Abingdon Vale CC have been drawn at home to  Beaconsfield in the 1st Round of the ECB National Club’s Knockout Cup.  This is a repeat of the 2007 fixture which AVCC won by 6 wickets.

The date of the game is Sunday 16th May, with a 1pm start

The cold weather that has hit Abingdon so far this winter has certainly affected the club

Please see the photo below – reproduced by kind permission of http://www.abingdonblog.co.uk/

Once the snow melts – we will need to do some ground work to gwt the ground up to scratch for the new season

From our roving reporter (Ady White) – some photos of the dutch dinner from last night!

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The Dutch tour starts next week (the 20th July) – and will start offwith a 20/20 match on the Monday evening – additionally, there will be a fundraising BBQ on the 18th July – see the flyer.

The tour itinerary will be as follows:

• Monday 20th – July Dutch tourists arrive in Abingdon approx midday. Meet hosts, drop off bags then back to the club for 20/20 match v AVCC and BBQ.

• Tuesday 21st v Cumnor (a). 2pm start.

• Wednesday 22nd – Day off – day trip to Oxford by boat. Sightseeing/historic pub crawl/ games in the Parks. Tour Dinner 8pm at Upper Reaches – 3 course meal, £25 pp.

• Thursday 23rd v AVCC Invitational XI at Hales Meadow (all day game), 11am start.

• Friday 24th v Kingston Bagpuize (a). 2pm start.

• Saturday 25th – Day off – either watch 1st XI v Great Tew, 3rd XI v Twyford II, or Northants v Aussies (County Ground, Northants). Beers of the World in the evening.

• Sunday 26th v Hosts XI at Hales Meadow, 45 overs per side, 2pm start.

• Monday 27th – Dutch tourists return to Leiden.

A copy of the itinerary can be downloaded using this link: Dutch Tour Itinerary, and also, please have a look at at information about the BBQ on the 18th July.

Note to anyone getting the nets out or putting them away at the club:

You *must* keep some tension on the cable when pulling the cable out or winding it away! Do NOT let the cable run loose when winding it up, and do not let the winch run free when pulling it out – you need to pull the cable down the length of the pitch as you slowly control the speed of the winch as you let the cable out.

If you do not keep tension in the cable, you run a strong risk of jamming the cable in the winch (by it looping off the reel in some fashion) – trying to subsequently force the winch/cable will make an even bigger mess! It’ll also result in a long, greasy process of trying to fix it, which I will personally supervise if anyone stuffs it up by not following the instructions!

If anyone has questions, please ask someone who knows what to do before using it!

The committee are concerned that a number of senior players have not yet paid subscriptions. Subscription rates for the year are:

• Senior – £80
• Over 18 in full time education – £40
• Under 18 – £35

Please note that anyone who has not paid subscriptions by 1 June will not be considered for selection after that date. Subscriptions will also rise to £100 after 1 June.

If you have not already paid, please arrange for payment to be sent to Garry Cook ASAP. Alternatively, give your payment to any of the captains who will pass the payment on.

• Think you know the best players at the club ?
• Want to pit your skills against other club members ?
• Does it matter if you play in the 1st, 2nd’s, 3’s or 4’s ?
• Fancy a flutter with a better chance than the bookies ?

….Then Abingdon Vale CC Fantasy Cricket league is for you ! (& partners, parents, grandparents, uncles, aunties, neighbours, friends etc.)

How to Enter: Select your 11 players (upto 60 points) on the Entry Form (Excel format), pick your unique team name & send completed forms to Alpesh Mistry.

Enter the unique player reference number into the form and all details will update automatically, save form and email back to me. Points awarded for all games (Sat, Sun, mid week etc)

Cost of entry: only £10 (Inflation busting deal ) – Money will be collected shortly at the ground / Sat game etc. Updates will be sent out fortnightly (subject to getting information on time)

4 Prizes – 1st, 2nd, 3rd & last place.  (prize fund will be 50% of total pot) e.g 30 people = 1st = £100, 2nd = £30, 3rd = £10 & last place £10

Let’s get as many people joining !!! The more people the bigger the prize!!! I will also leave forms at the club to fill in for those without t’internet and will be collecting cash over the next few weeks – All family members and friends

Welcome to the 2009 season! (almost!) The cricket is starting in just under a couple of weeks now – the first matches are scheduled for the 18th of April with the League Cup starting on that Saturday.

Please make your availability known to either Mikey Cook or Ed Tilley before Tuesday 14th April if you are available to play on that date and/or the first Sunday fixture on the 19th.

Also, coming up soon we have the Start of Season Party on the 25th April at the clubhouse after the fixtures that day, followed by another AVCC Whisky Tasting on Friday 1st May at 7:30pm. If you want tickets to the whisky tasting, please email Graeme for a ticket (cost is £15 – first come first served – currently tickets are still available!).

For the observant among you, you will notice that the website has been changed slightly – though we’re still in the process of getting content copied over, so bear with us for the next few weeks!