The First Eleven
At best the season can be described as only moderate. Results, however, show that only two of the twenty matches were drawn and this would suggest that the cricket played was usually entertaining even though it did not always result in victories for Monoux
There were several matches where the margins of victory or defeat were very small. For example, in the Staff match the last wicket of the masters was captured only with the second ball of the very last over and victory over Wanstead County High School came with the last few balls.
The team scored a four-wicket win over a strong West Essex side and in this match our fielding reached its highest standard. In the low-scoring match against Chingford the last wicket put on 24 to enable us to win by one wicket.
Two matches ended very excitingly. Against South West Essex Technical College the School scored 108 and our opponents were also dismissed for 108 - their last two wickets falling in four balls for no runs. In the following match against the Parents the School scored 110 and the last of the Parents' wickets was captured when their score stood at 110. Honour was saved.
The game against the Old Monovians was noteworthy because 366 runs were scored in about four hours on a good batting wicket. Although the School lost ultimately by four wickets the game was enjoyed not only by the players but also by the spectators.
In six of the nine matches lost, the School hatted first and owing to a serious shortage of experienced openers the batting often failed and we suffered resounding defeats as a result. The team was, however, fortunate in having a strong bowling force which dismissed our opponents six times for a total that was low enough for the batsman to score the runs necessary to win.
The School lost a number of last year's players at the end of last season and during this one with the result that several young batsmen and bowlers were introduced to first eleven cricket and have obviously gained good experience.
The faults in the batting can be rectified only by more intensive practice and we hope that the younger members of the team, especially, will take advantage of the facilities that are offered. The practice should not be restricted to batting, for it should be remembered that many games are lost or won on the weakness or strength of the fielding.
Finally I should like to thank most sincerely those members of staff who have acted as umpires through many exhausting hours. Theirs is a service to the School for which the boys are ever grateful.