Mildenhall travelled to Norwich and having won the toss Ben Shepperson asked the home side to bat first. The wicket proved extremely difficult to bat on during the course of the match. Mildenhall started well with early wickets from Tino Best (3-32 off his 10 overs) and Kyle Morrison (2 wickets for 23 runs). Norwich rallied thanks to O’Donnell (41) and Borrett (24). No other Norwich batsmen managed to hit double figures. Jon Allen and Worthington bowled with good control with Jon claiming his maiden EAPL wicket. Hussien and Reed both claimed two wickets as the Norwich innings failed to gain any momentum. Norwich ended up on 129 all out from 42.4 overs.
Mildenhall’s batting response started reasonably well with Morrison and Reed. Morrison was able to show some form in his brisk 24 of 26 balls. The quick wickets of Worthington and Shepperson hurt Mildenhall’s response. The Mildenhall skipper was unlucky to receive a ‘grubber’ on a very poor Postwick pitch. Mildenhall showed some resistance through Tom (15) and Matt Allen (17) but ultimately the 1XI couldn’t reach the target set by the Norfolk side. Mildenhall were all out for 117 off 46 overs.
Mildenhall 2XI entertained Ipswich at Wamil Way. Mildenhall bowled first. Martin Taylor was straight into his work and was very unlucky not to claim a wicket. Martin bowled 11 overs for a miserly 22 runs. M. Noor made his debut and picked up 3 wickets for 74 runs in his 14 overs. Jack Loveday bowled with some success claiming 2 wickets for 23. Captain Steve Graham picked up the other wicket to fall during the Ipswich innings. C. Norten was the star for Ipswich scoring 71. Ipswich scored a solid 225 from their allotted overs.
Sadly the 2XI never really looked like chasing down the Ipswich target. Finnis and Loveday went early on. Steve Graham was the top scorer with 28. Luke Turner managed 17 but no other batsmen scored double figures. Mildenhall were all out for 84. Mohammed was the chief destroyer with 5 for 13 for Ipswich.
Mildenhall 3XI took on newly promoted Kesgrave. Kesgrave scored an imposing 269 from their 45 overs. Kesgrave batsmen took a heavy toll on most of the bowlers. Martin Kingdom was difficult to get away during his 15 overs (0-56). Reuben Handy took three wickets for 80 runs off his 11 overs. George Howard and George Franklin showed some promise with the ball and in the field.
Mildenhall 3XI never got close to the Kesgrave target. Renouf started brightly with another good looking 22. Craig Warren hit some fine sixes in his 30. Skipper Mark Thurston scored 15. Phil Mingay scored 18. Mildenhall ended up on 115 and suffered a second heavy defeat of the season. Things won’t get any easier next week as they travel to Elmstead Market and are likely to be without senior players Clark and Taylor through injury.
The day didn’t get any better or easier for Mildenhall’s 4XI as they travelled to Battisford. Mildenhall batted first and suffered at the hands and bats of the Battisford openers. Gabe Jones was the star with the ball with 4 wickets for 53 runs off his 12 overs. Battisford hit the huge total of 302 with both openers scoring hundreds.
Mildenhall 4XI were unlikely to reach the target set but did score the most runs by a Mildenhall team on the day (146). Andy ‘fantasy’ Francis scored the only 50+ score of the day by a Mildenhall batsman (67). Chairman Lou Handy contributed with 21.
It was a difficult day for the club with some disappointing results but it is just one day of the season and we managed to send four teams out on the pitch against some very strong opposition. Roll on next week. “As in Victory’.
Mildenhall's Sunday 2XI travelled to Tuddenham on Sunday and a great game of cricket took place. Mildenhall batted first and amassed 261. Kiefer Renouf opened the batting and continued to show some of his early season form. Kiefer has worked hard on his batting over the winter and the signs are there that the hard work is paying off. Kiefer hit a commanding 77. Top performance of the day must go to groundsman Tom Heywood who finished up on 103 not out. Former Mildenhall player Kieron Harris was the chief wicket taker for Tuddenham, finishing with 3 wickets.
Tuddenham finished on 261 all out. Tom Heywood with 3 wickets, Steve Graham with 4 wickets and Matt Heywood with 3 wickets. For Tuddenham Harris scored 63 and Smith 80. After a tough Saturday it was good to finish the weekend on a brighter note.