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The U13s travelled to Colehill and were put into the field after losing the toss. After a tricky start, strong spells from Curtis (3-30), Adkins (2-17) and Gul (2-19) tied Dorset down to 219 from their 40 overs. The IW were excellent in the field and with the ball in hand and should be very pleased with their efforts. 

Despite the loss of an early wicket, a quick fire start from Webb (36) saw the IW race to 100 from 15 overs. Unfortunately the regular loss of wickets stalled the momentum and despite chasing the score hard towards then end, with a useful 18 from Adkins, the IW finished on 135 all out. 

Plenty of lessons to take forward and the boys played the game in a great spirit and conducted themselves admirably throughout. 

Our U12s won the toss and choose to bat first on a good wicket at Ferndown. 

Some good bowling restricted us to 36-4, however a quick fire innings from Rafe Hawkins (37) and important runs from Thomas Southcott (22) pushed our score to 150 all out. 

Hawkins then cleaned up the opening Dorset batter for just 1, before a solid partnership of 58 was broken up by Toby Morgan (2-17), who along with Southcott (2-32) were the pick of the Island bowlers.  Dorset were able to chase down our target with 5 overs to spare after losing 5 wickets, however there were plenty of positives to take from the game. The boys showed great resilience to stay competitive defending our total and saw off some very talented Dorset seamers with little problem. 

In their first outing, the IW U10s hosted Dorset on a windy but very warm day at Ryde School with 2 x T20 matches played in a great spirit, with both sides taking the opportunity to learn and develop. 

Match 1 - Dorset won by 56 runs

Bowling first, IW got off to a great start with Charlie Tuck (3-14 from 2) and Mohammed Naqvi (1-7 from 2) removing the top 3 batters for little score. A middle order revival was then halted by a great c&b from Tuck and two bits of brilliance from Oscar Parsons (one wicket & one fine run out). The next Dorset pair then posted quick scores for them to finish on 138-6. 

In reply some very accurate and quick bowling meant a few good starts were often curtailed quickly, however some excellent hitting from Arlo Tautz (a run-a-ball 15) and Skipper Ollie Maidment carrying his bat throughout the innings for a fine 27* from 28 balls, meant we finished up on 82-6.   

Match 2 - Dorset won by 99 runs

The welcome cloud cover disappeared during the break, and as such our young team found the second match a bit more of a struggle in the field, with the Dorset batters being able to pick off the bowling easier this time around. 

However IW never gave up with excellent encouragement and leadership from Maidment and Sonny Ferrin, plus wickets from Theodore Mackett (1-7 from 2), Naqvi and another wicket and run out from Tuck. In the end Dorset posted a good score of 165-4.  

We decided to flip our batting order for the 2nd game to give others an opportunity, however the Dorset opening bowlers proved to be a bit too quick and accurate for our young side. 

A last wicket partnership of 40 however between Maidment and Samuel Collinson dragged our score up to 66 all out from 17 overs.   

The team played with great spirit and character and despite the results can hold their heads up high as they continue on with their early stage of their developmental journey.  

The U12s took on Middlesex Schools in a 40 over match at St James Boys School in Ashford. 

After losing the toss and being asked to field first, some tight bowling from Ian Hailes ( 3 for 22) & Thomas Southcott (2 for 19) restricted the opposition to 152 all out. 

After a shaky start to the reply, Hailes hit a 22 to steadied the ship before Tom Clemens (45) and Ben Fry (26) hit a 68 run partnership in a mature batting display. Unfortunately the team ran out just 10 runs short of the Middlesex total.   

The team were led excellently by Jake Webb and performed well in a game which was played in a great spirit. 

Our U11s travelled to the impressive setting of St James Boys School in Ashford to play 2 x T20 fixtures against Middlesex Schools. 

Both matches were played in a great spirit and tested all the players skills across the two games. 

Match 1 - Middlesex Schools won by 42 runs. 

Batting 1st, the Hosts' top order all scored well - however excellent application in the field, tight overs from Ollie Maidment and Charlie Tuck (4 overs for just 11 runs across the 2 games) and wickets from Will Dall-Whittal & Rory Hillier (a tricky high catch taken by Samuel Collinson) kept the score to 128 from 20 overs. 

In the IW reply, some impressive bowling - including a 4 wicket haul meant the scoreboard couldn't keep ticking over and we were ended up on 86-6 from our innings.  

Match 2 - IW won by 8 wickets

Again bowling 1st, a smart piece of fielding from Harry Webb plus wickets for Harry Everard, Mohammed Navqi (2 overs-5 runs-1 wkt)  & George Pim (a spectacular diving catch from Everard) helped keep the score to 133. 

Sonny Goldberg got the IW reply off to a great start, before Harry Webb and Harry Everard shared a 79 run partnership to ensure a nail biting final few overs. After Webb was ran out on 16, Samuel Collinson took the charge to the hosts - hitting 11 from just 18 balls. 

It was then over to Everard who hit the winning runs in the final over to finish up on 62 not out and complete an excellent victory. 

A fantastic end to a great day out, played at a wonderful ground with gracious hosts who played in the true competitive yet respectful spirit of the game. 

Lots of positives to take forward to the next game! 

An U11s side featuring many young players taking part in their first outing for a IWCB County team welcomed Dorset to Ryde School for 2 x T20 fixtures.  

The experience and strength of the Dorset team meant whilst the results of the two games went the expected direction, this proved to be an excellent learning experience for the young IWCB side who were unfortunately a man down due to illness. 

In the first game the IW bowled consistently and fielded superbly to take 3 wickets – Mohammed Naqvi bowling out one of Dorset openers, with Samuel Collinson and Oscar Parsons each executing superb run outs.  

In the second game IWCB Skipper Ollie Maidment, who did an excellent job leading the team all afternoon, took a great catch off Parson’s bowling for the solitary wicket. Despite fielding for 40 overs on a warm day, chasing many a big hit from the excellent Dorset batters, the attitude and application of the players never dropped.  

An enormous improvement with the bat followed, with the top 3 of Maidment, Parsons and Arlo Tautz guiding the team to 44 runs against some fierce and clever bowling. Dorset’s returning opening bowlers saw off our middle order before Finlay Silk, our two excellent keepers for the day Rory Hillier and George Pimm, alongside Charlie Tuck batted resolutely to complete the 20 overs with a wicket in hand. 

A fantastic response and a brilliant end to the day which the players should be very proud of and hopefully take with them for their next fixture 

A mix of our U11 & U12 side took a very long journey up to Cambridgeshire on Sunday for a stern test against a strong team.  

IW won the toss and decided to bat. Ian Hailes opened the batting and scored his first ever 100 finishing on 110! Other contributors scoring 15 and 14 were Toby Morgan and Thomas Southcott but the hosts accurate bowling mean we were all out for 188.  

Cambridgeshire then came out needing 189 to win and got off to a very good start and lost their 1st wicket on 94 with Alfie Toulson bowling his leg spin to take the solitary wicket. 

They chased 189 after 24 overs with one of their batters scoring 128*.   

Overall the boys enjoyed the day together and played some good cricket while also representing the Island very well.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat first, the U13s showed plenty of spells of promise and should be very encouraged by their performances with bat and ball in hand.  

At the top of the order, Oscar Purser (28) batted patiently and maturely. 

However, after slipping to 107-9, no11 Joseph Hill joined no10 Liam Goldsmith at the crease. 

After batting for 14 overs, the pair put on a eventually match winning total of 55 for the final wicket. 

Hill (25) and Goldsmith (15*) showed great determination and frustrated the Dorset bowling attack, running excellently between the wickets. IW finished on 162 all out.  

Chasing 163 to win, IW reduced Dorset to 13-4 thanks to a strong opening spell from Bertie Adkins (3-15). 

IW eventually bowled Dorset out for 96, with man of the match Hill taking 3-7 from his 4 overs.

It was a fantastic fielding performance from the boys, with a spectacular 1 handed catch from Gul as the highlight.  IW win by 66 runs!