Rye Cricket Club were planning this season to sustain their development as a club in the Sussex County Cricket League, with the 1st Xl playing in Division 3 East, the 2nd Xl playing in Division 6 East and the 3rd Xl in Division 12 South East.
The club has gone through a variety of challenges over the years. In 1993 and 1995 the club won the East Sussex League Division 1. In those days promotion to the County League was decided by the vote of existing County League Clubs. Rye failed to get the vote, and in 1995 Crowborough who finished 4th, and whom Rye had beaten twice, were promoted as they received the backing of the other clubs.
So in 2013 in the cricket pyramid structure, Rye won East Sussex League Division 1, with victory at local rivals Iden. Since then the club has progressed, and the 2nd Xl now compete in the equivalent division.
On August 26th 2013 Iden won the toss and batted on the usual batting track at Iden. Iden made a positive start as the White brothers posted a 70 run partnership, threatening a challenging target. Harry Smeed however removed both of them, and then the Rye attack chipped away at the Iden batting order. Iden were dismissed for 205.
Rye’s reply was set back when James Hamilton was run out in the first over. This brought overseas player Sandun Dias to the crease, who took full advantage of the good batting wicket, and proceeded to score 120 not out at a strike rate of 130. He peppered the boundary with fifteen 4s and four 6s. He was supported by Dan Seabrook 32 and Jackson Woodcock 38 not out, as Rye eased past the target of 205 by 7 wickets in the 35th over.
The victory sealed the league title for Rye, and was the stepping stone to the present platform.
SCORECARD
Iden Cricket Club
BATSMAN RUNS BALLS 4s 6s SR
Phil Shanks lbw bSandum Dias 17 39 3 0 43.59
Michael White bHarry Smeed 63 77 10 1 81.82
David White bHarry Smeed 34 45 6 0 75.56
Sam Constable lbw bMartin Blincow 4 8 1 0 50.00
Ian Addy cNigel Hacking bSandum Dias 13 19 2 0 68.42
George Avann ct & b Martin Blincow 20 44 2 0 45.45
James Tree lbw bSandun Dias 0 3 0 0 0.00
Graham Tree run outHarry Smeed 8 8 0 0 100.00
Matthew Barnett run outUnsure 10 35 0 0 28.57
Ryan Dowdeswell bMartin Blincow 9 12 0 1 75.00
Neil Pearce not out 0 4 0 0 0.00
EXTRAS: 27 (13b, 2lb, 7w, 5nb ) Total: 205 ( 48.1 Overs, All Out )
BOWLER O M RUNS WKTS W NbS ECON
Craig Pierce 6 1 29 0 0 0 4.83
Sandum Dias 10 2 35 3 0 0 3.50
Ben Clifton 2 0 13 0 0 0 6.50
Martin Blincow 12.1 0 55 3 0 0 4.52
Harry Smeed 15 3 53 2 0 0 3.53
Jackson Woodcock 3 0 5 0 0 0 1.67
FIELDING EXTRA RUNS: 15 NON-BOWLER WICKETS: 2 TOTALS: Overs: 48.1, Maidens: 6, Runs: 205, Wickets: 10, Wides: 0, No Balls: 0
Match Officials
Umpires: John Oakley, Keith Baldwin
BATSMAN RUNS BALLS 4s 6s SR
James Hamilton run outGraham Tree 0 2 0 0 0.00
Dan Seabrook bRyan Dowdeswell 32 51 8 0 62.75
Sandun Dias not out 120 92 15 4 130.43
Nigel Hacking lbw bNeil Pearce 4 10 1 0 40.00
Jackson Woodcock not out 38 52 7 0 73.08
Richard Weller did not bat
Jake Bryant did not bat
Ben Clifton did not bat
Harry Smeed did not bat
Craig Pierce did not bat
Martin Blincow did not bat
Captain Wicket Keeper EXTRAS: 13 (2b, 8lb, 3nb ) Total: 207 ( 34.3 Overs, 3 Wickets )
BOWLER O M RUNS WKTS W Nb ECON
Matthew Barnett 5.3 2 31 0 0 0 5.64
Graham Tree 7.1 0 42 0 0 0 5.86
David White 3.5 0 23 0 0 0 6.00
George Avann 3 0 19 0 0 0 6.33
Neil Pearce 10 0 35 1 0 0 3.50
Ryan Dowdeswell 4 0 26 1 0 0 6.50
Sam Constable 1 0 21 0 0 0 21.00
FIELDING EXTRA RUNS: 10 NON-BOWLER WICKETS: 1 TOTALS: Overs: 34.3, Maidens: 2, Runs: 207, Wickets: 3, Wides: 0, No Balls: 0
Match Officials
Umpires: John Oakley, Keith Baldwin
Image Credits: Rye Cricket Club .