2025 was a season of contrasts for the 4th and 5th XIs in a number of ways. The 4s saw a captaincy change for the first time in a number of years with Matt Ingleson taking charge, and Matt Mccarthy coming in as his vice-captain, while the 5th XI went with the same captaincy duo as 2024 with Aalok Latey continuing as skipper and Stewart Hammond as his assistant. The 5th XI moved divisions for the first time in a long time as they switched from 4th XI Premier Division West of the Hamro Foundation Essex League to 4th XI Premier Division East, while the 4th XI lined up in 3rd XI Division One for the seventh consecutive campaign, once again being the only 4th XI at that level. In the end it proved to be the last time the 4s will play at that level until at least 2027 after a topsy-turvy campaign that ultimately ended in relegation.

The 4s very nearly got their league season off to a winning start but eventually lost out by the narrowest of margins at Buckhurst Hill. Shrey Shah, Ewan Lowrie, Kevin Roome and Yasir Ali Bhatti all picked up two wickets for Upminster, but Hill recovered from 160-7 to make 213-9. Skipper Ingleson led the reply with 63 not out, and there were also runs for the experienced Matt Burch, but Upminster got themselves too far behind the rate in the middle overs and ended on 208-9 to lose by five runs. It was a very different story a week later at Nutter Lane as Wanstead and Snaresbrook proved too strong for Ingleson's side. Pat Gulvin's 28 was the top score for Upminster in their total of 120 before the home side chased down their target for the loss of four wickets inside 19 overs. A week later against Gidea Park and Romford it looked for a long time like it would be a third successive loss for Upminster, but some late heroics turned things around. Rob Mack took four wickets for Upminster, but Park recovered from 114-7 to post what looked like a competitive 165. Will Court made 30 in the Upminster reply but at 92-7 Park were very much the favourites. However, Rob Mack and Nathan Brown put on 40 for the eighth wicket and when Brown fell Michael Jones gave Mack good support and the pair took their side to a two wicket win with Mack completing an excellent day's work as he finished 49 not out. Unfortunately, the month ended with a loss in a high scoring game at Frenford. The home side made 272-7 before 70 from captain Ingleson and 49 from vice-captain Mccarthy gave Upminster hope. Avanish Ajmani then crashed 51 not out from 39 balls to give Upminster a real chance of victory before he ran out of partners and was left stranded as his side were bowled out for 255.

The season also started with a loss for the 5th XI, and it was a heavy one as they were beaten by nine wickets at Westcliff. George Sheridan, Rob Bannister and Stewart Hammond all made good starts, but after they fell Upminster collapsed to 125 all out before going on to lose by nine wickets. Things were very different a week later against Leigh on Sea on an historic day for the club. Vicky and Eddie Waters became the first mother and son pairing to play for the club in a league fixture, and they even got to open the bowling together at Campion. However, it was Dylan Narbheram who shone with the ball as he took 5-27 to help restrict the visitors to 197-8. Lewis Munn made a composed 42 in the Upminster reply before Adam Overton smashed 56 to put his side firmly in control, before a tumble of wickets left the game in the balance and four runs were still needed when the ninth wicket fell, and Vicky Waters went out to join skipper Aalok Latey. The last pair then kept their nerve as Latey ended on 28 not out and took his side to a one wicket win. A quirk of the fixture list meant the return match between the two sides took place just a week later and Upminster picked up another win in another tight contest. Hammond, Overton, Narbheram, Ralph Burchell, Ian Munn and Pat Gulvin all made contributions for Upminster as they made 211-8 before Leigh reached 122-2 in reply to put themselves in a good position for victory. However, the experienced trio of Kevin Roome, Bryan Brown and Latey all picked up two wickets apiece to put their side back on top, and they eventually wrapped up a 20 run win. May then ended with a more convincing win at Shenfield as Upminster moved into promotion contention. Narbheram was in the wickets once more, claiming three on this occasion as Shen collapsed from 96-3 to 137 all out. Lewis Munn then showed his ability with a mature and composed knock of 66 to help his side cruise to a seven wicket win.

The 4th XI's struggles continued in June as their four games during the month didn't yield a victory. The game against Chelmsford at Chelmer Park was disrupted by the rain and the conditions certainly didn't help Upminster. Matt Ingleson, Ian Munn and Avanish Ajmani all batted well as Upminster made 182-5 before the skies darkened and rain began to fall. George Wilson struck 57 not out for Chelmsford who were just ahead on run rate when 20 overs passed (the minimum required to constitute a game) and nine balls later the teams came off meaning Chelmsford claimed the victory. Once again, the return fixture between the two sides took place immediately, with Chelmsford travelling to Coopers seven days later. Ingelson and Matt Mccarthy made 47 and 49 not out respectively, but once again Upminster batted very slowly in the middle overs. In a bid to try to push the run rate up wickets then fell and the home side were eventually bowled out for 170 with 14 balls not used. Wilson was in the runs again in the Chelmsford reply, and his unbeaten 51 took his side to another seven wicket win. An improved performance against Hutton the following week saw Upminster take nine points from a drawn contest. Ingleson and Mccarthy were in the runs yet again, while Rob Healy made 54 to put Upminster into a strong position. Ethan Berry then crashed 45 not out from 33 balls to boost the total to a more than respectable 264-7. Hutton made a cautious start to their reply and despite keeping wickets in hand they needed more than nine an over going into the last ten overs of the game. Alex Holloway then smashed 86 from 52 balls to take his side to the brink of victory, but when he was dismissed by Avanish Ajmani the momentum was lost and Hutton ended on 258-4. There was another draw a week later, and another high-scoring contest at Orsett and Thurrock. Jack Hart made a brilliant 128 for Orsett and at one stage they looked set to reach 300 before three wickets for Shrey Shah pegged them back and they ended on 271-7. Upminster lost early wickets in reply, but Ollie Hinton and Avanish Ajmani played mature knocks to get their side back in the game. Yasir Ali Bhatti then made an excellent 61 not out as Upminster ended on 221-7.

June was also a lean month for the 5th XI, and one which ultimately cost them a chance of promotion. The first game of the month was actually shaping up to be a good contest as Upminster had reached 42-1 in reply to Shenfield’s 215-7 when the heavens opened and the game was abandoned. A week later leaders Westcliff proved just too strong for Aalok Latey’s side, but not before they had been given a fright. The occasional spin of Stewart Hammond helped reduce Westcliff to 79-6 and 127-8 but lower order resistance meant Westcliff battled their way to 214-9. Hammond and Lewis Munn then put on 83 for the first wicket in reply, but Upminster then collapsed to 142-9. Dylan Narbheram and Kevin Roome showed a lot of fight with a brave last wicket stand, but it was all in vain as they were eventually bowled out for 171. A disappointing display against Hornchurch Athletic meant the winless run continued at Campion the following Saturday. When Upminster fell to 32-5 it looked like an early finish was in prospect, but Ollie Hinton and Aedan Daly both batted well to lead a recovery and Narbheram was in the runs again as Upminster eventually reached 189. Upminster battled hard in the field, but it was not enough as Athletic eventually got home by four wickets. The month did end with a win as bottom side Benfleet were beaten by 59 runs. Ollie Ward made an excellent 53 for Upminster and there were also good contributions from the Munns (Ian and Lewis), Hammond and Thomas Cargill as they reached 238-6. Alfie Ayres made 84 from just 59 balls during the Fleet reply, but three wickets each for spinners Narbheram and Roome saw Upminster to a 59 run win.

The 4th XI started July with a draw in a high scoring encounter against Gidea Park and Romford at Gallows Corner. Rob Healy smashed a brilliant 143 not out from 95 balls as Upminster piled up a huge score. Rob Mack made 83 and there were late runs for Avanish Ajmani and Nathan French as the visitors were able to declare six overs early with a massive total of 343-4 on the board. With both teams struggling at the wrong end of the table Park were not going to roll over and give Upminster victory, and despite two wickets each for Thomas Cargill and Shrey Shah the home side ended on 248-7. There was finally a win to celebrate a week later at Buckhurst Hill as Upminster put in a fine all-round performance. Mack and Nathan Brown took three wickets apiece as Hill were restricted to 173 before captain Matt Ingleson took control of the chase. He lost three early partners but found good support from Matt Burch to put his side on top. When Burch fell Harry Lawes kept Ingleson company and the captain ended 91 not out as Upminster won by six wickets. The contest against Wanstead and Snaresbrook was washed out before the month ended with what would prove to be a costly loss at Oakfield Parkonians. Upminster battled hard in the field, but Parks were still able to reach 253 before Upminster’s reply got off to a fine start thanks to Ingleson and Ethan Berry. However, the visitors then fell from 103-2 to 157-8 and at that stage Parks were strong favourites. Once again Upminster fought back and French and Michael Jones put together an excellent ninth wicket partnership, and even after Jones had gone French continued to give his side hope. French was eventually left stranded on 64 not out and ran out of partners as Upminster were bowled out to lose by 13 runs.

There was a disappointing start to July for the 5th XI as they lost a high scoring derby to Hornchurch. Ben Calder made 70, Ollie Ward 55 and Lewis Munn 48 as Upminster made what looked to be a match winning total of 257-7. Hornchurch’s George Clark had other ideas though as he made a superb 132 not out to take his side to a six wicket win. A superb spell from skipper Aalok Latey set his side on the way to victory over Benfleet a week later. Latey claimed 4-18 as Fleet were bowled out for 148 despite some late order resistance from the tail. A second wicket stand of 118 between Ian Munn and Stewart Hammond then put Upminster on course for victory. Hammond fell for 55 and Munn went for 77 but Upminster cruised to a seven wicket victory. The game at Billericay was then washed out before the month ended with a loss to Belhus which left Upminster all but out of the promotion race. Youngster Alfie Taplin made an excellent 52 for Upminster, but their total of 183-9 always felt slightly under par. Alfie Ware then put it into perspective as he smashed 107 not out from just 68 balls to take his side to a six wicket win inside 25 overs.

A defeat at home to Billericay at the start of August left the 4th XI with a mountain to climb to avoid the drop. Captain Matt Ingleson was in the runs again with 58 and Avanish Ajmani continued his excellent season with the bat with 50 as Upminster made 216. However, that proved to be nowhere near enough as Ricay raced to their target for the loss of just two wickets inside 29 overs. A brilliant spell of 6-50 from Nathan Brown and a ton from Stan Moore helped Upminster to a much-needed win against Frenford at Coopers a week later. Brown’s haul helped to bowl out the visitors for 205 after they had earlier reached 104-2 and 154-4. Ingleson was in the runs yet again with 68 at the top of the order, but the star of the innings was undoubtedly Moore. Moore played superbly to strike an unbeaten 106 from 92 balls, his maiden senior ton, as Upminster won by seven wickets. Unfortunately, one of the team’s best results of the season was then followed up by one of their worst the next week when they were well beaten at Billericay. Ingleson showed his ability with the ball as he took 4-18, and although no Billericay batter made a half century, they batted consistently all the way down the order to post 202-9. Upminster’s reply never got going at all and Harry Lawes’s 21 was the top score as they were bowled out for 80. Time was now running out for Upminster to get themselves out of trouble, and despite a better performance they fell to another unfortunate defeat against Oakfield Parkonians at Coopers. Rian Parmar made 50 for the visitors who looked set for a huge total at one stage before three wickets from Shrey Shah helped restrict them to 265-7. Nine Upminster batters reached double figures in the reply, with six of them passing 20, but only Stan Moore, who continued his good form with 56, made a really telling contribution as Upminster fell from 149-4 to 190-8. Ewan Lowrie and Nathan Brown fought to the end, but the home side lost by 19 runs. With two games to go the equation was now clear, Upminster had to beat Orsett and Thurrock and Hutton and hope other results went their way to avoid the drop. Orsett batted cautiously at Coopers in the first of those contests, and with Nathan Brown continuing his fine season with three more wickets the visitors were restricted to 192-6. The captain then led the reply to put Upminster on the road to victory. Ethan Berry, Will Frost and Moore all made good contributions, but it was Ingleson who stole the show, finishing on 65 not out and ensuring his side’s fight for survival went to the last day of the season.

For the 5th XI August was a much more relaxed month with no pressure at either end of the table, and that helped the side play some excellent cricket and pick up four wins from five games. They began the match with an absolutely crazy game of cricket at Orsett and Thurrock. Aedan Daly picked up a wicket in the first over of the match, but from that point onwards bat absolutely dominated. Orsett got themselves into a good position at 116-3 before Kugan Ramasethu struck a quite remarkable 127 not out from just 37 balls, an innings which included 16 maximums!! His innings meant Orsett were able to reach 294-5 which on a normal day would likely be a winning score. However, this was not a normal day and runs from Stewart Hammond, Stan Moore and Adam Overton put Upminster into a good position, although there was still a lot of work to do as Aedan Daly and Ryan Brown came together with their side at 182-7. The remaining 113 runs were no problem for the duo though as Daly made 60 not out from 43 balls and Brown ended unbeaten on 39 as Upminster won by three wickets with nearly five overs to spare!! The only defeat of the month came a week later against Billericay, where despite four wickets for captain Aalok Latey and an excellent 53 not out from Thomas Cargill, Upminster were well beaten by 124 runs. Brown and Kevin Roome starred with the ball a week later as Upminster got back to winning ways at Hornchurch Athletic. Brown and Roome picked up three wickets each as Athletic were bowled out for 125 before the duo of the experienced Hammond and youngster Alfie Taplin took their side to victory. Hammond finished 50 not out and Taplin was unbeaten on 30 as Upminster won by eight wickets with plenty of time to spare. Upminster won again a week later as they overcame promotion chasing Belhus. Latey and Brown struck three times each as Belhus fell to 45-6, and although George Bowden made 41 to lead a recovery of sorts, Upminster will still have been pleased to bowl out their opponents for 129. Hammond made 45 in the Upminster reply and although there were a few nervous moments along the way his side won by three wickets. The side ended the month with a derby victory over Hornchurch. Matt Mccarthy made a steady 64 and there were also runs for Ollie Ward, Harry Lawes and Avanish Ajmani as Upminster made 209-8 at Campion. Roome then continued his late season surge with four more wickets as Hornchurch were bowled out for 106 as Upminster won by 103 runs.

The last day of the season saw the 4th XI needing to win at already relegated Hutton and hope Orsett and Thurrock lost to Gidea Park and Romford, and in the end neither result went the right way and Upminster fell out of 3rd XI Division 1 for the first time since 2017. A number of Upminster batters got starts as they posted exactly 200, but by the time the Hutton reply started news had already filtered through that Orsett were on the verge of victory. In the end Hutton won by four wickets and so condemned Upminster to bottom spot in the final table.

The 5th XI closed the season with their fifth win in six games as they overcame Orsett and Thurrock at Broxhill Road. Avanish Ajmani enjoyed the final game of the season more than most as he picked up 5-11 to help bowl out Orsett for 177. Upminster’s experimental batting order fell into a few problems during the chase before half centuries for Alife Taplin and Matt Mccarthy saw their side to a four wicket win which sealed an excellent fourth place finish for Aalok Latey’s side.

Despite the 4th XI’s relegation, captain Matt Ingleson enjoyed an excellent season with the bat, piling up 673 runs at an average of 48.07. The next highest run scorers were Avanish Ajmani and Stan Moore with 263 and 262 respectively, while Rob Healy and Matt Mccarthy also passed the 200 mark. With the ball Nathan Brown enjoyed another excellent season as he claimed 24 wickets while Shrey Shah picked up 20. However, the next highest wicket takers were Rob Mack and Michael Jones with eight apiece, and with Mack having only played three games in the side it is easy to see where the 4s struggled in 2025. They have a young and improving side though, and they will hope to bounce back at the first time of asking in 2026.

For the 5th XI it was the experienced Stewart Hammond who topped the batting charts with 386 runs while Adam Overton and the Munns, Ian and Lewis, all exceeded 200 runs for the season. Ollie Ward, Thomas Cargill and Alfie Taplin also showed a lot of promise with the bat and should push on in 2026. Bowling wise the captain Aalok Latey led the way, claiming 31 league wickets and also picking up the club’s Colin Hart Bowler of the Year award. Dylan Narbheram enjoyed an excellent first season at this level and took 20 wickets while Kevin Roome and Ryan Brown picked up 17 and 13 wickets respectively. The last few weeks of the season showed what the 5s were capable of and they will be hoping to finally gain promotion to 3rd XI Division 3 next term.