Junior Review – 2008
We had 95 registrations this year and first of all a special mention must go to the dedicated coaches who commit themselves to the regular Monday night coaching sessions and organise and attend matches. We had a total of sixteen evening coaching sessions and luckily, considering the weather, only one was cancelled. We have ten qualified coaches and a number of regular coaching assistants and our average junior/coach ratio throughout the season was 5.5 to 1. 50% of our young players live in Newdigate, Holmwood or Beare Green, 23% from surrounding villages and 27% from the towns.
We entered teams in the East Surrey Colts League at five age groups and the results were as follows:

Under 8s – This was the first year that we had entered a team in the league and we struggled to get enough players for the earlier matches, however this problem resolved itself as registrations increased. The team finished fifth out of six teams but there was no doubt that these very young players benefited from playing competitive matches. Coaches – Veronica Annis and Rory Fry-Stone.

Under 9s – The team finished fifth out of ten teams which was an excellent result considering that this was the first season of competitive matches for a number of the players. Finn Osborne skippered his side well and one pleasing aspect was that there was not an outstanding star as many different players put in good contributions. Coaches – Mike Quigley, Christian John and Chris Ball

(Under 8s and 9s with their new kit donated by the Lord’s Taverners)

Under 11s – This proved to be a difficult season with the team probably not playing to its best potential as they finished fifth out of six teams. There were some good individual performances and congratulations must go to Charlie Wyllie who was selected for Surrey Central Distict. The highlight of the season was a thumping win against Felbridge & Sunnyside when Newdigate scored 322 runs, whilst a strange event occurred against Horley when the match had to be abandoned due to swarming ants! Coaches: Don Jones, Sam MacDonald and Saul Gabriel.

(The under 11s with their coach Don Jones)

Under 13s – This is a talented side playing in a very strong league and after the first half Newdigate was joint first. They had a brilliant cup run beating a very strong Southern Rail and Kenley team in the semi final and then winning a thrilling final against Lingfield. They went forward to the Surrey semi finals and lost to Wimbledon in a game they dominated for long periods. In the second half of the league they lost several very close matches to end fourth out of five sides, however they were level on points with the second and third teams. Congratulations to Jack Wyllie for representing Surrey at County level and to Thomas Ball, Harry Ramsey and Jamie Willis who represented the District. Coaches: Dev Patel, John & Richard Callcut

(The victorious under 13 side with their cup medals)

Under 16s – It was disappointing for the under 16 side that there were so few matches due to teams withdrawing and they ended third out of four teams. it has been gratifying to see a number of players stepping up into senior cricket. Matt Jee scored a century against Whyteleafe, Jose de Castro’s bowling has been improving rapidly and Matt Clarke has stepped up into the Saturday first eleven side on the back of a number of solid Sunday performances. Coaches: Geoff Cox, Ruky Wickremasinghe and Paul Bettesworth.

(Under 16s with their coaches Ruky Wickremasinghe and Geoff Cox)

Under 10s – We joined forces with Capel Cricket Club and entered a team at this level to provide more cricket. They finished a very creditable second out of nine teams.

Once again we held our presentation evening in May and we invited a number of village organisations along to make it a community event. Congratulations to all the winners and particularly Andrew Kehl, Charlie Wyllie, Thomas Ball, Daniel Goddard, Fraser Mosley, Will Bennett, Stephen Kehl and Jordan Morris who were selected to attend the Russell Haigh Bursary at the Surrey Cricket Centre.

At the end of August a group of under 12 players were invited to show off their skills during the interval of the England and South Africa One Day International at the Oval. This was a happy day enjoyed by everyone.

(A group of Newdigate players at the Oval with Ravi Bopara – 29th August 2008)

We have very good links with the Newdigate Endowed Church of England Infant School and the Weald Church of England Primary School whereby we have provided cricket coaching during the summer term.

(Newdigate Infant School on the Brocus)

To round off the season a group of about forty juniors, parents and friends attended the Surrey vs Leicestershire Nat West Pro 40 match at the Oval on the 13th September. It was a happy day enjoyed by all.

We will be losing Veronica Annis and Geoff Cox as they have decided to stop coaching and also Don Jones who will have heavy business commitments in 2009, but we would like to say a big thank you to them all for their dedication and commitment. Annette Jordan has agreed to become the Club Welfare Officer and her husband, Barry, is keen to help with the coaching. Also both Matt Dilger and Peter Trower have agreed to assist with the coaching.