3rd XI vs North London 5s

SOUTHGATE 3s
181 ALL OUT, 43.5 OVERS
KANNAN BALACHANDRAN 66 NOT OUT, GEORGE BLOYCE 49

NORTH LONDON 5s
166 ALL OUT 42.5 OVERS
PARINDA KULARATNE 4-44, JASON SAGAR 2-29

SOUTHGATE WON BY 15 RUNS

The 3s secured the club’s first league victory of the season with a hard fought 15 run defeat of North London 5s on the back ground on Saturday.

Our oppo had conceded their first two games so we weren’t too sure what to expect but like us, they were a mixture of youth and experience (exactly as 3rd Tier cricket should be). NL won the toss and asked us to bat on a pitch that had seen plenty of use and offered immediate assistance to their opening medium pacers. We lost 3 quick wickets but Jez and Kannan steadied the ship before the Chairman departed LBW. 43-3 soon became 82-7 but George Bloyce joined Kannan and they added 74 precious runs for the 8th wicket. George fell one short of a much deserved half century but Kannan remained undefeated for an excellent 66 to see us to a total of 181 all out in 43.5 overs.

This was a very defendable score, particularly with the pitch still offering the bowlers plenty and Parinda took 3 early wickets to reduce NL to 47 for 3. At 117-7 we felt we were in control but some wayward bowling and a few lapses in the field allowed their lower middle order to stage a mini fightback. The introduction of Jason Sagar (2-29 off 11 overs) was crucial and his control, along with Parinda returning to pick up his 4th wicket and a run out, left George to finish things off, deservedly picking up the 10th wicket, with the second LBW of the day that probably wouldn’t have survived a DRS review.

A 15 run win. 10 points. A good team effort with lots of positives.

Jez

1st XI vs Finchley

Southgate 1st XI 133 all out (44.3 overs)
Finchley 1st XI 136-2 (24.3 overs)

Southgate lost the toss for the third successive week, but with damper and more overcast conditions, were asked to bat first for the first time this season. Their main obstacle early wasn't so much the conditions as an excellent spell of bowling from the Finchley opening pair, who combined to reduce Southgate to 4-4 in the 8th over. 

A serious rebuild was required and Scott Ellis (32) and James Dangerfield (36) set about the task, putting on 63 for the 5th wicket. After their partnership was broken, useful contributions from Kunaal Kankate (23) and Daragh Edwards (28) helped us towards a below par total, albeit one we would have jumped at if offered at 4-4.

Defending a low total would have required a perfect performance from our bowlers and fielders, and unfortunately we did not provide one. Daragh Edwards caught the edge of Finchley's overseas opener, but he was dropped in the slips and went on to score 92 from 57 balls, more or less completing the chase single handedly. Ben Elders' excellent 8 over opening spell contained 5 maidens, but ultimately went unrewarded. Ben Howe and Vig Sriram picked up a wicket apiece as defeat loomed. 

The 1st XI have now played each of the top 3 in their first 3 matches. It is obviously early to judge the league table, but the three opposition teams so far are last season’s two relegated Premier division teams (Brondesbury & Finchley) and Twickenham, who narrowly beat Brondesbury by 1 run on Saturday, so we hope that less strong opposition await us in the coming weeks. 

2nd XI vs Enfield

A tough start to 2025 continued for Southgate 2s as they went down at Enfield after starting the day in encouraging fashion (at least as far as the match was concerned - the warm-up left a LOT to be desired).

Asked to take the field with just ten after a work emergency for Ravi, captain Michael Cox threw the ball to Onky, who appears to be using the facilities of Loughborough’s cricketing centre of excellence to great effect. A profligate opening spell, marred by front foot no-balls, did little to distract from the enormous potential shown with a fluid action and high level of skill.

At the other end, Javed continued his good start at his new club, taking two important wickets. The pick of the bowlers were the evergreen Ravi Desai (3fer) and Lewis Johnston, whose two spells brought four wickets at a miserly rate. Captain Cox was unlucky to run into a belligerent left-hander, two dropped catches tipping that particular duel against him.

On a used pitch which, while short of Enfield’s usually very high standards, was perfectly adequate, Southgate should have made a better fist of chasing 157, a reasonable target.

It was clear that both sides are short on confidence and the momentum to-ed and fro-ed. Sadly, despite putting together three or four partnerships of 20+, no match-winning effort emerged.

Individual scores of 25, 22, 18, 15, and 12 tell the story. To win games, one of those batters must take their start and force home the advantage.

All that remained was to return to the club to see Jez’s arras, George’s javelins, and a third team victory, Javed’s Afghan snacks providing a superb accompaniment.

Ollie Bellwood

1st XI vs Twickenham

Southgate’s 1st XI were comfortably beaten by a good Twickenham CC side by 90runs.

Twickenham won the toss and their imposing total of 284 for 5 began with an aggressive 52 from 41 balls by Talbot. However his wicket was one of three in quick succession that reduced the hosts to 66-3. A very makeable chance to make it 66-4 was squandered at this point, leaving Southgate wondering what might have been. As it was, a chance-less hundred from Twickenham captain Nunes off just 87 balls, set a total that always felt a little out of reach.

Southgate's Daragh Edwards (2 for 43) and Vig Sriram (1 for 33) deserve credit for good spells, particularly as it was the first game of the season for each of them.

In response, Southgate struggled to build momentum against a disciplined Twickenham bowling attack. Kunaal Kankate stood out with a resilient unbeaten 66 off 92 balls, but lacked substantial support from the other end.