NCCA T20 2025 - Week 1 Review

Seamer James Rudge set a Herefordshire bowling record by taking five for ten to help clinch a 50 runs victory over Wiltshire in the second match of their opening National Counties T20 double-header at Eastnor.

Wiltshire eased to an eight wickets win in the opener but Herefordshire gained swift revenge in the second match by 50 runs with Rudge by becoming the first bowler from the county to take five wickets in a T20 innings.

His figures bettered the four for 13 that Adam Hines took against Wales NC last season and they were the third best by any bowler in the history of the competition. Rudge conceded just six singles with the other runs being four wides.

In the first match half centuries from Jack Mynott (77 not out) and Jake Goodwin (53) and a third wicket partnership of 76 got Wiltshire home with five balls to spare after Ollie Walker had continued his excellent start to the season with 62 for Herefordshire.

Honours were also shared in the double-headers at Exning, Louth, Challow & Childrey and Allendale, where the sides won one match each, while Bedfordshire, Cheshire and Cornwall all made perfect starts to the competition with doubles on the day.

Bedfordshire beat Wales NC by 33 runs in the opener in Group Three at Southill Park and by five wickets in the second.

Wales included Derbyshire batter Aneurin Donald for the first time in 11 years as the former Glamorgan batter sought game time having suffered a shoulder injury fielding as a substitute against Gloucestershire last month.

Donald was caught behind for four in the first match but found his touch with 51 from 20 balls, with four sixes, in the second although he was unable to save Wales from defeat. Amrit Basra followed up his competition-best four for 15 with 43 from 29 balls for Bedfordshire.

In the first match of the day Scotland Under-19 international Jamie Dunk made 43 in his first innings of the competition before Oscar Phillips and Joe Lowe combined to dismiss Wales for 96, with Rhodri Lewis supplying 37 of those runs.

Sussex batter Harrison Ward slammed 70 from 29 balls to help Oxfordshire to a four wickets victory overBerkshire in the first match at Challow & Childrey

Ward, Oxfordshire’s white ball captain, struck four sixes and nine fours as his side chased down a target of 149 with three balls to spare.

Earlier Ward’s Sussex team-mate Archie Lenham had taken three for 15 on his Oxfordshire debut to restrict Berkshire to 148 for nine.

Having suffered their first defeat of the season, Berkshire were quickly back to winning ways as they won the second match by 39 runs.

Charlie Dunnett and Ben Slater, with 44 apiece, took Berkshire to 180 for five and slow left-armer Eddie Campion then stifled Oxfordshire’s reply with three wickets. Lenham enjoyed himself at the end of the match with 45 from 26 balls but then Berkshire were home and hosed.

Cheshire ended Shropshire’s unbeaten start to the season with a three runs success in the opener at Wem and then followed up with a five wickets win in the second game.

All-rounder Andrew Jackson played a key role in the first as he made a quickfire unbeaten 24 to lift Cheshire to 164 for six after slow left-armer Lewis Evans had become only the fourth Shropshire to take four wickets in a T20 innings.

Jackson then bowled a nerveless final over as Shropshire faltered in pursuit of a target of 165. They required seven at the start of the over with five wickets in hand and four off the last three balls but Jackson sent down three dot ball to the frustrated Evans.

Wem opener Harry Chandler made 40 not out on his competition debut and his first appearance for Shropshire in four years but he could only watch from the non-striker’s end as Evans struggled to find gaps in the field.

Opener Rahul Kaushal made 43 in the second match but off-spinner Andy Dufty took three wickets and Shropshire’s total of 119 for eight never looked adequate. Cheshire got home with seven balls to spare thanks to former Lancashire wicketkeeper George Lavelle (38) and Sam Perry (30).

Rain interrupted both matches at Allendale where hosts Northumberland won the first by ten wickets andStaffordshire the second by six wickets.

Staffordshire were dismissed for 133 in the opener before the rain arrived. It relented in time for Northumberland to be set a revised target of 42 in five overs which they reached in 20 balls thanks to a rapid unbeaten 32 from Alasdair Appleby.

The second match was reduced to 16 overs-a-side and Appleby was in the runs again, this time 31 in an opening stand of 54 with John Oswell (24).

But Northumberland then lost their way against the pace of Rory Haydon (three for 36) and spin of Matt Morris and drifted to 115 for nine. Staffordshire chased it down with seven balls to spare with Callum Hawkins leading the way with 38, Morris completing a good afternoon’s work with 24 and skipper James Kettleborough’s unbeaten 33 completing the chase.

Former Kent all-rounder Alex Blake enjoyed himself on his return to National Counties cricket with important runs in Cornwall’s double over Devon at Blundell’s School in Tiverton in Group Four.

Blake made 51 from 22 balls and shared an opening partnership of 71 with Alex Bone which helped to secure a five wickets win with more then five overs to spare in the opener.

Blake then made 31 out of opening partnership for 33 with Bone in the second match before Bone (60 not out) and Will MacVicar (57 not out) added 119 in a Cornwall record third wicket partnership to wrap up an eight wickets win with an over to spare.

Sam Elstone (42) and Ben Privett (45) were Devon’s highest scorers in the two games.

Both double-headers in Group Two were shared with Hertfordshire beating Cambridgeshire by nine wickets in the opener at Exning before their hosts won the second by three runs.

The first county match played at Louth saw Norfolk beat Lincolnshire by ten runs in the opener before Lincolnshire took revenge with a 47 runs success in the second.

Cambridgeshire’s Lee Thomason and Hertfordshire’s Callum Taylor were the men in form at Exning. Thomason’s unbeaten 43 was not enough to deny Hertfordshire in the first match but his 40 not out helped to lift Cambridgeshire to 175 for four in the second.

Former Glamorgan batter Taylor then shared a Hertfordshire shared a county record second wicket partnership of 124 to seal victory with 21 balls to spare.

Taylor followed up with 63 in the second match and David Burnell made 58 in a fifth wicket partnership of 50 but Joe Loveday’s three wickets checked Hertfordshire’s progress.

Jack Plom’s breezy 17 kept Hertfordshire in the hunt until he was bowled trying to pull Wayne White, who had earlier top-scored with 47 not out.

Batter Ben Jones impressed on his Lincolnshire debut with a brace of forties against Norfolk at Louth.

His 42 in the first and 30 not out from captain Tom Keast were not quite enough in the opener as Norfolk successfully defended a total of 140 for six.

Jones followed up with 41 in the second match but it was a supporting innings to Joe Pocklington whose competition-best 93 came from 62 balls with 13 fours and a six. The pair shared a second wicket stand of 111 which took Lincolnshire to 176 for four, the day’s highest total, and proved 47 too many for Norfolk.

Sleaford opening bowler Scott Tite took four for 18 in his first bowl in the competition having been unused by Lincolnshire in the first match.

Ben Wilcox had a productive day for Norfolk, top-scoring in each match with 31 in the opener and 49 in the second.

National Counties T20

Group One

Allendale. Match One: Staffordshire 133 (Callum Fletcher 3-21), Northumberland 42-0 (Alasdair Appleby 32 not out). Northumberland won by 10 wickets (DLS).

Match Two: Northumberland 115-9 (Alasdair Appleby 31, Matt Morris 3-15, Rory Haydon 3-36), Staffordshire 116-4 (Callum Hawkins 38, James Kettleborough 33 not out). Staffordshire won by six wickets.

Wem. Match One: Cheshire 164-6 (Kevin Carroll 36 not out, Alex Money 36, Lewis Evans 4-31),Shropshire 161-6 (Harry Chandler 40 not out, George Hargrave 37). Cheshire won by three runs.

Match Two: Shropshire 119-8 (Rahul Kaushal 43, Andy Dufty 3-11), Cheshire 122-5 (George Lavelle 38, Sam Perry 30, Charlie Home 3-25). Cheshire won by five wickets.

Group Two

Exning. Match One: Cambridgeshire 129-8 (Lee Thomason 43 not out), Hertfordshire 132-1 (Archie Harrison 65 not out, Callum Taylor 57 not out). Hertfordshire won by nine wickets.

Match Two: Cambridgeshire 175-4 (Wayne White 47, Lee Thomason 40 not out), Hertfordshire 172 (Callum Taylor 63, David Burnell 58, Joe Loveday 3-41). Cambridgeshire won by three runs.

Louth. Match One: Norfolk 140-6 (Ben Wilcox 31), Lincolnshire 130-3 (Ben Jones 42, Tom Keast 30 not out). Norfolk won by ten runs.

Match Two: Lincolnshire 176-4 (Joe Pocklington 93, Ben Jones 41), Norfolk 129-9 (Ben Wilcox 49, Scott Tite 4-18). Lincolnshire won by 47 runs.

Group Three

Southill Park: Bedfordshire 129-8 (Jamie Dunk 43), Wales NC 96 (Rhodri Lewis 37, Oscar Phillips 4-14, Joe Lowe 3-17). Bedfordshire won by 33 runs.

Match Two: Wales NC 118 (Aneurin Donald 51, Amrit Basra 4-15, Archie Houghton 3-22),Bedfordshire 121-5 (Amrit Basra 43). Bedfordshire won by five wickets.

Challow & Childrey. Match One: Berkshire 148-9 (Eddie Campion 30, Archie Lenham 3-15, Luke Hayes 3-26), Oxfordshire 152-6 (Harrison Ward 70). Oxfordshire won by four wickets.

Match Two: Berkshire 180-5 (Charlie Dunnett 44, Ben Slater 44), Oxfordshire 141 (Archie Lenham 45, Arjun Ramkumar 37, Eddie Campion 3-25) Berkshire won by 39 runs.

Group Four

Blundell’s School. Match One: Devon 125-8 (Sam Elstone 42), Cornwall 126-5 (Alex Blake 51, George Addy 3-34). Cornwall won by five wickets.

Match Two: Devon 150-8 (Ben Privett 45, Max Tryfonos 3-42), Cornwall 152-2 (Alex Bone 60 not out, Will MacVicar 57 not out, Alex Blake 31). Cornwall won by eight wickets.

Eastnor. Match One: Herefordshire 169-6 (Ollie Walker 62), Wiltshire 172-2 (Jack Mynott 77 not out, Jake Goodwin 53). Wiltshire won by eight wickets.

Match Two: Herefordshire 163-9 (Ollie Walker 37, Luke Powell 32, Will Brown 3-24), Wiltshire 113 (Jonathan Sadler 35 not out, James Rudge 5-10). Herefordshire won by 50 runs.

📸 John Aston - Big Pitch Media