Club News

Summer Camps are back

After a really successful “Smash It” Summer Camp in 2022, we are running both a Smash It and also a new It’s Wicket Camp this year. Again, Friday nights are Summer Camp nights. We will be hosting the camps on the following dates:

• Friday July 7th – 7:00pm to 7:45pm
• Friday July 14th – 7:00pm to 7:45pm
• Friday July 21st – 7:00pm to 7:45pm
• Friday August 4th – 7:00pm to 7:45pm
• Friday August 11th – 7:00pm to 7:45pm
• Friday August 18th – 7:00pm to 7:45pm

Smash It is for girls and boys aged 5 – 9 years and is all about kids being active, making friends and having fun in an inclusive and safe environment. Smash It aims to get children excited about cricket through discovery and play, learning fundamental movement skills needed for batting, bowling, fielding and wicket-keeping.

It’s Wicket! introduces girls aged 9 – 13 years old to cricket through skill-based activities and games and empowers girls to own their cricketing experience. It’s Wicket! is an inclusive and safe programme that aims to get girls active, have fun with their friends and learn new skills! All sessions are delivered by trained Club Activators.

The cost of the Summer Camp is €50 and participants will receive a Smash It or It’s Wicket t-shirt, backpack, bat and ball once they register!

Registration Links:

• New Smash It Participants
• Returning Smash It Participants
• New It’s Wicket Participants

Places are limited so book early to avoid disappointment.

Bill Scorer RIP

“It was John Browne, for many years captain of Halverstown Social Team (now “The Oaks”) who alerted the club to the passing of another old Halverstown stalwart. Bill Scorer, subject of many jokes when umpires called ‘scorer’, was a long-standing and much-loved Halverstown figure who played for us into his 70s. Our deepest sympathies go to his wife Muriel and his family. John has written this tribute to Scorer Bill, as another great recently deceased Halverstown stalwart, TP Plewman, always used to call him.”

It was with great sadness yesterday on perusing The Irish Times that I learned of the passing of Bill Scorer. Bill, a proud Yorkshireman, moved to Ireland many years ago and played his beloved cricket for Halverstown C.C. for over 40 years.

Bill was a middle-order batsman who was very hard to dismiss once he got his eye in. The team could be guaranteed to have one end solidified as long as Bill was occupying the crease, and go for runs at the other end. Not too many centuries then, but a lot of valuable runs for the cause.

Bill was also a crafty medium pace bowler and took many wickets over the years.

Away from the playing field, he was the most interesting of characters and could carry on an engaging debate on any number of subjects — the result of a most enquiring mind. Away from cricket he was an avid angler, and it was touching to read on his death notice: “fish are jumping and the mayfly is up.”

Rest In Peace my old friend.

Quiz Night and Player of the Year Awards

Last week saw Halverstown Cricket Club hold its previously annual Quiz and Awards Night in O’Connell’s Bar in Kilcullen. Recent years were interrupted by Covid, so this year saw both the 2021 and 2022 Player of the Year Awards presented for the two league teams and The Oaks, Halverstown’s social team.

Halverstown 1st team top players were opening batsman Kevin Threadgold for 2021 and star swing bowler Neville Case for 2022, who turned in excellent figures in their respective fields. For Halverstown 2, Paolo Rosa was the outstanding player in the T20 Cup run to the final in 2021, excelling in both batting and bowling, whilst Brian McAllister took the award for a second time in 2022, just pipping Ajesh and Ahsan Syed by his higher batting averages on top of similar bowling statistics.

Ger O’Shea, Oaks captain, presented his award to Jim Hodgson for his all-round performance with both bat and ball.

The evening included a successful fund-raising table quiz, where well-known Clane quizmaster (and, incidentally, former Cricket Leinster President) Peter Thew, ably supported by his wife Liz, put together a well-judged but challenging set of questions. The winning team was not a shock, with Chairman John Threadgold’s team again taking the honours in a close-fought contest.

As we head swiftly towards the new season, Halverstown is running its training sessions on selected Saturdays in Naas Sports Hall and will commence outdoor nets at its Brannockstown home some Thursday in early April. See Halverstowncc.com for details.

The first friendlies have been arranged ahead of the league season, with H1 entertaining Adare on Easter Saturday and H2 making the journey to Adare on Easter Monday — the first time the club has played a Munster team for as long as anyone can recall.

As always, Halverstown welcomes new members — or old members taking up a bat or ball again. The club has been playing cricket in the same area for 138 years as of this year and looks to continue for many years to come.

Please contact Honorary Secretary Stuart Conroy at 086 161 3353 for more information.

2022 Halverstown 2 Season in Statistics

After its long absence from league cricket, Halverstown 2 did not have the triumphant return we had hoped for. My report on the season has already dealt with the issues involved. This is purely about the statistics – and despite the old warning, statistics do not lie. Just the way we use them. We often have fixed ideas about things which sometimes have to be re-appraised when faced with the actual stats. I have set out the top 10 performances under the same headings as last year. I have the full stats for everyone if you want to know more and am open to bribery if you want others to know less. We used 26 players in the season – and still did not have enough to call on at times. Minimum levels for inclusion are 3 innings for batsmen (or batters as we now call them), as last year.

1. Top Batters

Anoop might feel miffed at being left out with his average of 19, but he only played 2 innings before being snaffled by H1, with Lijo suffering the same fate after 4 games. Worthy of note are the good averages of Brian and Ajesh over many games. Surprise package is Terry Gayle at 5, his fine 28 v Castleknock being the main influence. The disappointingly few players in double figures is the reason we did not do well – and when I again feature in our top 10 batsmen you know we have problems.

2. Top Bowlers

It seemed churlish to exclude anyone from the top bowling list based on minima since it is purely on the metric of wickets taken; thus Mark Case only played one game but took 4 wickets in the process. Lijo tops the list whilst only playing 4 games, with Ahsan just one wicket behind. His 6 maidens were most impressive. Brian and Ajesh also carried a lot of the weight, doing much bowling – and taking of wickets – as they also did with the batting. Andy, too, did more than his fair share. Indeed we only used 15 bowlers all season, including 3 who only featured in one game. The figures are impressive overall and most heartening is that the 3 youngest bowlers, Mark, Mathew and Sean, all featured in the top wicket takers. Bowling was not our problem!

3. Average Runs per Wicket

One could argue that Mark’s one game (he was also promoted to H1) gives him an advantage in this category, but honestly he deserves it. It was a super performance. Lijo bowled a lot in his 4 games and excelled in his wicket taking, giving him an average of just under 10. Sean Conroy’s late season flourish is rewarded with 4th spot in the averages with me squeezing into the top 5, though both of us well behind Ahsan.

4. Bowling Economy Rates

Whilst economy is vital, I did put significantly more emphasis on it in last year’s T20. This is statistically correct: in 40 over games more of a balance is required; wickets are of greater value than in T20. Our economy rates were very satisfactory, with Ahsan’s absolutely spectacular. Brian was only just behind and did it across 40 overs. Lijo, too, was close and Kevin and Andy excellent also. Last season the Oaks economy stats were cut-off at what I said was a tough figure of 5 runs per over. We have 9 below that point in the much more demanding environment of league cricket and Stuart Hayes, at 10, only just marginally outside that. Well done to our bowlers!

5. Catches and Stumpings

Our catch rate was 2.4 per match. My only yardstick is last season Oaks, with H2 just ahead. Lijo, outstandingly, took 6, Ajesh 3 and Andrew Williamson, Stuart Hayes, Barry Elshove (in just one game), Mathew Hodgson 2 each. There were also catches by Manik, David Braithwaite, Will Richards, Terry Gayle and Kevin Hodson. Behind the stumps Cecil took 2 catches and had one stumping.

Final Thoughts

What can we learn for the coming season? The important lesson remains: we need to work on our batting, and especially down the order rather surprisingly. Our bowlers have done well with the ball but we actually need them to contribute a little more with the bat. Thus if we can have 5 top order batsmen scoring 20–25 runs and 5 lower order batsmen with 10–12 runs each then we would have a score in 150–185 zone – a level we never reached in 2022.

So much for statistics. They can get in the way of enjoying the cricket if you are not careful. We didn’t have a great season from a results perspective, finishing bottom but one, but I hope that the players enjoyed the season anyway. Thanks to Cecil for his help in captaining the side in my (unfortunately rather frequent) absences. Luckily there is no relegation from Division 19 and we live to fight on again in 2023 for a second league season!

Written by Des Drumm

An Early Start for Halverstown Cricket!

February would not normally be a month to think about cricket — not unless you lived in the southern hemisphere anyway. But Halverstown is a club that, despite being the oldest Irish cricket club outside Dublin, still likes to think ahead!

Already it has committed, for a second year, to fielding two league teams in the Cricket Leinster Leagues as well as running its social team, Halverstown Oaks. In preparation for the 2023 season, due to commence in late April, Halverstown has booked Naas Sports Centre on the New Caragh Road for 6 training sessions.

These will run from 2pm to 4pm on the following Saturdays:

• February 11th and 25th
• March 4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th

Although primarily designed to get its players ready for the season, non-members are welcome too. At last year’s first-ever indoor nets sessions, several new players came along and later joined the club, playing throughout the season in both league and friendly fixtures.

For anyone wishing to take part, the cost will be €5 per session or €25 if you pay for all 6 upfront. Last year’s sessions were a lot of fun, combining fitness work with cricketing techniques and some fun games. Just come along in normal gym clothing and footwear — no special gear required.

Halverstown would be delighted to see you. For further information, please contact Stuart Conroy, Honorary Secretary at 086 161 3353.

Halverstown Schools Blitz

It was Dr Martin Luther King that once began a speech with the words “I have a dream”. Well, I had a dream that would involve schools across Kildare all learning and playing cricket — and I may have just seen that dream becoming a reality.

It was two years of planning. It took a huge amount of help from Naomi Scott-Hayward from Cricket Leinster. Funding was required from Kildare Sports Partnership and Halverstown Cricket Club. Cricket Leinster provided the coaching — and it took the schools wanting to try a new sport that wasn’t the traditional GAA or Soccer.

The two schools chosen were Scoil Bhríde in Kilcullen and Brannoxtown CNS. We were super lucky to have a brilliant coach going into the schools — Anne O’Meara, the Development Officer for Kildare and Meath for Cricket Leinster. We agreed that Anne would visit the schools weekly for training sessions in the basics of cricket for four weeks leading up to the Easter holidays. The culmination would be a Blitz with the pupils from each school taking part up at Halverstown Cricket Club.

On the day we were blessed with the weather. The Cricket Gods were truly smiling down on us, nodding their approval. We had 120 kids all playing together across the pitch at different stations. The enthusiasm was off the scale, and the competitiveness was clear to see. They loved every minute.

Looking on were Syl Merrins from Kildare Sports Partnership, Cllr Tracey O’Dwyer, and Hubert Beaumont, President of Halverstown Cricket Club. It was clear to see them all looking on with jaw-dropping admiration.

The Blitz finished up with both schools being presented with a trophy for their participation throughout the programme. The message from the schools, Cricket Leinster, and Halverstown was clear: We want more of this. We want to take this to more schools starting in September. Funding is crucial to this, and we are hopeful of getting it.

Yes, I’m biased — but cricket is a wonderful game that caters for everyone of all ages, boys and girls together. Maybe the Leprechaun Cup awaits for these two schools in 2023. We’d love to help them get there.

Finally, out of those 120 kids that took part, maybe the next Kevin O’Brien or Isobel Joyce was out there. Who knows where that journey will end — but I do know where the journey started.

That was here.

— Stuart Conroy

Halverstown Gala Night Relaunch

Halverstown Cricket Club are delighted to announce that our Gala Night is finally going ahead after two years of postponements and cancellations due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Gala Ball will take place at the Osprey Hotel, Naas on Saturday 5th at 7:30pm.

Tickets will go on sale in April and are priced at:

• €65 per person
• €650 for a table of 10

This includes a delicious 4-course meal with tea and coffee.

The evening will feature:

• Presentations from the club
• A Raffle
• Live Band and DJ

All guests will also receive a commemorative booklet to mark the occasion.

Smart dress is essential.

We look forward to celebrating with all of our members, families, and supporters at what promises to be a fantastic evening!

High Hopes at Halverstown

If winter is nearly over then Spring can’t be too far behind — and thoughts turn naturally to the new cricket season. At least they do at Halverstown Cricket Club! This year there are high hopes both for a normal full season of cricket and for the club’s impact on it.

The big news from the club is that for the first time in almost a decade, a second team has been entered in the Leinster Cricket Union Leagues. The first team, captained again by Hubert Beaumont, will play in Division 13. Halverstown 2, following its success in reaching the finals of the Adamstown T20 Cup at its first attempt in 2021, will be playing in Division 19 and will be captained by Des Drumm.

Halverstown 1 will also play in the T20 Cup. However, in order to ensure that the Oaks, Halverstown’s social team, gets sufficient time for a solid fixture list, Halverstown 2 will not participate in the T20. The Oaks is a vital part of the club and an entry point for new cricketers, and its role may even be expanded with discussions taking place on a more structured approach for “midland” social teams. Captaincy of the Oaks, a role Des has fulfilled over many years, is yet to be finalised.

Another change at Halverstown is the retirement of Tim Ronaldson as Chairman, a role he has performed admirably for the last 7 years. The club is truly grateful for the work Tim has put in, and perhaps he can now get more time to actually play! Carlow man John Threadgold, a longstanding member of the 1st team, takes over as Chairman and has everyone’s best wishes.

Yet another new development is the introduction of pre-season indoor nets for the first time ever. These will be held for club members in Kilcullen Community Centre on 6 consecutive Saturdays starting on Saturday, February 19th. The players should be nicely warmed up for the coming season!

Halverstown has been playing cricket in the Kilcullen area continuously since 1885 and welcomes new players. If anyone — total beginner or experienced player — wants to learn more about Halverstown, which plays its games on the beautiful grounds of Harristown House in Brannockstown, contact Club Secretary Stuart Conroy at 0861613353.

Alternatively, check out the website at halverstowncc.com or follow on @HalverstownCC on Twitter.

Halverstown Oaks: 2021 Season in Statistics

By Des Drumm – 24/11/21

1. Top Batsman

This was more like a proper Oaks season, despite its late start and the need to make room for T20 Cup games. Of the 13 Oaks games, two were declared draws because of rain. This gave a decent base for statistics. We used 36 players across the season, so the games were well shared out. Minimum levels were necessary to make the stats meaningful. I had intended that to be 2 innings for batsmen, but since Gunter Bayer’s 2 innings for the Oaks (totalling 65 not out) averaged infinity and made him leading batsman, I made the minimum innings 3.

Top batsmen includes everyone in double figures, which just excluded David McConaghy and Steve Rix. No surprise as to who tops the list – Paolo had a great season, though the 171 average is a little misleading. It is a surprise that Abhi, tying with Hubert, finished below Cecil, Kevin Hodson and me, but if you usually bat at the tail end like Cecil and I, a few “not outs” can really boost your averages!

2. Top Bowlers

My topping of the bowling chart illustrates that the more you bowl the more likely you are to take wickets. But those who bowled only a few overs are probably helped in the other stats of runs per wicket and per over. Neville’s class shows with 5 wickets in less than 8 overs, including a hattrick in Mount Juliet. Niall O’Reilly, after a famously successful season in 2020, was again well up amongst the wicket takers whilst 6 players shared 4 wickets apiece.

3. Average Runs per Wicket

Two league players, Neville Case and Kevin Threadgold, take 1st and 3rd places in runs conceded per wicket, but Kevin Hodson was no.2 and, possibly a surprise to everyone including himself, David McConaghy was 4th. There were good figures too for regular bowlers Andy Barber (5th) and young Mark Case (6th), both under 15 runs per wicket.

4. Bowling Economy Rates

Everyone knows the importance I put on economy rates — though taking wickets is obviously also important in winning games. Our economy rates were impressive. Despite setting a tough figure of 5 runs per over as the cut-off for this table, 14 bowlers made the list. Kevin Threadgold was top at just 2.4 runs per over. Fewer overs do make the job easier so Brian, Andy and Abhi did really well given their heavier bowling loads. And what can you say about young Mark Case? His 3.47 runs per over off 17 overs shows what an extraordinary talent he is.

5. Catches and Stumpings

Surprisingly we used 5 wicket keepers in 2021 — and they all took their share of wickets: both Cecil and Andrew with 3 stumpings and a catch; catches for Stuart Hayes and Hubert and a stumping for Mark Ronaldson.

In the field we took 28 catches, just over 2 per game. Ger O’Shea and Kevin Hodson led with 3 apiece and there were two for Terry Gayle, David McConaghy, Andy Barber, Andrew Williamson, Ahsan and me. Paolo, Steve Rix, Manik, Terrence Case, Jon Kirby, Abhi, Matt Ruddock, Richard Green, Stephen Gray and Gunter all chipped in with a catch.

The statistics do not, however, capture the pleasure in getting in a good season of cricket and how great the team spirit was right throughout 2021. The future of the club is safe with the sort of people that we have both playing and volunteering, keeping the traditions of Halverstown cricket alive.