About B.C.C.

Club Principles

Bluehouse Cricket Club has a proud tradition of welcoming people of all cricketing abilities and strives to ensure that anyone who wants to play cricket and generally play a part in the Club.

Ultimately, the Club is an informal collection of individuals who give their time to be involved in cricket. The informal nature of this arrangement means that the Club can only function by "goodwill" and on a voluntary basis.

However, in order to function effectively, there needs to be some guiding principles against which the Club operates. Consequently, the Club is entitled to adopt certain principles and practices in order to achieve this. This, in turn means that the Club can expect every Club Member to adhere to these principles.

Equally, Club Members are entitled to expect the Club to adopt and adhere to certain principles in relation to the way the Club treats them as individuals in return for the time commitment they give to the Club (by playing) and the financial commitment the give (by paying match fees and subs).

Set out below are the principles that will guide us in what we do.

What you can expect from the Club.	What the Club can expect from you.
That the Club will:	That you will:
arrange fixtures each week during the season	be available to play for the club as a whole not a specific team(s);
accept that the degree of availability to play varies between individuals;	notify the Club about your availability in good time (by Tuesday where possible);
make every effort to provide a game of cricket each week for everyone that wants to play	honour any commitment to play;
notify the players in good time the team for which the have been selected (by Thursday where possible);	pay match fees and subs in good time (no later than one week late, where possible);
ensure that selection methods are transparent	provide your own cricket clothing ("whites" etc).
provide changing and playing facilities and playing equipment;
ensure that the Club is run in an efficient way. through the effective management of the Club's administrative and financial affairs

Club History

The club have attracted substantial interest from a number of new players wishing to join us this year. The purpose of this newsletter is therefore to provide some background information for them, and let existing members know about developments in the closed season. Those of you who have been around for a few years will have to excuse me as I ramble on about past glories.

Early Days

The club was formed in 1983. Early opposition included the D.H.S.S. and other cricketing giants such as "Hole-in-the-Wall". The first recorded victory was against the mighty "Towngate" on 13 August 1983. Most of the players who represented the club in this game have long since disappeared, with two notable exceptions. Our beloved Chairman, Patrick McGreal, took 3-25 with the ball, but his efforts were overshadowed by Doctor Trevor Hayes who took 5-5 from four rapid overs.

Throughout the eighties the club continued to play friendly matches against local opposition and standards gradually improved. In 1985, Simon Cooper began his eleven season reign as club captain. The first game of the 1985 campaign was away to Westley, and poor Simon marked the occasion with a duck. The team faired little better being all-out for 73 and loosing by 70 runs. Still, Simon’s record did improve somewhat over the next few years.

Before we leave the eighties, one other game deserves a mention. On the 8 August 1987 our heroes were defending a modest score of 136. Defeat looked inevitable as a rampant Fords Basildon batting line-up took our attack to the cleaners. With only a handful of runs required, skipper Cooper turned in desperation to the gentle (and very occasional) swing bowling of Kevin Neil. Kevin responded to his captain’s plea in magnificent style, taking four wickets for no runs as Bluehouse snatched a sensational one run victory - Surely Kevin’s finest hour.

The Nineties

The start of the nineties heralded the beginning of a new era for the club. The club joined the Mid Essex League, which at the time (we only had a squad of about 16-17 regular players) seemed quite a momentous step. Our first game in Division 9, against Purleigh II, resulted in a comprehensive victory after a shaky start, some bloke called Lovatt taking 5-9 on debut, and earning the "ruthless" tag from the local paper. At the end of the season we had gained promotion to Division 8.

The 1992 season heralded the beginning of what will probably become known as the Golden age of Bluehouse Cricket Club. Between 1992 and 1995 the First Eleven won four consecutive league championship titles, and included a near two year unbeaten run on Sunday’s. This period will also be remembered for some remarkable individual performances. Andy Flint’s two consecutive eight wicket hauls in early 1993 will long be remembered, as will Richard Seeley’s all-round performances (1081 runs and 87 wickets in an outstanding 1993 season, including a club record 151 not out). Bluehouse built their success around the young and exiting new-ball pairing of Flint and Seeley, with solid leadership and consistent batting from Simon Cooper (3789 runs in four seasons including 3 centuries).

The nineties were punctuated with a number of remarkable victories. The most memorable to my mind came on 27 August 1984. Over the previous seasons the championship had frequently boiled down to a two-way battle between ourselves and High Roding, and 1984 was proving no different. They were virtually unbeatable on home soil, and Bluehouse were under strength and had to call on a number of players who had spent most of the season in the two’s. By tea, High Roding had posted what they thought to be a winning score of 248, this despite some spirited bowling and fielding by Bluehouse. In reply we managed to keep up with the run rate early on, but with wickets tumbling regularly, High Roding were confident of securing the match and the championship. There then followed what can only be described as a remarkable batting blitz by Alister Flint. Young Flint, up from the two’s, hit an undefeated 85 as he took the attack to their bowlers in cavalier style to pull off a sensational Championship winning victory. To say that they were disappointed after the match would be somewhat of an understatement.

The First Team’s success attracted new players, and this period also saw a rapid expansion of the club and the establishment of both 2^nd and 3^rd Eleven’s. The bulk of the credit for this must go to Kevin Neil who oversaw the formation of both teams. The second eleven joined the Mid Essex League in 1995, and but for some cruel luck would have secured a debut title under the captaincy of Stuart Munday.