Derbyshire Premier - round up of the clubs
by Gwyn Jones, 15th October 2006

Ockbrook & Borrowash can be satisfied with their season, having won both the League Championship and the Premier Derbyshire Cup. Matt Cassar was an outstanding captain and contributed greatly as opening bat scoring 1153 runs in the League, average 48.04 and achieving a top score of 184. He was supported by Johnny Owen with 1034 runs, average 49.24, and a top score of 182. Tom Lungley, their Derbyshire player wasn’t always able to bowl because of injury but he succeeded as a batsman, hitting the League’ s highest score of 213 at Marehay.

Chris Dunn made a useful contribution with the bat and had a very successful season as wicket-keeper, coming top with 33 dismissals. They were a well balanced side with the rare advantage of being able to field three class spinners in Lian Wharton, Jake Needham and Chris Windmill. Wharton claimed 51 wickets with a best performance of 6-35.

On a sad note we have to record the death of their scorer Andrew Sellors late in the season

Sandiacre Town also had a very successful season and were very close to winning both major trophies. Skippered quietly and skilfully by John Trueman they were overtaken only in the last few games. Trueman was the mainstay of the batting, scoring 913 runs, average 45.65, but not far behind was Dan Birch who scored 965 runs in the League at an average of 43.86, always at a rapid rate.

Naeem Akhtar played his usual part as main strike bowler, taking 45 wickets and he could be relied upon to get quick runs when they were needed. Peter Davies could also score quickly and he provided an extra bonus with 10 stumpings and 10 catches behind the sticks. John Jordison wasn’t always available because of Police duties but he was a great asset as a genuine pace bowler. Irfan Ul Haq added his skill as a seam bowler as did Iftikhar Asghar, a very accurate spin bowler.

The player to watch for the future is the youngest player in the side 15 year old Akhil Patel who showed immense talent with bat and ball. The Counties are already showing an interest in him.

Dunstall came with a rush at the end of the season to overtake Spondon into third place. Jimmy Adams, the former West Indies star, took over the captaincy and his influence was immense. He was consistent with the bat scoring 1072 runs at an average 0f 82.46, and his spin bowling was very effective. Jamie and Matthew Benstead both scored heavily and Paul Shaw came with a rush at the end, reaching 915 runs at an average of 50.83. Paceman Alan Gough was always dangerous as he showed in taking 6-37 against Ockbrook, and his partner Craig Jennings kept up the pressure at the other end with genuine pace

A singular success was the achievement of Stuart Eustace who claimed most victims behind the stumps, 35 including 27 catches. Devon Malcolm bowled with real pace and was adept in containing batsman at the beginning of the innings.

Spondon, newly promoted, surprised quite a few people as they spent the season near the top of the League. They were a good all round side, strong in batting and bowling. Their overseas player Colin Ingram was an inspiration, scoring 1210 runs, average 55 and he was a very useful change bowler. Steve Attenborough added experience to the side, though he was out of action for part of the season. He had his moments, including 6-30 against Denby.

The two Ashdown brothers were regulars taking wickets and scoring runs, with Ben serving the Rep side with distinction. Neil Kellogg captained the side quietly and effectively and will have gained valuable experience. Young Garry Balance, who comes from Zimbabwe was a class performer, another player to watch for the future, but if he comes back he would need to be classed as an overseas player. Darren Yeomans  who joined them from Rolleston, proved to be a vital member of the squad as a top order batsman.

Next season Spondon will play their home matches on their superb new ground which has been officially classed as Grade A +. It should be noted that Spondon’s success was achieved  without their County player Greaeme Welch who was tied up with Derbyshire.

Alfreton, another promoted side, demonstrated that they were genuine Premier League contenders. Captain Matthew Lineker is a player who leads from the front and his influence was strong. His batting was a joy to watch, scoring 1037 runs in the League, at an average of 47.14 with a top score of 154, and he bowled tidily when required. He was ably assisted by Jon Aspinall, Alex Mace and Andy Gwatkin, and the side benefited from the efforts of their overseas player, Tanvir Ahmed, who turned in some stunning performances. Against Ilkeston Rutland he took 6-22 and against Chesterfield he scored 34 in one over, including five sixes and one four.

Graeme Bushe kept wicket very competently, claiming 23 dismissals, and batted soundly. They can be satisfied with their first season at the top.

Quarndon had a mixed season, but they had enough talent to offer a challenge to any other team. Matthew Dowman captained the side well and produced some good scores and bowled effectively. Billy Bagshawe was a great success, high scoring consistently. Robin Williamson, Vikram Atri and James Ede were also consistent as batsmen, but the side was short of bowlers.

Their overseas player Aavishkar Salvi bowled with genuine pace but only rarely could they bowl sides out and 13 of their games were drawn. Their County player Graham Wagg proved that he was a match winner, scoring heavily and rapidly as against Ockbrook when he smashed 80 off 65 balls, and achieved the best bowling performance of 7-56. Also David Adams had his moments as against Ockbrook when he scored 80 not out and took 5-47. Young Chris Paget showed promise as a slow bowler as did Jon Acton who took 6-74 against Chesterfield.

Some praise, too, for wicket-keeper Kev Hollis who claimed 28 dismissals, including 9 stumpings.

Clifton were rather unpredictable, though that could not be said of their skipper, Chris Lewis, the former England player who was consistent with the bat as was their young opening bat Aqib Afzaal. Simon Moore was there for most of the season offering support as a main strike bowler and as an experienced batsman. Newcomer Bradley Lemmetjies was a reliable batsman as was Matt Gouldstone and all rounder Rahim Karim was one of the stalwarts in the side.

They signed their County player Bilal Shafayat from Northants, though he is familiar with Derbyshire League cricket. He served them well, as did Azzer Zamman who proved to be a reliable wicket keeper, with 20 dismissals. It was a moderate season and they will look for more wins next season.

Chesterfield escaped relegation by only a narrow margin. They occupy a strategic position in the Premier League and are viewed as standard bearers in North Derbyshire. They play at Queen’s Park, now restored to the County circuit, and everybody wants to play there. As a club they look strong enough to maintain a comfortable position in the Premier League. They have a good group of players and a structured coaching system, but they are still struggling to avoid relegation.

This season they won only four games and 13 were drawn. They registered two County players, Ben France of Derbyshire and Ian Blackwell of Somerset and it is typical of their frustration that they were denied the chance to play Blackwell against Sandiacre because of a rule interpretation. Yet they have two ex Derbyshire players in the team, Simon Lacey, the captain and Andy Brown the coach, and there is a wealth of local talent such as Brian Gladwin, Simon King, Adam Whiteley, and Alex Hibbert. Maybe next season they will realise their potential

Denby had a frustrating time with too much time in the relegation zone, but they can look back on it as part of a learning curve. Young Ben Perry-Taylor took over the captaincy part way through the season and he will have learnt a great deal. His batting continues to improve and will get better with longer stays at the crease. His brother Ross looked a genuine first teamer and Stephen Lee is developing into a good opener. Michael Deane bowled as well as ever and and it was good to see Peter Scott back as wicket keeper, performing well and adding experience to a young side. Joe Greenhalgh is maturing into a reliable player and so is Bhavesh Patel. Their Aussie, Scott Phillips had a good season, and played well under pressure. Look for an improvement next season.

Alvaston & Boulton also spent much time in the bottom half, but they stayed up mainly through the efforts of two players, captain Campbell Ogilvie and Anthony Woolley. These two batting together, were a formidable pair, capable of  dealing with any total facing them. Woolley was one of the outstanding players in the League. Apart from his batting his bowling, which was curtailed by injury, could be devastating in short spells. He scored 1263 runs in the League at an average of 74.29 and with a top score of 140. Ogilvie was also capable of hitting centuries and was a very penetrative opening bowler.

Steve Ottewell can now consider himself to be a veteran but he was bowling as well as ever and was invaluable to the side, taking 46 wickets with a best performance of 5-27. Adris Azam’s return to the side was welcome and wicket-keeper David Titershill’s first season was a success, claiming 24 dismissals.Youngsters  Wasim Mohammed,  Faisal Khan, Darryl Walker and Achin Chand are exciting players for the future. Typical of the promise shown by these is Faisal Khan’s 6-31 against Alfreton. Their County representative Ian Hunter showed his worth in taking 6-25 against Denby.

Marehay were disappointing after their good performance in 2005, but part of this was attributable to the fact that they had very little help from  their County player, Chris Taylor, who was rarely available, whereas last year Ben Spendlove was able to give them more regular support.. Veterans Neil Sparham and Lee Colledge played well and there were encouraging signs from young players in the side like captain Gareth Buckley, Andy Walters and James Kyte. Experienced players like John Longdon, Adrian Vickerage and Dan Parkin are there to offer support and no doubt they will soon bounce back. They are a well appointed and ambitious club and deserve to succeed.

Ilkeston Rutland were the surprise team in the League. Last season they spent their time in Championship contention, but this year they were stuck in the nether regions. It is difficult to explain why because they operated with much the same side. It must be said that luck was not on their side and they lost a number of games which they were well placed to win. Also they had very little help from their County representative, Ant Botha who was a regular in the Derbyshire team. Yet, when they played Sandiacre they met Steffan Jones who took 6-30 against them.

Captain David Smit scored a lot of runs but he was not as prolific as he had been last year. Alan Green was a steadying influence and seasoned players like Ian Banks, Martin Brandrick, and Nick Dawson had their moments. Also, their young players Oliver Saffell,  Rob Green and George Moulds still look very good prospects. So what went wrong ? Let us say,” It was just one of those things”. They lost 12 games, more than any other team

The promoted teams are Lullington Park and Elvaston who have two of the nicest grounds in the County. We can’t wait to meet them!

Read Gwyn's end of season report here.