The clubroom of Timsbury Cricket Club was packed for the annual Presentation Evening with all three teams well represented. It had been a difficult season for the first eleven but this had not been reflected in the club atmosphere which remained buoyant throughout the campaign.
Club Chairman Austin Sage praised the efforts of all the players and was delighted with the number of people working for the club. He thanked Matt and Adam Brinkworth for their work with the youth sides and James Rawlings for organising the under 19s matches.
Lloyd Davies had worked hard training the senior players. Dave Perryman and Martyn Sage had toiled hard to produce good playing surfaces for the teams on the main ground and at the school and Martyn received a well-deserved award for his consistently hard work.
The Chairman announced that there were initial plans to extend the clubroom but stressed that these were still early days for the plans. In appreciation of their efforts flowers were presented to Ann Sage, Rita Day, Cheryl Bradley, Eve Bird, Claire Sage, and Mel Hosford.
There were some excellent speeches from the three senior captains. Ashley Davis who is standing down after seven memorable years as third team skipper, and who was later voted club person of the year, said that his side had experienced a difficult year on the field with just three wins but felt that the 27 players who had represented the club had enjoyed their games . Matthew Ball was again the top batsman with Josh Blanchard the leading bowler. Teenager Oliver Hulbert was player of the season.
Ben Hosford in his third year as second team captain said that after a slow start the team was not far from achieving promotion for the third year in a row but the side eventually finished fourth in the Bristol and District League Division 7. He commended Greg Passingham on a fine all-round season and leading run scorer Adam Workman who scored 419 runs and was second team player of the year.
Gary Pearcy was the most successful bowler with 19 wickets. The most important thing he said was that there had been an excellent atmosphere in the side and players looked as though they were really enjoying themselves.
Jon Strand could not have had a more testing baptism as first team captain and the team managed just three wins in the West of England Premier League. The skipper remained upbeat, however, and praised the efforts of the players against sides with overseas players and much greater resources.
Mark Sage had again spearheaded the batting and got the side off to a number of good starts alongside Adam Brinkworth whose batting and excellent wicketkeeping earned him the player of the year award. On the bowling front Sam Hoddinott was praised by the captain for his economical spells and there were good returns from Steve Clothier and Neil Hucker. Despite a challenging year on the field Strand said there remained a vibrant atmosphere throughout the season.
Another successful evening concluded with first team all-rounder Graeme Webb giving his own personal recollections of the 2019 season.
The annual awards were as follows:
Youth section
Most improved Junior (Eddie Strong Trophy) Angus Martin
Best performance by a Junior (Graham Bryant Trophy) Ben Smith
Outstanding teenager (S G Taylor Memorial Cup) Joe Kinnear
Biggest 6 Under 15 and below (Steve Nowell Challenge Cup ) Ben Smith
Club ties Ben Smith, Josh Blanchard
Senior section
Club caps Will Rawlings, Oli Davis, Josh Blanchard
Fastest 50 (John Newth Cup) Rob Clothier
Best individual performance (S G Taylor Cup) Kevin Sibley
First team Player of the Year (Sage Family Trophy) Adam Brinkworth
Second team Player of the Year (Malcolm Tucker Cup) Adam Workman
Third team Player of the Year (Colin Weaver Cup) Oliver Hulbert
Clubperson of the Year Ashley Davis
Junior Clubperson of the Year (Roger and Eve Bird Cup) James Rawlings