For the 2nd XI 2025 proved to be a season of transition with a tough first half of the season leaving the side at the wrong end of the table right until the end of the season, with the team doing just enough in the last couple of weeks of the campaign to ensure Premier Division status was maintained. For the 3rd XI it was business as usual, with the team once again challenging for the Premier Division title. In the end they fell just short, but their third place finish made it nine top half finishes in a row and 18 since they began their remarkable unbroken stint in the top-flight in 2002.

Availability and selection issues in the first few weeks of the season gave a number of younger players the chance to show their potential at a high-level, and results wise the 2nd XI made a mixed start to the season. They opened up with a home game against Chelmsford where John Curtis continued his good form from 2023 and 2024 with 80 not out in an Upminster total of 197. Curtis then picked up three wickets during the Chelmsford chase, but it was not enough as Elliot Wenzel’s 62 not out helped his side to a seven wicket win. Things followed a similar pattern a week later against Harold Wood at Upminster Park, albeit the margin of defeat was not as wide. Curtis made 45 in the middle order before youngster Finley Tolan made 39 at the end of the Upminster innings to lift the score to 209. Andrew Berry and Ollie Burley picked up two wickets each during the Wood reply, but the visitors just about kept their nerve to secure a three wicket win with just four balls remaining. Upminster got off the mark a week a later with a fine win at good friends Woodford Wells. Ian Russell showed all of his class and experience to make 85 not out and Tolan then smashed a brilliant maiden senior half century (and ended not out) as Upminster posted a formidable 302-7. Tolan and Burley then picked up a brace of wickets each after Wells had made a good start to their reply before captain Ollie Peck came into the attack and took a brilliant 5-46 as Wells were bowled out for 239. Upminster then ended the month with a thrilling derby win over Hornchurch at Upminster Park. Hornchurch were on top early on as Upminster fell to 72-4 before Curtis and Mit Shah turned things around with an excellent fifth wicket stand. Peck then smashed 31 from just 15 deliveries at the end of the innings to help Upminster post a competitive 220-8. Church skipper Kieran Scarlioli made an excellent 71 for his side as they began the chase well, but when he fell Burley and Peck put Upminster in charge with three wickets each. Hornchurch’s final pair looked to be taking them to victory before Curtis struck to give Upminster a seven run win.

Ironically the 3rd XI had started the league season with a very similar victory over Hornchurch. Batting first at Coopers, Michael Pedrick made 53 and there were good contributions from Steve Limn, Dan Simpson, Will Frost, Alfie Taplin and Jordan Tolan as the home side posted 225-8. Mike Church and Myles Wells batted well in reply, and despite a brilliant spell of 5-57 from Tom Young it looked like Hornchurch would get home as they recovered from 162-7 to 222-8. However, with four runs needed from the final three balls Upminster claimed the last wicket to begin their campaign with a three run win. That victory was followed by a poor performance the following week in the home game against Woodford Wells. Ryan Oakes claimed three wickets for Upminster, and while the Wells total of 206-9 only looked about par, the home side will feel they let Wells get a few too many. Captain Simpson made 53 at the top of the Upminster innings, but in truth, despite an excellent 43 from Tolan they never looked likely to chase down their target. Upminster bounced back a week later at Shenfield with a convincing win. Simpson and Pedrick made 67 each to put their side on top, and there were also runs for Limn and Zoran Suneel before Tolan once again added a late flourish as Upminster piled up 318-7. It was then over to Young once again, as the seamer took 5-40 to take Upminster towards victory, and despite half centuries from Laurence Tredget and Freddie Wren Shenfield were bowled out for 235. Suneel then ensured Upminster finished the month very much in the title race as his brilliant 111 helped set up a hard-fought win over West Essex. Suneel’s knock came from just 89 balls, and with Limn (67) and Adam Quested (36) keeping him company for most of his innings Upminster posted 274-5. West took up the challenge of chasing such a big target, and at times looked as though they would reach it, but three wickets each for Fenton Everingham and Michael Jones meant Upminster won by 14 runs.

After two wins at the end of May the 2nd XI began June with optimism, but that was soon blown away by Brentwood at Upminster Park. Brentwood won the toss and asked Upminster to bat, and a little over three hours later they had secured a 10 wicket win with a dominant performance. Ian Russell and Ollie Clarke were the only batters to make a meaningful contribution as Upminster were bowled out for 131 before the visitors raced to their target from just over 11 overs. Things didn’t get any better a week later at Hornchurch, where Upminster’s fragile batting was exposed once more. John Curtis, Adam Quested and Will Frost all reached the 20s but a total of 136 never looked enough, and so it proved as 65 not out from George Barnacle helped Hornchurch to a five wicket win. Upminster picked up a much needed win the following Saturday when they overcame Woodford Wells at Upminster Park. Kyuren Chetty made a brilliant 118 not out for Wells, and despite three wickets for Ollie Peck the visitors set a challenging 284-5 before declaring an over early. Mit Shah then batted superbly during the Upminster chase, making an excellent 96, and with help from Harry Jenkins (44), Aki Rahman (67*) and Curtis (52) the home side raced to a seven wicket win. June finished with a gritty draw against Harold Wood in a local derby. Peck, Curtis and Joshan Narbheram were in the wickets for Upminster as Wood made 261-7 before the visitors then fell into huge trouble at 68-6 and 101-8. Sam Twine remained at the crease though and despite the situation batted positively, and he found a willing ally in Peck. Peck went for 22 to leave Upminster 146-9, and at that stage Twine was 48 not out. 13 overs remained at that stage and a Wood victory looked inevitable, but Narbheram joined Twine and the two continued the fight. Around 45 minutes later the pair walked off having secured a draw and with Twine unbeaten on a remarkable 104 as Upminster closed on 208-9.

The 3rd XI moved into the title race at the start of June with a rain affected win over Harlow. There were two victims each for all of Upminster’s five man attack with Tom Young, Ewan Lowrie, Michael Jones, Fenton Everingham and Mark D’Cruz all in the wickets as Harlow were bowled out for 172. With rain in the air Ethan Berry and Rob Mack made sure they kept their side ahead of the rate, and when the downpour came after 21 overs of the chase Upminster were well ahead of the rate and claimed an eight wicket win. An extraordinary game at Woodford Wells a week later eventually ended in a draw after a high scoring thriller. Even on a ground renowned for big scores this contest was a run-fest with Mark Webb and Will Rogers both making tons for the home side who piled up 362-4. Requiring more than an eight over it seemed unlikely Upminster would prevail but a second wicket stand of 188 between Steve Limn and Matt Burch put their side in with a chance. When Burch fell Limn got good support from Nathan French (56) and it looked for a while like Limn was going to pull off a miracle before his side ended on 352-3. Limn ended on 162 not out (not even his highest score on the ground). Upminster’s title charge regained momentum the following Saturday at West Essex. D’Cruz and Ryan Oakes claimed four wickets each, but West were still able to post a more than competitive 251. 71 from captain Dan Simpson put Upminster into a good position before a clatter of quick middle order wickets saw them slide to 175-6 and in a difficult position. No problem for Joshan Narbheram and Jordan Tolan who knocked off the remaining 77 runs with no further dramas and plenty of time to spare. Upminster’s title hopes took what would turn out to be a crucial blow at the end of July as they were beaten by Harold Wood at Coopers. Nine Upminster batters made double figures but none reached fifty as Jack Lane’s five wickets helped Wood bowl out the home side for 249. Jones claimed four wickets for Upminster during the Wood chase but with youngster Robin Singh making 99 the visitors won by four wickets with plenty of overs in hand.

The 2nd XI were hoping July would see them pull clear of the relegation zone, but they ended up going the whole month without a win to stay in real trouble. The month opened at Valentines Park against Iford and with Mit Shah making 60 for Upminster and Gus Siggins and Adam Quested also making good contributions the visitors were happy to reach 233-8. Gaurav Nair made 93 and Pronob Roy 62 to put Ilford into a strong position before skipper Ollie Peck rescued Upminster. He took 5-51, including the dismissals of Roy and Nair, and it was eventually Ilford who were glad to get out with a draw as they closed on 195-8. Shah continued his good form a week later against Wanstead and Snaresbrook at Upminster Park, and with Rob Healy, Terry Wyatt and Aki Rahman also in the runs Upminster reached a competitive 215, but they will have been annoyed not to have used all their available overs. Pavan Patel then put the Upminster total into perspective as he made 113 not out and steered his side to a six wicket win. July ended with a heavy defeat and poor performance against Chelmsford at Chelmer Park. Peck claimed four wickets and Adam Quested made 36 but it was nowhere enough as Chelmsford secured a crushing 94 run win.

There were two crushing wins for the 3rd XI at the start of July as they stayed very much in the title race. The first Saturday of the month belonged very much to Ross Taylor, who showed all of his potential with a wonderful unbeaten 163 against Ilford at Coopers. Taylor’s knock came from just 125 balls and included 18 fours and five maximums and with Michael Pedrick adding 40 Upminster piled up 301-8. Ilford’s middle order battled hard but with Ollie Clarke and Mark D’Cruz claiming three wickets each the visitors were bowled out for 169. Next week’s game at leaders Brentwood was a very different affair. Upminster’s four man attack of D’Cruz, Andrew Berry, Ryan Oakes and Joseph Brooks were all in fine form as the home side were rolled out for just 67. Upminster’s chase was not all plain sailing, but 24 from the captain Dan Simpson helped them to a six wicket win. The game against Chingford was frustratingly washed out before there was further frustration when the month ended with a draw against Shenfield. Shenfield got into a good position at 126-2 before Joshan Narbheram led an Upminster fightback. However, Shenfield’s middle order batted sensibly and ensured their side reached a challenging 240-7. Simpson and Zoran Suneel then made 55 each to seemingly put Upminster in control but Shenfield hit back with Max Proctor claiming six wickets. Berry and Jordan Tolan then looked like they would take Upminster to a thrilling win, only for Tolan to fall in the penultimate over meaning Upminster had to play out for the draw at 231-9.

The 2nd XI started August with a much needed win, as six wickets for captain Ollie Peck saw them to a convincing success over Billericay. Peck claimed 6-39 in a 16 over spell as Ricay were restricted to 153-9 at Upminster Park. Mit Shah (40), Gus Siggins (36*) and Callum Berry (53*) then took the home side to a seven wicket win. Berry and Siggins were in good form again the following week as it looked for much of the afternoon that Upminster would pull of an unexpected victory against Brentwood. Batting first at the Old County Ground, Berry made 83 and Siggins 44, and with Terry Wyatt and Rob Healy making contributions later on Upminster were able to post 244, although they would have been disappointed to be dismissed with 17 balls of their innings remaining. Brentwood reached 108-1 in their reply before Berry, Jamie Green and Scott Simmons all struck as the home side fell to 134-6. Brentwood recovered again to reach 217-6 but three further quick wickets left the home side 224-9 and Upminster very much as favourites. However, Rhys Chapman and Hugh Fisher batted sensibly and steered their side to a one wicket win with 17 balls remaining!! Upminster continued their good form, and took a huge step towards safety, as they produced a stunning performance to overcome reigning champions Wanstead and Snaresbrook at Overton Drive. Aki Rahman and Siggins were the stars of the show with the bat, both making brilliant centuries, and with Berry adding 76 Upminster piled up a massive 345-5. Berry then completed one of the best individual performances from an Upminster player in recent memory as he claimed a stunning 8-39 as the home side collapsed from 196-3 to 248 all out to give Upminster a 97 run win. Upminster would have been hoping to secure safety the following weekend as Ilford came to Upminster Park, but things didn’t turn out as planned. Ilford began the game with just nine men, but their rejigged batting order amassed 316-3 with Aryan Mayo making 106 and Gagan Bhogal 98. Upminster found themselves 27-5 in reply and looking at a huge margin of defeat, before Ross Taylor and Terry Wyatt began to turn things around. Wyatt fell for 54 but Rob Healy joined Taylor who was by now nearing his century. Cruelly, Taylor was caught on the boundary for 99 and Healy followed soon after for 43 as Upminster were bowled out for 246. With two games remaining Upminster knew they needed to win at least one match to secure safety, and Ian Russell helped them on their way against Chingford. Russell made 111 from 98 balls and with Terry Wyatt also in the runs Upminster made 274, although they were once again bowled out without using their full allocation of overs. It didn’t prove costly on this occasion as Peck and John Curtis rolled back the years to take Upminster to victory. The captain claimed 3-13 while Curtis picked up 7-18 as Chingford were bowled out for just 32 to give Upminster a 242 run win. That win meant Upminster would need a maximum of five points from the final game of season to be sure of Premier Division cricket in 2026.

The 3rd XI knew they needed a good month to stay in the title hunt, and they began August with an away win over Hornchurch. When Hornchurch fell to 103-8 an early finish looked in prospect before the home side’s lower order battled hard to take their team to 173. Andrew Berry and Mark D’Cruz picked up three wickets each for Upminster. Captain for the day Steve Limn may have been frustrated with his side for allowing their opponents back into the game, but he channelled this in the right way as he made an excellent 64 not out, and with Rob Mack making 62 Upminster picked up an eight wicket win. The following weekend’s game at Harlow was a very different affair but it did end with an Upminster win, albeit by a much narrower margin. Arshad Muhammed made 111 for Harlow and this was bettered by Mashood Iqbal who struck 120 not out as the home side closed on 266-4. Ryan Oakes claimed 3-50 for Upminster. The Upminster chase was a truly memorable one, especially for Mack who struck his first ever ton for the club. The left-hander made a brilliant 102 to take his side to the brink of victory, and Alex Ward and D'Cruz then held their nerve as Upminster won by two wickets. The title race was now a three-way contest between Upminster and their next two opponents, Brentwood and Harold Wood, and Dan Simpson’s side picked up a win in the first of these two crucial matches as Brentwood were beaten at Coopers. Sam Stroud made 57 not out for Brentwood, but Oakes picked up another three wickets as the visitors were bowled out for 199. The Upminster chase was a nervy one, but Ward continued his good form with 55 not out and with Ethan Berry and Joran Tolan also chipping in Upminster won by four wickets. The title showdown at Harold Wood Park saw Upminster asked to bat first and Mack made 58 to put his side into a good position. Tolan, Simpson and Joshan Narbheram also made good contributions, but Upminster kept losing wickets at crucial times and they may have felt their total of 221-7 was a little under par. That proved to be the case as Charith Disanayaka made a marvellous 111 for Wood as they won by six wickets to take a huge step towards the title. Despite knowing the destiny of the title was now out of their hands Upminster didn’t throw in the towel and picked up a win against Ilford to end the month. Ilford elected to bat first, but they were left to regret that decision as Berry picked up four wickets to help bowl them out for 106. Upminster lost early wickets in reply before Zoran Suneel settled the nerves with 46 not out as his side won by six wickets.

The last day of the season arrived with the 2nd XI needing five points from their game at Billericay to be sure of survival. Stand in skipper Terry Wyatt asked Ricay to bat first and after the home side had started well John Curtis picked up four wickets to ensure Upminster claimed four bowling points with Ricay ending on 199-9. Remarkably seven of Upminster’s top nine were out without reaching double figures, and despite Callum Berry 49 Upminster had not claimed a single batting point when last man Finley Tolan joined Scott Simmons at the crease. The pair did the necessary work to take Upminster past the 125 run mark, and although they were all out for 136 Upminster had done enough to survive. In the end results elsewhere meant even if they had not claimed the five points Upminster would have stayed in the Premier Division.

The 3rd XI needed to win their final day encounter against Chingford at Coopers and hope both Brentwood and Harold Wood lost if they were to claim the title. The Management Team of Dan Simpson and Steve Limn both made half centuries to put Upminster in a good position before the innings fell away somewhat as the title chasers posted 231-8. Chingford never looked like chasing down the target and Andrew Berry was in the wickets once more as the visitors closed on 184-9 as Upminster won by 47 runs. Unfortunately, both Harold Wood and Brentwood won their matches meaning Upminster ended in third place, with Wood taking the title.

Despite survival the 2nd XI would have been disappointed with their season. Having come so close to the title in 2024 (missing out to Wanstead and Snaresbrook on the last day of the season) they would not have expected to be scrambling for points to stay up over the last few weeks of the season. There was on reflection though a number of positives to take from the season. Seven batters scored more than 200 league runs, and four of those were under 21, with Mit Shah topping the charts with 394 and Gus Siggins and Callum Berry both averaging more than 40.00. With the ball Berry and Ollie Burley also impressed, although the old stagers Ollie Peck and John Curtis led the way. 14 year old Finley Tolan also showed his potential, taking eight wickets and scoring nearly 150 runs, many of them in tricky situations. With all these young players continuing to develop it would be a surprise if the side were in the same position again in September 2026.

It was of course no surprise to see the 3rd XI challenging for the title once more, and while they will be frustrated to narrowly miss out once again they will have been pleased with the consistency they displayed during the season, even when the side’s personnel changed more than is ideal. Four men, Steve Limn (555), Dan Simpson (493), Rob Mack (328) and Jordan Tolan (300) reached the 300 run mark, while youngsters Zoran Suneel and Michael Pedrick also impressed with the bat. 28 wickets saw Mark D’Cruz top the bowling charts, but Ryan Oakes, Tom Young and Andrew Berry were not too far behind, and there were a whole host of other young players who did well when the opportunity presented itself. Simpson will be hoping that with a little bit of luck and a little bit more consistent availability his side will top the pile again in 2026.