The U14s began their season with a narrow 4 run defeat at the hands of Winchmore Hill. Requiring 8 runs from the final over, bowled in near darkness, three singles were scored from the first three balls. Alfie Kempston was then out of the fifth ball, leaving new batsman Dan McDougle needing a six from the last ball to win. It was not to be and Wooburn had to be content with playing their part in an excellent game of cricket.
Winchmore Hill had batted first on winning the toss, in gloomy conditions at Wooburn Park. They reached 102-5 from their 20 overs, with solid contributions from Mason (20), Klyne (23) and Lancaster (20). Will Cuthbert (2-8) and Tom Wright (2-17) were the pick of the seven Wooburn bowlers used. John Henry Kelly bowled tightly early on, and there were also good spells from Tom Maisey and Cameron Lamming. However, a total of 14 wides and 2 no balls, compared to just 4 wides conceded by Winchmore Hill, were to prove crucial determining the victors.
The Wooburn reply started slowly, reaching 35-1 after 10 overs, against some tight bowling, Mason and Masters being particularly difficult to get away. After the early loss of Tom Maisey, Will Cuthbert and Oli Lawrie added 42 for the third wicket. The scoring rate picked up when Alfie Kempston joined Will in a partnership of 52 for the third wicket. They managed to keep up with the required rate of nearly 7 per over. Will, who had struggled to score in the first half of the innings, played much more freely in the second half, driving well. Alfie hit the ball cleanly almost from the start on the way to his best ever score of 24. After playing so well, 8 from the final over looked possible, but proved to be too much in the end.
Bowling: W.Cuthbert 4-0-8-2, J.H.Kelly 4-0-18-0, T.Wright 4-0-17-2, N.Dearsley 3-0-24-0, T.Maisey 2-0-11-1, C.Lamming 2-0-7-0, T.Bayliss 1-0-11-0.
Batting: W.Cuthbert 40*, T.Maisey 2, O.Lawrie 17, A.Kempston 24, D.McDougle 0*
Team: Oli Lawrie (capt), Will Cuthbert, Tom Maisey, Alfie Kempston, Dan McDougle, John Henry Kelly, Tom Wright, Niall Dearsley, Ciaran Kempster, Tye Bayliss, Cameron Lamming
