Boys’ Cricket Once again, the cricket teams had to battle the rain in the early part of the season which made finding batting or bowling form difficult. However, as the season went on and the sun came out, many of our teams started to get into winning ways. The U15s again had Tommy Phillips to thank for the lion’s share of their runs and wickets but he received good support from Jake Taylor, Charlie Patterson, Adam Tuffery and Joe Han-Hauser. The U14As were too good for all except Colston’s. Al Mackenzie was the key contributor with bat and ball, but newcomers Harry Hodges and Oliver Penney both added much to the team. Oliver Parry also made some key contributions. The U14Bs, under Conor Devlin-Cook’s impressive leadership, also lost just once. Angus Batchelor and Jamie Ker both scored match-winning fifties but Rupert Bayliss’ spell of 5-10 against Beechen Cliff was perhaps the highlight of their season. For the U13As, Hamish Walker recorded the only fifty and Josh Knight is a strong contender for most improved player in the school. Nathan Gregg, Fin Crowe, Oscar Kenyon and Will Jeffery also impressed. In the Bs, Conor Finnamore, Hal Norman and Robin Pun were all consistent performers. In Year 7, Noah Small was the stand-out bowler for the U12Bs, but Matthew Cheung also made good progress in his first season of cricket. Oscar Stevens and Lewis Taylor were the main run-getters. The U12A team was the most improved team in the school. Having lost their first three matches, they went on to win four of their next five and were also victorious in the annual Kingswood Ten10 tournament. The hard-hitting of Charlie Roach was one reason for this change in fortune, as was the economical bowling of Stephen King and Rory Padkin’s wicketkeeping. Antonio Mba Ivina and Marcus Kershaw will also be a formidable new ball partnership in a couple of years. 66 Kingswood in Focus
Of the senior teams, the 3rd XI was unbeaten under Ethan Chilcott’s expert stewardship. Head Boy Jack Crowther undertook his third term of captaincy, as he led the 2nd XI to a near perfect record. Matt Holmes was the leading run-scorer and narrowly missed out on a century against Prior Park, as he was left stranded on 96 not out. “Captain Jack” and Max Pugsley also scored regular runs and George Postlethwaite and Monty Keith were the pick of the bowlers.
Mr James Brown (Head of Boy’s Games)
Review of the 1st XI season The 1st XI takes part in two competitions - the National Schools Twenty20 Knockout and the local Peak Sports 40 Over League. In this year’s Twenty20 tournament, there were good signs early on as we sailed through the first round, making light work of Prior Park. The second game took us to the picturesque setting of Downside School where Kieran Gibson and Tim Rouse hit well-crafted 50s. We then bowled them out for 90, with Osh Devlin-Cook and Matt Scott bowling particularly well. The regional semi-final against a strong Filton Academy side, however, signalled the end of our campaign. Meanwhile, in the Peak Sports League this season, we managed to go unbeaten with 4 wins and 2 no results, meaning we finished as joint winners. The season ended perfectly with an unbeaten cricket week, which included wins against the MCC and the Headmaster’s XI. There were key contributions from several members of the team. Lucas Reeman has established himself as a fine all-rounder this year, taking wickets in every game and finishing as the third highest run scorer in the team.