The Gentlemen of West London Cricket Club

Decade

Gents' individual batting records

he Commander inevitably dominates with the only two tons in GWLCC history (although Nick Hubbocks and Dave Thornicroft fell agonisingly close with 96 each in 1994, interestingly in games in which the captain was crocked), as well as twenty fifties. Fourteen Gents and three guests have achieved the fifty landmark. Masher was the first in May 1989, with 76 against Enterprise, the game lost; Sanjay Patel the seventeenth and most recent with 59 not out against the same oppo in August 1997, the game won. Note how Jim Wright has meticulously reached 50, and no more, on three occasions. In some players cricket brings out the tart, in others the accountant. The final two columns may be interpreted as some kind of Dominance Index. When The Gents started out, it was difficult to imagine a list of match results stretching over two pages, let alone a compilation of fifties.

The paucity of centuries is surprising and to the statistical completist a bit of a pisser. Bignell, Boddington, Hubbocks, Hughes, Mitchell, Seale and Wright all scored fifties while opening, so had the opportunity, yet none went on to the ton. A Scorebook Massacre by old Dave Thornicroft, having a bad numbers day, deprived Nick Hubbocks’s 96 of five runs, but even a subsequent appeal faxed to Lord’s failed to get his score into three figures. Dave’s identical score against the Yorkies was scored by the meticulous Helen Carless with her coloured pens. His true total was never up for debate. Masher’s two tons were memorable for different reasons. His 137 not out was achieved in just 83 minutes of bonkerdom on a freezing spring day, in a 1992 run glut against Enterprise (just the 469 runs in 70 overs, including Rich Wilman being driven over the railway line by Ron High, a hit without parallel in Gents’ matches, although Rich himself flicked Charles Arthur onto the railway in 1993 on the top pitch). His 102 against Southampton was a match-turning innings. Both knocks saw 150-plus stands which remain club records. Masher, incidentally, rates his highest innings as his best, which he has every right to do, although London Saints’ 1993 attack was more powerful than the Stefan-less Enterprise one of a year before. The only other ninety-plus score, Masher’s 93 off 49 balls in the second Weasels fixture in Hendon, saw a remarkable Weeping Madonna incident when the stone statue of fierce old Sir Robert Peel sparked into life at the end of his innings, applauding and shouting “top innings, mate,” thus freaking out the considerable GWLCC Catholic contingent. A few more tons in The Gents’ second decade would be no more than they deserve and someone other than The Commander achieving this ultimate landmark really would show how far The Gents have travelled.

Top 40 scores (G = guest player)

	Score	Player	Date	Opponent	Venue	Innings total	Player’s %
1	137*	Mark Ashton	10 May 92	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	246	56
2	102	Mark Ashton	15 Aug 93	London Saints	Victoria Rec	214	48
3	96	Nick Hubbocks	5 June 94	Wandham	Beverley Park	185	52
4	96	Dave Thornicroft	4 Sept 94	Rotherham SC	Victoria Rec	213	45
5	93*	Mark Ashton	1 Sept 91	NB Weasels	Peel Centre	254	37
6	84*	Mark Ashton	4 Aug 96	EH Cheetahs	Beverley Park	164	51
7	78	Nick Hubbocks	2 May 93	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	223	35
8	78	Nick Boddington	4 July 93	West XI	Victoria Rec	165	47
9	76	Mark Ashton	13 May 89	Enterprise	Wimbledon Park	129	59
10	73	Dave Thornicroft	23 Apr 95	Lager Louts	Victoria Rec	199	37
11	72*	Mark Ashton	29 Apr 90	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	186	39
12	71	Mark Ashton	23 July 95	West XI	Boston Manor	155	46
13	70	Mike Hughes	14 May 95	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	250	28
14	68	Nick Hubbocks	31 July 94	London Owls	Victoria Rec	256	27
15	67	Nick Hubbocks	10 May 92	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	246	27
16	67*	Steve Bignell	31 July 94	London Owls	Victoria Rec	256	26
17	67*	Mark Ashton	12 May 96	Urban Associates	Beverley Park	100	67
18	66*	Ian Maughan	30 July 89	Enterprise	Lampton Park	141	47
19	65	Mark Ashton	14 May 95	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	250	26
20	63	Nick Hubbocks	12 June 94	NELPS	Alexandra Rec	196	32
21	62*	Ian Maughan	18 Aug 91	West XI	Gunnersbury Park	149	42
22	62	Mark Ashton	17 May 92	Old Cubbonians	Victoria Rec	148	42
23	62	Robin Hunt G	12 July 92	West XI	King George's Field	147	42
24	62	Mark Ashton	25 June 94	London Saints	Town Park	147	42
25	61*	Mark Ashton	21 July 91	Old Cubbonians	Gunnersbury Park	122	50
26	59	Ian Maughan	12 June 94	NELPS	Alexandra Rec	196	30
27	59	Steve Bignell	25 June 94	London Saints	Town Park	147	40
28	59*	Nick Boddington	5 May 96	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	95	62
29	59	Sanjay Patel	31 Aug 97	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	193	31
30	58*	Daniel Todd	9 June 96	FC Chad	Alexandra Rec	194	30
31	58*	Mark Ashton	7 Sept 97	FC Chad	Victoria Rec	192	30
32	57	Ian Maughan	29 Apr 90	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	186	31
33	57	Mark Ashton	28 Apr 91	Enterprise	Gunnersbury Park	124	46
34	57*	Mike Hughes	15 Aug 93	London Saints	Victoria Rec	214	27
35	56	Ian Maughan	29 July 90	Old Cubbonians	Bishop's Park	129	43
36	56	Dhruv Patel	18 June 94	NB Weasels	Berrylands	172	33
37	56	Nick Hubbocks	7 Aug 94	12 Angry Men	Overton Road	146	38
38	56	Ian Maughan	7 May 95	Rotherham SC	Battersea Park	141	40
39	56	Mark Ashton	20 July 97	West XI	Boston Manor	209	27
40	55	Mark Ashton	28 June 92	NB Weasels	Peel Centre	148	37

Other fifties (G = guest player)
	Score	Player	Date	Opponent	Venue	Innings total	Player’s %
41	55	Mark Ashton	13 June 93	NELPS	Victoria Rec	160	34
42	55	Dhruv Patel	27 Apr 97	Lager Louts	Victoria Rec	195	28
43	54*	Bob Ashton	24 June 89	EH Cheetahs	Marble Hill Park	125	43
44	54	Rich Wilman	1 Sept 91	NB Weasels	Peel Centre	254	21
45	54	Mark Ashton	2 May 93	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	223	24
46	54	Nick Boddington	17 Sept 95	West XI	Wimbledon Park	173	31
47	54	Mike Hughes	30 June 96	Virgin Casuals	King George’s Field, Tolworth	170	32
48	53	Mark Ashton	25 July 93	NB Weasels	Victoria Rec	162	33
49	52	Mark Ashton	2 Sept 92	EH Cheetahs	Alexandra Rec	82	63
50	52	Mike Hughes	29 Aug 93	NB Weasels	Berrylands	112	46
51	52	Nick Hubbocks	17 June 95	NB Weasels	Berrylands	214	24
52	52	Nick Boddington	9 July 95	London Owls	Battersea Park	179	29
53	52*	Paul Christensen G	27 Aug 95	NB Weasels	Berrylands	138	38
54	52	Chris Mitchell	25 May 97	12 Angry Men	British Gas, Acton	130	40
55	51	Ian Maughan	27 May 90	West XI	North Acton Rec	110	46
56	51*	Clyde Seale G	30 Aug 92	NB Weasels	Berrylands	124	41
57	51	Nick Hubbocks	18 June 94	NB Weasels	Berrylands	172	30
58	51	Daniel Todd	17 June 95	NB Weasels	Berrylands	214	24
59	51	Mark Ashton	2 July 95	Virgin Casuals	Victoria Rec	164	31
60	51*	Mark Ashton	13 July 97	Enterprise	Long Ditton Rec	208	25
61	51	Chris Mitchell	7 Sept 97	FC Chad	Victoria Rec	192	30
62	50*	Mike Hughes	29 Aug 93	FC Chad	Berrylands	102	49
63	50*	Jim Wright	23 July 95	West XI	Boston Manor	155	32
64	50	Jim Wright	27 Apr 97	Lager Louts	Victoria Rec	195	26
65	50*	Jim Wright	13 July 97	Enterprise	Long Ditton Rec	208	25

Fifties by player in alphabetical order
1	Bob Ashton	54* v. EH Cheetahs (89) (1)
2	Mark Ashton	137* v. Enterprise (92), 102 v. London Saints (93), 93* v. NB Weasels (91), 84* v. EH Cheetahs (96),
		76 v. Enterprise (89), 72* v. Enterprise (90), 71 v. West XI (95), 67* v. Urban Associates (96),
		65 v. Enterprise (95), 62 v. Old Cubbonians (92), 62 v. London Saints (94), 61* v. Old Cubbonians (91),
		58* v. FC Chad (97), 57 v. Enterprise (91), 56 v. West XI (97), 55 v. NB Weasels (92), 55 v. NELPS (93),
		54 v. Enterprise (93), 53 v. NB Weasels (93), 52 v. EH Cheetahs (92), 51 v. Virgin Casuals (95),
		51* v. Enterprise (97) (22)
3	Steve Bignell	67* v. London Owls (94), 59 v. London Saints (94) (2)
4	Nick Boddington	78 v. West XI (93), 59* v. Enterprise (96), 54 v. West XI (95), 52 v. London Owls (95) (4)
5	Paul Christensen G	52* v. NB Weasels (95) (1)
6	Nick Hubbocks	96 v. Wandham (94), 78 v. Enterprise (93), 68 v. London Owls (94), 67 v. Enterprise (92), 63 v. NELPS (94),
		56 v. 12 Angry Men (94), 52 v. NB Weasels (95), 51 v. NB Weasels (94) (8)
7	Robin Hunt G	62 v. West XI (92) (1)
8	Mike Hughes	70 v. Enterprise (95), 57* v. London Saints (93), 54 v. Virgin Casuals (96), 52 v. NB Weasels (93),
		50* v. FC Chad (93) (5)
9	Ian Maughan	66* v. Enterprise (89), 62* v. West XI (91), 59 v. NELPS (94), 57 v. Enterprise (90),
		56 v. Old Cubbonians (90), 56 v. Rotherham SC (95), 51 v. West XI (90) (7)
10	Chris Mitchell	52 v. 12 Angry Men (97) 51 v. FC Chad (97) (1)
11	Dhruv Patel	56 v. NB Weasels (94), 55 v. Lager Louts (97) (2)
12	Sanjay Patel	59 v. Enterprise (97) (1)
13	Clyde Seale G	51* v. NB Weasels (92) (1)
14	Dave Thornicroft	96 v. Rotherham SC (94), 73 v. Lager Louts (95) (2)
15	Daniel Todd	58* v. FC Chad (96), 51 v. NB Weasels (95) (2)
16	Rich Wilman	54 v. NB Weasels (91) (1)
17	Jim Wright	50* v. West XI (95), 50 v. Lager Louts (97), 50* v. Enterprise (97) (3)

Début fifties in chronological order
1	Mark Ashton	76 v. Enterprise (13 May 89)	10	Dhruv Patel	56 v. NB Weasels (18 June 94)
2	Bob Ashton	54* v. EH Cheetahs (24 June 89)	11	Steve Bignell	67* v. London Owls (31 July 94)
3	Ian Maughan	66* v. Enterprise (30 July 89)	12	Dave Thornicroft	96 v. Rotherham SC (4 Sept 94)
4	Rich Wilman	54 v. NB Weasels (1 Sept 91)	13	Daniel Todd	51 v. NB Weasels (17 June 95)
5	Nick Hubbocks	67 v. Enterprise (10 May 92)	14	Jim Wright	50* v. West XI (23 July 95)
6	Robin Hunt G	62 v. West XI (12 July 92)	15	Paul Christensen G	52 v. NB Weasels (27 Aug 95)
7	Clyde Seale G	51* v. NB Weasels (30 Aug 92)	16	Chris Mitchell	52 v. 12 Angry Men (25 May 97)
8	Nick Boddington	78 v. West XI (4 July 93)	17	Sanjay Patel	59 v. Enterprise (31 Aug 97)
9	Mike Hughes	57* v. London Saints (15 Aug 93)

Fifties by season
Year	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997
Gents	-	3	4	5	7	9	11	12	5	9
Oppo	2	1	4	5	9	4	10	5	5	3

Opponents' individual batting records

ons galore for the oppo, unlike The Gents, although astonishingly only four of those eight games were lost by The Gents. The top four in the list below, and 16 out of the top 20, are opening batsmen, twice the ratio of the Ashton-dominated Gents list. Mick Walker’s innings was on Mr Snelling’s début. He did bat well, but it was not a vintage Gents fielding display (or perhaps it was) for at one point in his innings Mick began to field return throws by way of kind assistance. Richard Bulmer and Craig Maddocks have their own place in Gent folklore after their chanceless stand of 239.

Jeremy “The Beast of Beckton” Best, affectionately nicknamed Rosy West by his team, has the distinction of being the lowest-batting ton-up merchant in Gents history, going in at No.5 at the Police Academy in 1991. Note also the three Beggar Near Ton Experiences. Doff caps to the elegant left-hander and Gents nemesis Charles Arthur, who has scored three fifties. Steve Bignell, Paul Christensen, Mike Hughes and Clyde Seale have schizophrenically scored fifties for and against The Gents. Absorb the remarkable Innings Domination Factor (final column) of the Cheetahs’ ringer, Mick Walker (twice) and Andy Mayhew, the last-named scoring his unbeaten 58 out of 90 for six.

Salute Steve Bignell, the first player to take a fifty off The Gents. Best knock? Anyone who saw Mayhem’s two 1996 innings would argue for their inclusion, perhaps alongside Geordie Jacques’s systematic piece of destruction. Nobody expected Geordie to do what he did, as he had borrowed two disreputable and bestained Gents’ pads, an old box and one of the sadder bats. Older Gents may point to the Waddell, Bulmer and Best projects. It’s all healthy speculation and perhaps the diplomatic answer is to proffer equal congratulations to one and all of the players who have achieved their personal batting landmark, though how Charlie Arthur spunked his way to 70 in 1995 is beyond this writer.

Fifties against The Gents
	Score	Player	Date	Opponent	Venue	Innings total	Player’s %
1	150*	Mick Walker	7 May 95	Rotherham SC	Battersea Park	242	63
2	140*	Richard Bulmer	5 Sept 93	London Owls	Victoria Rec	239	59
3	112*	AN Other	19 June 88	EH Cheetahs	Marble Hill Park	163	69
4	107	Nigel Wilson	5 June 94	Wandham	Beverley Park	184	58
5	107	Andy Jaques	4 Aug 96	EH Cheetahs	Beverley Park	225	48
6	103*	Jeremy Best	1 Sept 91	NB Weasels	Peel Centre	198	52
7	102	Neil Hadfield	29 May 94	12 Angry Men	Victoria Rec	196	52
8	101	Trevor Mayhew	17 Aug 96	London Saints	Beverley Park	183	55
9	92	Clyde Seale	24 May 92	West XI	Victoria Rec	263	35
10	91*	Charles Arthur	24 May 92	West XI	Victoria Rec	263	35
11	90	John Waddell	12 Aug 90	West XI	Boston Manor Park	212	42
12	88	Mike Hughes	28 Apr 91	Enterprise	Gunnersbury Park	212	42
13	87*	Craig Maddocks	5 Sept 93	London Owls	Victoria Rec	239	36
14	85	Trevor Mayhew	13 July 96	London Saints	Town Park, Enfield	155	55
15	83*	Mick Walker	4 Sept 94	Rotherham SC	Victoria Rec	139	60
16	76	Steve Tait	29 Apr 90	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	185	41
17	75	Jeremy Best	18 June 94	NB Weasels	Berrylands	171	44
18	71	Paul Christensen	14 June 92	West XI	Boston Manor Park	181	39
19	70	Charles Arthur	21 May 95	West XI	Victoria Rec	171	41
20	68	Clyde Seale	12 July 92	West XI	King George's Field	147	46
21	67*	Bill Flack	24 July 94	NB Weasels	Victoria Rec	125	54
22	66	Charles Arthur	11 Aug 91	West XI	Boston Manor Park	162	41
23	66	Ron High	10 May 92	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	223	30
24	66	Mark Davies	26 May 96	12 Angry Men	British Gas, Acton	159	42
25	65	D Torbe	4 Aug 96	EH Cheetahs	Beverley Park	225	29
26	62	Ron Stefan	28 Apr 91	Enterprise	Gunnersbury Park	212	29
27	60	Mike Hughes	10 May 92	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	223	27
28	60	Richard Buckley	21 Aug 94	Enterprise	Victoria Rec	137	44
29	59*	Brian Hutchinson	13 May 89	Enterprise	Wimbledon Park	130	45
30	58*	Steve Bignell	11 Aug 91	West XI	Boston Manor Park	162	36
31	58*	Andy Mayhew	14 Aug 94	London Saints	Victoria Rec	90	64
32	57	Nick Woodhead	29 July 90	Old Cubbonians	Bishop's Park	128	45
33	57*	Paul Jarrett	19 July 92	NB Weasels	Victoria Rec	122	47
34	57	Neil Hadfield	28 May 95	12 Angry Men	British Gas, Acton	143	40
35	57	Scott Kirke	10 Aug 97