Welcome to the Gingins Cricket Club

With almost 50 m length, the venue for this year national U17 tournament, the CFPT sports hall in Geneva, allowed for interesting games between the four contenders, Cossonay, Gingins, GRYCC and Wanderers.

In the first game, GRYCC was opening the batting against Cossonay. Solid batting of Ashwin V. (39) and newcomer Yash (37), with the help of Mr Xtra added up to a total of 127. Arnav was the most successful bowler (3), helped by Freddie with 2 catches at deep gully.

Cossonay fought until the end, but did not manage to approach this total and ended up at 107, with Arnav (22) and Ryan (25) as topscorers. Yash and Mohammed each had 2 wickets.

Wanderers, with players from Basel, Zurich and a strong contingent from Gingins U15s/U17s, started disastrously against Cossonay, all out for 32. The bowling of Jai (4) and Freddie (3) was too strong for them. Their bowling and fielding, however, turned out to be much better, be it against a reversed batting order, but it was not enough to hold Cossonay at bay. The total was surpassed for 5 wickets with Mr Xtra scoring over half the runs.

In the last match of the day, Gingins had a difficult start against GRYCC, but Floris stayed calm and cleverly used the walls to build up the score. With help from Aidan (22, caught off the wall of what was almost a 6) and Will (14 n.o.), he reached the retiring score of 50 (the only one of the tournament), and with some quick runs from Max and Will, the Gingins total became 124.

The fielding and bowling of Gingins was too sharp for the GRYCC batsmen, with only Marishque (23) and Ashwin C. (12) coming in the double figures (and Mr Xtra topscorer). Good throws of Hamish, Ale and Simon caused as many run outs and the remaining four wickets were divided by four bowlers, ending the GRYCC innings at 86.

The next morning, Wanderers again did not manage to bring many runs in the books, with John (21) the only one with double figures. Again three run outs and five wickets divided by four players limited their total to 71. The opening batsmen Hamish (a hard hit 15) and Kieran (13, most of the walls) achieved the highest Gingins total for the 1st wicket with 32 runs, and with Will adding another well placed 14, the total was made for the loss of 4 wickets (of which 3 run outs and 1 wicket for Thomas).

In their last match, tight bowling of the Wanderers, with Tom, Ruan and Luca each getting two wickets, limited GRYCC to 82 runs, with hard hitting Yash topscorer with 29 n.o. For quite a while, it looked like Wanderers were going to make this total, but opening bat Ruan, first assisted by Thomas A (11) and later Luca (10), unluckily went run out for a good 34 on 74, followed by Yash bowling Luca with 78 runs on the scoreboard, a tight win for GRYCC. Economic bowling of GRYCC (the lowest number of extras in the tournament), with 2 wickets for both Ashwins and 1 each for Yash and Mohamed, and two catches of Ale as stand-in wicketkeeper, contributed to that.

In the final match, Cossonay had a tight grip on the Gingins top order, with only Aidan (26) scoring runs, but middle order batsmen Max (19) and Will (27 n.o.), ably helped by Mr Xtra, steered their team to a total of 124.

While also the top Cossonay batsmen did not contribute many runs, this time it was Vincent’s turn to put his name in the books. With the only (2) sixes of the tournament, assisted by Freddie (12), his 35 (and Mr Xtra as topscorer) brought Cossonay quite close to the Gingins total, but in the end they ran out of batsmen on 107.

As in the previous year, Gingins showed to have the most consistent team, winning all their games and thus winning the tournament, with Will chosen best batsman and Simon best fielder. Runner up was GRYCC, with newcomer Yash scoring the most runs of the tournament (73) and several bowlers taking 4 wickets each.  

 They were closely followed by Cossonay, which had the best bowler in Jai (7 wickets). Although Wanderers did not win any match, they showed a very positive attitude with some remarkable achievement by some young players (e.g. U14 Luca), tight bowling by newcomer Tristan, and exemplary behavior of Ruan, walking twice away although not given out, which earned him the Spirit of Cricket award. 

I woke up Early on Saturday morning, mentally preparing myself for a day’s worth of cricketing.

I had yet to play with the majority of my teammates for this tournament so it was quite an exciting time for me. It was great meeting all of them and every single one was very nice to me and all had a great team spirit.

We started our round of matches just after lunch on Saturday. We were playing Cossonay. I had played as a substitute the game before for GRYCC and they had just just beaten Cossonay quite handsomely, so I was expecting quite a good match. Boy was I wrong.

We were put into bat. About 30 minutes later we were all out for a measly 32. No one could really be singled out for the batting performance as we all collectively had quite bad innings. Our bowling and fielding however was the complete opposite.

We managed to take a few quick wickets and it turned the game into a match we could actually attempt to win. Unfortunately in the end we lost by 2 wickets, but it was a very good effort by the lads and one that we could all be quite proud of.

The following day we had 2 matches. Our first match was an early start and it was against arguably the best team there, Gingins. We were put into bat first once against and this time we had a much better batting performance. We ended up making 73 in about 16 overs. Sadly this time the bowling wasn't as great as the first match and we ended up losing again by a few wickets.

The final match was the game just after lunch against GRYCC. For the first time in the tournament we bowled first and I really wish we could have bowled first in every match because we had an absolutely fantastic bowling performance. We were taking very quick wickets and GRYCCy found themselves at just over 40 runs with 1 wicket left. Sadly, a Gingins player (Ale) was a substitute for them so he came into bat last and ended up putting up a last wicket partnership with GRYCC’s batsman (Yash) of about 45.

So they ended up getting a very respectable total. We were confident going into bat that we could chase down the total set by GRYCC. We started off fairly well but then started losing wickets very quickly and the thing with our team was, when we lost a few quick wickets, we crumbled a bit. We were about 30 runs away from the target needed and we had one wicket left. Luca (the youngest player at the tournament) and Aidan (Gingins) were both in.

We expected to lose it right there, but to our surprise Luca was smacking the bowlers all around the place, getting runs after runs. It came to a stage where we needed just 5 runs to win off about 3 overs, when sadly Luca was bowled.

Although we didn't win any games, it was a very enjoyable time for all of us in the team and a great experience for me as it was my first cricket tournament in Switzerland. I am looking forward to playing in a lot more!

On the weekend of 1st & 2nd November 2014 the 2014 Gingins U11 Autumn Tournament was held at the ESEP school in Borex/Crassier.

More than forty U11s took part in this year’s tournament. Four teams competed for the honour of lifting the trophy, playing in a round-robin format where each team played each other twice in 15-overs-a-side matches.

The matches were all played in a great spirit and the competition was at a very high standard.

The final results table looked like this:

• There were on average 180+ runs per match.
  
• That there were almost 7 runs scored per over played, with about 5 of these coming off the bat (and some courageous running between wickets).
  
• There was just a little more than one extra bowled per over. Excellent overall.
  
• There were on average 5 catches or run-outs per match, this does not include the bowled or LBW decisions. So the fielding was great.

However, the stats above only tell part of the story.

• Matthew Scothorn
• Daniel Bower
• Grant Williams
• Griffin St.Hilaire
• Floris Winckel 
• Sander Winckel
• Rhett Andrews
• Aidan Andrews
• Ale Poynton

It is absolutely great for the club to have these new coaches available, and it once again shows the continuing improvements the Club is making to it's coaching set up for Junior Cricket.

The question with an event like this is where to begin. So let’s start with the kids, because after all the Gingins Cricket Club is in existence for them.

On Friday, 26 September from 12h30 – 14h00, Nasser Hussain (the ex-England Cricket Captain) held a bit of a training and chat session with about 20 youngsters from the Gingins Cricket Club.

The boys in attendance came across all the age groups from U7 to U17, and had to cut a bit of school to be there, for which I am certain Nasser was grateful. [I think even a few of the parents, also made the effort to miss a bit of office time to be there.]

Nasser batted a while, giving feedback and friendly banter to the bowlers charging in, some even with a sandwich in one hand and a bit packed into their cheek. Maybe they tried to intimidate the former test batsman with over 5000 runs to his name.

When he had enough, claiming that he could retire on his highest score ever achieved in Switzerland (with a self-acclaimed strike rate of somewhere between 400-600), he took up a position behind the stumps at the bowler’s end.

With a watchful eye, and some encouraging words, he pointed out some adjustments to be made in stance and shot selection of the club’s batsmen.

Nasser also spent time with the club’s younger players involving them in a game of catch, helping them with their technique of watching the ball into their hands. During this time, and just before Nasser headed off to the airport, photos were snapped and autographs sought. When it was all said and done, the boys welcomed Nasser into the Gingins Cricket Club as an honorary member (maybe he could come in at #3) and he received his green cap.

The initial reason Nasser came to Switzerland was in aid of the Gingins Cricket Club and the Chance to Dream charity fund-raising gala dinner held on Thursday evening at the Crowne Plaza in Geneva.

During the dinner, Nasser was interviewed by WRS’ Australian DJ, Tony Johnston. Tony asked a series of probing and interesting questions, which Nasser fielded with grace, agility and a genuine openness (usually reserved for people closest to oneself).

The evening was a resounding success from all tallies.

There were about 90 people in attendance on the evening.

The evening raised about CHF 9,400 to be split between the Club and  the Charity.

 - The Chance to Dream charity (a charity for kids, run by kids) had already distributed several thousands of Swiss Francs worth of cricket equipment to poorer rural communities in India (check out their website for more information - http://www.chancetodream.org/), and now they can continue doing their great work.

- From the club’s side this money will begin our ‘war chest’ for securing a home ground we can call our own.

We aim to make this an annual event. Maybe Nasser will agree to join us again, or maybe we can secure the presence of another inspiring cricket personality to the shores of Lake Geneva.

The key feature of this year’s tour to Holland and Belgium was the weather.

While last year we had bright sunshine and full matches, this year saw showers of rain pretty much every day (with the exception of Thursday). However, despite the bad weather, the Gingins lads managed to leave on Friday having won all but one of their matches.

The tour started where it left off last year, playing against Bloemendaal Cricket Club. However, it turned out to be a miserable start to the tour, as the game was plagued with frequent showers, made worse by the growing lack of interest of the home players, as they were too pre-occupied with school, which had started on that day.

With rain breaks every two or three overs, the game was finally abandoned ten overs into the second innings, with Gingins placed at 64-1 after eight overs, chasing a total of 93 (20 overs). Gingins won by the D/L method.

Standout performances include Ale’s 4-10 from 3, Simon’s 2-0 from 1, Sam’s 2-14 from 3, and Ale’s 38 not out from 30 balls.

After a lazy morning, where most of the players explored the amusement park, the team made its way to ACC, where it would play a T20.

ACC had won the national championships in the U14 and U19 age categories, but fantastic opening bowling by Will and Ale in the first few overs crumbled their resistance as their top three batsmen fell for naught including a fantastic catch by Seb off an inside edge. By the end of their innings, Gingins were set a target of 86, even though they gave away too many extras (an issue that would remain the largest problem for the team in the following matches).

However, Gingins managed to achieve the target in the 17th over, with Aidan Andrews the shining light of the run-chase. Continuing his form from the Four nation U19 tournament in Paris for Switzerland the week before, Aidan scored 42* in good time, leading the way with authority.

The second highest scorer made 8 as a number of our batsman lost their wicket to tentative shots.

Standout performances include Will’s 2-16 from 3, Ale’s 3-14 from 3, and Aidan’s 42 not out.

Wednesday’s match was to be played in Antwerp, Belgium. After a two hour drive, the players found themselves on a seemingly abandoned sports complex, with a prison-like building acting as the pavilion. The boundaries were quite short, especially square of the wicket, and in some places along the rope weeds were growing wild.

However, the most worrying feature of the field was the pitch, more specifically the mountain range which ran for about a metre outside off stump on one end, causing balls to deviate drastically.

This tricky area was cleverly exploited by the home bowlers, accounting for half of the wickets Gingins lost - most of them bowled. Gingins managed to make 130 in 27 overs with a reversed batting order with Floris the only batsman to remain not out on a well deserved 33*, before Aidan fell to a shocker of an lbw decision by the sketchy camera wielding home umpire.

In reply, Gingins was not able to pitch the ball in the right areas, meaning the home team’s batsmen needed to do little to rack up the runs. It wasn’t until Kieran and Ian took back some control with a great spell and Antwerp’s chase became a little more nervous with a few wickets falling. In the end, it came down to the home team needing five off the last two overs – which they got practically without having to touch the ball. Far too many extras were given to the home team which proved to be the difference between the teams – something Gingins needed to think about and fix in their future games.

Standout performances include Max’s 13 from 14, Floris’ 33 not out, Iain’s 2-23 from 5 and Kieran’s 2-14 from 5.

Arguably the best match of the week was played on Thursday. After another lazy morning in the park, the Gingins players made their way to Utrecht, where they would play Kampong CC. Kampong boasts three great fields, one of which a well maintained grass wicket.

Gingins was to play on one of the artificial wickets though, which was still of good quality. The home team’s players looked intimidating at first, but two quick wickets for the Gingins opening bowlers Simon and Ale meant all height or ages differences were suddenly disregarded. Gingins eventually managed to get them all out for 163, but not without gifting them too many extras, a re-occurring problem for the team.

The run-chase started off with a freak run-out getting rid of the Gingins skipper Ale Poynton. But once again, Aidan Andrews rose to the occasion, scoring 50 not out, taking the sting out of their bowlers before retiring to the side lines.

This left the Gingins middle order to score the remaining runs. Simon Pearce kept the run rate going with some magnificent shots after an unfortunate run out involving Max.

It turned out to be a nail-biting finish, with Gingins needing four off the last over to win - Iain Macdiarmid and Simon Pearce still in the middle. A two and a single by Iain then saw the team home, with only one ball to spare (a perfectly timed run-chase). Aidan Andrews again the leading batsman, followed by an increasingly confident Simon Pearce, who finished with an unbeaten 23, and helpful contributions by Max Miller (10) and Iain Macdiarmid (4*).

Standout performances include Ale’s 2-18 from 4, Will’s 2-14 from 4, Iain’s 1-6 from 3, Aidan’s 50 not out, Max’s 10, Simon’s 23 not out and Iain’s 4 not out.

Leaving the park early in the morning to play their last match, the Gingins players made their way to The Hague where they would play against HCC. HCC boasts a very traditional ground, rich in history, and great accommodation.

Starting with a mixed batting line up, Gingins started well, with Ale Poynton on fire looking to score aggressively and Sam supporting well.

With a healthy run-rate, and impressive displays of batting by Ale, Simon, Floris and Aidan helped Gingins reach a total of 193 from their 40 overs.

However, their momentum was again halted by a below average bowling performance by the opening bowlers, HCC batsmen scoring with ease during the first 10 overs, before Gingins slower bowlers steadied the ship and brought down the run-rate.

A large rain break in between innings meant the outfield was soaking wet and fielders required 10cm long spikes to get any grip at all (highlighted by several embarrassing slips and slides).

HCC was making their way to getting the target of 194, needing 50 off the last twelve overs. But out of nowhere Gingins managed to take a couple of wickets with Max and Aidan doing most of the damage and slow down the run scoring to a point where they needed 18 off the last over – and only being able to score 1.

Standout performances include Ale’s 58 from 48, Simon’s 23, Aidan’s 23*, Alistair’s 1-17 from 5, Max’s 3-18 from 6 and Aidan’s 2-6 from 3.

All in all the tour was a big success despite the weather not working in Gingins’ favour.

All the players took at least something positive from the week, and the accompanying parents and family members were very enthusiastic and helpful.

More photos in Photo Gallery

As some of you already know, we are hosting a gala dinner event in aid of the Gingins Cricket Club and the Chance to Dream Charity.

The evening will be at the Crowne Plaza and we are pleased to announce that Nasser Hussain has agreed to come over from England for the event. Nasser was the England Captain from 1999 to 2003 - "perhaps the finest captain to hold the office", the Times. During his tenure he transformed the fortunes of the English Cricket team. He recalls his most memorable innings came in the Ashes of 1997 at Birmingham where Nasser gave a master class in playing the cover drive - a shot that would become his trademark - as he belted the Aussies all over the park (apologies to the Southern Hemishphere members of the club). After that knock, Hussain had arrived in International cricket.
 
What many people don't know is that early on in his career he was a promising leg spinner who was not allowed to give up on cricket by his father when he lost the knack of leg spinning - "I simply decided to become a batsman instead". Born in India, his dad, Jawad (Joe) a first class cricketer himself continually pushed him to achieve the cricket goals that he thought were beyond his meagre abilities. Some have said he pushed him too hard to fulfill his own unfulfilled dreams and many was the time when he was in tears. This also made him the tough captain he became, on the pitch he was a volatile character who managed to inspire and motivate those around him "My captaincy style was very different, but I make no apologies for being fiery".
 
Nasser is thoughtful, emotional and entirely his own man. Forthright in his views, there are no halfway houses with Nasser, he tells you what he thinks without mincing his words - we will be in for a very interesting evening in his company.
 
More information on how to reserve your places will follow later, but for the moment please save the date. Places will be limited but of course we will give priority to Gingins club members.

Some Gingins players, a few La Chat players and a lone Basel player came together to beat the Cossonay U17/15 side on their home ground, in what proved to be an uncomfortably sweaty day.

The retiring score and the number of overs per innings were roughly set according to the outdoor temperature – 30.

The toss was won by Ale Poynton, who chose to field. Double layers of sun cream were applied, and the players strode out to the middle.

With the sun high in the sky, there was little shade.

Already early on in the innings, one of the Gingins players fall victim to the sweltering sun. Will Robinson, opening the bowling with excellent figures of 3-0-3-0, was melting in the heat (the situation made worse by his lack of sleep!). Apart from Will’s sun stroke, the first innings was a successful one for Gingins, with Ale taking his best bowling figures of the season (5-2-12-6).

Two batsmen for Cossonay retired at 30 (Jai and Greg), while the next top score was 11. Cossonay finished their innings on 110/9 from 27 overs, Ale taking 6, Tom Russell (the mercenary from Basel) taking 2, and Floris taking 1.

After a short innings break, Gingins openers Ale and Floris made their way to the scorching middle. They started well, scoring ahead of the required run rate, but soon they were starting to have trouble facing the bowlers. The extreme heat resulted in a multiple misjudgements in the batting, one of which including three run out opportunities in a horrible mix-up in the running between the wickets.

It also made Ale and Floris call for drinks after the 5th over, as they were having trouble staying alert. Floris slowly built up his innings, but wickets fell regularly as Ale, Max Miller and Thomas Allen fell cheaply. He found some support in Thomas Russell, who steadied the run chase, before he retired for 32.

That brought Hamish McConville to the crease, who hit his second ball for a single, scoring his first run for Gingins! After him, the boys from La Chat joined Thomas in the middle, and although none of them made it to double figures, they provided good support for Thomas, who was taking the total closer to their target. In the end, Thomas hit a four to pass 30 runs and win the match, ending Gingins’ run chase at 111/6 in the 24th over.

Arnav Sandu had figures of 4-2-12-2, while some other Cossonay bowlers chipped in with a wicket.

It was a good all-round performance by the mixed Gingins team, with everyone contributing to the win. A special thanks to Thomas Russell, who came all the way from Basel, and who contributed well with both bat and ball.

Also a big thanks to the three La Chataigneraie players who participated; Freddie Drake bowling well (2-0-4-0), Finn Wynd-Smith batting steadily supporting Thomas in the final overs, and especially Ian Macdiarmid who took up the unpleasant job of keeping wicket in the relentless heat and doing so very well!

Winning Team:

Rohan Jain (Captain)

Thomas Allen

Max Miller

Will Robinson

John Cumberland (Wicket Keeper)

George Colville

Leo Vlassopulos

Anhad Arora

Ale Poynton

Gingins 119-2 beat Cossonay 45 all out

The first match was late on Friday, with Gingins batting first.
The 2 openers, laid a solid base with Rohan retiring on 32 and Thomas making 24, and then a quick 11 from Max and 13 from Will meant that Cossonay were set a high target of 120 off 16 overs.

Conditions were not ideal for batting, and very effective bowling by Ale (2 wickets) and Thomas (3 wickets) and a wicket for Leo (a caught behind by John) and a run-out by Ale, reduced Cossonay to 45 all out in the fading light and sinking temperatures.

Gingins 134-6 beat La Chat 85-4

Again Gingins batted first and amassed a score of 134 and even though Rohan was run-out first ball (by the borrowed fielder Ale!) everyone else provided runs and at a good rate all pushing the score along, with Thomas retiring on 31 runs, John 17, Anhad 10 n.o. (in his first tournament innings!), George 4, Leo 7, Max 6 , Will 3 and finally Ale (15 n.o.).

Wickets fell at the beginning of the La Chat innings, Will taking 1 wicket and Rohan 2 wickets, but there was resistance from the La Chat batsmen, especially Ian (21 n.o.) who took the match to the end of the 18 overs. But the run-rate required proved too much against tight bowling from all the Gingins bowlers.

Gingins 95-2 beat Zurich 17 all out

Against all expectations this was the most impressive victory of the tournament! Zurich have a good side and it was expected to be a close game but against some near faultless cricket from Gingins they were effectively steamrollered.

Gingins again laid a solid base with Thomas (13) and Rohan (14) soaking up the initial Zurich opening attack. Then Will (21 n.o.) and Max (27 n.o) came in and took the attack to the Zurich bowlers with some hard hitting to get the total to 95.

But it still seemed that a close match was possible, even though Zurich had one batsmen retired injured since Ollie was not able to bat through injury.

Ale opened the bowling and restricted Zurich to 2 from the first over. Next it was the turn of Will and in his first over he got 2 bowled and one caught behind by John, all for no runs.

An historic triple wicket maiden!

In the next over Max bowled another Zurich batsmen, and with Rohan taking a wicket and finally Ruan, who had batted through the innings being run-out at the end, the score was 17 all out. An emphatic win for Gingins!

Gingins 109-3 beat Basel 102-5

Max and John opened the batting with Max retiring on 30 n.o. and although unfortunately John was run out for 7 the remaining batsmen scored regularly with both Thomas 12 n.o. and Rohan 15 n.o. retiring early to let all batsmen have a bat, with George, Leo, and Ale adding runs to record what seemed like a good score of 109 in the 16 overs.

But Basel scored rapidlly and although wickets fell regularly, one each for Max, Rohan and Thomas, and 2 run-outs, the Basel batsmen were approaching the Gingins total. But 20 off the last over proved too much, even though they managed 14!

Gingins had won all their matches, and the tournament!

It was a good team win, again a good Captains performance from Rohan, and excellent fielding throughout meant that the opposition found it difficult to score against us.

Special mention to Thomas who received the U15 best batsmen award with a total of 81 runs, and also to Will for his exceptional triple wicket maiden.

See the photo gallery for pictures of the tournament.

Also see the View from the middle for the U11 and U13 Gingins team reports.

Team (from left to right): Floris, Sam, Simon, Aidan, Ale, Will, Max.

Our first game was against Basel and was very close.

Basel scored 98 with tight bowling by Ale especially, and only 2 wickets fell - one to Aidan and one to Floris. Gingins struggled batting and wickets fell regularly, with Ale the main scorer, retiring on 30.

Then with only Max remaining at the wicket and with Gingins still needing runs, the return of Ale meant that we got the winning runs, but only just, with one ball and no wickets to spare!

Our second game was against Cossonay. Cossonay had some players missing and against the impressive and almost textbook swing bowling of Simon and Will, Cossonay had many problems.

Simon got two wickets - both bowled with his in-swing, and Will got 2 caught behind by Aidan with his out-swing! Cossonay were restricted to 62 and Aidan, Sam, Ale and Floris got the runs required with relative ease.

On Sunday, the next game was against CDL, and it seemed that it was going to be a difficult game. CDL batted first and with 2 of their batsmen retiring and only losing one wicket (to a run-out on the last ball) it seemed like their total of 122 could have been enough to win.

But Aidan and Ale opened like a dream, with both scoring quickly and retiring on 30 to lay the foundations. Then Simon - with a useful 12, and the others ensured that the match was won with 2 overs to spare. An impressive win despite giving away 46 extras!

That left the final match which was against Zurich who had also won all their matches. This was going to be the most difficult. Zurich scored 62 due to impressive fielding from Gingins, tight bowling from Ale again and wickets for Floris, Will and Max and a great run-out and fielding from Sam who prevented many runs.

Once again Aidan and Ale started well and even though both were out, Floris continued well and then Simon, Will and Max got the winning runs with 7 overs to spare.

Gingins had won the tournament with a great team effort!