11 year old David Hurst showed that there was even more to come as he returned the excellent figures of 6 for 18. Warrington had no answer to the youngster and capitulated to 40 all out.

6th May 2001 - PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE (up to and including Sat 5 May 2001)

	P	W	T	D	C/A	L	Pts.
Chester BH	3	2	1	0	0	0	61
Neston	3	2	0	1	0	0	50
Oulton Park	3	1	0	1	0	1	43
Nantwich	3	1	1	0	0	1	40
Didsbury	3	1	0	1	1	0	34
Macclesfield	3	1	0	1	0	1	34
Bowdon	3	1	0	0	1	1	33
Toft	3	0	1	1	0	1	27
Alderley Edge	3	0	0	2	1	0	23
Cheadle Hulme	3	0	0	1	0	2	19
Hyde	3	0	0	1	1	1	19
Oxton	3	0	0	2	0	1	18

3rd May 2001 - WOOLLEY IN
1st team skipper Phil Davis makes one change to his side for Saturdays trip to Alderley Edge. With Simon Marshall playing for Birkenhead School, Andy Woolley steps up from the 2nd XI. Simon returns to the side for Sundays Cheshire Cup match at Oxton with Jack Smith ineligible to play.

29th April 2001 - EGERTON'S EFFORTS ARE REWARDED
Whilst the weather was playing havoc with the rest of the Cheshire County League fixture list Neston took full advantage by defeating Cheadle Hulme at Parkgate. The overnight rain had left the ground particular wet but some pre-match mopping up, particularly by Steve Egerton, meant that the game surprisingly started on time. Fittingly it was Egerton who was to later reap the benefits of his own efforts.

For the second week running Neston skipper Phil Davis won the toss and elected to bowl first. The visitors cautious approach provided little entertainment for the growing crowd although Davis was more than content to see the run rate pegged back to two an over. Unwilling to take many chances and play too many shots the Cheadle batsmen seemed content to ease their way towards a reasonable total. The highlights of the innings were an undefeated century from Dawson, the visitors Australian import, and some excellent Neston fielding which brought about two run outs. In particular Dave Collyer's lightning reactions and arrow like throw was more than a match for one bemused Cheadle batsman. A final total of 174 for 7 in 60 overs was perhaps a few more than Neston would have preferred to chase in the wet conditions but with confidence high after a good start to the season there was no reason to believe that they couldn't go on to record their second consecutive victory.

Openers Davis (16) and Smith (20) started brightly and were threatening to make short work of the victory target until Davis was trapped LBW and Smith was undone by a superb leg side stumping. When Simon Marshall also fell LBW soon after for a duck Neston looked a little shaky at 43 for 3. No such concerns for Stan Clifford (47) and that man Steve Egerton (61) as they proceeded to carve the Cheadle attack to all parts of the ground. It was a match winning partnership of 121 but with dark clouds and potential heavy rain the only threat to victory both were eventually dismissed as they chased the final few runs required. In the end the rain held off and the four wicket win was duly sealed with 10 overs to spare.

Neston's win owed as much to Egertons mopping up efforts as it did his entertaining knock with the bat. With none of the other Premier League teams winning it means that the 20 points for victory takes Neston into second place. [Scoresheet]

Nigel Davis' 2nd XI game at Cheadle Hulme was called off because of the wet conditions, as was the 3rd XI game at Warrington. After a washout the previous weekend the 4th XI finally got their season under way when Upton were the visitors to Parkgate. It wasn't a great start for the home side as they struggled their way to 92 all out. Johnny Brown (24) and Lloyd Murphy (22) were top scorers. Upton's patient reply was temporarily held up by eleven year old David Hurst who took three wickets but the visitors eventually sneaked home with four wickets to spare.

This Saturday Phil Davis' side take to the road for the first time this season with a trip to newly promoted Alderley Edge. On Sunday they're back in action with a mouth watering Cheshire Cup tie at Wirral rivals Oxton. The 2nd XI will be glad to get back to Parkgate where Grappenhall are the visitors. The 3rd XI play Ashton on Mersey at home whilst the 4th XI travel to Warrington. Both are back in action on Sunday this time in the cup. Russ Thompson's side meet Ashton on Mersey at Parkgate whilst Jim Hughes takes the 4th XI to New Brighton.

29th April 2001 - PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE (up to and including Sat 28 April 2001)

	P	W	T	D	C/A	L	Pts.
Chester BH	2	1	1	0	0	0	41
Neston	2	2	0	0	0	0	40
Bowdon	2	1	0	0	1	0	27
Toft	2	0	1	1	0	0	25
Oulton Park	2	0	0	1	0	1	22
Nantwich	2	0	0	1	0	1	20
Oxton	2	0	0	2	0	0	17
Hyde	2	0	0	1	1	0	16
Alderley Edge	2	0	0	1	1	0	15
Macclesfield	2	0	0	1	0	1	14
Didsbury	2	0	0	1	0	1	14
Cheadle Hulme	2	0	0	1	0	1	12

26th April 2001 - NCC WEIGHT WATCHERS
Jack Smith's here from Australia - an athlete ? no doubt about it !! but then again so was Dodge when he arrived in Parkgate two years ago. A sweep has already started and Jack's been weighed in. On arrival in the U.K. he was 77kg. Dodge fell foul of the good living and the beer and went home many kg's heavier than he arrived. Will Jack follow in his (very heavy) footsteps ?. If you want to predict Jack's weight when he leaves at the end of the season just email me with your guess. (tip - it's only been two weeks and the scales now read 81kg !!!). We may have to have another sweep about his success in Liverpool - latest on that ..... it's been a slow start !!.


26th April 2001 - SAME AGAIN FOR CHEADLE HULME
After Saturdays encouraging opening day win against new boys Oulton Park, Phil Davis has named an unchanged side for this Saturdays visit of Cheadle Hulme. In the corresponding fixture last season Neston ran out winners by 3 wickets after chasing 133.

26th April 2001 - PROPOSAL ACCEPTED
Although I wasn't present a tonights meeeting (with hindsight Chester's 0-0 draw was perhaps not the place to be !) I understand that the Club Council's proposal was accepted by the majority of the meeting. By all accounts there were good arguments put forward both for and against the proposal. It should be remembered that this is only a mandate to go onto the next stage - there is much more work to be done and there will be further, and more important meetings where any more detailed proposals will be discussed. One things for certain, obtaining planning approval for a) building on the back ground, and b) developing a new facility elsewhere will not be straight forward - watch this space !.
The proposal accepted tonight was .....

"The Club Council seeks a mandate from members to pursue planning permission with a view to acquisition and development of land adjacent to Parksfield and the redevelopment of the existing Neston CC site, funded by the sale of the rear playing fields and subject to a further E.G.M. to ratify the detailed scheme."

26th April 2001 - PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE (up to and including Sat 21 April 2001)

	P	W	T	D	C/A	L	Pts.
Chester BH	1	1	0	0	0	0	23
Bowdon	1	1	0	0	0	0	20
Neston	1	1	0	0	0	0	20
Hyde	1	0	0	1	0	0	9
Oulton Park	1	0	0	0	0	1	9
Alderley Edge	1	0	0	1	0	0	8
Macclesfield	1	0	0	0	0	1	8
Cheadle Hulme	1	0	0	1	0	0	7
Didsbury	1	0	0	1	0	0	7
Oxton	1	0	0	1	0	0	7
Toft	1	0	0	1	0	0	7
Nantwich	1	0	0	0	0	1	2

26th April 2001 - CRUCIAL E.G.M.
One of the most important General Meetings in the history of the club will take place tomorrow for the purpose of considering the following Club Council proposal;

"The Club Council seeks a mandate from members to pursue planning permission with a view to acquisition and development of land adjacent to Parksfield and the redevelopment of the existing Neston CC site, funded by the sale of the rear playing fields and subject to a further E.G.M. to ratify the detailed scheme."

What we are talking about it is selling the back pitches to a developer who will build houses on them and replace those pitches with a new facility on land at the nearby Parksfield. The new development will also include an all weather pitch for the hockey.

There has been much press about the proposal and it's already turning out to be a very contentious issue. The meeting which will be held at 7.30pm on Thursday 26 April 2001 at Neston High School is expected to be very lively !.

22nd April 2001 - WINNING START
The 1st XI made a winning start to their ECB Cheshire County League campaign when they defeated Oulton Park yesterday by 4 wickets. The Leagues decision to go ahead with the full opening day fixture list was fully justified with conditions at Parkgate remarkably good considering the recent wet weather. Skipper Phil Davis won the toss and after some deliberation decided to invite the visitors to bat first. It was a decision that looked to have backfired as they raced to 131 for 1. Several missed chances in the field did not help Neston's cause but ironically it was some fine fielding from Jamie Hackett which was to turn the game on it's head. Opener, Jason Swift, had already scored 69 but his hesitation in going for a second run led to confusion in mid wicket and Hackett's throw from the boundary easily ran him out. Two overs later Simon Marshall took the other crucial wicket of Paul Berry and thereafter the Oulton Park innings collapsed in tatters. Marshall finished with 4-43 and veteran Dave Jones 4-35 as the visitors, disappointingly for them, were bowled out for 171.

There is an air of cautious confidence at Neston this campaign with the side, at least on paper, looking stronger than last season. The experienced key players from 2000 are all available but the addition of all rounder Jack Smith from Australia and the return of Chris and Jamie Hackett should provide more strength in depth. Chasing 171 on the first day of the season was to be a good test of the sides capabilities and it was to be a test that they encouragingly came through.

Smith (18) was to spend a useful amount of time at the wicket as he and skipper Davis (13) made a steady start. The loss of both openers and youngster Simon Marshall in quick succession set a few alarm bells ringing but it was actually just a cue for Stan Clifford (30) and Steve Egerton (32) to take the attack to the bowlers. Egerton in particular was dominant with some superb shots back over the bowlers head. It was great entertainment for the crowd but unfortunately Clifford fell foul of a dodgy call for a quick single and was beaten by a direct hit. Egerton was dismissed shortly afterwards and the visitors again sensed that they might be back on top. Fortunately for the home side the Hackett brothers shared a useful partnership before Jamie lost his wicket. There were to be no further scares as the experienced Jim Marshall and Chris Hackett eased their way towards the victory target. Hacketts final blow to the boundary sealed the win and brought up his half century. It was a thoroughly deserved victory for Neston and one from which they will be looking to build upon as the season progresses. [Scoresheet] [Match photographs]

The 2nd XI opened their season with a draw at Upton. Slow bowler Dickie Thorn turned batsman to ensure Nigel Davies' team avoided defeat albeit 9 wickets down.

Last seasons 3rd XI league champions made a less than auspicious start to the new campaign going down to a heavy 6 wicket defeat at the hands of Urmston. Neston struggled to 114 all out with Simon Stokes (28) top scoring. The visitors made light work of reaching their target of 115 for the loss of only 4 wickets.
Jim Hughes' 4th XI's game at Chester was a victim of the weather as were both the 3rd and 4th XI's Sunday cup games.

This coming weekend both the 1st and 2nd XI's meet their counterparts from Cheadle Hulme with the 1st team again at home. Russ Thompson takes the 3rd XI to Warrington and Jim Hughes will be hoping for better weather when his side meet Upton at Parkgate.

20th April 2001 - MATCHES ON
At their pre-season meeting held at Cheadle Hulme on Thursday evening, the Cricket Committee decided that the opening programme of fixtures on Saturday and Sunday, April 21st / 22nd should go ahead as scheduled.

While it was reported that several grounds would definitely not be fit due to poor April weather and preparation difficulties, many clubs indicated their wish to play and others reported that they would probably be able to fulfil their home fixtures if the League gave the programme the go ahead. The overall views of the majority were taken into account.

1st XI matches definitely off:
Division 1:
Bramhall v Heaton Mersey; Brooklands v Alvanley; Stockport Georgians v Upton.

Division 2:
Timperley v Cholmondeley


2nd XI matches off:
Premier Division:
Urmston v Grappenhall
Division 1:
Hyde v Alderley Edge

The 2nd XI fixture between Cholmondeley and Timperley will be played at Chester Boughton Hall (main square) on Sunday.

3rd XI match off:
Saturday Division 1:
Brooklands v Chester BH 4th

Latest information is that most, although not all, remaining fixtures will be played as the weather forecast for Friday and Saturday is reasonably promising.

All applications for the registration of Overseas, Contracted and Employee players received by Thursday, April 19th have been approved and all are therefore clear to play.

Rode Park & Lawton have resigned from the league and their weekly opponents in Sunday 3rd XI Division 3 will have an open date. This has been done because their ground has been closed indefinitely by the Foot & Mouth disease epidemic.

If you require further information contact MT-B at 01606 883715 or by e-mail on mike.t-b@virgin.net

[Friday, April 20th at 10 a.m.]

19th April 2001 - SCHEDULED START IN DOUBT
The winters wet weather threatens the start of the County League season with many grounds still unplayable. I understand that the League are canvassing all clubs before deciding whether or not to call off the entire fixture list for the opening day. Neston's ground at Parkgate is perfectly playable and there is no doubt that Saturdays game could go ahead if the League allow it. In case the game is called off Phil Davis has already provisionally arranged to play a friendly match against Irby.

Two seasons ago the first Saturday was called off by the League after heavy snow fell in the preceding week. Those games were then tagged onto the end of the season. (Parkgate was perfectly playable on that occasion too !!).

18th April 2001 - FIRST GAME LINE UP
1st XI skipper Phil Davis has selected the following side for the opening league game against Oulton Park;
Phil Davis, Jack Smith, Stan Clifford, Steve Egerton, Simon Marshall, Jim Marshall, Chris Hackett, Jamie Hackett, Brian Beaver, Dave Collyer, Dave Jones.
Nigel Davies' 2nd XI season opener at Upton will see a debut for new boy Paul Stimpson. Both Russ Thompson and Jim Hughes have the unenviable task of putting teams out on both Saturday and Sunday

17th April 2001 - JACK'S HERE
Aussie Jack Smith arrived in the country today in time for the preparations for this Saturdays opening league game against Oulton Park. On his first visit to Neston CC he said it was just as he had seen it on the web site. He has been introduced to the bar !!!.

14th April 2001 - WARM UP OFF
Saturdays pre season warm up games for the 1st and 2nd XI's at Toft have been called off because of the wet conditions.

10th April 2001 - WEATHER THREATENS WARM UPS
Saturdays pre season warm up games for the 1st and 2nd XI's at Toft are in some doubt because of the wet weather. Final details should be known by Thursday.

10th April 2001 - LAST SEASONS CAPTAINS REPORTS
I've only just had copies of the Captains reports for last season. Click on for details

10th April 2001 - PRE-SEASON "HOT POT LUNCH WITH PUD"
Sunday 29th April at 12.30 p.m.
Only £5
Tickets - ring Jenny Woolley on 336 2188

10th April 2001 - FIXTURES
2001 fixtures now available - see the news section for a preview of Neston's season or go to the County League page for full details of everyone else's season.

9th April 2001 - NEW CRICKET LAWS
The MCC have revised and re-written the Laws for the new Millennium. In this Code, the major innovation is the introduction of the Spirit of Cricket as a preface to the Laws. The new version of the Laws is available for you to read as a PDF file (267k) (to access this file you will need a copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you haven't got it installed, click here Get Acrobat Reader). For a summary of the changes from the ECB web site click here

2nd April 2001 - PRE SEASON FRIENDLY
Easter Saturday will see the 1st XI in action at Toft in a pre-season friendly. The 2nd XI may also have a warm up game against Toft, details still to be finalised.

27th February 2001 - 2001 ECHO KNOCKOUT
After a first round bye Neston will have to travel to either Rainford or Hale in Round 2. The game is scheduled for Friday 1st June.

10th February 2001 - 2001 CUP TIES
After giving the League knock-out a miss last year for a dabble in the National competition we've gone back to normal this year and have been handed an away tie in the first round against last seasons league and cup winners Bowdon !!. The game is scheduled for Sunday 10 June.

The 2nd XI are also away in their knock out competition with a 1st round trip to Heaton Mersey to look forward to on Sunday 3 June.

10th February 2001 - 2001 CHESHIRE CUP
Further to my earlier message I can confirm that Neston do play at Oxton in the first round of the Cheshire Cup. The game is scheduled for Sunday 6 May

7th February 2001 - 2001 FIXTURES
Newcomers to the Premier League and alleged big spenders Oulton Park provide the 1st XI with their first test when the season gets under way on April 21st. Skipper Phil Davis will be pleased to have two home games to start with (Cheadle Hulme come to Parkgate the following week) as well as a home game (Macclesfield) on the last day of the season. Of course there's always a flip side which in this case is three consecutive away trips (Didsbury, Oulton Park and Cheadle Hulme) at the end of June/early July. Champions Bowdon visit Parkgate on June 9th. The other newly promoted side Alderley Edge visit Parkgate on July 21st.

Unfortunately whilst the 1st XI can enjoy their early season home games it means the 2nd XI are immediately off on their travels. Their opening match is at Wirral rivals Upton followed by a trip to Cheadle Hulme. The final days fixture at Macclesfield will mean an early meet for the 12.30pm start.

Russ Thompson's 3rd XI start their season on Saturday April 21st against Urmston at Parkgate. In the early season Jack Gardner 3rd XI Trophy games they play their first match at Grappenhall on Sunday April 22nd. Their other mini group game is two weeks later on Sunday May 6th when they play Ashton on Mersey at Parkgate.

Jim Hughes and his 4th XI's league season is a local derby at Chester Boughton Hall 3rd XI. Their Jack Gardner Trophy mini group includes New Brighton (May 6th away) and Toft (April 22nd at home).

Three very important dates for anyones diary are the three meetings between these arch rivals. No quarter will be given by either side when they meet in the league on Saturday June 16th, again on Saturday July 14th and the possible decider on Saturday August 11th.

7th February 2001 - CHESHIRE CUP
I saw the Cheshire Cup draw in the paper the other day and forgot to rip it out. If my memory serves me correctly Neston meet Oxton away in the first round with the winners going on to play Birkenhead St Mary's. I will check the details ASAP.

29th January 2001 - WEB SITE RE-VAMP
The web site is in the process of being updated - please bear with me for a few weeks.

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