The breathless finish of last year is history now as the Surrey Cricket Championship campaign gets underway on Saturday
It was an ideal start for the new-look league, incorporating three competitions across the county, and which this year has a new headline sponsor. London chartered accountancy firm M Zaidi & Co have signed a four-year deal, with a strong commitment to community engagement.
Just 11 points divided the top six going into the final week of last year’s Premier Division battle, Wimbledon – having blown two opportunities to wrap up the title – making no mistake third time round as they thumped Spencer.
They start with a home clash against Sutton, their rivals in the Thameslink derby slipping to sixth in the end after hovering around the summit for much of the season. While the visitors have a new captain in Australian opener Ryan Hackney, their hosts are delighted prolific Kiwi Jack Boyle has returned to spearhead the batting, although wicketkeeper/bat James Crosthwaite has moved back to Australia and Surrey’s Ryan Patel switches to his old club Old Rutlishians after their promotion to Division One.
Runners-up last year and aching to win their first title since 2014, Reigate Priory make the short trip over the M25 to take on Banstead, who pinched third place last year by beating Ashtead and have Australian Patrick Rowe back for a fifth year, having so far scored 2,309 runs at 53.7 plus another 1,160 in cup competitions.
For their part, Ashtead have added Dylan Church, once of Leicestershire seconds, and Kiwi Lachie Stackpole after his fellow countryman Jock McKenzie suffered an injury. They start at home to Esher, who evaded the drop at the last possible moment by overcoming Sutton and have been recruiting hard.
Guildford ensured an immediate return to Premier level by winning Division One, having had more ups and downs than Zebedee. Promotion three years ago might have been capped by the title only to miss out in the final game against Sunbury, then plummeting to relegation. Olly Birts stays in charge, hoping for plenty of runs from Victoria and Melbourne Stars bat Blake MacDonald while former Sussex seamer Jamie Atkins is player-coach.
They start with a tough assignment at home to East Molesey, fourth last year and determine to recapture the crown last won in 2024.
Normandy won a nervy battle for runners-up spot in Division One, having to see off challengers Weybridge while Beddington blew up in a run chase at Camberley, their reward a long trip to Spencer, who enjoyed a good late run in August to secure what had looked a precarious existence.
Esher’s escape sent down Sunbury, who now have Sam Burgess in charge as they bid for a speedy return, their relegation just two years after that title success.
Premier Division week 1 matches (12pm): Ashtead v Esher; Banstead v Reigate Priory; Guildford v East Molesey; Spencer v Normandy; Wimbledon v Sutton.
FINAL LEAGUE PLACINGS IN 2025
Premier Division: 1 Wimbledon 261; 2 Reigate Priory 258; 3 Banstead 250; 4 East Molesey 250; 5 Ashtead 238; 6 Sutton 236; 7 Spencer 219; 8 Esher 183; 9 Sunbury 176 (R); 10 Dulwich 125 (R).
Division 1 – promoted: 1 Guildford; 2 Normandy. Relegated: 9 Cranleigh; 10 Oxted & Lmpsfld. Division 2 – promoted: 1 Rutlishians; 2 Hamptonians. Relegated: 8 Cheam; 9 Stoke d’Abernon; 10 Wimbledonians.
SUNDAY OUTINGS
No sooner is the first round of matches over and Championship clubs will have to concentrate on the next round of matches in the ECB National Club Championship, the competition having started last month.
East Molesey face a tough trip to Ealing in group 11, where Malden Wanderers host Banbury while group 16 has Banstead v Haywards Heath, Esher v Bromley and Wimbledon v Sandwich Town.
Group 12 sees Division One pair Sunbury and Valley End clashing while Normandy head to Teddington.
In Group 15, it’s Ashtead v Nonington, Sutton v Blackheath and Tunbridge Wells v Reigate Priory.
All matches start at 1pm and are 40 overs per side.
WINTER LOSSES
A new season starts but it will be without some familiar figures who died during the winter months.
Taking more than 2,000 wickets for the club, no one did more to elevate Farnham than Chic Stedman, who played for the club from 1968 to 2005. His left-arm seam bowling rarely gave batsmen much respite, armed with a sardonic quip to follow up. Farnham rose from the Three Counties League to becoming a force in the upper reaches of the Surrey Championship in Stedman’s two spells as captain, from 1983-90 and 1992-94. A close-knit team – which included his wicketkeeper Rodney “Rabbit” Warriner and the three Thorpe brothers – they relished beating the bigger clubs. Stedman detested losing, especially to Guildford, and even when president made a trip to net practice just to tell the players that before one match.
His favourite trick was to get a game started just before the scheduled time and point out to an opener speedily dismissed that his match was over before it had begun. Stedman was a genial soul off the field and would often buy them a drink to make up for it.
Tony Schaffer had his heart and soul in Sunbury’s cricket, following the footsteps of his father. Scoring almost 8,000 runs for them was merely part of it as he went on to be a committee member, chairman, president, writer of reports for the media and always pleased to welcome anyone who arrived at the ground.
Robin Hollingsworth never bowled or faced a ball in Surrey Championship cricket but his skills and expertise as an orthopaedic surgeon – which earned him such high standing in his profession – ensured that many players could recover from serious injuries which might have ended their playing days. Sons James, Andy and Simon – who played for the likes of Horsley & Send, Guildford, Farnham and Cranleigh, the latter pair making first-class debuts for Durham University – represented the family on the field. Robin’s presence would be indicated by a wisp of pipe smoke. With his wife Diane a former nurse and Andy a practicising physio, the family were better staffed than many hospitals.
Mike Giles’s involvement at Ripley was as a player, captain, chairman and trustee. You don’t have to spend long on the Green to bump into a member of the family, daughters Carrie and Tracy and sons Andy and Ashley – who moved on to Guildford, Warwickshire and England – plus the extensive Shoesmith clan into which he married when he met his wife Paula. Mike may no longer be at Ripley but somehow he will always be there.
