The Dean Wilson Sussex Cricket League: July Review

The Dean Wilson Sussex Cricket League: July Review 

The Dean Wilson Sussex Cricket League (SCL) has delivered an exhilarating June and July, as the summer sun continues to (mostly) shine on club cricket.

Throughout the 39 divisions we are seeing some intense competition and lots of finely poised divisions, with promotion and relegation on the line, as we go into the business end of the season.

Alongside the regular league season, the T20 Cup competitions are also getting to the nitty gritty with finalists and semi-finalists now confirmed.

In the Daniel Oliver T20 Cup, Three Bridges 1st XI & Cuckfield 1st XI will battle it out. The former looking to defend their title from 2024.

With the final due to be played at The 1st Central County Ground on Sunday 31 August as part of the league’s annual showpiece T20 Finals Day.

The Paul Baker T20 Trophy Semi-Finalists - Hailsham 2nd XI vs Three Bridges 2nd XI and Brighton & Hove 2nd XI vs Chichester Priory Park 2nd XI 

T20 Plate Semi-Finalists - Haywards Heath 3rd XI vs Ifield 3rd XI and Petworth Park 1st XI vs Sidley 1st XI

With all four Trophy & Plate matches coming up at Preston Nomads CC on Sunday 10th August - why not come along for what promises to be a great day of cricket, the first matches begin at 11:30am.

SCL Division Standings

Horsham 1st XI [320pts] have maintained their impressive unbeaten record at the top of the ECB Premier Division, overcoming some tough challenges to create the current 57-point gap to second. Preston Nomads 1st XI [263pts], Three Bridges 1st XI [262pts], Haywards Heath 1st XI [242pts] and Middleton 1st XI [242pts], are the closest challengers but none of them can afford to drop any points if they are to catch Horsham.

At the bottom of the table an intriguing 4-way battle is developing between Cuckfield [199pts], East Grinstead 1st XI [172pts], Ifield 1st XI [155pts] and Bognor Regis 1st XI [143pts]. With the bottom two places being relegated after 18 games, all of these sides’ season remain on a knife edge.

In Division 2, things have changed since the last review with Eastbourne 1st XI [224pts] falling to 5th place since the introduction of the ‘Declaration’ format. West Chiltington & Thakeham 1st XI [279pts] now lead, with three challengers queuing up behind. Hastings & St Leonards Priory 1st XI [266pts], St James's Montefiore 1st XI [247pts] and Brighton & Hove 1st XI [237pts].

The relegation battle is also hotting up as four teams; Buxted Park 1st XI [169pts], Preston Nomads 2nd XI [168pts], Mayfield 1st XI [164pts] & Roffey 2nd XI [139pts] all fight to remain in the second tier of competition in Sussex.

Pagham 1st XI [272pts] lead the way in Division 3 West by just 2-points. The run-in will be extremely intriguing to watch, as just 35-points separate the top five teams.

Finally, Bolney 1st XI [318pts] remain in poll position in Division 3 East having lost only game all season. Little Common Ramblers 1st XI [295pts] and Lindfield 1st XI [284pts] remain in the hunt though and will hope to keep the high-flyers honest!

Selection of current division leaders and their points leads;

Division 4 West - Slinfold 1st XI by 96 points

Division 4 East - St Peters 1st XI by 15 points

Division 5 West - West Chiltington & Thakeham 2nd XI by 55 points

Division 5 Central - St Matthias 1st XI by 19 points

Division 5 East - Isfield 1st XI by 23 points

Division 6 West - Bosham 1st XI by 13 points

Division 6 Central - Brighton & Hove 3rd XI by 16 points

Division 6 East - Tunbridge Wells 3rd XI by 29 points

For full standings in all divisions, visit The Dean Wilson Sussex Cricket League official website.

SCL Individual Performances

Last time, we reported some truly impressive performances after just 4 weeks of cricket, but many of these performances have been knocked from the top!

Here are the 5 standouts leading the way after 12 weeks:

Best Batting Performances

Sreevalsan Gangadharan, 251* - Kerala Strikers Sports Club 1st XI in Division 8 East

Renai Gransult, 228 - Worthing 2nd XI in Division 5 West

Nimanda Subasinghe, 213* - St Peters 1st XI in Division 4 East

Tom Marchant, 210 - Eastbourne 2nd XI in Division 5 East

Sandeep Satheesh, 208 - Bexhill Strikers 1st XI in Division 10 East

Best Bowling Performances

Kimani Mbugua, 8/30 - Copthorne 1st XI in Division 8 Central

Olly Manns, 8/39 - Ansty 2nd XI in Division 7 Central

Jake Vosloo, 8/71 - Mayfield 1st XI in Division 2

Carl Cooper, 7/3 - Bognor Regis 4th XI in Division 12 West (South West)

Mohamed Roshan Ashif Abdul Cader, 7/14 - Steyning 4th XI in Division 12 West (North West)

Each week on the Sussex Cricket Foundation social media channels the best 20 performances with bat and ball are featured (from across competitive recreational cricket in Sussex), thanks to the ECB’s Play-Cricket Honours Boards. Give them a follow on - X, Instagram, Facebook & TikTok and connect with the cricket community!

As we head into August and the final third of the season, comprehensive fixtures, scorecards and up-to-date standings can be found on The Dean Wilson Sussex Cricket League official website.