TEAM UPDATE FOR SUNDAY 8TH APRIL

The station to be at is Miyamagi on the Kintetsu line heading down
South.
Apparently they have one guy with a car who can help transport our gear
and
hopefully us as well.
Match starting time is 10am so we all need to be at above station by
around
9am or thereabouts.
If anyone is driving down there let us know.
Team so far: 1.Darren, 2.Chai, 3.Sagar, 4.Matt Thornton, 5.Chai's m8, 6.Simon, 7.James, 8.Tristan, 9.Scottie, 10...11...

Darren is steering the ship for this one as both myself and Mike have work commitments. let's get a full XI out so there's a chance of guaranteeing games against Doshisha in the future. It's our first points scoring Kansai Cup fixture too. Emails to Darren preferably regarding availability/directions.

Cheers!

FIRST KANSAI CUP MATCH SUNDAY APRIL 8TH

FIRST KANSAI CUP MATCH SUNDAY APRIL 8TH VS DOSHISHA UNIVERSITY IN KYOTO. AVAILABILITY PLEASE. EMAIL OLI AT OCRK@YAHOO.COM

THE FORMAT OF THE GAME IS 35 OVERS, 7 OVERS MAX. PER BOWLER. FEES FOR THE DAY WILL INCLUDE PAYING A NOMINAL AMOUNT FOR NEUTRAL UMPIRES.

UNFORTUNATELY I WON'T BE ABLE TO PLAY DUE TO WORK COMMITMENTS.

FREDDIE FLINTOFF HAS OFFERED TO STEP IN AS CAPTAIN FOR THE DAY, BUT I DON'T THINK WE CAN TRUST HIM TO TURN UP SOBER. PITY.

KYOTO CC 198 all out vs OSAKA BULLDOGS 256 all out

Kyoto CC - 198 all out vs. Osaka Bulldogs - 256 off 34 overs

Fantastic first outing of the season for Kyoto CC ended in a keenly fought defeat at the hands of an understrength Bulldogs at a dinky little ground in deepest Hyogo-ken, virtually a 3 hour train journey from the temples of Kyoto.

Losing the toss, Osaka opted to bat and survived a testing first few overs from Jimmy Last & Oli Kinghorn with the new ball. Oli found some lovely swing and beat the Osaka openers several times with deliveries that swung like a banana. (See this week's cricket tutorial video on swing bowling at the foot of this article).

Once Oli bowled former Sri Lankan u-19 batsman Miyuru in the first over after drinks (inspired captaincy decision by D Hannah) Osaka were on the rack, but a few loose overs and short boundaries square of the wicket saw the run rate accelerate in the second half of the innings. Bowling credits go to 35-over format debutants Steve Cook (3 wickets clean bowled) and Chai Cameron (pictured top) who ended up with a couple of wickets. Matt Grant kept up his reputation as the best gully fieldsman in Kansai with a stunning 'slow-mo' grab at the tail end of the innings and Darren Hannah was pretty tidy behind the pegs. It's no exaggeration to say that this was Kyoto's best fielding display for a long time, and mention must be made to the volume and enthusiasm generated throughout the 35 overs - Sagar Kuroda taking the credit there.

As the season-opening friendly it was important all our batsmen got time at the crease, and Matt Grant, Sagar Kuroda, Simon Cornelius, and Chai Cameron all got their eye in nicely. Arguably the two class bats of the club - D Hannah and Oli Kinghorn - got out when seemingly set. If those two can fire with Tristan Grey and Raza added to the top order, Kyoto CC should compete handsomely for honours this year. Chai's powerful 62 at the tail-end of the innings capped a superb debut and he was awarded the Man of The Match : Points: 3 - Chai, 2- Steve, 1 - Matt.

Extended statistics to follow at a later date. St.Patrick's Night round the Irish pubs in Kyoto Saturday March 17th. Matt Grant had the idea of wearing our Kyoto CC shirts when we're out on the razz for a bit of crafty guerilla marketing - raise the profile of the club, find new players, attract sponsorship. Hope all you fellas are keen.

Keep posted for details on upcoming fixtures.

BOUCHER, FLINTOFF, SANGAKARRA SLEDGES.

First match of 2007 - SUNDAY 11TH MARCH vs. Osaka Bulldogs @ Miki, Hyogo. Directions coming later - stay posted.

Team so far: 1. OCR Kinghorn, 2. Darren Hannah, 3. Matt Grant, 4. Santos, 5. Simon Cornelius, 6. Sagar Kuroda, 7.James Last, 8..., 9..., 10..., 11...

Email Oli at ocrk@yahoo.com with availability

HOW TO BOWL A GREAT YORKER

BATTING WITH BORAT!

First Cricket Match of 2007 Kyoto CC vs. Osaka Bulldogs @ Miki, Hyogo-ken, Sunday March 11th, 10am start.

PRE-SEASON PRACTICE MATCHES IN MARCH

IMPORTANT DATES FOR THE DIARY, FELLAS: SUNDAY MARCH 4TH, SUNDAY MARCH 11TH FOR TWO PRE-SEASON PRACTICE MATCHES VS. OSAKA BULLDOGS @ MIKI, HYOGO-KEN.

Good chance to turn the arm over, harden the hands in the field, and get some time at the crease before the proper KANSAI CUP tournament begins in April. The two matches in question will probably be scheduled for a 10am start, but will confirm times later. Please leave your availability in the comments link at the foot of this post. As it's a practice match we will be prepared to take more than 11 players if needs be.

Other Kyoto CC news:

Keep your eyes on this page for the announcement of the Kyoto CC AGM for some time in February/early March.

Email Oli or leave comments via the website on website content, layout, promotion.

Kyoto CC welcomes ALL new players for the NEW SEASON starting March 2007. Email Oli at ocrk@yahoo.com

Or click on 'comments' at the foot of this post to leave your contact details. It would also help us if you tell us what your cricket experience and specialty (bat, bowl, WK, all-rounder) is. Cheers!

Kyoto Cricket Club Badge

The classic looking Kyoto CC badge depicts the national colours of the constituent members of the club - Red for England, Gold for Australia, Black for New Zealand, and completed with the colour traditionally associated with the city of Kyoto, Purple.

Gold emblazoned letters on the back of the shirt give it a distinctive look which reinforces Kyoto CC's reputation as one of the best looking sides in Japan cricket.

Back n 'Across!

YES! YOU CAN PLAY CRICKET IN JAPAN!

It's true, you CAN play cricket in Japan, and even in the heart of old Kyoto, which is known throughout the world for its beautiful temples and gardens.

We are Kyoto Cricket Club. A very warm 'Hello' to you.

Founded in 2004 by expats in Kyoto, we are anticipating our third season as a club as the season prepares for its ready in March.

On this web page you can find PLAYER PROFILES on the right hand column, MATCH REVIEWS and STATISTICS as they happen in the Team Blog, STORIES & ANECDOTES about cricketing in the last outpost you'd think cricket would reach, PHOTOS from games, and practical advertisements related to cricket and life in Japan.

You can help spread the cause of cricket abroad by sending this link to friends in Japan or cricket lovers whether they be close to Kyoto, Lords, Galle, Kingston Oval Jamiaca, or the SCG.

Back n'Across!

Hello! A very warm welcome to KYOTO CRICKET CLUB! Slap bang in the middle of the Kansai region of Honshu Japan, Kyoto CC is a group of expat cricketers from countries as diverse as England, Australia, and New Zealand.

We play limited overs cricket matches in the Kansai Cup, Kansai Sixes Tournament as well as friendly matches from the beginning of March all the way through to November when the Australian players start to complain that it's too cold. Starting its third full season in 2007, Kyoto CC welcomes new players of keen amateur ability who have a simple love of the game and are willing to travel to Osaka, Kobe and elsewhere for fixtures. Email club captain Oli at ocrk@yahoo.com

Kyoto CC has occasional net sessions outdoors on Sunday afternoons during the spring and summer months, and are always on the look out for new spaces in which to practice. If you are a cricket loving expat in Kyoto or Shiga and know of a practical local park or school which would hold a practice, please contact the club.

This new season the club is waiting to register the following significant statistics:

• First century by a batsman
• First back-to-back consecutive wins
• First tournament trophy win
• First hat-trick by a bowler

Thanks for stopping by. Back n' across!