Gerrards Cross made a disappointing start to the 2003 season with a 21 run defeat at the hands of local rivals and HCPL Champions High Wycombe in a game they should have won.

Wycombe struggled early on against some tight bowling from the experienced Jon Coles and newcomer Mark Wildman. But Jason Harrison (32) and Steve Bird (40) knuckled down to take the opening stand to 50. Richard Thomas struck back for the Cross, taking two wickets in one over.

A run a ball 46 from Wright upped the tempo for Wycombe. But two late wickets from Hamish Marshall pegged Wycombe back as they reached 157-6 off their allotted 40 overs.

The Cross lost two early wickets, but Ranjiv Aktar (26) and Steve Cooper (42) repaired the damage. A middle order collapsed soon followed and the scoring slowed.

Wycombe applied the pressure and as the Cross went for late runs, more wickets fell. The Cross were all out 126 in the last over.

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Gerrards Cross hit winning form on Saturday as they beat Bessborough by 74 runs in a match Bessborough seemed destined to win.

Batting first, Gerrards Cross made a poor start with Bucks captain Paul Atkins and Kiwi Hamish Marshall back in the pavilion with only 7 runs on the board.

The middle order rallied and fine contributions from Ranjiv Aktar (36), Steve Cooper (33) and Bucks player Jonny Hughes (41) added some respectability to the score. After a flurry of late wickets, the Cross finished on 145-9.

Bessborough started well and looked well on course for victory at 55 without loss. Quickie Richard Thomas then claimed the first of his 4 wickets and Bessborough collapsed in dramatic fashion. They crashed from 55 for no wicket to 71 all out in the space of 11 overs to give the Cross victory by 74 runs.

Richard Thomas was the chief destroyer taking 4-23 and he was well supported by Jonny Hughes (2-18) and Steve Cooper (2-7).

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On Sunday, Gerrards Cross continued their winning form with an 8 wicket trouncing of Uxbridge.

Uxbridge reached 146-9 off their allotted 40 overs. The main contributors for the Cross were Ed Montague (3-29) and Jon Coles (2-22).

The Cross made light work of chasing their victory target as they galloped home with 9 overs to spare. Hamish Marshall led the way with a brutal 88 and Will Butterworth chipped in with 30.

The Cross play their first Home Counties Premier League match next week when they travel to Bicester & North Oxford.

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A fine century from Steve Cooper and a 4 wicket haul from Jon Coles guided Gerrards Cross to their first Home Counties Premier League victory by 6 wickets against Bicester & North Oxford.

Asked to bat first, Bicester found the going tough reaching 80-4 after 36 overs, with Steve Cooper taking 3-46. The Cross bowlers, particularly Jon Coles, were giving nothing away, as Bicester were made to work hard for their runs.

A defiant 73 from Graham Savin saved Bicester’s blushes in what would have otherwise been a very meagre total. Jon Coles returned for his second spell and claimed 3 wickets in five balls. He finished with figures of 4-51 off 21 overs as Bicester reached 200-8.

The Cross' reply was built around an undefeated hundred from Cooper as the Bicester attack struggled to make any inroads into the Cross batting.

Chris Powell (28), Ranjiv Aktar (28) and skipper Stuart Welch (19*) all shared partnerships with Cooper as the Cross cruised home with 6 wickets to spare.

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The poor weekend weather ruined any hopes Gerrards Cross had of victory against local rivals Farnham Royal.

Batting first, Farnham Royal were in danger of setting a new record of the lowest innings total as they slumped to 31-5 with Jon Coles (2-30), Hamish Marshall (3-39) blowing away Farnham Royal’s top and middle order. Joseph(47) and Shafiq(37) offered some resistance. But, Steve Cooper was then brought onto bowl against his old club and he cleaned up the tail taking 4-36 as Royal were all out for 119.

The Cross knew they didn’t have long before the rain came if they were to win. Chris Powell and Hamish Marshall opened the batting as usual. But as the Cross had to go for quick runs, big-hitters Richard Thomas and Ed Montague were ready to come in.

Unfortunately, the rain came earlier than expected and the match was abandoned with the Cross on 15-0.

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Gerrards Cross continued their excellent run of form on Saturday with 10 wicket thrashing of Thame.

Thame slipped to 10-3 and never recovered. Mark Wildman (2-8) and Stuart Welch (3-30) removed the top order and Hamish Marshall cleaned up the tail taking 4-15. Thame were all out 105 in 53.3. overs.

This meagre total was never enough to trouble the Cross batsmen as Paul Atkins (42*) and Marshall (63*) guided the Cross home with 32 overs to spare.

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Gerrards Cross’ excellent league form came to an abrupt end on Saturday despite a century from Kiwi Hamish Marshall. The Cross fell to Burnham by 46 runs.

Once again, the Cross won the toss and asked the opposition to bat. The morning session went the Cross’ way as Burnham crawled to 107-4 off 39 overs.

After lunch, the game changed dramatically as Burnham launched a savage attack on the Cross bowlers. Imran (65) and Ramzan (50) were the main contributors as Burnham pilled on the agony smashing 146 runs in 21 overs.

Stuart Welch (3-84) and Richard Thomas (2-63) were the pick of the Cross bowlers as Burnham closed their innings on 253-9

The Cross had a difficult, but not impossible task in front of them. After losing two early wickets, they recovered well through Marshall (103) and Ed Montague (30). The Cross looked in total control until the run out of Montague in the last over before tea.

After losing two more wickets soon after tea, the Cross were in some difficulty. But with Marshall still at the crease, there was still hope. With the run-rate increasing, wickets kept falling and when Marshall was out, there were still some 40 minutes to go.

Some solid defence from the tailenders kept the Burnham spinners at bay. But the 40 minutes eventually proved too big an ask and the Cross were all out for 207.

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Gerrards Cross bounced back from defeat against Burnham last week in commanding fashion with an 8 wicket victory against Tring.

Tring made a solid start and looked on course to set a decent total. However, after the dismissal of Pusey for 22, the middle order crumbled under a sustained spell of hostile bowling from Hamish Marshall who finished with figures of 5-30.

Only Lloyd Brooks (42) offered any resistance as Tring capitulated to a meagre total of 96 all out.

The Cross reply started badly when Tring struck in the second over. But then ex-Tring player Paul Atkins (46*) and Marshall (45) repaired the damage with a stand of 87. The Tring bowlers failed make much of an impact as the Cross cruised home.

Gerrards Cross could only manage a draw against Wokingham on Saturday despite a half century from Hamish Marshall and a five wicket haul for Richard Thomas.

After losing the toss for the first time this season, the Cross were invited to bat. They lost an early wicket, but Paul Atkins (47) and Hamish Marshall (79) guided the Cross to 94-1 after 25 overs.

Unfortunately, after the dismissal of Atkins the innings fell away with the rest of the order unable to make a significant contribution. With runs hard to come by after the dismissal of Marshall, the Cross were all out for a disappointing 225.

The Cross bowlers made early inroads into the Wokingham batting and after the dangerous Simon Myles (41) was brilliantly stumped by Andy Weston, the Cross were in control.

However, Gareth Jones (96) dug in and found some support from the lower order as Wokingham closed in victory. But they had misjudged the final assault on the Cross bowlers and left themselves too much to do late on.

Wickets soon began to fall – mainly through Richard Thomas (5-84) – but not soon enough for the Cross as Wokingham finished with nine wickets down and 12 runs short of victory.

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Gerrards Cross won by 166 runs

Gerrards Cross produced their best performance of the season so far by inflicting a massive 166 run defeat of Milton Keynes.

The most pleasing aspect of the Cross’ victory was that nearly every player made a contribution of some sort.

After losing an early wicket, the Cross recovered well through Hamish Marshall (38). Wickets were falling at regular intervals, but the middle and lower order all contributed runs as all the batsmen reached at least thirty.

After the dismissal of Johnny Hughes for 41, Ed Montague (38*) and Andy Weston (39) hit some lusty blows late on as the Cross totalled 261-8 off 60 overs.

Milton Keynes made a dreadful start in reply, as Hughes sent both openers back to the pavilion without troubling the scorers.

Wade (50*) and Gear (21) then counter-attacked with a succession of boundaries. However, after Jon Coles (3-29) took a return catch off Gear, the middle order immediately crumbled as Milton Keynes crashed from 53-2 to 72-9 with Richard Thomas taking 3-25.

A last wicket stand of 23 delayed the inevitable until Hughes (3-33) claimed the last wicket to give the Cross another easy win.

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Gerrards Cross suffered their second defeat of the season on Saturday as they fell to a 10 run defeat at the hands of Falkland.

With three key players unavailable, it was always going to be a tough ask for the Cross and victory just proved to be beyond them.

The Cross struck early, when Jon Coles bowled Pope without scoring. But Durham (30) and Wood (77) repaired the damage. Heath contributed 27 in the middle order as Falkland reached 146-3 at lunch.

Falkland struggled to increase the scoring in the afternoon session as Hamish Marshall (3-83) and Ed Montague (4-32) made life difficult for the batsmen. Wickets fell as Falkland tried to accelerate and they were all out for 205 off exactly sixty overs.

In reply, the Cross found batting difficult as spinners Thomas and Trebby tied the openers down. Paul Atkins went for 18 but stand-in skipper Chris Powell (28) and Montague (27) took the Cross to 77-1.

The Cross seemed to be cruising just before the tea break. But then disaster struck as they lost three quick wickets just before tea. With another wicket falling shortly after tea, the Cross were 102-5 and in deep trouble.

At 147-8, victory seemed a long way off. But Johnny Hughes (45*) and Alex Hardy (18) dug in and edged the Cross closer to victory. Unfortunately, with 11 runs needed, Trebby struck twice in three balls and the Cross were all out for 195.

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A weakened Gerrards Cross side finally brought an end Finchampstead’s winning streak on Saturday as they hung on for a draw.

With five top order batsmen unavailable, the Cross were always going to have their work cut out. But at one point victory was a possibility. Finch had won all of their completed games so far this season

The Cross’ best chance of victory lay with their bowlers. After inviting Finch to bat, the pace duo of Richard Thomas and Jon Coles reduced Finch to 94-5 with only Zimbabwean international Trevor Gripper (54) offering any resistance.

After lunch however, Finch skipper Mark Lane turned the match in Finch’s favour. He blasted a blistering 108 in just 81 balls and was ably supported by Kwame Appiah (25) and then Sam Taylor (30*) as Finch totalled 259-8.

Thomas was the leading Cross bowler taking 5-98 in a marathon spell 25 overs and Coles chipped in with 3-38.

With a depleted batting order, the Cross would do well to reach their victory target. Stand-in skipper Paul Atkins (54) and Andy Weston (44) gave the Cross the perfect start with an opening stand of 108. Ed Montague added a quick-fire 25 as the Cross tried to keep up with the run rate.

Predictably wickets began to fall and when the fourth wicket fell with the score on 141, the Cross knew their hopes of victory had gone.

Finch went all out attack in the hope of taking the last few wickets, but the Cross lower order hung on for a draw reaching 170-6.

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Gerrards Cross turned in another commanding performance on Saturday with a nine wicket thrashing of Bicester & North Oxford.

Bicester could only manage a total of 178-7 in their sixty overs.

Paul Atkins (63*) and Hamish Marshall (77*) plundered the Bicester bowling to all parts of the ground as the Cross reached their target with 22 overs to spare.

Gerrards Cross could only manage a draw on Saturday despite half centuries from Paul Atkins and Hamish Marshall and four wickets for skipper Stuart Welch.

The Cross won the toss and chose to bat first on another hot summer’s day. Royal’s opening bowlers made life difficult for the Cross batsmen with only 64 runs scored off the first 25 overs. Atkins (63) and Marshall (65) set about upping the tempo. But after both were dismissed in the space of a few overs, the Cross inning fell away with Sohail Mozzafar taking 4-65.

Despite 33 from Ranjiv Aktar and 27 from Stuart Welch, the Cross finished on a disappointing 234-7.

Royal also found batting difficult as they slipped to 81-4. Warren Miller (83) and Leighton Murray (49) restored some order putting on 66 for the fifth wicket and Royal on course for victory.

Ahktar Shafiq hit 23 to keep the momentum going. However, two comical mix-ups led to the run outs of Miller and Ali and two brilliant catches from Will Butterworth and Paul Atkins reduced Royal 211-9 with nine balls remaining. Unfortunately, the Cross were unable to take the last wicket and the match ended in a draw,

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BUCKS CUP 2ND ROUND

Gerrards Cross cruised into the quarter finals of the Bucks Cup on Sunday with 61 run win over Chearsley.

They reached a respectable target of 234-7 off their 45 overs. Jonny Hughes (62), Will Butterworth (49) and Richard Graham (35) were the main contributors.

In reply, Chearsley struggled to get to grips with Cross bowling and fell well short of victory. Stuart Welch picked up 3-19.

The Cross travel to Bledlow Village for the quarter final.

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The intervention of the rain on Saturday ensured Gerrards Cross’ league encounter against Thame ended in a draw despite Paul Atkins’ highest league score for the Cross.

Thame set the Cross a challenging target. Rakesh Dhruve (92*) and Manoj Parmar (71) made easy work of some wayward Cross bowling as Thame reached 239-5 off 60 overs.

Atkins hit an unbeaten 85 in the Cross’ total of 184-3. The Cross found batting difficult on a wearing pitch as the run-rate gradually increased. Hamish Marshall (36) and Stuart Welch (35*) also made valuable contributions, but as the Cross accelerated towards what would have been an unlikely victory, the heavens opened.

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New Zealand international Hamish Marshall set a new club record as Gerrards Cross thrashed second placed Burnham by a massive 150 runs.

Marshall hit a record score of 163* off just 148 balls. He beat the previous best of 151* set by Andy Herrington against Windsor in 1999. His record score enabled the Cross to total a massive 301-4, which is the highest team total since 1998 when they scored 288-3 against Tiddington.

The Cross elected to bat after winning the toss and Marshall led the way as they reached 147-3 at lunch after 33 overs.

After the interval, Marshall and skipper Stuart Welch (64) set about the Burnham bowling in brutal fashion. They put together a stand of 130 in 19 overs. The rapid scoring rate allowed the Cross to declare after 54 overs on 301-4.

Burnham knew they has their work cut out and it was going to take something spectacular if they were going to get close to the Cross total.

However, things did not go to plan for them as slipped to 77-4 and all they could hope for now was a draw. But, Richard Thomas had other ideas and ripped through the middle order. He took 6-45, his best return for the Cross, in a devastating spell of fast bowling leaving their batting in tatters.

Nadeem (48) tried to add some respectability to the total as he hit a succession of boundaries. But he was the last man with the score on 150.

This win means the Cross leapfrog Burnham in the table and are now 27 points behind leaders Finchampstead.

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Gerrards Cross’ championship hopes were severely damaged on Saturday as they crashed to a 49 run defeat against Tring.

The Cross were asked to field in the midday sun as Tring won the toss and elected to bat. The Cross bowlers were going struggle in the searing heat and this was soon proved as Tring put on a century opening partnership.

Their innings was built around a solid 108 from skipper Matt Bowyer. The Cross spinners Stuart Phelps (4-86) and Stuart Welch (3-84) did the bulk of the bowling and Tring reached 240-8 off their allotted 60 overs.

The Cross’ powerful batting shouldn’t have had any difficulty in chasing the victory target. However, they were in big trouble at 115-7 through some excellent Tring bowling and inept Cross batting.

Welch (62) and Andy Weston (34*) put on 74 for the eighth wicket in a brave attempt to try and get the Cross back on track. But when Welch holed out going for quick runs, the game was up for the Cross and the last two wickets fell in the next over. The Cross were all out for 191.

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A sparkling century from Ranjiv Aktar was the bedrock of a substantial score on a dry and dusty wicket. Thanks to a century opening stand from Steve Cooper (50) and Aktar (102), the Cross were always in control and with some lusty hitting towards the end from Andy Weston and Richard Graham the Cross total proved to be a formidable 254-9 off 45 overs.

In reply Bledlow had no answer to the spin of Stuart Welch (4-18) and Ed Montague (3-22) who turned the ball appreciably and worked their way through the Bledlow batting line up in a fairly ruthless manner. Bledlow were all out for 124 in 31.4 overs.

The Cross travel to High Wycombe for the semi-final on Sunday 31st August.

Atkins and Marshall both hit big hundreds as they set a new record opening partnership of 298. This beat the previous best of 203* set by Chris Powell and Andy Weston against Maidenhead in 2001.

The Wokingham bowlers had no answer to the power and efficiency of the Cross openers as they hit boundaries at will. Marshall was out, soon after reaching his second 150 of the season, going for quick runs, but Atkins was left undefeated on 141 as they rattled up a massive 311-2.

Marshall’s 150 came off just 139 balls and included 1 six and 26 fours. Atkins 141* came off 186 balls and included 1 six and 21 fours.

Wokingham made the worst possible start losing Gareth Fry to the second ball of the innings. And they were soon in deep trouble at 16-4 with Johnny Hughes (6-36) claiming all four wickets.

Marshall collected two wickets himself and victory seemed a certainty with Wokingham at 90-7. But Andy Bond (40*) and Martin Wilson (21) dug in and kept the Cross bowlers at bay for over an hour.

The Cross began to feel victory slipping away, as the batsmen didn’t seem to be troubled by the bowlers. However, the introduction of Steve Cooper brought immediate results as Hughes took stunning diving catch at extra cover to remove Wilson.

Bond tried to shield the tail, but in process ran out Tom Vaal. And when Hughes bowled John McDonald to claim his sixth wicket, the Cross had won with minutes to spare.

Gerrards Cross could only manage a draw against Milton Keynes despite half centuries from Paul Atkins and Steve Cooper and four wickets for Ed Montague.

The Cross set another decent total as they declared on 272-7 after 58 overs. Paul Atkins (55) and Steve Cooper, who was undefeated on 75, scored the bulk off the runs and skipper Stuart Welch chipped in a with rapid 43.

Milton Keynes put on 110 for the first wicket as the Cross bowlers failed to maintain a consistent line and length and Jamie Wade (120*) and Ken Hollis (40) cashed in.

The introduction of the spinners brought some rewards as the wickets began to fall. Ed Montague destroyed the middle order taking 4-22. But with time running out for both sides the games petered out into a draw with Milton Keynes finishing on 225-6.

It was nail baiting stuff at Dukes Wood on Saturday as Gerrards Cross fell to a three wicket defeat at the hands of Falkland off the penultimate ball of the match.

The Cross, once again, chose to bat first and set another challenging target. Paul Atkins (66), Steve Cooper (90) and Stuart Welch (76*) all contributed runs as the Cross declared on 264-6

In reply, Falkland reached 62-2 after 17 overs. Stephen Pope (64) and Faisal Simon (60) continued to the good work as Falkland pushed for victory.

Jullian Wood rattled up a quick-fire 34 as Falkland reached 200-3 with 11 overs to go. Tom Heath also contributed 34 as Falkland reached the last over needing 7 runs to win.

Heath was cleaned bowled by Ed Montague (2-56), but a crucial dropped catch by Paul Atkins swung the game the Falkland’s way. Theunnisen reversed swept the penultimate ball for three and Falkland had scraped home by the skin of their teeth.

Gerrards Cross ended the 2003 league season with rain-affected draw against Division 2 West champions Finchampstead.

A delayed start meant the match was reduced to 104 overs. Finch reached 96-3 off 23 overs when more rain sent the players in for an early lunch.

Play re-started an hour and a half later with the match now reduced to 83 overs. Harry Hall (59) immediately upped the tempo as Finch went in search of quick runs. Sam Taylor (28) and Nick Denning (19*) made useful contributions as Finch reached 219-8 off their allotted 46 overs. Hamish Marshall took 4-75.

The Cross only had 37 overs to bat and had their work cut out. Paul Atkins (38) and Stuart Phelps (28) put on an opening stand of 62. Marshall continued the onslaught with a 31 ball 35. But wickets soon tumbled as the Cross fell behind the run rate. Paul Carter was the chief destroyer taking 4-60.

The total eventually proved too tough a target and the Cross settled for a draw finishing on 186-7.