Another busy weekend of cricket lies ahead at Upminster, with seven sides hoping to play on Saturday (weather permitting) and then the start of Windmill Whack VI and the Ladies XI in action on Sunday.

The 1st XI will be looking to build on last week’s impressive win over Ilford when they make the short journey to Shenfield. Shenfield’s opener at Loughton last week was abandoned without a ball being bowled but the home side will be expected to be amongst the Division One front-runners this season. They started the 2019 season in fine style and looked set for promotion before a difficult patch in the middle of the season saw them just miss out. Last year they competed in the revamped Gooch Division (essentially the Premier Division) and did well to finish in eighth place. Both sides will be hoping the rain stays away and a full contest can be completed.

There was also an opening day win last week for Nicky Ison’s 2nd XI, and they welcome Billericay to Upminster Park tomorrow. Billericay were also due to face Loughton last week, but that game was another victim of the weather, while Ison’s men were putting in a solid performance to gain 20 points at local rivals Harold Wood. New man Ollie Todd impressed with the ball in that win and Ison will be hoping for more of the same from the young fast bowler tomorrow.

The only league side who didn’t get started last week were the 3rd XI, so they will be keen for the rain to hold off so they can take to the field against local rivals Hornchurch at Coopers School. Andy Berry’s men had looked in good form in the pre-league season friendlies so were frustrated their visit to Wanstead and Snaresbrook fell victim to the weather. Hornchurch lost out to Hutton in a contest reduced to 25 overs per side, but they look to have a strong side for this one as they look to get off the mark.

The 4th XI impressed last Saturday with an excellent all round performance against Wanstead, and they travel to Forest Road to take on Oakfield Parkonians 3s tomorrow. Captain Ian Munn and veteran Pete Thompson were both in the runs last week and form part of a very impressive looking batting line up tomorrow. Last week’s game was the only contest in the division to take place as all other matches, including Parks’ visit to Ilford, were rained off.

The only loss across the entire weekend last week was the 5th XI defeat to Oakfield Parkonians 4s and so Aalok Latey and his side will want to bounce back from that tomorrow as they take on Shenfield 4s at Campion. The 6th XI’s return to league action last week was a huge success as they beat Brentwood and Ray Calder will hope for more of the same from his side tomorrow when they go to Benfleet. The 7th XI are also due to be in action as they welcome Gidea Park and Romford to Coopers for a local derby.

All of Saturday’s games are scheduled to begin at 12.30pm. Please keep an eye on the club’s social media platforms for any changes due to the weather.

It’s a busy day on Sunday with three games at Upminster Park. At 10.00am the second Windmill Whack Women’s edition will kick off as the Ace Avengers take on the Apple Finance Phoenix. This is followed at midday by the Ladies XI taking on Harrow in the plate competition of the Women’s ECB National Cup. And then at 3.00pm Windmill Whack VI will commence when the Kushoom Tigers and the Govani Maestros meet.

A full preview of both the Mens and Women’s Windmill Whack competitions can be found in the latest edition of the club’s newsletter:

U's News

All games at Upminster Park over the weekend will be available to view on the Club’s You Tube Channel.

As well as the senior cricket there is also a remarkable NINE colts games over the weekend featuring our junior sides. The U9s get things underway on Friday evening with a trip to South Woodford and this will be followed by a further eight games on Sunday. Good luck to all of our sides.

Please note, restrictions and guidelines remain in place for all cricket at this time. The club will release an updated COVID policy over the weekend which will take effect from Monday 17th May, but at this stage we urge all members to read and follow the current policy below:

UCC Covid Policy (April 2021)