The Twelfth Man 2016

19 Sunday mornings, in what otherwise would have been a bleak winter. Please enjoy your summer, enjoy the cricket, embrace all of the things that this wonderful game can bring and I hope to see you all soon. The runner-up of The Brian Johnston Award has improved beyond all recognition. His bowling is very accurate and he has developed an impressive in-drift with his left-arm seam bowling. With the bat, he has worked hard on his leg side play and is particularly harsh on the short ball. He’s a brave little chap and I’m expecting big things from him this summer. The runner-up of the Brian Johnston award goes to Tom Smith . Well done, Tom! The winner of the Brian Johnston award, whose bowling has been superb, has developed a very ‘repeatable’ action that will stand him in very good stead as he grows. I’ve been particularly impressed by his batting and he has developed a solid technique. The bouncy surface at Bawtry Road has been challenging, but he has shown an aptitude to make a quick decision on whether to play forward or back and has executed some terrific shots, to balls that are regularly bouncing chest high. He has a ‘fire in his belly’ and a strong desire to develop and I’m sure that he is going to blossom into a star of the future. The winner of the Brian Johnston award is Ben Shore. Well done, Ben! Eric Sykes Award Winner by Darren Crossland It’s been a great net this year and all have worked hard on their game, listening and trying to put into practice what has been asked. It was a difficult task this year because I could have selected more than two winners. The runner-up of the Eric Sykes Award is a lad that has batted and bowled consistently showing improvement in all areas. His batting is controlled and he does not try to hit the ball too hard with good technique. He will build an innings and score runs for his club this year. He bowls right-arm medium pace, bowling in good areas at a difficult pace with nice movement away from the batters and this will test good batters and bring reward. He has improved his line and length and as the weeks went by he had greater control and consistency. I believe his pace will pick up now he has got the consistency in line and length. He did at times bowl with good speed but generally worked hard on his line and swing. A very worthy runner-up and I are sure he will have a great season playing this year with bat and bowl. The runner-up of the Eric Sykes award is Callum Skipworth . The award winner’s batting is very flamboyant, with fast hands which helps him time the ball sweetly for a young man. He will score runs quickly and is an asset to any team. I would like him to continue working on his technique and this will help him to become an accomplished batsman. An off-spin bowler who turns the bowl considerably and consistently, his bowling is difficult to play with a great line and length bringing great reward. A worthy winner and I wish him well for the coming 2016 Coaching (L-R) Mathew Fidler, Ella Woodward and Lewis Pursglove WCLS Coaches (L-R) R.Skipworth, M.Shevill, A.Bennett, J.Ambler, D.Crossland and B.Marsh