1st XI Results and Performances 2008:

N.L. & C.C.L Premier Division, Daniel Thwaites Cumbria Cup, The Higson Cup and

West Cumbria 20Twenty Trophy.

Sunday 11th May 2008: Haverigg CC 'v' Cockermouth CC at Haverigg

Higson Cup 1st Round.

Cockermouth lost their first ever bowl out after rain scuppered what would have been an excellent finish at Haverigg.

Despite losing the toss, Cockermouth bowled well on an excellent wicket and back their bowlers well in the field. Despite a couple of half chances and a missed stumping, the ground fielding and catching was, on the whole, excellent, which showed throughout the innings. Gamage and the rest of the attack bowled well on the flat wicket, with Dodds, O'Neill and Hodgson all picking up wickets in the innings. Only Indian Test-cap, Sridharan Sriram go going, scoring a slow 88no from 37 overs. The home side closed on 195 for 8 from their 45 overs.

Cockermouth's reply was halted by two interesting early dismissals, when Platten was adjudged caught behind and Gareth White was adjudged LBW for 0. Ryan Carruthers settled well though and looked in great touch for his 31. Buchanan again looked at home, before falling in the teens. O'Neill and Gamage restored control before O'Neill was dismissed for 31 and Gamage for 18. When the deluge came, Cockermouth were poised with 4 wickets left needing only 72 for victory.

Sadly though, the Sandair men could not muster a hit in the bowl out and lost 2-0 to the hosts.

Saturday 10th May 2008: Duddon SCCC 'v' Cockermouth CC at Duddon SC

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth got their season up and running despite a boring end to the game in the south of the county.

Inserted on what looked a crumbling pitch, Cockermouth started solidly before losing Platten, skying a catch to the 'keeper went for 12. Gimber was then bizarrely adjudged caught behind, despite the ball bouncing in front of the 'keeper for 15. It was White and Buchanan who put the attack to the sword and the vice-captain batted excellently on the awkward surface, scoring another fantastic half-century for the team, before being bowled by A Sniper for 61. O'Neill was run out after a dodgy call by the captain for 0. White was dropped on 7 at point, but made the home side pay, scoring a century, before being given out LBW in the final over. Gamage and Hodgson were undefeated at the end, with the visitors posting 240 for 5.

Duddon's reply was slow and wickets fell throughout. Gamage and Mandale bowled well early and took wickets with the new ball as well as being economical. Once the shine went off the ball it was awkward for the seamers. Tom O'Neill bowled without luck, but Chris Hodgson was magnificent with the turning ball. He flighted the ball well and turned the home side inside out as he picked up 3-23 from 15 overs. Greg Barnes couldn't quite settle in, so Gareth White sneaked a spell and a couple of wickets, before Gamage returned to attempt to mop up the tail as they crept towards a hundred.

Sadly though, despite great effort, the Sandair men could not forge their first outright win of the season, but with more performances like this one, the first win is just around the corner.

Saturday 3rd May 2008: Workington CC 'v' Cockermouth CC at Workington.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth collapsed to a defeat at champions Workington, despite a good display with the ball.

Professional Gamage and O'Neill took the new ball and restricted the home side well, O'Neill removing Callum Moffat clean bowled and Gamage removing Reid LBW. Chris Hodgson accounted for Simon James, Kristian Moffat and Steve Benson before Gorley came to the crease and accelerated the scoring. The returning Nick Mandale bowled an excellent spell picking up Chambers and Galea before Gamage returned to bowl Gorley. A decent effort from the young side saw them set a reasonable 144 to win from 50 overs.

Cockermouth's reply got off to a poor start. Captain Gareth White fell caught at square leg for 12 before Gimber and Platten added a useful but slow partnership to take the team to 50. Gimber then fell to a catch at deep square leg for 14 and was soon followed by Ian Buchanan, bowled by Simon James for 0. Ryan Carruthers was harshly adjudged caught at silly point first ball, which brought Professional Gamage to the crease. He helped accelerate the scoring but fell, caught at mid on off the bowling of Walker. Platten fell stumped smartly off Walker after a solid innings and Hodgson fell caught behind, before Tom O'Neill was adjudged LBW for 5 to Simon James. Andrew Dodds was clean bowled by Walker and then Greg Barnes was bizarrely given out caught behind when the home side were appealing for a stumping with only 16 balls of the innings left to hold out for a losing draw.

Another poor batting performance let the young side down, however, luck seems to be thin on ground at the moment. A couple of decisions going the team's way and the game could have been so different. A double weekend beckons this weekend at Duddon SC and Haverigg CC and the team will be looking to get their first win of the new campaign under their belts.

Saturday 26th April 2008: Cockermouth CC 'v' Millom CC at Sandair.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth's first home fixture for the season was washed out without a ball being bowled at Sandair this afternoon.

Heavy overnight rain and continuous rain throughout the day meant no cricket was possible.

The First Eleven travel to Northern League side Barrow tomorrow to play their Jennings Cumbria Cup First Round Tie.

Saturday 19th April 2008: Penrith CC 'v' Cockermouth CC at Penrith.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth shared the spoils in an entertaining season opener in exceptionally cold conditions against newly promoted Penrith.

New Professional Chamila Gamage and debutant Andrew Dodds took the new ball for Cockermouth and bowled economically early on. Runs were hard to come by as the two settled into their line and length and it was not long before Gamage struck, removing Atkinson LBW for 4. He was shortly joined by veteran Andy Hall, clean bowled by an exceptional Gamage delivery for 13. Another LBW ensued shortly after leaving the home side reeling at 27 for 3. Home Professional Upul Fernando survived a very good LBW shout off Gamage before he set about constructing an excellent innings. Tom O'Neill then bowled a fantastic spell, conceding only 6 runs from 7 overs as the visitors kept up the pressure. Fernando added 66 runs before falling, clean bowled by Gamage as Penrith climbed towards a decent total, with another of their young players making a solid 50+ score. The home team lost one more wicket, a first for Andrew Dodds, caught excellently by Buchanan at cover as they closed on 180 for 5. A good score on a slow wicket.

Cockermouth's reply got off to the worst possible start, as Greg Platten and Hugh Gimber both fell early, bowled for 0 and LBW 1 respectively. Captain Gareth White was caught at second slip for a woeful 17 as the visitors struggled on. Ryan Carruthers and Vice-captain Ian Buchanan steadied the ship, spending some time together at the crease, before Carruthers was dismissed, caught at cover. Professional Gamage fell second ball, gloving through to the 'keeper and Cockermouth were struggling desperately at 40 for 4. Buchanan though was doing an excellent job, staying positive with his batting and all-rounder and even though the returning Matthew Taylor fell without scoring, he and Tom O'Neill batted Cockermouth into a position where they could have won the game. Sadly though, Buchanan fell for an excellent 66 and O'Neill for 43 and when Dodds fell, caught in the deep, the visitors had to survive three overs with Chris Hodgson and Greg Barnes at the crease to gain a losing draw.

A fair result with the home side out-performing the visitors man-for-man.

1st XI Results and Performances 2007:

N.L. & C.C.L Premier Division, Daniel Thwaites Cumbria Cup, The Higson Cup and

West Cumbria 20Twenty Trophy.

Click here to view the First Eleven half-season averages and performances.

Saturday 8th September 2007:    Wigton CC 'v' Cockermouth CC at Lowmoor Road.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth ended a fantastic League season as runners-up after a two-wicket victory at already relegated Wigton on Saturday.

With the Championship still a possibility for the fledgling side, Gareth White had no option but to insert the hosts on a dry looking pitch.

Mark Bowen started well, but runs came from the other end and three bowlers tried and failed to stem the flow. Wickets were claimed at regular intervals by the visitors, but home Professional, Johnny Cash was proving difficult to dismiss. He managed to crack a century before being dismissed by Haroon 'Harry' Hamster, substitute Professional for Cockermouth CC for 101. This innings helped the relegated Wigton to a competitive 173 all out.

With Workington declared, Cockermouth knew they had to go all out for the win to stand a chance and Captain Gareth White did his best, scoring 83 from 90 balls before a late collapse made things interesting. Chris Hodgson though capped off a fine day smashing an unbeaten 29 to see his team home.

Sadly though, Workington had already clinched the title. A superb season however for the young Cockermouth team, which bodes well for next season.

Here is the final league table from 2007.

Daniel Thwaites N. Lancs. & Cumbria League Premier Division Final Table 2007

 ** Carlisle deducted 2 pts. Slow over rate

 September 8^th. Results         

 Carlisle 143 v Haverigg 130 for 9          Bad light stopped play. Carlisle 11 pts.  Haverigg 11 pts.

 Dalton 100  v Cleator 104 for 1              Cleator win by 9 wkts. 18 pts.  Dalton 1 pt.

 Duddon SC  91 for 9 v Furness 90         Duddon SC win by 1 wkt. 18 pts. Furness 4 pts.                      .

 Millom 173 for 6 v Lindal Moor 171     Millom win by 4 wkts 18 pts. Lindal Moor 5 pts.

 Wigton 173 v Cockermouth 178 for 8    Cockermouth win by 2 wkts. 18 pts Wigton 6 pts.

 Workington 279 for 6 v Keswick 161    Workington win by 118 runs 18 pts. Keswick 5 pts.

Workington are League Champions

  Performances

  Batting

  Callum Moffat (Workington) 108

  K Shafi (Wigton) 101

  Gareth White (Cockermouth) 83

  Richard Webster (Keswick) 66

  M Maduwanathna (Lindal Moor) 66

  Paul Duffett (Cleator) 59 no

  Mikie Wilson (Millom) 59

  Simon Beare (Workington) 58

  Bowling

  Sridharan Sriram (Haverigg) 6 for 29

  Gary Stevenson (Duddon SC) 5 for 17

  Dave Bell (Cleator) 4 for 20

  Ian Swarbrick (Millom) 4 for 28

  M Haroom (Cockermouth) 4 for 37

  U Saeed (Carlisle) 4 for 40

  Peter Lawson (Furness) 4 for 42

  Matthew Gorley (Workington) 4 for 52

  Glenn Liddle (Wigton) 4 for 56

Saturday 1st September 2007:    Cockermouth CC 'v' Millom CC at Sandair.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth set up a mouth watering final day of the season with an emphatic Mark Bowen inspired victory over south Cumbrian side Millom at Sandair.

Going into the final game of the season only two points off top is a scenario that could only have been dreamed about in April, but superb performances from the Cockermouth team have catapulted them to title contenders in just four short months. Cockermouth travel to already relegated Wigton while leaders Workington entertain Keswick in what will be the closest ever Premier Division finish.

The day did not get off to the best of starts for the home side, drizzle costing four overs from the game and then losing the toss, which meant the defending champions were put in to bat. Gareth White was the first wicket down, playing on to his wicket for 8 from Graham Dawson. Youngsters Greg Platten and Hugh Gimber steadied the ship for the home side, providing a solid second wicket partnership before Gimber was caught at the wicket by Arnold off Kelly for 32. Substitute Professional Mahendra Nagamootoo joined Platten and looked useful before being adjudged LBW for 10, again off Kelly. Vice-captain Ian Buchanan added a breezy 32, including a fantastic sweep off visiting Professional Narsinghe Deonarine for 4, before being bowled by the Guyanese all-rounder for 32. Bryson was caught chipping to mid-wicket for 1 off Simon Bickerstaffe's bowling before Mark Bowen made his first contribution of the day, blasting a quickfire 30 and Tom O'Neill finished 1 not out, with the home side closing with a competitive 206 for 6 from 50 overs. Teenage batsman, Greg Platten batted superbly well for his chanceless innings of 76 not out and provided a fantastic base for the home side to bat around.

Nobody could have predicted the second innings of the game, as Cockermouth sought to grab maximum points and maintain pressure on Workington going into the final round of matches.

Mark Bowen removed West Indies star Narsinghe Deonarine with the second ball of the innings for 2, bowling the left-hander with a classic in-swinger. He then followed it up by getting Danny Fallows caught at the wicket by Gimber for 0. With his very next delivery, Bowen and the Cockermouth team thought they had removed the dangerous  Graham Dawson, again caught at the wicket, but this appeal was turned down. His luck did not last however, and he was given out LBW for 0 soon after. Bowen then claimed the wicket of Arnold, plumb LBW for 0 before White caught Andrew Dawson at second slip off Bowen for 14. Simon Johnson went LBW Bowen first ball and then Simon Bickerstaffe suffered the same fate, LBW Bowen, this time for 1. The dangerous Swallow was then clean bowled for 31 completing a  quite awesome display of swing bowling from the legendary former Notts ace, which had really exposed the Millom 'tail'. This was mopped up quickly by West Indies test ace Mahendra Nagamootoo, having Kelly caught brilliantly by Ian Buchanan at silly-point and then trapping Wilkinson LBW for 2. It was Bowen though who took the plaudits, picking up career best league figures of 10 overs 3 maidens 25 runs and 8 wickets.

All eyes turn to the final game of the season then, as Cockermouth seek to pick up maximum points at Low Road and hope Workington's nerves once again get the better of them as they face the challenge of Keswick.

Saturday 25th August 2007:    Cockermouth CC 'v' Keswick CC at Sandair.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth cut Workington's league lead down to a single point with a fine six wicket victory over Keswick at Sandair.

Gareth White won the toss for the home side and elected to bowl first on the Sandair surface, which paid dividends, as runs were hard to come by early on as former Notts ace Mark Bowen settled beautifully into his line and length. It was Nick Mandale who made the breakthrough though, trapping Richard Webster LBW for 1 with the batsman offering no shot. Webster's opening partner Darren Collin was then caught by Ullah at gully leaving the visitors at 10 for 2.

The experienced Imran Khan and Professional Dinuk Hettiharachi steadied the visitors ship though and played responsibly for their runs until Greg Barnes had Khan caught at the wicket sweeping. He scored a fine 50. Next to go was Hettiharachi, run out by Mark Bowen for 20 after a mix up with Joe Gibson.

Gareth White picked up the next wicket, stumped well by Hugh Gimber, but it was Greg Barnes who continued to trouble the opposition, bowling the Clark twins and then getting Joe Gibson caught in the deep by Ian Buchanan reverse sweeping as the innings drew to a close on 148 for 9, with Greg Barnes bowling an outstanding spell and picking up 4-30.

The Cockermouth innings started at brisk pace as Gareth White and Riffat Ullah looked to use the hard ball to full advantage. Scoring was quick and White in particular took advantage to score, before holing out at long off having scored 44 off 23 balls.

Greg Platten and Ullah steered the home side near to victory with Ullah beginning to cut loose. Platten however was out LBW for 15. Ullah fell next, caught at mid off for 70 and Gimber was adjudged LBW for 1 before Buchanan and Bryson saw the Champions home with 15 overs to spare.

The victory, coupled with Workington's collapse to defeat, sets up a real pressure cooker for the closing two games of the season. Next week sees Millom visit Sandair in a crunch clash and Workington travel to Lindal Moor for an unenviable game on the uncovered pitch.

Saturday 18th August 2007:    Furness CC 'v' Cockermouth CC at Furness.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

The Champions were denied the opportunity to claw back vital points on stuttering Workington as the Cumbrian summer once again intervened.

Cockermouth were instructed at 11am not to travel the 70 miles to Barrow as conditions were unplayable and unlikely to improve. There was no play in any of the other Premier League games which means that the table positions are unchanged from last weekend.

Cockermouth trail leaders Workington, who face a daunting visit from third-placed Cleator this weekend by only 12 points with 54 still yet up for grabs.

Saturday 11th August 2007:    Cockermouth CC 'v' Cleator CC at Sandair.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth increased the pressure on leaders Workington with a fine performance in a stormy encounter with third-placed Cleator at Sandair. Their lead is now down to only 12 points with 72 points still left to play for as Workington seek to save their crumbling season and avoid a repeat of last term where they eventually succumbed to Cockermouth's relentless pressure.

A miserable drizzly day turned into a vitally dry one for the defending champions, as the young side took on experienced Cleator in probably the biggest game of the season at Sandair. The toss was going to be important, as the overs were reduced due to a late start and it went in favour of Cleator's David Rooney, who unsurprisingly elected to field first.

A slight change to the batting order saw Greg Platten open with Gareth White, sadly though Platten was dismissed for 1, caught by Robert Mason at short mid-wicket off Simon Wilson's bowling. Riffat Ullah joined White and first ball clipped his foot with the bat as the ball passed the outside edge of the bat clearly. Cleator appealed vociferously but Umpire Bill Marsh stood firm and correctly gave Ullah not out. This did not please Cleator and they were frustrated further when again they appealed strongly for an LBW against Ullah, who again did not look out. Again Marsh gave Ullah not out and Cleator were outraged with the decision.

White and Ullah stood firm though, despite the tricky conditions, played some lovely strokes before rain intervened and tea was taken, ensuring no overs were lost in the game.

No sooner had the Cockermouth innings resumed, Umpire Bill Marsh was appallingly heckled from the Cleator spectators and the first on-field flashpoint took place, as Captain Gareth White seemed to take exception to comments made by Cleator Professional Paul Duffet, and the pair exchanged pleasantries at close quarters. This spurred White on as he crashed several fours before being dismissed, caught at deep square-leg by Robert Mason off the bowling of Ian Clark for 41.

Vice-captain Ian Buchanan looked spritely at the crease before being cleverly run out by the diving Duffet at short extra-cover and Mark Bowen, promoted up the order for some lusty hitting, didn't fail to disappoint the home faithful, hitting an enormous six off the bowling of spinner David Bell.

It was the brilliant Ullah though, who dominated the innings with clever strokes and mental toughness to survive a constant commentary on his effort, to construct an unbeaten 85, as the Cockermouth innings closed, one agonising run short of the final batting bonus point of 175 with 174 for 3.

The Cleator innings started positively for the visitors with Robert Mason clipping some beautiful strokes around the leg-side before succumbing to Mark Bowen with the diving Joseph Tiffin taking the catch from the leading edge at mid-on.

Tom O'Neill struggled to control the swinging ball and spin kid Greg Barnes was introduced to the attack from the Town End and he responded magnificently, taking the wicket of the dangerous Darren Clark with the help of Tom O'Neill at mid-off, who took an excellent catch despite slipping. Barnes could have added the scalp of Duffet to his collection, but Joseph Tiffin slipped and spilled the opportunity at short fine leg.

Youngster Jordan Clark entered the fray, and struggled to make any impact as he tried to force the pace in an excellent passage of play for the home side. Some good bowling and poor batting from Clark and paid man Duffet, both of whom were reluctant to risk themselves for their teams benefit, put Cockermouth in an excellent position to dominate the game. Duffet was first to go, having taken almost 30 overs to make 49, he attempted to cut Ullah but succeeded only in chopping the ball back towards his stumps, the ball rolled back and the despairing Duffet attempted to dive back and knock the ball away but to no avail as the bails dropped off, much to the delight of the Cockermouth team. Duffet seemed to over-react to a verbal parting shot from 'keeper Gareth White and stood at the crease for some time pointing his bat at the Cockermouth huddle before eventually making his way back to the changing rooms, where he remained for the duration of the game.

Ian Clark joined son Jordan at the crease and played a fantastic stroke first ball over mid-wicket for four as the experienced campaigner sought to win the game. Sadly though for the visitors, his innings ended second ball with a superb catch from Mark Bowen at cover off the bowling of Riffat Ullah

Bowen was re-introduced from the Town End as pressure increased and the ex-Notts bowler responded magnificently, removing Clark, Holliday and Wilson in quick succession. He also had Nelson dropped first ball by the diving White behind the stumps, who ought to have held on to the chance.

Joseph Tiffin took two fantastic catches at long-off at which point Cleator rightly pulled out of the run-chase opting for a losing draw with eight wickets down at 146.

A hard fought and fiery performance from White's young charges sees them really up the ante on Workington, who have an incredibly tough run-in to the season, visiting Haverigg next weekend, then hosting Cleator the week after as they seek to save their promising season from crumbling completely, having already lost the Higson Cup to Cleator.

Cockermouth visit Furness next Saturday on their final trip down to the south this season and 18 points is a must as they look to close the gap further.

Saturday 4th August 2007:    Haverigg CC 'v' Cockermouth CC at Haverigg.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth kept up the pressure on Championship rivals Workington, by pulling 4 points back on the leaders with a rain-affected draw at Haverigg. The lead is now 19 points with 5 games remaining

A cloudy day and another won toss, saw the visitors in the field as they sought to increase the pressure on media darlings Workington in the title run-in. A tight start from Bowen and O'Neill made runs hard to come by and the first chance soon followed, but Bell was dropped at Gully by Greg Platten. The pairing made the visitors pay, by adding 111 for the first wicket, although Chapman survived a very convincing appeal having edged to wicket-keeper White, before being caught at slip by Ullah. Bell was then adjudged LBW and two new men at the crease, with Professional Sridhiran Sriram joined by David Fallows, whose jobs were made easier by the increasingly wet ball. Sriram went first, having been dropped at cover by Greg Barnes, he repeated the stroke to a Bowen slower ball and was dismissed for 5. Pattison added a quickfire 20 before being dismissed and Fallows went for 44 and Elliot for 0 to close the innings on 211 for 6 from 50.

The Cockermouth team did remarkably well to maintain spirit and concentration for 50 overs in the constant drizzle. The bowlers all deserved a lot of credit for keeping going and restricting Haverigg to what would have been a well below par score, weather excepted.

The visitors innings got off to the worst possible start, Captain Gareth White, bowled by a good delivery fourth ball for 1, which got the Haverigg team and supporters very excited! Youngster Greg Platten, fresh from a county U17 century in the week and Professional Ullah steadied the ship though as the weather closed in. With Cockermouth 77 for 11 from 15 overs, the players came off for rain and the visitors lost eight overs. Returning to the field, it was clear that the game was not going to finish so the players followed their Captain's instructions to play shots and secure some bonus points. In the very first over after the break, Greg Platten was somehow given out caught at the wicket, when the ball appeared to bounce well before 'keeper Chapman for a brisk 28. Riffat Ullah fell victim to slip David Fallows stomachs, as he attempted to square cut Sriram for 32. Hodgson was unfortunate to be given out caught at the wicket for 1, Bryson was LBW Evans for 8 and Buchanan was bowled by Sriram for 16 and O'Neill was again unfortunate to go, LBW Sriram for 14 as the visitors sought to pass the 125 mark and the rain, constant throughout the innings, became too persistent to carry on.

A depressing day's cricket came to a close with Cockermouth 129 for 7 having beaten the rain to a second batting bonus point.

A home game against third-placed Cleator, who trail the Sandair-men by 4 points next weekend will prove massive in the championship run in.

Saturday 28th July 2007:    Cockermouth CC 'v' Carlisle CC at Sandair.

NL & CCL Premier Division.

Cockermouth kept up the pressure on Championship rivals Workington with a fine batting performance at Sandair.

Once again though, the home side had a fantastic innings to contend with as visiting Professional Upul Saeed constructed a fine and chanceless century to give his side a fighting chance of victory as Carlisle continue to battle against relegation. Opening the innings for the visitors, Saeed slowly began to dominate, but initially scoring was slow. The returning Nick Mandale struck first blood, as he removed Mark Brown with a quick bouncer. The opener was beaten for pace and could only succeed in pulling the ball to 15 year-old debutant Ryan Carruthers, who dived full-length at mid-wicket to cling on.

The Carlisle number three also fell victim to Mandale, caught at the wicket by Gareth White standing up to the stumps. Graeme Ion batted well for 47 and helped the visitors to a decent position before being bowled by Riffat Ullah for 47. Visiting Captain Davis was then run out before Saeed was bowled by Tom O'Neill for 111.

The home side started positively in their chase with both Ullah and White playing some lovely strokes around the ground. This kept the side well up with the necessary run rate and basically finished the game off for the visitors, as they amassed an opening stand of 169, with White dismissed stumped for a brisk 79. Ullah went on to complete his second century of the season and was undefeated at the close on 102, with Greg Platten 8 not out.

A fantastic victory for the home side, who remain in second place, 23 points behind leaders Workington. A big game next week at Haverigg could decide whether the young side can maintain their title challenge.

The Premier Division Table after Saturday looks this way...

      Daniel Thwaites N. Lancs. & Cumbria League Premier Division Table after July 28^th.