We were without our own Kiwi (Fraser) but it was Ashtead’s Kiwi Simon Keene who did the damage with some big hits. He hit 7 sixes and the ball had to be replaced 5 times in his 87 from 49 balls.

He was helped by Sussex contracted pro Sean Hunt (ex Horsley and Send CC).

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With just one round remaining, the fight at the top of the AJ Sports Surrey Championship Premier Division could barely be closer. Richard Spiller reviews the action on week 17

Ashtead v Reigate Priory

Leaders for much of the campaign, Reigate Priory came unstuck against the Premier Division’s form team and now find themselves trailing by two points going into the final week.

They went down by two wickets at Ashtead, who have won four out of their last five games and sprinted up the table to fourth, with the opportunity of a top three spot.

Leading by 11 points at the start of the day Priory cruised to 288-2 from their 50 overs, skipper Richie Oliver batting through the innings for 108no from 141 balls. He was aided by Luke Haughton (39), James Crosthwaite – whose 71 contributed to a second wicket stand of 133 – and George Ealham (45no) with 91 being taken off the final 10 overs.

Lacking Mark Stoneman on Middlesex duty, Ashtead slipped to 25-2 and when Conor Young (38) departed at 106-2 in the 23rd over, it was hard to see beyond a Reigate victory.

Kiwi Simon Keene and Sussex-contracted Sean Hunt were reading a different script, a fifth wicket partnership of 121 in 13 overs transforming the match until Keene was bowled for a best-of-season 87 at 227-5 in the 36th over. Hunt followed at 258-7, bowled by Michael Munday (2-49) in the 42nd, but Jevan Kher (16no) edged the hosts towards victory and hit the winning runs with three balls to spare.

Priory, who took seven points, will have to rely on East Molesey slipping up at Sutton while they overcome Banstead.

Full report here.

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Ashtead chase another big score to post a record win
by Martyn Holloway-Neville

A pair of brutal innings from Simon Keene (87 from 46) and Sean Hunt (75 from 63) saw Ashtead chase 288 to beat Reigate Priory by 2 wickets at Woodfield Lane.

As August comes to an end, so the Ashtead Stags continue to impress. And the hosts needed all their skill and talent, as they came from behind to take a dramatic 2-wicket victory against league leaders Reigate Priory in Round 17 of the 2024 Surrey Championship Premier Division.

The hosts won the toss and elected to field first, with one eye on the conditions (overcast, so good for the seam bowlers and a pitch that looked good but getting better throughout the day) and another eye on the team (with several successful chases in the bag already in 2024). And the going proved tough for the Reigate Llamas in the early overs, with pros Simon Keene and Sean Hunt both causing early problems. Lots of tough leaves, lots of play and misses, but Ashtead could not find a wicket.

That breakthrough would come with the change bowlers, as Aaron Rose extracted an edge from Luke Haughton that was well grabbed by Jevan Kher. By this time though, the visitors were already on 58-1. The wicket also brought the brutal strokeplay of James Crosthwaite, and he wasted no time in going on the attack. Neither seam nor spin could halt the advance, and at drinks, the Llamas were cruising on 112-1.

As before, the batters looked to steadily increase the scoring rate after the break, and the return of the opening bowlers failed to stop the advance either. As the final block of overs approached, Tom Homes (skippering the side this time out) struck to remove Crosthwaite lbw for 71. At 197-2, with 10 overs to go, a target of 300 was possible – and they nearly made it. Skipper Richie Oliver, who had anchored the innings, found his stride and George Ealham, new to the crease, showed no fear. 91 plundered off the last 10 overs left Ashtead chasing 289 to win.

The chase would have to be something truly special, and it appeared to start in an unhelpful way, with both Ashtead openers returning to the clubhouse in the opening 10 over PowerPlay. The task looked to be an even greater uphill battle from this point, but the Stags remained unbowed, and the attacking pairing of Daniel Geddes and Conor Young got the scoreboard moving.

When Geddes fell into the trap set by erstwhile Llama Michael Munday and was removed for 30, Simon Keene came to the crease – and set his stall out early by smacking Munday back over his head for 6 off his third ball faced. Young also decided to head up the gears at this stage (remember, he’s a T20 master) but would be removed for 38 just before the midway drinks. 121-4 at the interval still looked an impossible task for the Stags to come back from.

Keene had been joined at this stage by Sean Hunt – the opening bowling partnership together again – and both of them decided to have some fun. The first over of spin after drinks went for 20, with 3 balls out of the Lane, and that set up some brutal strokeplay over the next 10 overs. The pair took 104 runs off those 10, to leave the equation at 64 required off 15 overs. Advantage Ashtead.

This team never do things the easy way, and the double strike of Keene (for 87 off just 46 balls) and Sam Homes threatened to derail the chase. Hunt, however, continued to strike hard, and the total continued to tick down at a sensible rate. The hosts hoped that would end the drama, but Hunt would depart (another Munday trap) for 75 and Aaron Rose, albeit with sweeps aplenty, following for a quick 13. The match was all but over at this stage, but it would end up going to the final over of the game, Jevan Kher hitting the winning boundary to finish the chase with 3 balls to spare.

That result sees Ashtead retain 4th in the league and guarantees a top-half finish in the table for only the 3rd time in the club’s history. Next week is the final match of the 2024 season, seeing Ashtead travel to bottom club Weybridge. Weybridge are already facing Division 1 cricket in 2025, and the long format match saw a comfortable 6-wicket win for the Stags.

Match report here.