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Cap'n Beefy |
It was a long time
between updates, but there we go! As keen followers of the club will
know new recruits and a positive outlook meant the 2003 season ended
with much positive to look back on. The previous year was a little
disappointing in the way of results yet although the number of
outright wins was only a few more than then, the re-jigged team's
performance as a whole was coherent and efficient on many occasions.
Where on occasion we let ourselves down was in the same department as
last year, where we failed to total enough runs to secure a draw or
outright win. Fielding showed much promise, and often limited
opponents scoring opportunities to keep us in contention. Some 'orrible
dropped catches from time to time didn't help though!
Before all this though
was the pre-season part of the year. This kicked off with the
Treasure
Hunt and Grand Draw,
warmly received by cars full of manic
eagle-eyes with brains in overdrive, who wound their way through the lanes
of picturesque east Hampshire. Not that they had too much
time to appreciate the views - the route and challenging questions
were
set once again by Beefy Turner and his cunning mind, suitably aided
and abetted by Adie Lamberth with his quite devious mind! The cars' occupants also had to obtain
certain items along the route which took them through not only well-known
places such as Odiham but also through, round, past and almost under
many more not-so-familiar places as well. It was quite worrying at one
point when the convoy of vehicles saw a car containing the
organiser's grinning faces pass them in the opposite direction - just
what did they know? At the end of the day, it was Alan Hull and
his carload who were the worthy winners for the hotly contested £100 top prize. The
Grand Draw took place the same afternoon in the Hare
and Hounds with many prizes, top of which was a brand-new DVD player.
A good day was had by all and a £100 donation was made to the
Landlord's personal favourite charity, the Premature Baby Unit at Frimley Park Hospital.
The Racenight at Chobham R.F.C. was an even more enjoyable event than
the year before, and that is really saying something!
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The
new pitch - you better believe it |
Of
course next up was the one thing WECC won't forget for some time to
come, the culmination of years of saving and fundraising. The new grass
wickets was a major step on the evolutionary path the
club has taken in recent years to increase the club's profile in the
village and improve our facilities. Thankfully the first home scrap of
the year, also the first home game in three years, indeed the first
game on grass in West End for over twenty years (!) was a grand
opening
occasion involving inviting key members and players from
present and past. The rain of previous days finally relented to give
us a dry, warm and sunny day for 120 people to have a good time. The
rejuvenated (I like that word) home ground's surface was best
described as going "Good to Soft" as President Paul Bates gallantly
led his team to some sort of a result. No, you'll have to read the
match report to find out what! Click
any fixture above/right to be taken to that game's match report, if it
is available. (Time constraints!) The season couldn't have got off to
a much higher profile start.
Next
up was the
Tenth anniversary tour and our eighth to Perranporth - undoubtedly our favourite destination.
Players old and new were ever so slightly press-ganged into the trip
of a lifetime (well, the month of June anyway) which was let down a
bit by Sunday's cancelled game at Mount Hawke due to inclement weather
(rain, fog, monsoon, etc.) The Perranporth
game on the Monday was a far better affair with some familiar
Cornish faces putting in a welcome appearance, all of whom did their
level best to scupper us!
The
Surrey County Cricket Centre
George Abbot School
Burpham, Guildford
Surrey GU1 1XX.
Tel: 01483 598880
Fax: 01483 598881
guildford@surreycricket.com |
With
the promise our younger players are showing and the
continuing enthusiasm of the colts, not to mention the positive approach of everyone
else, 2003 certainly turned out to be one of the noteworthy seasons of
recent years and has hopefully sowed the seeds for WECC's future for
some time to come. Next up will hopefully be (at long last) our own
practise nets on the recreation ground. Some may say we need it but
it' s perfectly true to say that the more activity there is to be seen
on the ground, the better for the village - and us. Here's to 2004!
The
Committee.
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