By Charles Randall

8 September 2015


Sir Tim Rice will be helping the Club Cricket Conference celebrate the end of a successful centenary anniversary year at Lord's on 30 November.

Sir Tim, lyricist and Heartaches CC founder, is the main speaker at the CCC annual lunch along with the former England off-spinner Geoff Miller at the Nursery Pavilion, perhaps club cricket's biggest annual reunion. The regulars know that this is an event not to be missed.

The on-field season has been damaged by rain, but the two prestige fixtures against MCC and ECB XI went ahead. The ECB XI, honouring the former ECB chief executive David Collier's tenure as CCC president, defeated the CCC in a 50 overs game in the summer's final game at Arundel Castle by three wickets.

This was the first time the ECB had fulfilled a fixture of this type, as selections included players from diverse sectors, captained by the former England wicketkeeper Geraint Jones. Representatives from England’s disability team – their captain Chris Edwards - Under-19 and women, plus players from ECB premier leagues and minor counties. There were two players from the MCC Young Cricketers programme, Palash Joshi and Zain Sharzad, both products of the Lord’s Taverners City Cup competition.

The CCC, captained by Min Patel (Bexley CC), reached 237-7 after a revival sparked by Sam Burge (East Molesey) with 69 and an astonishing 63 not out off 30 balls by Max Osborne (Hornchurch), including five sweet sixes. The ECB's run chase was completed by Fynn Hudson-Prentice, the Sussex prospect at East Grinstead, with 50 off 24 balls. Tammy Beaumont, on other days the CCC women's captain, hit 30 in the ECB middle order.

The CCC triumphed against the MCC at Lord's on 30 August when Eddie Ballard (Bishop's Stortford) hit a rapid 103 not out to seal a six-wicket win. The MCC's 224-8 was founded on 93 not out from Andrew Kennedy. The CCC captain Dan Yarnley (Chessington) followed his two wickets with 42 not out off 20 balls to support Ballard.

Sophia Dunkley, the England Under-19 squad member, enjoyed an outstanding match in the CCC v MCC women's match on the Nursery Ground. She claimed 4-33 in the MCC total of 209 and hit 55 to set up a five-wicket victory.

The next major project will be the CCC tour of Grenada and Barbados on 5-19 November under Yarnley's captaincy. Then the annual lunch with Sir Tim to round off the celebrations.

Scoreboards:
http://www.club-cricket.co.uk/conference_fixtures
Lunch enquiries:
stan.nicholson@club-cricket.co.uk