The Rams welcome the new kids on the block

On Saturday the first team welcome Downham Stow for the first time ever. The side were promoted out of the Norfolk Alliance league and via the 2024 playoffs; they started fast out of the traps and were top of the league for about the first five or six weeks. Like a lot of new sides to the EAPL they have found the longer format a bit more challenging but have remained competitive. They still sit fourth in the table but crucially for the Rams they are forty-two points adrift.

From watching them in an unsuccessful play-off attempt in 2023 and a bit of streaming they appear to be a fairly young side with plenty of options with the bat and ball. Their opening bowler Brett Stolworthy will need no introductions having moved across from Witchingham in the close season. They have an overseas spinner, Sachindu Columbage, who has a pre-delivery routine (but with fewer hand to hand movements that Hatzoglou). These two sit just behind KC Cariappa as the leading wicket takers in EAPL 2025 and are backed up by Arthur Wilcox. Wilcox leads the charge with the bat sitting fifth in the standings; he is supported by Freddie Fairey and the other Wilcox, Ben. They have a fair sprinkling of Norfolk County talent.

The Rams will miss both there left arm spinners, Beaumont and Darlow, but that gives Tarun Mouli another chance to impress. James Vandepeer returns to support our leading wicket-taker Mark Smith. The skipper will hope that last week’s hot form with the bat continues and that the Spicer’s wicket can give his bowling unit more assistance that was available at Sudbury. Ben Claydon with just over six hundred league runs will want a few more before we reach ‘half-time’ but is well on the way to that holy grail of one thousand league runs in the season. Callum Guest, who narrowly missed that milestone last year has started to inch up the run scorers’ charts as is Nikhil Gorantla.

The rest of the program sees bottom side AB Wanderers, who are in need of a victory, host Witham. Horsford and Sudbury is perhaps the game of the day as third meets second. However with a Norfolk derby between Witchingham and Swardeston and a Suffolk duel between Copdock and Mildenhall there are a few tasty clashes. Bury will want to build on last week’s win at Downham when they host the resurgent Frinton.

The seconds visit the surprise leaders in the Onyx Premier, Saffron Walden. There was an encouraging display with the bat last week and more runs for three of their players in the Midweek Cup semi-final win on Wednesday. Alex James scored a magnificent first ton for the Rams and Charlie Lewis hit another fifty with the Saturday skipper, Dan Heath, scoring a few as they posted an imposing two hundred and thirty for one in their twenty overs! So hopefully these guys and Miguel Machado fresh from his own ton last Saturday can ensure we can score enough runs at Walden. Neither side has any, at least statistically, superstars as neither has a batter in the top ten run getters in the division and each has one bowler (Darcy Murphy for SBCC and Daniel Farmer for SW) in the top ten race to be leading wicket taker. Skipper Dan Heath will wish for a better bowling performance this week and has Ed Ball, Jay Playa and Geo Varghese returning to the line-up.

The thirds will be looking to make it eight unbeaten but face perhaps their toughest test so far when they host third placed Aspenden, Standon and Puckeridge. These two and Buntingford have established a cushion between themselves and the chasing pack as we approach half way. ASP have one batter, Scott Caine, currently averaging one hundred and fifteen, the Rams will hope that since he has only played four games that he is absent on Saturday, He is backed up by another part-timer R Fitzgerald. Talking of part-time run scorers the Rams have both Wes Potschul and Robbie Matthews in the top ten of the division. Bowling wise we have three in the top ten with skipper Jake Ellis topping the ladder, followed in second by Arnav Wadekar and Nuwan Athukorala in joint fourth. Fitzgerald is level with Nuwan. The Rams will do well to remember that this bowler had season’s best figures (4-21) in a win against them last year!

With no fourth team game I am hoping for a drama free Friday this week.

The only other ‘match’ this week sees Rhianne making an honest man out of Benji Benson – well in so far as you can make a Financial Advisor / Investment Manager honest. Fortunately for everyone the father of the bride doesn’t have to make a speech!