Our 2018 social calendar kicks off with a trip to Sandown racecourse for Imperial Cup Day on Saturday 10 March. 7 races will be taking place featuring two Grade 3 hurdles and a listed national hunt flat race. Come along, have a bet (or not) and watch the action with the Allstars.
Sandown is a short walk from Esher station, which is half an hour from London Waterloo.
Tickets are £16 – but we can get a discount if we get 10 or more. Please contact Garreth Duncan if you fancy coming along.
An excellent turnout of Allstars braved the weather and London Transport chaos to attend our AGM in Central London today.
Pete Cresswell has stepped up to take over from Nick Chadwick as our club captain for 2018. After an excellent year as our first captain in the post-Maxie era, Chadders continues as vice-captain. Haroon Khalid becomes our Director of Cricket. Garreth Duncan and Paul Bowman remain as club secretary and treasurer respectively, with Maxie staying on as fixtures secretary and Vivek Seth as social secretary.
We have plenty to look forward to in 2018 – as well as new fixtures in some pretty rural locations, we’ve got some exciting new social events planned before and during the season. More details to follow in the next few weeks, so watch this space!
A great turnout of Allstars and our other halves for our end of season dinner, at Chakra in Kensington, featuring the Allstars of the Year awards and a special presentation to our founder and new Life President, Maxie Allen!
Jimmy Scott, as ever the life and soul of the party, with Tony Grant, James Morgan and Vivek Seth.
The Allstars family all gathered together.
The Cobra count mounts as the evening progresses … so much so they ended up serving us it in a wine bottle!
Club captain Nick Chadwick delivers his maiden Allstars dinner speech.
Our MC for the evening, Haroon Khalid, announces this year’s award winners.
The first Allstar of the Year award went to Vivek Seth, for his best year for the Allstars on the pitch and his tireless work off it.
Next to be awarded Allstar of the Year – Martyn Langridge, for his remarkable bowling performance against Edgware: 6 for 20, the best bowling figures in our 17 year history.
The following Allstar of the Year award – our young star Umar Asghar: his 5 wickets and unbeaten 50 against Mighty Wanderers, the best all-round performance in our history.
Our final Allstar of the Year Award: Pete Cresswell, ever present for the Allstars this season and our leading run scorer.
Maxie accepts his award of “Lifetime Allstar” from fellow original Allstar Garreth, as their respective other halves Rosalind and Lara look on.
Looking forward to 2018 – and the next Allstars season!
A few shots from our victory against Edgware last weekend … many thanks to Maxie Allen.
Stumps for the day, painted as ever by our six-wicket hero Martyn Langridge.
Batting against Edgware.
Keeper Darren Curry and slips line up in expectation.
Pete Cresswell, ever-present in the 2017 season, diligent as ever with the scorebook.
Mill Hill Park, Mill Hill, Sunday 3 September 2017. St Anne’s Allstars 161-4 (35 overs) (S Singh 71, D Curry 40) beat Edgware CC 121 (23.1 overs) (M Langridge 6-20 including a hat-trick, S Singh 2-18, U Asghar 1-36) by 40 runs.
By Pete Cresswell
Under ominous skies the Allstars and 10-man Edgware convened pitch-side in Mill Hill (eschewing the changing room that appeared to have been broken into & used as a drug den, somewhat appropriate given that the Allstars’ stumps were referencing “Haroon’s Westside Massive”). After skipper Haroon Khalid won the toss, a committee of Allstars noted the forecast rain and opted to bat first.
Pete Cresswell and debutant Darren Curry opened up cautiously on a pitch with mostly tennis ball-like bounce, except on the odd spot that hurried through, making life hard for the stand-in Edgware keeper. Wides and byes put in an early shift, as Edgware’s Saverus opened with 3 consecutive maidens. Eventually the pair began accelerating before Cresswell gloved a lifting delivery down onto his bails with 38 on the board.
Sachin Singh joined Curry and the pair went on the attack, Singh’s pre-meditated assaults proving an antidote to the tricky pitch and glacially slow outfield. Both gave some chances along the way, but with Edgware shelling chances the score mounted. Darren eventually holed out for a well struck 40 before Umar Asghar (fresh from his 50 the previous week) dropped anchor in support of Singh. As the score passed 150 the pair fell in quick succession, bowled by deliveries that kept low, leaving Joe Silmon and Tony Grant to eke out a few more runs in the slog overs, getting through to 161.
Despite a few threatening spots around the drinks break the promised rain held off, so the Allstars took the field after tea to defend what felt like (and ultimately proved to be) a handy total. The Edgware skipper Ciaran Hosty looked a handy bat, launching into anything short from Haroon. However Sachin’s medium pace in-swingers and cutters proved perfect for the pitch, and he bowled a superb 7 over spell, dismissing opener Ganesh Say’z and keeper Shuraj Vekaria to finish with 2 for 18.
Umar Asghar replaced Haroon and immediately struck, bowling Verapeen to reduce Edgware to 28 for 3, before the 4th wicket partnership attacked Umar’s and Joe Silmon’s bowling and rode their luck to add 59 in quick time. Then Martyn “Lofty” Langridge entered the fray. He enticed the Edgware number 5 Naresh to hole out, before clean bowling the next 2 men on his way to a superb hat trick, the 5th in Allstars history. A couple of overs later Umar held a superb catch at cover to remove the dangerous Hosty for an excellent 49-ball 51.
With little batting left Malik began swinging lustily, ultimately skying a Langridge delivery that popped off a length straight up and safely into keeper Darren’s gloves. And off the first ball of his 6th over Langridge got a ball to shoot through at ankle height and clean bowl the last man Saverus, to give the Allstars their 3rd win in succession. Martyn finished with figures of 6 for 20, the best analysis in the Allstars’ long and distinguished history, and very well deserved.
With the game duly won the forecast rain finally arrived, 2 hours late, leaving the victors to take shelter in a nearby pub and toast another successful day.
St Anne's Allstars 