Review of the Season: June 2024

June 1st – 7th

June started off with ‘Super Saturday’ as for the first time we fielded 5 teams out on the same day! The Men’s 1Xl hosted Victoria who had made a positive start to the season and would pose a challenge. Bangor batted first and made a par score 233-6 with Sam & RVH passing the 50 mark. Victoria started brightly but were always behind the rate that was until a massive 28th over propelled the side back on track to chase Bangor’s total. Fortunately for Bangor some tight bowling from Will, Patto & Sam McMillan who was the pick of the bowlers with 2-29 from his 5 overs to round of his man of the match display, ensured Bangor won a tight game by 13 runs in the end. The 2XI picked up their second league win of the season in emphatic fashion, sweeping aside Carrickfergus 2Xl aside to win by 10 wickets. Beechy jr continued his great form with the ball with it hooping early doors to pick up 3 wickets and limit Carrick to 158 from their 30 overs. Bangor’s two openers in Raspo & JK were imperious with the bat registering a huge 159-run partnership, Raspo with 83* to his name and JK scoring 50*.

Three cup games followed for the 3XI, 4XI & 5XI, the 3Xl won a tight contest against Dundrum 2XI by just 2 wickets. Youngsters Max Walker & Daniel Rayner were the pick of the bowlers with 3 wickets each. With the bat, Adam Purce was the only score of note with 63 with handy contributions from Fletch & Max Walker near the end of the proceedings got Bangor just about over the line with a few overs to spare. The 4XI & 5XI were unfortunately on the losing side of their cup games. The 4XI lost a close game to Templepatrick by 3 wickets, Dyllan Gomes top scoring with 48 gave the side a par score of 159 from their 25 overs. Saydee Gomes gave the side a brilliant start with 3 quick wickets but one of the oppositions batters went on to make 73* and navigated Templepatrick over the line with one over remaining. The 5Xl were on the losing end of their cup match by 7 wickets in an always uphill task against the stronger Ballymena 3XI side. But that doesn’t half tell the story of this game with Ballymena chasing down the Bangor total of 120 with just 1 ball remaining, a terrific performance from the 5Xl in this game. Three out of five on ‘Super Saturday’ with two very tight defeats was a pretty good effort all round across the club!

The Women’s 1Xl were in league action for the first time in the season and picked up a deserving 29 run victory away at Dundrum. Skipper Emma Rayner top scoring with 30* propelled the side to 93-5 after 20 overs. With the ball the wickets were shared round a few bowlers to complete a pleasing team performance to back up the sides first win in the cup the week prior. The Midweeks game at home to Dunmurry unfortunately fell foul to the weather during the week.

June 8th – 14th

The 2XI were back up the road to face Ballymena 2Xl again and just like the previous meeting two weeks ago it was another routine win for Coxy jr’s side. Bowling first the hosts were limited to a below par 142 from their 30 overs with Beechy jr, Gowdy & Myles both picking up 2 wickets between them. In reply Bangor were never really in danger and knocked of the required amount of runs in the 21st over with Zach registering a half century. The 3Xl were involved in a bit of a strange game against Waringstown 3Xl at UP, the visitors made 160 from their 30 overs with Jacob Campbell the pick of the bowlers with 2-26. In response Bangor made a brilliant start with a partnership of 97 between Jacob & Chappers. Jacob would fall for a well-made 30 and Chappers in his usual flamboyant way, made a quick fire 81. Unfortunately, this was in the midst of a collapse of sorts from the hosts as they hobbled over the line to win by 3 wickets despite being 152-3 at one point.

The 4Xl were just on the losing side of a thriller at home to CIYMS 5XI losing by just 6 runs. The visitors made 141 in the first innings, skipper Hamza turned in an inspiring performance on the day, firstly 3-22 with the ball and 2 wickets each for Daniel Mcllwaine & Felix McMillan. Bangor struggled for run scorers in the innings but were buoyed by Hamza’s innings who scored a very fluent 62 as he looked to keep up with the rate but unfortunately fell in the 18th over, with his side 17 runs shy. Valiant efforts from the tailenders who came in, but Bangor unfortunately ran out of deliveries to chase down the total. The Women’s 1XI continued their fine start to the season with another win over Instonians 2Xl at Upritchard Park. Star bowler Megan Stranaghan picked up 3 wickets for just 5 runs and her partner in crime Saydee Gomes also chipped in with 2 wickets for just 3 runs conceded, limiting the visitors to just 62-7. In reply, Bangor made light work of the run chase with skipper Emma Rayner top scoring with 21*.

The Midweek XI replayed their game against Dunmurry at Ward Park and what a thriller it was. Vishnu was the pick of the bowlers with 3-28 with Speersy, Max Escott & Pittsy picking up 2 wickets between them limiting Dunmurry to 125. In reply, Bangor got off to a good start but became stuck in the middle phase losing wickets regularly for not many runs. Only Vishnu’s quickfire 32* gave Bangor any hope heading into the final few overs needing 27 from the final 4 overs but with just 2 wickets remaining. Paul Houstoun chipped in with a well-made 12 but when he was dismissed in the final over, Bangor were 11 runs shy with just 4 balls remaining and with just 1 wicket left, a tall order. Enter talismanic skipper Speersy, but a dot first ball wasn’t the start he envisaged though. A quickly scampered 2, followed by a wide left Bangor needing an unlikely 8 from the last 2 balls. The bowler with the penultimate delivery bowled a full delivery which Speersy smashed out of the middle of the bat, as the ball sailed some 30 yards over the boundary over long off for a huge 6.

Bangor now in the ascendancy needing just 2 now from the final delivery. The bowler feeling the pressure of the moment bowled a wide with the keeper fumbling the take. The quick-thinking Max Escott noticed this and called Speersy through for a bye. It was then an agonising race to the non-striker’s end as the ball was thrown wide of the mark with the fielder struggling to reach the ball and maintain close distance to the stumps. Speersy though made his ground just in the nick of time as the fielder struggled to gather cleanly and all were jubilant on the sidelines as Bangor had pulled off probably the most remarkable win from this season.

June 15th – 21st

The Men’s 1XI returned to action with a big top of the table clash against Cooke Collegians at the tricky Pirrie Park ground. Bangor bowlers plugged away and bowled tight line & lengths to bowl out the opposition in the 34th over for 162. Sam McMillan enjoying the conditions the most with 3-27 and RVH, Princer & Will picking up two wickets as well. Bangor’s formidable opening batters Sam & Hutchy got the side of to another great start racking up 76 runs before Hutchy fell for 38. Sam continued for a while longer before he was dismissed for a well-made 51. A few more wickets were picked up giving Cooke an outside chance as Bangor got nearer to the target. Zach & Myles had other thoughts though and gave the innings some great impetus especially young star Myles hitting a massive 6 through some nearby rugby posts for an extra 3 points too! Bangor eventually got over the line in tricky batting conditions in the 31st over to win by 3 wickets and another important win against a rival side in the league.

The 2Xl were unfortunately on the losing end by 7 wickets in the cup against CIYMS 3XI. A below par performance with the bat meant we were on the back foot but up stepped skipper Coxy jr who made 43 to marshal the side to a decent 148-9 from their 30 overs. Despite a bright start with the ball, CIYMS cruised through to a comfortable enough run chase to win by 7 wickets with two overs remaining. The 3XI travelled to eventual league winners Lisburn 4Xl and picked up a great win in the league by 4 wickets. The visitors bowled first and limited Lisburn to just 137-6 from their 25 overs, Stephen Skelly the pick of the bowlers with 2-21. With the bat Vishnu was the star of the show with a quick fire 71 as Bangor reached the target required with 10 balls remaining. The 4XI picked up a dominant victory at UP against Templepatrick 4XI to win by 68 runs. Batting first, Bangor made a commanding 190 from their 25 overs, with Stephen Hamilton, Fergus Johnstone, Hamza & Felix McMillan all passing the 30-run mark. With the ball, some tight bowling in the opening 10 overs made it an uphill task for the visitors to chase down the big total. Two wickets apiece for Drew Davis and Vishnu and a few others chipping in ensured Bangor won at a canter. The 5XI were also on the winning side of things making it four wins out of five across the weekend. Bangor batted first and made 126 from their 20 overs with Josh McMillan and Oliver Haslam scoring 44 & 31 respectively. Some tight bowling from all involved ensured Bangor came out victorious by 26 runs with young leg spinner Harry McMillan the pick of the bowlers with 2-28.

The Midweek XI made the journey down to Downpatrick looking to continue their 100% start to the season. Bangor batted first and made 128 from their 20 overs with Zach yet again passing the 30-run mark for the side, other very handy contributions from Rich Carson & Hamza meant Bangor had something to defend with. A tight run chase ensued between the two sides with them evenly matched through the innings. But a relatively few big overs from the hosts got them ahead of the required rate with around 5 overs to go and they got over the line with 8 balls remaining to win by 3 wickets.

The Men’s 1Xl had a T20 Bowl Quarter Final tie down in Dundrum and despite the several weather forecasts predicting a washout, somehow the rain largely avoided the area. Bangor won the toss and elected to bat first in what looked like tricky enough conditions to bat. Bangor made a solid start through the reliable Sam & Hubby T20 partnership but once they departed, Bangor struggled and regularly lost wickets being bowled out in the 19th over for 117. Only skipper JP was able to spend any great deal of time out in the middle scoring what proved to be in the end a crucial 29 off 25. The hosts made a solid start, but the game very quickly switched in favour of Bangor with 5 wickets falling in the space of 16 deliveries to propel us ahead of the game. Bangor would continue to press home their advantage picking up more wickets with the run rate being kept at arm’s length from the required rate to win easily by 31 runs. Sam McMillan & Will, the pick of the bowlers with 3 wickets between them and RVH also picking up two wickets from his opening 4 overs.

June 22nd – 28th

The Men’s 1XI returned to league action at home to Belfast Superkings and cruised to a commanding 197 run victory. Batting first Bangor racked up a huge 348-4 from their 40 overs, Hutchy continued his sublime form, carrying his bat for 125*. Skipper JP scored a well-made 68 with Sam, RVH & Hubby chipping in with scores in the 30s. With the ball, Bangor made a very good start with RVH & Michael Skelly taking a few early wickets for not many runs. From then on Bangor controlled proceedings but star of the show was Will Simpson as he registered his first 1XI 5fer with excellent figures of 5-26 from his 8 overs including two maidens. The 2Xl picked up a routine victory over BISC 2XI by 8 wickets with Coxy jr (3-24), Andy Pyper (3-21) & JJ Holley (2-21) the pick of the bowlers as the hosts were bowled out in the 26th over for 97. Bangor in reply got off to a steady start but with plenty of wickets left in hand the side cruised to victory with 6 overs remaining, JK top scoring with 35*

The 3XI were pulling double duty with them in league & cup action. Their last 16 tie in the cup against Cregagh 3XI couldn’t have gone much better as they won by a massive 181 runs. The undoubted highlight of the day was Zach Kerr, with a phenomenal knock of 139* from 93 balls as he sent it to all parts at BGS, the highest score of the season across the club. Helpful contributions from Belshaw & Hamza who scored 32 & 43* respectively got Bangor to a huge score of 243-1 from their 30 overs. Coxy jr then tore through the Cregagh top order getting the wickets cheaply of the top 4 batters to have figures of 4-23. James Nuttall & Max Escott were the other bowlers of note each picking up 2 wickets between them. The next day Bangor batted first in their league match at Instonians and made a decent 163-6 from 25 overs, Paddy English the pick of the batters with a quick fire 44 off 34. Bangor uncharacteristically though struggled with the ball with Instonians cruising to a routine victory by 8 wickets with a few overs remaining. The 4XI played hosts to Armagh 4XI at UP and batted first but a below par performance with the bat left them short of an ideal score finishing on 117-8 from their 25 overs. Only Fergus Johnstone who anchored the innings nicely with 40 and Rich Carson with 23 the only scores of note. Bangor made a decent start with the ball but a notable 4th wicket partnership of 50 plus saw the visitors over the line to win by 7 wickets.

The Women’s 1XI also pulled double duty with league and cup action to keep the side busy. A visit to Drumaness 1Xl for their league game saw the side come away with a really good win. Bangor bowled first and picked up wickets regularly with Brooke Stewart the pick of the bowlers with 4 wickets. Numerous batters made double figures in the Bangor innings, but it was skipper Emma Rayner continuing her great form the with the bat with 29 as the side won comfortably by 69 runs in pairs cricket. The next day the side hosted Holywood in the cup at BGS and batting first the side got off to a bad start and that continued throughout the innings. It was only the knock of Sarah Stephens who put in a brilliant performance scoring 50* (which won the Kirsty Merriman Performance of the Year Award) got the side to 136-8 from 20 overs. Holywood in comparison got off to a strong start and looked to be coasting to victory, but a terrific fightback from Bangor got them back in the game taking 4 wickets in 5 overs as the Holywood run rate began to slow down. The Bangor bowlers kept the resulting few overs tight meaning it was then skipper Emma Rayner who was tasked to bowl the final over with 13 runs to defend. An early boundary put Holywood back in the game but with 4 runs to win for the visitors of the last ball, Bangor could sense victory, and they enforced a run out of the final delivery to pick up a brilliant victory and win by just 2 runs. The Women’s 1Xl through to a cup semi-final in just their second season, a brilliant achievement. The Midweek XI bounced back from their first defeat with a simple victory over Dunmurry by 7 wickets at UP to keep up their hopes of qualification to the Midweek League semi-finals.

June 29th – July 3rd

The Men’s 1XI had a big blockbuster match at home to Downpatrick in the league. Even with the season only at the halfway mark, a win would put the side in an advantageous position for promotion, what would follow was beyond anyone’s expectations. Bangor batted first and made a phenomenal start as Sam & Hutchy scored runs freely with the visitors struggling to contain them. Sam very much the aggressor brought up his half century in just 41 deliveries with the 100-run partnership not far behind. Hutchy a few overs later brought up his half century and the runs kept flowing with stroke making of the highest order between the two of them. All good things eventually come to an end with Sam dismissed just 11 runs shy of a deserved 100 after an incredible 170 run partnership. At this point there were only 13 overs remaining and with a lengthy batting order still to come, a lot of cameos ensured the run rate kept ticking along at a very good rate. Hutchy was the one true constant throughout the knock as he picked up a well-deserved ton, his best innings this season before eventually falling shortly thereafter. Bangor finished on 290 from their 40 overs and would feel confident of defending that with good bowling.

Bangor made the perfect start with three quick wickets all off the bowling of RVH leaving Downpatrick 40-3 in the 9th over. Downpatrick’s two best batters were now at the crease and despite some early pressure, were starting to slowly ease Downpatrick away from trouble and back in the contest. At the halfway mark, the visitors were neck & neck with Bangor with the run totals, the hosts were confident though with good bowling and a high required run rate that they’d break this partnership. That wasn’t to be the case though as Downpatrick somehow were arguably in a winning position, needing 80 runs of the last 10 overs with two batters very well set. Sam got the much-needed big breakthrough with an excellently taken catch on the boundary by Michael Skelly to remove the dangerous overseas pro Wyngard, who had scored his 100 (a partnership of 181) and Bangor had a way back into the game. A few tight overs were followed by two expensive ones meant the sides couldn’t be separated with 33 from 4 overs the equation. Princer picked up a wicket to keep the visitors in check with them now needing 27 from 3 overs, Bangor for the first time in a while fancied their chances. The ‘see-sawing’ nature of the game wasn’t done there though with the 38th over yielding 13 runs and when 8 runs came of the first 4 balls in the penultimate over, it looked all but over with the visitor’s needing just 6 from 9 balls. Princer though picked up the crucial wicket of Hutton who was dismissed for 105 then picked up another wicket the very next ball, Sam taking an excellent catch on the boundary and crucially preventing a boundary. Six runs were still required with now 6 balls remaining and no better man for the occasion than Pypsy to bowl the final over. Despite some nervy moments he was sensational yet again as he bowled Bangor to victory again with the quick-thinking Hubby preventing the quickly taken bye of the last ball, running out the non-striker. Bangor the victors of this titanic battle by just 1 run and with hindsight of how the season went, it was the crucial victory which gave Bangor daylight in the promotion race. One of the best games of local cricket you’re likely to see!

The 2XI travelled to Wallace Park to take on league rivals Lisburn 3XI, a big game in the battle for promotion. The visitors batted first and set a competitive enough total of 166-7 from their 30 overs, Myles McNaught continuing his standout season, top scoring with 62* Bangor got off to a good start with the ball with a few early wickets before Lisburn’s scoring rate increased in the middle phase, made them favourites. But a cluster of wickets fell which brought Bangor back into it as they chased an unlikely victory. It certainly seemed the case when the 7th wicket was picked up and Lisburn were still 38 runs short. A very handy 37 run partnership though for the 8th wicket got Lisburn within touching distance of victory and they held on to take the spoils in a very competitive game as they won by 2 wickets. The 4XI picked up a great victory on the road against CYMS 5XI as they continued their charge up the table. Bangor batted first and made 200 exactly from their 25 overs but it was the innings of Josh Donnelly which caught the eye scoring 65 from just 29 balls, clearing the boundary 8 times in the process! He was aptly supported by Josh Walker who registered a well made 42. CYMS made a positive start with the bat and were keeping up with the required rate but lost 5 wickets in the process. From then on Bangor kept things tight and cruised to a 32-run victory, Josh Brown the pick of the bowlers with 3-39 with Harry McMillan chipping in with 2 wickets himself.

The Women’s 1XI kept up their brilliant unbeaten start to the season with an 11-run victory at UP over Lisburn 3XI. The side were sensational making 128 with contributions right down the order without losing a wicket, Emma Rayner & Brooke Strangahan the pick of the batters making it past 20. A pesky shower re-adjusted the required ask for Lisburn with them needing 97 to win of 15 overs. Brooke Strangahan continued her fine form picking up two early wickets in a row and was on the cusp of a hat-trick but sadly not to be. Dynamic fielder Emma Hutchinson then enforced two run outs in the space of a few overs to further stamp home Bangor’s advantage. Despite some late order runs for the visitors, Bangor held their nerve for a deserved victory and continued their perfect season so far.

Away from the Senior side of the Cricket in June, the U11 Girls side won their first game of hard ball cricket at Ward Park against a well organised Holywood team. We were also grateful to be a part of some of the very successful Blitz tournaments that happened across the NCU with multiple teams sent to two separate events at Templepatrick and Instonians. Finally Sam McMillan represented the Ulster Schools Cricket side in a 2 Day game against the Southern Schools which ended in a draw and then in July was involved in a tour in Glasgow.