We are delighted to announce that Sussex fans can now pre-order their new Nike Sussex match shirt, in time for the start of the 2024 season.
All three shirts are available for you to purchase ahead of the new County Championship season, which starts on Friday 5th April.
Whether you prefer the traditional whites of the County Championship, or fancy something bolder to support the team in across the white-ball season, we have something for you.
All shirts are available to purchase in both adult and junior sizes. Visit the online Club Shop now to pre-order yours.
Tom Clark reached a classy century against a strong Surrey attack on day two of their pre-season match at The 1st Central County Ground before the rain brought a premature end to the game, which ended in a draw.
Sussex finished on 165-3 from 49 overs when the rain came during the lunch break, having added 105 runs to their overnight score.
Clark’s 100 was brought up off 159 balls, retiring on 102, after pulling a Jamie Overton bouncer to the square-leg boundary for four in the 44th over of the innings.
He was one of seven Sussex batters to score more than 600 runs in the County Championship last year, and he will be hoping to build on his pre-season form in the 2024 Championship.
Clark and Tom Alsop put on 124 for the second wicket, before the gutsy Alsop was caught at short-leg for 32.
Sussex began day two, 60 for one, with Clark unbeaten on 40 and Alsop on 12.
Yesterday’s toss was uncontested and an agreement between the two clubs gave Surrey the chance to bat first, with last year’s Division One County Champions reaching 221 for seven before declaring in the 50th over.
Tom Haines was the only batter out last evening caught by Lawes off the bowling of Dan Worrall for six.
The Sussex batters started day two sensibly, largely playing defensively or leaving as Tom Lawes and Jordan Clark bowled a challenging line and length.
The only early scare came off the first ball of the second over with Alsop pushing into the covers and taking off for a tight quick single, however, Dan Worrall’s direct throw missed the stumps at the bowler’s end.
Clark struck the first boundary of the morning hitting Jordan Clark straight down the ground with a lovely on-drive.
Soon after, Clark reached his 50 off 98 balls, top-edging a pull from Conor McKerr over the keeper to the vacant fine-leg boundary for four.
The ninth over of the day saw Surrey introduce spin with Cam Steel, but Clark had seen enough in Steel’s second. He hit the leg-spinner for consecutive boundaries, the first a lofted drive over the bowler’s head, and the second a powerful reverse sweep through point.
Alsop’s first boundary of the day also came with a reverse sweep off Steel, but the Sussex batter survived a close LBW shout a few balls later.
The pair brought up the 100 for Sussex in the 34th over of the innings, just within the first hour’s play on day two, with Clark late-cutting a McKerr delivery to the third-man boundary for four.
Three overs later they had their hundred partnership, the bulk having been scored by the impressive Clark, ably supported by Alsop.
Alsop’s innings ended shortly after when he was caught at short-leg by Smith off the bowling of Steel for 32.
As soon as Clark reached his ton he retired which brought James Coles to the crease joining Oli Carter, with the pair seeing Sussex through to lunch with the score 165 for three before the rain called time on the game.
Sussex’s final pre-season friendly begins on Friday – another two-day game at The 1st Central County Ground against Hampshire.
Report by Luke Ashbery
Sussex Cricket is delighted to announce that entry to day one of Sussex vs Northamptonshire on Friday 5th April is completely free of charge!
To kick the season off, Sussex is opening the doors of The 1st Central County Ground to anyone who would like to come down and support the team. All you have to do is claim your free ticket, in advance.
CLICK HERE TO CLAIM YOUR FREE TICKET TODAY.
Still time to secure your 2024 Membership!
Sussex are set to push for promotion once again this season, with Paul Farbrace recruiting a host of experienced cricketers alongside his group of talented, homegrown squad and the only way to secure your seat at EVERY home game this year is with a 2024 Membership.
As well as tickets to every home County Championship game, you'll also get your seat at every home Metro One Day Cup fixture.
Get yours today.
Sussex continued their buildup to the start of the 2024 County Championship with a strong first day’s play against Surrey in a two day warm up at The 1st Central County Ground.
Sussex were superb to reduce the visitors to 120-5 before lunch, before an impressive Jamie Overton 70 dragged Surrey to 221-7 inside 50 overs.
The home side were slightly less aggressive in their response, but opener Tom Clark batted nicely and was virtually unthreatened for his 40 not out.
Sussex closed on 60-1 but it is unlikely they will be able to continue their chase given a poor weather forecast tomorrow.
Sussex started the days play well on top, reducing a star-studded Surrey top order to 42-3 within the first hour.
Former England openers Rory Burns and Dom Sibley were subjected to an excellent opening spell from Ari Karvelas and Sean Hunt, who struck first when Burns was caught behind for two attempting a booming drive through cover.
It was just reward for Hunt who stayed patient with a consistent line and had clearly left the cover region open to tempt Burns into the shot.
A remarkable Fynn Hudson-Prentice catch above head height ended Sibley’s fluent 20 when he tried to clip Karvelas over mid-wicket.
And the visitors were soon three down when Ryan Patel, attempting to pull first change paceman Henry Crocombe, top edged to Oli Carter, who took a difficult grab running in from deep square leg.
But an impressive Jamie Smith half century steadied Surrey, as he put on a quick 68 with Jordan Clark.
Smith looked confident in his stoke play, hitting boundaries through the covers, and over cow corner, before hitting two sumptuous drives down the ground in the same over to bring up his 50.
But Clarke was removed by Hudson-Prentice as he attempted to drive before Smith followed without another run being added, leaving the visitors 110-5 on the stroke of lunch.
And Surrey’s difficulties continued five overs after lunch when Lamb dismissed Steel lbw to leave them 137-6, before Jamie Overton and Tom Lawes came together to add a crucial 84.
Overton was the pick of the batters with an impressive 70 which included 11 boundaries. He targeted Carson’s off-spin well with some big hits down the ground and to the leg side but was lucky to be dropped by Tom Haines on 48.
The Surrey innings was ended by James Coles who had Lawes bowled for 25, to leave them 221/7 from 49.2 overs at the interval.
The Sussex chase was played at a slower pace, but Tom Clark looked particularly classy; he was astute in defence and dangerous through the leg side, where he notched three early boundaries.
He and fellow left-hander opener Tom Haines seemed in control early on until Haines slashed a Dan Worrall delivery to Lawes at midwicket, who took a smart catch above his head.
From the end of the sixth over through to the 11th, with Tom Alsop at the crease, Surrey conceded just three runs, but the home batters managed to remain composed during this sustained spell of pressure.
But Clark continued his good start and began to dominate England bowler Jamie Overton with two immaculate cover drives in the space of four balls, before another flick off the pads two overs later.
Sussex, via Clark and Tom Alsop, who also looked good, reached the close, as bad light stopped play.
Report written by Will Kirkup
Day two will resume tomorrow at 11am, with gates open from 10am. Entry is free for all spectators.
Sussex Head Coach Paul Farbrace has named a 12-player squad for the first pre-season friendly against Surrey at The 1st Central County Ground, starting tomorrow.
The two day fixture will get underway at 1130am, with gates opening to spectators from 10am. Play will resume on the second and final day at 11am, with gates opening again at 10am.
Squad
Alsop, Carson, Carter, Clark, Coles, Crocombe, Haines, Hudson-Prentice, Hunt, Karvelas, Lamb, Simpson (c)
Format
The team batting first will bat for a maximum of 60 overs when the teams will switch disciplines. After another 60 overs the team batting second will finish its innings and the roles reversed once again.
The toss was uncontested and an agreement between the two clubs will see Surrey batting first.
Free entry
Entry is free for all spectators, for all pre-season friendlies. If you have your Membership card, please bring it along.
Food and drink
Spectators are permitted to bring their own food & drink into the venue. Teas, coffees and other refreshments, along with snacks will be available to purchase in the main pavilion.
Cashless venue
Spectators are reminded that The 1st Central County Ground is a cashless venue, so please plan accordingly.
Livestream
The game will be available to watch on the livestream via our Facebook page, from 1130am. Live commentary will not be available.
Sussex Cricket is delighted to announce that entry to day one of Sussex vs Northamptonshire on Friday 5th April is completely free of charge!
To kick the season off, Sussex is opening the doors of The 1st Central County Ground to anyone who would like to come down and support the team. All you have to do is claim your free ticket, in advance.
CLICK HERE TO CLAIM YOUR FREE TICKET TODAY.
Still time to secure your 2024 Membership!
Sussex are set to push for promotion once again this season, with Paul Farbrace recruiting a host of experienced cricketers alongside his group of talented, homegrown squad and the only way to secure your seat at EVERY home game this year is with a 2024 Membership.
As well as tickets to every home County Championship game, you'll also get your seat at every home Metro One Day Cup fixture.
Get yours today.
Head of Disability Cricket at the ECB, Ian Martin visited Sussex Cricket via The Boundary Club to talk about his journey and life experiences which has led to him where he is today.
Ian was an avid cricketer at a young age but as time passes the dream of becoming a professional sportsman was not to be and Ian felt it was time to choose a new career path. He decided to join the Royal Navy at the age of 16. Ian’s family had a lot of Naval heritage and after joining, he was deployed all over the world and involved in the Gulf War. 6 months after, Ian’s life was slowly turned upside down after a muscle injury that was just not healing ended up turning into a diagnosis of a muscular neurone disease.
Ian was declared not fit for the Navy and unable to play sports to what he wanted to do. 24 years old with no job and with his mobility slowing going away, Ian felt awful and broken until an advertisement in a local newspaper changed his life.
Ian saw the ad looking for Disabled cricketers, unsure about joining due his perception of disability he finally took the plunge and responded. He joined the Welsh Disability team which brought his love for sport back and started him on the fantastic journey which has helped him to where he is today.
With a realisation of no funding and structure to disability cricket, Ian started volunteering for the ECB. With a consultancy role going at the ECB for disability cricket, He realised that he did not meet the job criteria to apply for the role, leading him to taking another life changing decision. Leaving his secure job in the financial sector and taking a large pay cut, he became a community cricket coach. This change eventually led him to his role today by gaining the necessary experience needed.
Ian has overseen disability cricket for around 17 years now, overseeing huge changes such as the increase in active disabled players. Less than 2,000 players when he started has now risen to over 72,000 and still growing fast nationwide. The disability Premiership final is now being shown on Sky Sports and the national side are now touring abroad to places such as India and South Africa which Sussex star Alfie Pyle was included in recently.
With a better infrastructure and clear vision Ian has helped push disability cricket to new heights and many more future plans are on their way to push disability cricket into the mainstream and give the players the platform they all deserve.
Ian kindly auctioned off a signed bat by England and West Indies players which raised £400 for the Sussex Cricket Foundation.
After Ian’s talk he joined a panel hosted by Sam Keir, joined by Matt Smith, CEO of Webtrends Optimize who proudly sponsor our Sussex Disability teams. Gary Wallis-Tayler, Director of Community Cricket at the Sussex Cricket Foundation and England/Sussex D40 Star, Alfie Pyle.
The panel discussed the sponsorships benefits and the growing exposure for sponsors, the ever-growing accessibility for new starters and regular cricketers, future and Alfie’s experiences and journey from Super 1’s to an England International.
We would like to thank Ian for taking time to visit, speak about his inspiring journey and all his exceptional hard work helping grow and develop disability cricket.
With the County Championship just around the corner, Sussex take on Surrey in a two-day pre-season friendly at The 1st Central County Ground, starting on Monday 25th March and here is all you need to know if you’re coming to watch the action.
Start times and gate opening times
The first ball on day one will at 1130am and 11am on day two.
Gates will open at 10am on both days.
Free entry
Entry is free for all spectators, for all pre-season friendlies. If you have your Membership card, please bring it along.
Food and drink
Spectators are permitted to bring their own food & drink into the venue. Teas, coffees and other refreshments, along with snacks will be available to purchase in the main pavilion.
Cashless venue
Spectators are reminded that The 1st Central County Ground is a cashless venue, so please plan accordingly.
Enjoy the cricket!
Last of all, we can’t wait to have you back at the home of Sussex Cricket, enjoy the match!
An event to inspire secondary school girls to participate in sport and physical activity saw more than 60 pupils from Brighton and Hove attend.
The This Girl Can Be Inspired By event, which took place on Friday, March 15 at The 1st Central County Gorund, was also a chance for the school girls to hear from inspirational women who have forged careers in the sport and leisure field and inspire them to think about a career in the sector.
The day was organised by School Games organiser Emma Greenough, from Brighton and Hove City Council, in partnership with Gemma Finlay-Gray from Active Sussex, and Charlotte Burton, the Womens and Girls Development Officer at Sussex Cricket Foundation.
Emma said: “The This Girl Can – Be Inspired By event today was to inspire the students and their teachers to think about what changes they can make back at school to encourage more girls to take part in sport and physical activity and to have more open conversations on why girls don’t participate and what those barriers are.
“We also hope the panel of inspirational speakers today really opened up the students’ eyes about what careers and opportunities there are.
“It’s been great working in partnership with Active Sussex, Sussex Cricket Foundation and Brighton and Hove City Council to design and develop this event for the secondary schools in the city and we hope this is the start of many more events like this.”
The students came from seven schools – Brighton Aldridge Community Academy (BACA), Portslade Aldridge Community Academy (PACA), Patcham High School, Dorothy Stringer School, Varndean School, Cardinal Newman Catholic School, and Blatchington Mill School.
The inspirational women’s panel was hosted by Alexia Walker, director of cricket at Aldridge Cricket Academy and Sussex Women’s Head Coach.
Speaking on the event, Alexia said: "It was great to work in partnership with the school games organiser from Brighton & Hove City Council and Active Sussex, to put on this I inspirational event at The 1st Central County Ground, for seven secondary schools in Brighton & Hove.
"The day was an opportunity to inspire girls who do not always get involved in sport and to show that females can have a career in sport, whether that I playing, coaching or administrating.
"The 'This Girl Can' event gave the girls' the opportunity to have discussions in three workshops on PE in school, having the correct sports Bra and how it can affect performance and sharing thoughts on menstrual cycle while being active."
Talking to the young girls were Carys Williams, an independent member of the sporting commission for Premiership Rugby; Nicola Harvey, a yoga and mindfulness teacher representing Brighton Yoga Foundation; Dr Tilly Spurr, a performance nutritionist and senior lecturer in sports nutrition; Lucy Pinto, the CEO and founder of The Box (Boxing fitness studio) in Brighton; Jessica Freeman, who has multiple roles in rugby including Head of People at Six Nations Rugby and a community coach for the Harlequins; and Jenny Weall, a clinical psychologist.
Angela Simmonds, a PE teacher at Varndean School, said of the panel discussion: “I found it really inspirational. It was interesting to see all the different journeys, pathways and routes into this sector and the wide variety of jobs available working in sport. I am hoping the kids have the same reaction as me.”
Following a yoga and mindfulness session with Nicola Harvey, the girls took part in workshops around being active and finding the right sports bra, being active and period health, and a student voice session designed to find out more about why some girls are inactive.
Workshop facilitators included Lucy Horsell, co-founder of PeBe; Emily Allen, founder of EmPower Health; and Heidi Tambeh, a Street Games Youth Voice facilitator.
After the event, the students were buzzing and full of enthusiasm.
Molly said of the youth voice workshop: “I like being heard. I think we should do this with all the other girls at school. It was good to hear other voices.”
Charlotte said of the bra and period workshops: “More people should know about it. It was really interesting learning why we are lethargic [at different points of the menstrual cycle] and everyone had the wrong bra size.”
This week we look at the Sussex Squad members still playing abroad in the final edition of Winter Watch, including PSL champion, Tymal Mills.
Tymal Mills
Tymal Mills is a Pakistan Super League winner! His side, Islamabad United beat Multan Sultans who are led by ex-Sussex overseas Mohammed Rizwan. Utd chased down the Sultans total of 159/9 all the way down to the final ball to win the final.
Tymal featured in the final after not being picked for the eliminator and semi final. He returned to help his side win with economical figures of 0/24 from his 4 overs and only conceding two boundaries in his spell.
Congratulations Tymal and former Sussex player Shadab Khan!
Georgia Adams, Paige Scholfield, Freya Kemp and Linsey Smith
Sussex Women have 5 players representing the County on the international stage as they tour New Zealand with England Women and England A.
A rundown of the Sussex players performances below.
11th March - T20
Adams, Scholfield and Kemp featured in England A's first match as they lost to New Zealand by 6 wickets. Adam's and Scholfield hit 8 runs each before being dismissed and Kemp hit 10 before her dismissal.
13th March - T20
Linsey Smith featured in England Women's win vs New Zealand A. Smith took 2/24 from 3 overs as New Zealand A could not chase England's 179/7 total.
16th March - T20
Georgia Adams starred for England A in their win vs New Zealand A. Adams hit a 65* off just 38 balls as England won by 30 runs. Georgia also bowled one over taking 1/3.
17th March - T20
Freya Kemp scored 48* from 29 balls as they beat New Zealand A by 8 wickets. Adams was also in the side but did not bat, Georgia bowled 2 overs and went for 12 runs.
20th March - T20
Freya Kemp continued her fine form with a fantastic 60 run knock. Freya hit a 31 ball 60 which included eights 4’s and two 6’s helping England to a 13 run victory! Adams hit 14 from 10 balls and Scholfield also scored 11* to win help win the game.
Jayden Seales
Jayden Seales helped Trinidad and Tobago to another win in the West Indies Championship as they beat the Windward Islands by 6 wickets. Seales took 2/48 in the 1st innings from 14 overs as Windward Islands were all out for 191. T & T finished their first innings on 294.
Seales impressed again with the ball taking 3/45 from 19 overs as Windward finished on 288. Trinidad chased down the total to seal another victory in the Caribbean.
With Sussex's pre-season tour of India coming to an end, Sussex Head Coach Paul Farbrace has reflected on a successful trip ahead of the new season beginning in two weeks time.
Watch the full interview below.
Sussex Cricket is delighted to announce that entry to day one of Sussex vs Northamptonshire on Friday 5th April is completely free of charge!
To kick the season off, Sussex is opening the doors of The 1st Central County Ground to anyone who would like to come down and support the team. All you have to do is claim your free ticket, in advance.
CLICK HERE TO CLAIM YOUR FREE TICKET TODAY.
Still time to secure your 2024 Membership!
Sussex are set to push for promotion once again this season, with Paul Farbrace recruiting a host of experienced cricketers alongside his group of talented, homegrown squad and the only way to secure your seat at EVERY home game this year is with a 2024 Membership.
As well as tickets to every home County Championship game, you'll also get your seat at every home Metro One Day Cup fixture.
Get yours today.
The Sussex Cricket Limited Annual General Meeting will take place on Tuesday 26th March at 7.00pm, in the Dining Room at The 1st Central County Ground, Hove.
After the formal proceedings have been concluded, there will be an open forum conducted with opportunities for Members to ask questions of the Board Officers, Head Coach, Paul Farbrace and the Chief Executive, Pete Fitzboydon.
Following the open forum, there will be an informal drinks reception where Members will have the opportunity to meet the coach, management team, and the Board.
Only Individual Members and Affiliated Club Members will be admitted to the AGM. Youth and Junior Members are entitled to attend the meeting but are NOT entitled to vote.
As a paid-up Member you should have already received the Audited Annual Accounts and the Report of the Board in the post earlier this month. These documents are also available to download via the button at the bottom of this article.
To view the draft minutes of the 2023 AGM please click HERE. A proposal to accept the minutes of the 2023 AGM will appear in the agenda.
There will also be an opportunity for members to join the AGM virtually if you are unable to attend the meeting in-person. If you wish to join virtually, we ask Members to register their interest, stating their membership number by noon on Friday, 22nd March 2024 at the latest.
The joining details for the meeting will only be sent to members who have indicated their interest by the deadline. If you have any issues with registering, please contact Louise Stone at Louise.Stone@sussexcricket.co.uk stating your membership number.
The results of the Board election, as verified by One Finance Group, as detailed below.
All votes have been submitted by Microsoft forms, the vote was emailed to all club contacts as provided by Sussex Cricket LTD a total of 4 times and these emails have been opened a total of 423 times across the voting period.
Voting closed at midnight 15th March 2024 with a total of 36 votes submitted 5 of which were deemed invalid due to duplication. The final results are below;
Sussex Cricket Limited welcomes any questions in advance of the AGM. These can be sent to Louise Stone, Executive Assistant, at Louise.stone@sussexcricket.co.uk.