Welcome to this week’s Wizzy News

Its been some weeks since the season officially ended but its great to reflect on a fantastic summer of cricket for our juniors

Senior End of Season dinner and awards – Friday 3rd October

Just a quick reminder that our end of season dinner and awards evening is fast approaching and the good news is that there are a few places still available. If you would like to come along please email Jonny Farmer at jon.farmer87@gmail.com with your menu choices.

Live streaming of junior matches next season

We are considering acquiring the technology to live stream home junior matches and we are very keen to hear from parents to sense the appetite for live streaming. We would be most grateful if everyone could complete our brief survey which will help us to gauge the interest.

Please click here to access the survey

Age group end of season reports

Under 14

Looking out over the green I can see the autumn light casting ever longer shadows across the square, the ground is damper under foot now and the air is sharper. The cricket season is firmly in the rear-view mirror, and we are able to look back with some perspective.

Despite having won the division in 2024 the team were again put into Sussex league division III, which they duly won again, losing only one of their twelve fixtures. Their highest score in 20 overs was 175 (v Barns Green) and on one occasion they bowled a team out for 35 (v Steyning). At their best this squad bristled with intent and skill.

The players also took part in the U14 and U16 cricket Sussex Junior Cricket Festival weeks, playing three games in each week. They were seeded into the top tier for the U14 festival and were given matches against three of the top teams in the county, Ifield, Cuckfield and Chichester Priory. The U16 team was made up mostly of U13’s and U14’s playing up, with games against Eastergate, Pagham and Barns Green – which resulted in a well-deserved victory against local rivals. Thank you to Suzana and James for making the U16 week possible.

From a coaching perspective the feedback from the festival matches is really quite simple, we played against some of the best teams in the county and the differences between our batting and bowling and theirs was fairly negligible. The real differences lay in the fielding and running between the wickets, a swing of 20 runs in each innings in these aspects will usually be enough to win the game, as we found out. Something to really work on for next season.

The players benefitted from the technical coaching the club has provided through Tim Van Noort. His focus on the tactical aspects of the game as the players move away from T20 to longer format cricket was particularly insightful.

Huge thanks to Suzana Braddock for her tireless efforts in organising the group this year and arranging the additional fixtures. Thanks also to Dave McCullagh, Tom Dawson, Kirsty Dawson, James Braddock and Peter Klein for umpiring, scoring and coaching.

The majority of players will be moving up to U15/16 level next summer and they can look forward to some fresh input from Tim Edwardes who has agreed to coach in the 2026 season.

A huge well done to the summer of 2025 players – Will Spiers, Jack Radford, Bella Boyce, Olivia Boyce, Buddy Edwardes, Arden Tullett, Josh Braddock, Ciara Braddock, Jackson McCullagh, Freddie Brookfield, Henry Foden, Ahaan Thakkar, Gus Gray, Oscar Hunt, Henry Nicholls, George Reed, Ashwin Jain, Henry Godfrey, Tristan Whiteside, Hector Dawson, Henry Bruce and Harry Maggs.

The last league game of the season away at Roffey showed much hope and promise for the future, with the majority of the experienced U14 squad being called up to face a touring Andover U17’s side, the team had to be made up of U13’s with several U11/12 players also called up, they won the game…… Well done to Leo Roberts, Kayden Wright, Ethan Cooke, Jack Brazier and Callum Campbell-Yaxley.
Some images below from a busy and successful year.

With thanks
Philip Maggs – Coach

Under 10 – under 12 end of season reports

Congratulations to all the award winners in the under 10, 11 and 12 age groups

Under 12

It’s that time of year again – as the evenings begin to draw in, the cricket square gets put to bed and the prospect of enjoying a cold beverage while watching the team play cricket on the beautiful WG pitch, that we are privileged to call home, diminishes. But fear not, it won’t be long before we are back to it, another year older, wiser and more experienced.

Looking back on this year, I would summarise it as a development season. WG has been made up of 10, 11 and 12 year olds, whereas our opposition is typically full of 12/13 year olds, with experience and strength on their side. This has given them the slight edge and ability to win games but never stopped us from competing. We have more than compensated with the boys constantly evolving skills set. Whether that’s the range of shots, accuracy of bowling (and reduction of extras,) improved fielding (catches, run-outs,) running between the wickets, communication and leadership, it has continued to impress. In parallel, the sense of enjoyment, friendship and being part of a team has shone through.

The boys, and their parents, should be incredibly proud of what they have achieved. Every single player has developed, every single player has had a stand out achievement. The end of season awards highlighted these achievements and awards were given to Leo Roberts (Player of the Year), Archie Kain (Batter of the Year), Bobby Ayling (Bowler of the Year), Callum Cambell-Yaxley (Fielder of the Year) and Dylan Fernandes (Most Improved).

Thank you to all the administrators, scorers, umpires. And most importantly, thank you to all parents for running boundary ropes, sorting refreshments, transporting the boys across Sussex, supporting and sharing the magical moments created on the cricket field.

Enjoy the ‘off-season’ and look forward to seeing you all again soon.

Mark Brown – Coach

Under 11

We have seen some amazing cricket from the under 11s this season! The first time Wisborough Green CC have entered into the U11 league it was going to be a big learning season for us all. Out of 8 league games we won 5 and finished 2nd in the league. This is a great achievement and the squad have come a long way over the summer. Even in the games we lost they showed great character to never give up by always being positive.

There were so many highlights from the season but some I want to mention are…

• in the first game of the season we saw our first six for the team hit by Leo
• Charlie took five wickets in one game including an amazing caught and bowled
• Quinn being thrown into his first game having been there as a supporter…he was not expecting that but managed to take his first wicket
• Jack throwing himself round the boundary to save many fours.
• so many new players that fitted straight into the team
• our existing players being so welcoming to the new ones and helping them to understand matches like they had to learn last season.

But overall, every player in the squad contributed to the great season that we had, with many either hitting their first 4s and 6s, getting maiden overs, taking wickets or game changing catches.

It has been a pleasure to Coach and Umpire the under 11s this season and I would like to thank all the players and parents for their support. Thank you also to Peter for showing me the ropes and Chloe for the admin, both of you have been fantastic.

The U11s awards are as follows;

Jack Brazier – Player of the Year
James Jackson – Batter of the Year
Charlie Brown – Bowler of the Year
Bobby Spence – Fielder of the Year
Quinn Tucker – Most Improved Player

The Under 11s have had a brilliant season and I am excited to see them build on this success next year moving up into the U12s.

Adam Roberts – Coach

Under 10

This was the first year of league cricket for the 10’s and what a fantastic introduction it was. It would probably be best be described as a season of two halves. The first half was all about learning the basics game – developing the batting, bowling and fielding skills – the second half of the season was all about reaping the rewards of all the hard work having earned the right to win matches with some memorable victories.

The team faced some very good opposition who had clearly played league cricket before. Many of the teams we played had Sussex pathway players who were very experienced. The turnaround came in the game against Balcombe away. It was a game we knew we had a chance of winning and we had an extra training session to ensure we would be on top form for the game. The game itself was a fantastic achievement with many players excelling. Jack Bowes hit a fantastic 6 and Super Cooper, our most improved player of the season, hit a number of fours off their Sussex bowler in the final over of the game to seal a memorable victory.

The first hardball game of the season was against Fernhurst. We batted second in a very closely fought encounter. The scores were neck and neck going into the final batting pair when our Player of the year Charlie Baxter came to the crease and put the game beyond doubt with some fantastic boundaries.

Our game against Storrington away was our biggest victory by some margin, underlining how much we had improved as a team in all departments of the game – a real joy to watch.

An exciting game against a very strong Lindfield team will also live long in the memory with outstanding performance by the entire team with Leo Vasadi and Charlie Baxter helping themselves to a number of sixes and fours.

Our last game of the season was against the under 11’s with a hard ball (the under 10’s played most of the season with an incrediball ). The under 10’s were given a 25 run start but ended up beating the Under 11’s by more than 25 runs. What a way to finish off the season.

It was such a joy to watch the players progress every week and they all deserve a huge amount of credit for all their efforts. They played with big smiles on their faces and it would be fair to say that the cricketing bug has well and truly bitten…

Many thanks to the parents for their fantastic support – helping setup and pack away and providing welcome refreshments for the players.

Looking forward to next season

Peter Klein – Coach

Under 8 and 9

What a fantastic season it has been for our U8s and U9s! Friday night training sessions have been full of energy, learning, and most importantly – fun. We’ve placed a big focus on the cricketing fundamentals this year, working hard on catching, throwing, fielding, batting stance, and bowling action. The children have shown real enthusiasm in developing these skills, and it has been brilliant to see their progress each week.

This season we played five practice matches, which gave our players the chance to put their training into action. For many, these were their very first games of cricket, and it was great to see the excitement and determination they brought to the pitch. We made sure that everyone had the opportunity to play at least two or three matches, and the improvement in confidence and teamwork from the first game to the last has been excellent.

Overall, we’ve made really strong progress as a group. The children have learned the importance of working together, encouraging each other, and trying their best in every situation – all while having plenty of fun along the way.

As some of our players now move up to the U10s, they should feel proud of what they have achieved this season. They have a strong foundation of skills and understanding of the game, and we’re confident they will continue to develop and enjoy their cricket as they move into league matches next year.

A huge thank you goes to Tarni and Darren, Jack, Willbo and Hugo for their fantastic help with coaching, and to Suzana for organising the practice matches and making sure everything ran smoothly. Thank you also to Alen, Bex and Maggie who helped with the awesome practice matches we had on the green. We’re also very grateful to some of the older juniors (namely Monty and Josh) who came along to support me with Friday night training – the kids loved having you around and really benefited from your help.

A huge thank you to all the players for their effort and enthusiasm, and to parents and supporters for cheering them on and helping make this such a positive season. We can’t wait to see how everyone continues their cricketing journey!

Already looking forward to next year…..

Dan Vickery – coach

Under 7’s, 6’s and 5’s

The youngest group of cricketers at our Club goes from strength-to-strength. We had yet another record year with 75 registered players and over 60 players turning up to sessions at one time. The group also performed some magic managing to play all 13 of their sessions under brilliant sunshine. A first for us.

At this age we celebrate the group rather than the individual as what we want is for the kids to want to come back to move from our ball games to play the game of cricket itself. That is clearly happening as we can see the U7s increasingly feeding the older age groups. We even have players that started their cricketing journeys with us in the Club’s First, Second and Sunday XIs now.

Alen and his hugely appreciated team of assistants will be back next April for another season of fun. Until then we will “Get Outta Here” until Wisi G is warm again.

Alen Lang – Coach

Head of Junior cricket end of season wrap

I was recently approached by a parent thanking the club for inspiring their child this summer. It was welcome feedback and simply would not have happened without the tireless work of the volunteers below.

Under 5/6/7’s – Alen Lang, Ella Lang, Mark Wadey, Poppy Sque, Olivia Finn, (75 registered juniors in this group alone)
Under 8/9’s – Dan Vickery, Tarni Dixon and Suzana Braddock
U10’s – Peter Klein and Emily Hendley
U11’s – Adam Roberts and Chloe Boxall
U12’s – Mark Brown and Ashley Roberts
U14’s – Dave McCullagh and Suzana Braddock
Girls Cricket – Sarah Meurer and George Nicholls

Thanks also to Lesley Price and Hettie Palmer for their roles in safeguarding.

The main role of a coach and organiser at this club is to spark a lifelong interest in cricket amongst our record 210 registered junior players. This is very much in the hands of our volunteers, and we are always looking for parent helpers to set up on match days and also to score.

Most importantly, there is a need for us to recruit more coaches. If you are reading this and would like to help coach next summer please do get in touch with your age group organiser, please note – mums make great coaches too…… The club will put you through a level 1 coaching course organised by Sussex cricket. There are few more rewarding experiences than watching a junior team come together and improve over a season, I hope some of you will want to get involved next year and be part of this. We really do need your help.

Winter nets will start in the New Year and these dates will be circulated on the WhatsApp groups.
See you then.

Philip Maggs

Head of Juniors

That’s it for the 2025 season for the Juniors – what a fantastic summer of cricket it was !

Cheers

Wizzy