Twickenham CC Junior Competitive Matches - More Information

Middlesex Junior Cricket Association
Twickenham CC are members of the Middlesex Junior Cricket Association (MJCA) who organise competitive Junior fixtures within Middlesex County. The MJCA has helped organise recreational cricket for junior cricketers in Middlesex since 1966. Our membership of the MJCA allows Twickenham CC to enter teams - from the U9s through to the U17s age groups - into the league and Cup fixtures played within our region/area. For Juniors age group cricket the MJCA divide the county of Middlesex into 5 areas with Twickenham CC competing against other teams within the South Area. The MJCA's website can be found by clicking this link Middlesex Junior Cricket Association (MJCA)

League and Cup fixtures are scheduled between April to July each year.

At the time of writing Twickenham CC Juniors do not participate in any indoor cricket leagues or competitions during the autumn and winter.

U9s Fixtures
U9s fixtures take place on weekend mornings - usually Sunday Mornings - with a 10am start. Twickenham CC home matches are played at Twickenham Green. U9s fixtures are organised as pairs cricket matches, with teams made up of 8 or 10 players and where each player gets to bat and to bowl. Matches are 20 overs per innings and generally last 2 hours. These matches are also played with an “incrediball” - a ball which is harder than the ball used at All Stars cricket but not as hard as a leather cricket ball.

The U9s league was introduced in the 2018 season and proved a great success providing players experience of competitive cricket and bridging the gap between All Stars Cricket and U10s competitive Cricket.

U10s to U17s Fixtures
U10s to U17s fixtures take place on weekday evenings. Matches generally start at 6pm, with some April and early May fixtures starting a little earlier at 5.30pm or 5.45pm. Home fixtures are played at Twickenham Green. Most Colts matches are played on our artificial /plastic cricket strip - when possible grass wickets are prepared for the U14s, U15s and U17s age groups. Matches are 20 over overs per innings and, on average, are completed within 2 and half hours - but matches can take a little longer or can be over sooner. Matches are played with a hard cricket ball with the majority of standard cricket laws applying. However, there are variations of match rules for each age group (e.g. A ‘wide’ bowled at U10s counts as 2 runs to the opposition and will not be bowled again apart from the final over). For an outline of the differing rules for each age group please see the MJCA website.

Team Selection
The selection of players for each match will be organised by the Team Admin/manager. More often than not the Team Admin will be the age group coach. For U9s to U17s, every effort will be made by the Team Admin to make team selections which allow players as much opportunity as possible to contribute in a match. With cricket being the game that it is there may be times when a player will not get the chance to contribute with the bat or ball. Team managers will look to make sure a player who misses out gets the chance to contribute in the following match.

As the players progress through the age groups they will begin to find their main role within the team, be that an opening bowler or a number 5 batter, and therefore the batting order for these older teams may become more established.

Selection Criteria
When selecting players for competitive matches our foremost concern is the player’s safety. The standard of cricket played in the MJCA fixtures is generally good to high and for players to play in matches with confidence they do need to be able to execute the skills of bowling, batting and fielding to a standard that will keep them, and others, safe on the field of play. At Twickenham CC we have drawn up a Selection Criteria document which outlines the standard of skills we feel allows players to play in competitive matches safely and with confidence. The Selection Criteria document helps our coaches/team managers select players for matches and aims to give clarity to parents on the standard of ability that is suitable for participating in league matches. The Selection Criteria document can be viewed by clicking this link Selection Criteria or can be down loaded at the bottom of this page.

For children who may not meet the Selection Criteria we look to offer places in the teams who play the friendly fixtures we organise during the season. As stated in our introduction we do arrange friendly fixtures with local teams and fixtures we do provide a fantastic opportunity for children who may not feature/ be selected our league & cup matches to experience a competitive fixture suited to their ability.

Liam Tebb
Junior cricket coordinator / junior membership secretary
March 2024