Everyone got an un-wanted reminder of the terrible weather of last season as the second league weekend saw widespread rain interruptions and in the case of the Reed Third Eleven abandonment. Maseeh Naeem had won the toss for Reed and elected to bat first. Paul Garrott and Marcus J.E. Baker opened up for the hosts but suffered an early upset, Garrott bowled by Bryson (8-2-50-1) in the first over. Ian Fulk came to the crease and together with Baker formed a strong partnership. The pair, although patient and cautious, never looked in any real discomfort as they went about the basics of waiting for the bad balls. Baker started off the more dominant batsman racking up the boundaries whilst Fulk notched up singles. However, having taken the score past 50 Baker and Fulk switched roles as Fulk raced towards his own half century in a flourish of fours. Baker meanwhile was now just happy to watch from the other end a tally up singles. With a partnership of 108 to their names and a solid base for the team Fulk was caught at mid-on for a superb 57. The in-form Rob Lankaster joined Baker and was soon making runs. Baker then brought up his own 50 with a lovely sweep. In the final few overs to be played Ray Kingshott, replacing Baker (52,) raced to 17 not out with Lankaster 16 not out. The rain then forced the players from the field and eventually the decision was made that play could not be continued which was disappointing considering the platform of 150 from 33 that Reed had given themselves.

Reed’s Third Eleven had to endure the frustrations of a draw when they hosted Broxbourne III. Masseh Naeem once again won the toss and chose to bat first. The previous days rain did not seem to do any obvious damage to the pitch and another high scoring game was expected.The oppositions eagerness was clear to see having arrived early and their vocal calls in the field intended to put pressure on the opening pair of father and son duo Peter and Marcus Baker. For the visitors Brooker had got some nice away swing and kept his end quiet, whilst Miller saw M.J.E. Baker hit a couple of well timed shots to the boundary. M.J.E. Baker was then rapped on the jaw by Miller which he did not appreciate too much so in his next over Baker smashed Miller for 16 which his captain did not appreciate too much forcing an early bowling change. Despite M.J.E. Baker’s early dominance he gave his wicket away weakly when caught for 26 at mid-off.P. Baker (25) continued for some time but was to become the first of Harvey’s four wickets as Reed’s middle order struggled. Sitting precariously at 67 for 4 Richard Barlow then played a determined knock taking Reed out of immediate danger. However, an unlucky catch saw Barlow (15) removed and Reed once again on uncertain ground at 97 for 5 with still over 20 overs to negotiate. Tom Walsingham let his bat do the talking for him. In a well constructed innings, in partnership with Mathew Naeem, Walsingham realised his potential with a superb knock. He timed the ball beautifully in his essential and chanceless innings of 80. He and Naeem had added 83 together taking [...]

It was a heavy defeat Reed forced upon Cockfosters at Freman College when they played with dominant aggression and precision. With showers forecast Reed wanted a quick win and therefore took the gamble to insert the visitors.A superb opening bowling display by Tom Walsingham and George Garrott saw Cockfosters struggle to make runs, both were quickly finding the troubling lines. The mandatory, age related bowling change then saw Walsingham replaced by Mike Robertson, who soon upset the batsmen with some accurate short bowling. Garrott (11-3-22-0) then made way for Karl Ward who also quickly had the ball in all the right areas. The early efforts of Garrott and Walsingham proved the crucial set up for the partnership of Robertson and Ward as the first change bowlers began to take wickets. The bowlers were well supported by their colleagues as catches were taken by Richard Barlow and Rob Lankaster.The dreaded rain then descended on Buntingford and the players sought shelter. An early tea was decided upon whilst the heavy stuff came down. With the exquisite teas finished a return to play was called for and Reed and Cockfosters came back out with both teams losing 7 overs to the downpour. The hosts were soon enough back in the business of taking wickets, with Marcus J.E. Baker taking a catch behind off Walsingham whose second spell proved destructive. Cockfosters made it to the end of their innings with a score of 117 for 8 with one player missing. Robertson (10-3-16-3) and Walsingham (14-7-22-3) each took three whilst Karl Ward (8-1-18-2) had also done well in what was a very impressive display from the bowlers.Baz Curtis and M.J.E. Baker knew a strong opening partnership from them was crucial [...]

Reed Third Eleven continued its strong start to the season with a win over Greenwood Park. Maseeh Naeem for the third straight time won the toss and for the third straight time elected to bat.A reasonable start was made by the hosts before Reed lost their first wicket with the score on 21. Marcus J.E. Baker made the early runs for his side. Riding his luck he nonetheless racked up the boundaries in a hard hitting knock of 38. With the score on 62 for 3 a partnership was needed to build on this start and fortunately one was provided by Ben Bowles and Michael Robertson. The pair took complete control of the opposition bowling. In only 15 overs they put on 123 runs when Bowles, who had been playing the anchor role for much of the Reed innings, was bowled for a well crafted 43. Robertson meanwhile continued to hit the ball cleanly, he had only needed 33 balls to reach his half century and was rapidly closing in on three figures in a hail of fours and sixes. However, he put one down the throat of deep mid-wicket for a superb 93 (13x4, 5x6). Maseeh Naeem then came to the crease with his sides total on 198 from 33 overs. He briefly partnered Scott Caine, who made a valiant 6 and continued to bat with an injured shoulder, before making a stand of 58 with Ian Roberts. Wanting to finish with a good total, Naeem went about what he does best and dealt in boundaries on his way to 52 not out. Ian Roberts had made 21 and Reece Fitzgerald an impressive 12 after him. Reed declared in the 50th over with the [...]

Reed got off to a winning start at Freman College against a spirited Harpenden side. Reed elected to bat first; Baz Curtis and Richard Johnson’s opening partnership of 121 set the home side up for a big total. Both batsmen scored quickly and the Harpenden bowlers were going at a rate of 7.5 runs an over after the first ten overs had been bowled. Johnson was the first to reach his 50 but finally fell in the 17th over after scoring 70. Ian Fulk (23) went in at three and shared a partnership of 23 before Curtis was given out LBW after scoring 54. Rob Lankaster, the young wicket keeper batsman, went in at four and produced a man of the match innings. He finished on 74 not out, his score included 14 boundaries. Ray Kingshot, Roddi Leibenberg and Marcus Baker helped take the Reed score to 270 for 6 declared after 47 overs.The score was always going to be too much for the visitors but to their credit they did try. Reeds opening attack of Tom Walsingham and Toby Fynn bowled with pace and control, although Fynn took some punishment in his first two overs going for 22 before getting the Harpenden opener with a short delivery. Walsingham was very economical and finished with 3 – 14 after 10 overs. Fynn only conceded 6 runs after his first two overs and finished with 3 – 28 after 7 overs. Maseeh Naeem picked up 4 – 38 in his eight over spell and the Harpenden innings ended on 166 all out after 37 overs.

Reed’s Third Eleven faced ultimate disappointment after a heavy defeat playing away to Hatch End. Throughout the day rain threatened whilst strong winds blew across the pitch. Whilst the pitch itself did not hold too many demons the outfield was in such a condition that free scoring runs where not easy to come by.Batting first Reed’s opening pair of Marcus J.E. Baker and Rhodri Hughes did bat well together. Both proved stubborn in facing the very fast pace of Cunningham who was far too good for division 9. Davies, bowling from the other end was a more familiar pace but his line and length demanded respect, so Baker and Hughes took the cautious route in their scoring. After making 37 together Baker (23) got a leading edge and lost the battle against Cunningham. Richie Barlow came to the wicket and precisely placed some shots past the tight infield and picked up some useful runs before being LBW for 11. Hughes, meanwhile had continued his diligent innings. In what was probably his sternest examination to date he fended off Cunningham’s pace, short stuff and commentary well. However, he would eventually be caught by Davies off his own bowling for 15. Ray Kingshott chipped in with 11 whilst the rest of Reed’s order collapsed for single digit scores. Davies (5-41) bowled a troubling line throughout whilst Cunningham (5-58) eventually realised that actually bowling at the stumps might be useful. Just the two skilled bowlers were needed to skittle Reed for 106.In response Reed’s bowlers failed to not bowl the odd boundary ball. Ian Roberts (7-3-14-1) tried his best in the extreme wind but it was not to be his day. Reece Fitzgerald too looked threatening but it [...]

It proved a poor journey for the third eleven when they travelled away to face Allenburys. For the fourth time in a row Masseh Naeem won the toss but this time in their first away match of the season he chose to insert the hosts.The Reed side had a strong pace attack which was first displayed by Tom Walsingham and George Garrott. Reed got the early advantage when the usual high standards in the field caused opening bat Wheatley to be run out thanks to Michael Naeem and Kallum Ward. The following over however, then saw a chance missed which would prove to be a costly one. Kent (58) and Knight (63) formed a solid partnership which frustrated the bowlers. The pair put on over a hundred together, however they never really took the game away from Reed. After they were both lost the young visiting side saw their opportunity. A few cameos were made but the wickets were shared amongst the bowlers. Walsingham (1-32), Garrott (1-11) and Naeem (1-34) each took a single wicket whilst Jack Caine (2-44) and Ward (2-33) claimed two. Although Reed did begin to tire in the surprising heat catches were taken by Mike Naeem, Jack Caine, Lewis Fitzgerald and Marcus J.E. Baker who did a good job with the gloves conceding just the single bye. Allenburys finished their innings on 190 for 9 with some late hitting and dashing adding 30.Reed had lost two quick, cheap wickets in their response before a partnership between Ritchie Barlow and M.J.E. Baker. Baker once again opened the innings and was looking calm and controlled but disaster struck as the ball jagged off the seam and he was bowled for 24. Reed were [...]

Reeds Third Eleven showed their supreme grit and determination with one of the great come back wins in the side’s history. Maseeh Naeem won the toss making it 5 from 5 and elected to bat first at the Freman College pitch.Marcus J.E. Baker once again opened the innings this time joined by Ben Bowles, both making steady starts. Higgs and Davies after some loose first overs began to bowl some frustratingly tight lines, as Reeds scoring options began to dry up. Bowles fell for 10 and was replaced in the middle by Ritchie Barlow who knew it was essential to build a partnership with Baker. The pair relied on good calling and running to keep the scoreboard ticking over. All though the outfield remained quick the balls were just never there to be put away and closing in on 20 overs the score was only on 59. After Baker played on for 30 and Barlow bowled for 29 the middle order all chipped in with scores. Scott Caine looked in good form and added 29 with Ray Kingshott who was also playing the ball nicely. Caine 10 was replaced by Michael Naeem (18) who struck some nice boundaries. Despite these contributions and cameos Reed were in a real danger of giving the opposition too many overs to chase with. Wickets were falling at a too regular interval leading up to the 40th over with the score on 147 when 3 fell in four balls including Kingshott for 18. Now 9 down with still another 13 overs to see through, captain Maseeh Naeem and Tom Walsingham made the most fruitful partnership of the innings. Both playing sensibly but also positively took Reed to 189 from 49 [...]

Due to some very poor availability Reed’s Third Eleven travelled down to top of the table Berkhamsted with only 8 players. For Reed it was a dead rubber but the hosts still needed points to ensure finishing champions. So upon winning the toss Berkhamsted’s captain decided to bat first.With so much space to score runs it was no surprise that the home side raced to 306-4 before declaring after 35 overs. This was despite the very hard work of Reed bowlers George Garrott, Ian Roberts (3) and Reece Fitzgerald (1). For Reed things went from bad to worse as the top 3 batsmen were lost with only 3 on the total. Ray Kingshott and Peter Baker batted well together and added 53 for the fourth wicket before Baker played on for 26. An aggressive knock from George Garrott followed but he was lost after being run out for 15. Reed were in dire straits at 97 for 6 but a sublime seventh (and in this case, final) wicket stand of 111 displayed the true abilities of Reeds third XI. Kingshott and Roberts played magnificently together and proved stubborn in the face of Berkhamsted’s, until then, impressive attack. Roberts then suffered a top edged blow to the face which cut his top lip. However, he refused to leave the field which was fortunate for Kingshott who at the time was on 98. Three figures for the veteran soon followed before being caught two balls later. Reed had given it a fair try and certainly did well to finish on 208 all out.It was a disappointing end for the 3’s who for most of the season had looked real competitors for promotion. But a poor final part [...]