3rds fall short against top of the table but Youth shine again

KCC 3rds faced the in-form Stanton Harcourt at the weekend with a youthful side and put up a good fight but fell short in chasing a big total. Once again KCC youth players showed the depth of talent within the club, with many players away this week it was a chance for others to step forward.

KCC lost the toss and were put asked to field on a hot day and good pitch. It was hard work for the bowlers but Simon Hague and Tony Launchbury did well to keep things under control. Launchbury made the initial breakthrough with an LBW. KCC youth bowlers got in on the action, Jake Sternberg taking 2 wickets on debut and unlucky not to get 3. Ajay Behal arrived late because of county commitments but made up for lost time by taking two wickets. Simon Hague picked up two wickets, Kamran Ramzan got one and Jack Launchbury got his first wicket at senior level to bowl the Stanton Harcourt captain and top scorer.

So a tough target of 213 and after an excellent tea, as always at KCC, the batsmen replied but were soon in trouble with Paul Hewitt going early. Tony Launchbury looked in good form before being bowled to a good ball that kept surprisingly low. Freddie Webster was unlucky to get a really good delivery early in his first game of the season and when Martin Eagle was given LBW it looked like KCC might even fall short of the 50 they made last time against this team. However our youth players are made of stronger stuff and they dug in to give the score a more respectable look and earn some batting points. Ajay Behal was unlucky to get out to a good catch but Jake Sternberg played a fine innings on debut. He scored 32 not out with some lovely shots and together with Jack Launchbury they added 37 runs with Jack hitting 5x4s. Simon Hague came in last to crack a few big hits but in the end it was a comfortable win for Stanton Harcourt. KCC missed their captain John Moss but the performance of our youth players was a real positive.