Preview – Crusaders v Douglasdale CC

On Friday, the T&N Crusaders take on Douglasdale Cricket Club at the T&N Smeda Stadium in the first one-day league match of the season in division 5. After a sorry performance last season in the one-day format, the Crusaders will look to improve in this discipline this season.

The is a semi-familiar one with Michael Prince at the helm, although batting at number 3 for this match. Graeme Jeremy and Geoff Kenny will open and look to continue their recent explosive form at the top of the order. Stuart Capp comes in for Marc Weeks so the latter can rest, and is joined in the middle-order by Ron Stearman. Rohana Ahad is behind the stumps for this match.

On the bowling front, Allan Blott is the only survivor from the week’s first-class match. Coaching staff feel a rest is warranted for the bowlers and so Winder, Branson and Immelman come in for Ayres, Fox and Kotzo.

Prince said about the upcoming fixture, “I don’t want to sound complacent, but we are expecting to walk this one and most of the matches this season. We were blown away last season in the one-day league and now look to experiment and build our one-day squad for next season.”

Manager, Neville Smeda offered, “While I agree that we should win the league comfortably, complacency is what will nip us in the butt if we’re not careful so we will prepare well for each match.”

The team: Jeremy, Kenny, Prince(c), Capp, Stearman, Simpson, Ahad(wk), Blott, Winder, Branson, Immelman. 12th: Giles.

 

Prince century in vain

In the opening first-class fixture of the season for the Crusaders, they lost to Mighty Foxes by 210 runs at the Spicy Wedges by McCain Stadium.

The home team won the toss and elected to bat first, scoring at almost 5 runs to the over to declare at 509/6. Binns and Baines both scored centuries. Ayres was the only success story on the bowling front with 3 wickets, although he had to get through 34 overs to achieve that. The rest of the bowlers were disappointing with Fox and Kotzo going for almost 6 an over.

The Crusaders’ batting could not stand up to the fierce bowling of Westhead and Collymore. Prince(29), Simpson(49) and Weeks(48) were the only batsmen to put up some resistance, but was never enough as they were bowled out for 184.

Surprisingly, the follow-on was not enforced, but openers Gibbins and Thomas put on 166 before the close of day 2 and declare.

The Crusaders’ second innings began poorly again with Simpson being run out for a duck, followed by Jeremy next ball who picked up a pair in this match. Michael Prince scored a patient but gutsy 128 before he was bowled by Shafqatullah. His knock included 11 fours and 4 sixes. His only support came from rookie William Downing who made 20.

Prince commented on the match, “This is a new division and we’re playing amongst a host of better teams. We thought we had prepared well enough, but clearly we have a lot more work to do. Our bowlers especially were taken by surprise and we have lots of work to do before next week.”

Not much time is available for working on new strategies as there is a one-day match and a Cup match in the next 3 days. As for changes to next week’s team, expect Tim Fox and Geoff Kenny to make way for players such as John Branson, Jimmy Mokoena and Ron Stearman.

Preview – Mighty Foxes v T&N Crusaders

This week in the first-class opener of the season, the Crusaders play against Mighty Foxes at the Spicy Wedges by McCain Stadium. The Mighty Foxes have a strong batting order and the Crusaders bowlers will need to be at peak performance if they are to bowl them out for a low total.

Some changes to this week’s team compared to last season’s regular team includes the debut of matric William Downing and the inclusion of Tim Fox in the starting eleven. Downing replaces Ron Stearman and Fox takes the place of John Branson in the bowling lineup.

There are also some shifts in the batting with John Simpson moving up to open with Michael Prince. This move places Marc Weeks in the role at number 4 to keep the batting together. Geoff Kenny has moved down to 6 where he may be better-suited in the longer format of the game.

The inclusion of William Downing over Ron Stearman has raised many eyebrows, none more so than Stearman himself, “Its disappointing. I had an excellent season in first-class last year, then to be dropped at the expense of an inexperienced teenager – that hurts.”

Prince commented on the decision to play Downing over Stearman, “With Marc Weeks moving up to 4 and Geoff still uncertain about his new role, we felt it important to add some stability in the middle order. Ron is an attacking player and looks to tear bowlers apart, but for this scenario we need someone who can consolidate. Downing has looked good in practice matches and we believe that he can fill the role. Besides, there’s no harm in taking a look and see what the guy is capable of.”

The final team is: Prince(c), Simpson, Jeremy, Weeks, Downing, Kenny, Gossland(wk), Blott, Kotzo, Fox, Ayres. 12th: Mokoena.

Blott destroys in Cup opener

In front of a near-full crowd at the T&N Smeda Stadium in the Cup first round, the Crusaders disposed of the visiting Mmabatho Cricket Club in just over an hour thanks to some fierce bowling by the frontliners.

Mmabatho won the toss and chose to bat first on a green wicket, suited for the quicks in the Crusaders camp. Their innings was over within the first hour as they were dismissed for just 17. The sole boundary came from captain Scowcroft as he collected a top score of 7. Allan Blott was going to bowl all the way through but he concluded the innings with an inswinging yorker. He picked up 5/13 in 8 overs. Eddie Ayres bowled 4 maidens and picked up 2/2 in 5. Tim Fox was an able backup and took 2/1 in 3 overs.

The crowd were disappointed as they were hoping to see a massive score being put together by the home team. Not to be as Kenny and Jeremy needed only 22 balls to knock off the 18 required, giving them victory by 10 wickets. Man of the match was Blott for his haul.

At the end of the match, Prince said, “We’re all ecstatic about the first round victory and a good start to the season for us, but we would have all liked to have played today and get some time in the middle.”

Blott on his bowling, “The ball was coming out well and I was getting some good pace. The wicket also helped with its green patches which allowed for some movement off of the seam.”

The Crusaders’ 2nd round Cup match is away against Balmoral Cricket Club.

Preview – Crusaders v Mmabato CC

In this week’s first round Cup match at T&N Smeda Stadium, the Crusaders take on Mmabatho Cricket Club in what is anticipated to be an easy victory for the home team.

The team for the match was announced last night and it is undoubtedly a formidable mix of attacking batting and strong bowling. Geoff Kenny will enjoy his usual role at the top of the order, but will partner Graeme Jeremy and not his usual opening partner, Michael Prince. Both players showed some explosive form on tour and the hope is that they will blast the opposition attacks and get a fast start. Prince comes in at first drop, and his experience will be widely used in the upper middle order. Marc Weeks’ good limited-overs form of late has promoted him to 4 where he will hold the batting together. Ron Stearman continues at 5 and his knock on tour of 80 off just 33 balls has shown his worth as a one-day batsman in the latter overs. All-rounder John Simpson has moved down to number 6. His one-day batting form has been poor, although he has kept his place in the team thanks to his good death bowling.

Chris Gossland is the keeper, a surprise inclusion considering his miserable run of form last season. This season will be a make-or-break for Gossland as Rohana Ahad is pushing for a permanent place in the first team.

The bowling lineup is the strongest available with Allan Blott, Eddie Ayres, Tim Fox and Chris Kotzo providing the bulk. Tim Fox won the place of first-change bowler over John Branson, who himself has been also showing some consistent pre-season form. The youth of Fox is what cracked him the nod.

Stuart Capp, Rohana Ahad and John Branson can count themselves unlucky for losing out on places as they all played well in the pre-season tour of England. Capp in particular has shown maturity at a young age, moving into prime slot as backup batsman over Danny Giles.

From Prince, “We’re looking forward to our first match of the season and have selected our strongest available team in the hope that we can create some rhythm for the season. We all had opportunities on tour and now we look to build on what we learnt in England.”

New vice-captain, Graeme Jeremy remarked, “Its tough to pick a final eleven when you have fourteen or fifteen players sticking their hands up with good performances, but I think that just shows what depth we have in our squad.”

Regarding the focus for this season, Prince said, “Last season our aim was to promote in the first-class league. We were still trying to learn one-day strategies and therefore spent most of our season in the training mould in that format. This season we’ll be focusing on the one-day setup a lot more in the hope that come the next season, we will have a well-balanced outfit capable of playing in any form of the game.”

Regarding specialists, Prince added, “We have tried to move the specialist-type player out of the window and have every player be able to contribute in any format. That way we are consistent with our selections and the players can develop together in all of the setups. Examples are Tim Fox and Geoff Kenny. We classed them both as one-day specialists last season, but this season they will start for us in the one-day and first-class team – because they need to round their skills.”

The team: Kenny, Jeremy, Prince(c), Weeks, Stearman, Simpson, Gossland(wk), Blott, Kotzo, Fox, Ayres. 12th: Mokoena.

Rookie to start?

The latest news from T&N Crusaders Cricket Club may come as a suprise to all. During one of the training sessions this afternoon, the squad was divided into two teams and played against each other in a brief Twenty20 practice match. While not confirmed, the Prince XI looked to be the first team taking on their lesser counterparts in the Rorke XI. Included in the Prince XI at number 5 was matric, William Downing, who just joined the Academy 2 weeks ago. He was surrounded by a very strong outfit, including both Allan Blott and Eddie Ayres.

The official opening season press conference will not be held until Friday, wherein it will be established whether Downing will play a role in the season’s first-class opener next week. Until then, one can only speculate as to what the composition of the team will be.

Academy coach, Rudi Steyn, indicated today that William Downing was invited to train with the senior squad this week, and in particular work with batsman John Simpson. Looking at the winning team that won the league last season, there doesn’t look to be much room for a new batsman. The opening role might be the only place, although Downing is considered more of a middle-order batsman with his attacking temperament.

In his single tour match in England recently, Downing made a mature 37. If Downing makes his debut next week, he will follow in the footsteps of fellow matric, Graeme Jeremy. With a greater structure in place this season, it was expected that the Academy players would play mostly in friendlies for the 2nd XI, however all squad members knew that good performances will be recognized.

Michael Prince did not give much away in a brief statement, “The team for Sunday’s Cup match is pretty much a done deal. As for the first-class arrangement, we’re looking at various options. We are in a very competitive league this season and are definitely one of the weaker teams so we need to make sure that we are covered in all departments, including youth and experience. While it would be unfair to divulge complete details on our options, I can say that there could very well be some changes in the first team. We’re with the big boys now and everyone who wants to play needs to step up to the mark. Last season we thrashed almost every team we played against, therefore there was no competition and the team remained consistent. It will be different this season.”

Regarding the one-day team, Prince said, “We relegated to a lower league and looking around we appear to be one of the better teams. We have the talent on paper, now just a matter of transferring the potential into victories. We’re still trying to figure out our limited-overs strategy, but the lower league will give us that opportunity.”

The probable team for the Cup match is: Prince(c), Kenny, Jeremy, Weeks, Stearman, Simpson, Gossland(wk), Blott, Kotzo, Fox, Ayres.

Prince and Jeremy to lead

The Crusaders returned home after a very eye-opener tour of England. They won two out of their five matches, more than anything gaining great experience against some strong opposition. One of the highlights of the short tour was seeing Graeme Jeremy open the batting and destroy the bowling attack from up front. Stuart Capp continues to impress with his middle-order form and will press for a regular place in the one-day lineup.

In addition to the seasoned players contributing, Academy new-comer William Downing also showed that he is capable of holding up his own against various bowling attacks.

With just a few days to go until the season opener in a Cup match against Mmabatho Cricket Club, focus is on consistency amongst the bowlers as well as finalizing combinations. While the senior players will play in this match, the combinations may be switched around due to some good results in England.

Michael Prince on the possible changes, “Graeme Jeremy and Geoff Kenny seem to be our best attacking opening partnership right now and they’ll probably open with me dropping down to three. Stability in the middle-order is needed and that’s where Marc Weeks comes in. Still up in the air of course, but we’re looking in this direction.”

In other announcements this week, Michael Prince was named as captain for the season, selecting 18-year old Graeme Jeremy to be his deputy.

“Graeme showed some good leadership on tour in his young age and I see him as the one to take over the reigns when the time is right”, said Prince.

Glenn Rorke will be in charge of the 2nd XI, although he may not always be the matchday captain, allowing for others to gain some experience.

While the squad was away in England, the administrators of T&N Crusaders released spinner Graham Harrison and batsman Dan Mangweni on free transfers, allowing for them to pursue the opportunity of playing regular cricket. Another reason behind the decision was the size of the squad was becoming too big to accomodate everyone and give everyone match time. Manager Neville Smeda said that “neither Mangweni nor Harrison are in their future plans of the club and it would be unfair to retain them, pay them, and not have them play. We will more than likely release two more before mid-season, so this is an incentive for all players to perform during every opportunity given to them.”

The upgrades to the T&N Smeda Stadium are complete and the Cup match on the weekend will see the first use of the new facilities. Improved and additional seating should see a larger crowd arrive to witness the newly-named team in Cup action.

Banquet report

The first end-of-season banquet for the Smeda XI cricket team was held at the T&N Academy in what turned out to be a well-attended event. Despite lingering in the bowels of the fourth division, there was much to celebrate with a trophy and check making its way to the club as winners of the first-class league 19 in South African division 4.

The program began with a 30-minute highlights video of the inaugural season for the club, showcasing some of the memorable moments of the season including Geoff Kenny’s blitz T20 century, Allan Blott’s debut-run of 7 wickets, Michael Prince’s double-hundred and Chris Kotzo’s bamboozling spin.

The Academy graduation took the stage, with leg-spinner Graham Harrison and batsman John Simpson receiving their certificates for completing the year’s requirements. The new intakes for the next season were also announced. The high-school matriculants that are joining the Academy are Pete Moller, William Downing, Carl Hibbert and Chris Hayward. They will join current attendees Graeme Jeremy, Eddie Ayres, Rohana Ahad, Stephen Harding and Tim Fox.

Following the manager’s and captain’s report of the season, the awards ceremony took place with captain Michael Prince picking up 5 awards, including player of the season. Spinner Chris Kotzo took home 3 awards, including bowler of the season. Click here for a full list of the awards for the season.

At the end of the event, the unveiling of the new club name and logo took place in front of cheers and applause. Manager Neville Smeda said, “This change in name marks a new and exciting era for the club. The expectation that our new name will become one that is recognized throughout the country and eventually the world.”

Not too long after the banquet ended, the players were off to the airport to begin their brief tour of England which will consist of two one-day matches and some T20’s. A squad of 18 were selected to go, with the new Academy players expected to join up with the squad during the first week of the tour.

The squad is: Prince(c), Kenny, Mokoena, Jeremy, Simpson, Weeks, Stearman, Capp, Giles, Gossland(wk), Ahad(wk), Kotzo, Winder, Ayres, Branson, Blott, Immelman, Fox.

The Academy players due to join up with the squad are: Moller, Downing, Hayward, Harding and Hibbert.