2005 can be looked back upon as a very successful year for the club. Congratulations to the 2nd and 3rd XIs for securing promotion for the second consecutive year. The 1st XI were in contention for promotion right up until the last game of the season but narrowly missed out finishing 4th losing only four games. There were still plenty of positives with which to build on for next year. Team spirit was first-rate largely due to the influx of new players of proven quality. There was strength in depth in both the batting and bowling departments and the overall standard of fielding was outstanding and proved to be vital in close games.
There were some notable individual performances to report. Tom Leese started off the season like a steam train scoring most of his 500+ runs by the end of June including five 50s and 143 not out. Neil Goodman joined the team mid June and contributed two 50s and 159. Both averaged over the 50 mark. Pete Hammond showed his undoubted class in the latter half of the season and scored an excellent 100 against OTs & Romsey on a difficult track whilst both Matt Journeaux and Simon Orr were on occasions destructive. Michael Bond showed signs of becoming a fine middle order batsman in his first full year in the 1st XI and offered good support when required. Just about everybody else contributed at some point in the year.
On the bowling front it was a welcome sight to see Danny O'Connell back in Sarisbury colours. Easily the most consistent of the bowlers (going at only 2.67 runs per over) and the added bonus of taking wickets regularly (26 at an average of about 10.50). Paul Friedrich bowled some important overs and took an excellent 5 for 28 against Redlynch & Hale. It was also good to see Matt Journeaux and Pete Hammond offering valuable support when called upon. We had our very own Jekyll & Hyde in Steve Clark who was consistently unplayable either by beating the outside edge or causing the slip cordon to run for cover. A point to note was that Sarisbury's bowling points average was the best in County 1 which was a great achievement (although not as good as the 3rd team's 100% record . well done guys).
Sean O'Toole, Craig Raddon, Graham Flower, and Mike Edwards made their 1st team debut this year and each performed admirably. Sean, Craig and Graham prove that the colts system is still producing good young talent.
Sarisbury now have a solid foundation and a superb opportunity to move further forward and compete at the highest level. The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th XIs are in leagues that support the development of players looking to play a higher standard and there is now competition for places. A quality strike bowler who can lead the attack would be an ideal addition to the ranks but with continued hard work and application starting with nets and coaching during the winter the current crop of players are talented enough to realise the ambition of Sarisbury Athletic becoming a Southern League club.
I would like to thank the players, umpires, scorers, ground staff, supporters and all other background faces for all your efforts and support this year.
