The club’s 3rd and 4th XIs have for a long time been amongst the leading sides in Essex at their respective levels. 2024 was the 3rd XI’s 23rd consecutive season in the Premier Division, a record in itself, and they have registered 17 top-half finishes in that time (as well as recording three title triumphs of course). The 4s had been the highest placed 4th XI in the league for four of the last six seasons, and so both sides had high hopes for the 2024 campaign. While form fluctuated for both elevens over the summer, the season should once again be considered a success, especially when factoring in the number of young players who played prominent roles in both teams.

As with most sides at the club, the bad weather meant there was no real pre-season campaign to get everyone warmed up, and so the 3s, reigning Premier Division Champions, travelled to Woodford Wells for the league opener feeling a little undercooked. However, they needn’t have been to worried as they put in an excellent performance at the ground where they clinched the title seven months earlier. Youngster Stanley Moore was the pick of the bowlers with 4-59, while Maxwell Crease (75) and Sharif Hameed (71) were in the runs for Wells, who posted 248-9. Upminster lost both openers early on, but Arun Kullar and Zoran Suneel put on 115 for the third wicket to get Upminster back in the game. Suneel fell for 59 but Kullar continued to look in fine form and brought up his century at the same time as hitting the winnings runs, as Upminster won by four wickets. There was no opening day win for the 4th XI though, as they fell to defeat against Gidea Park and Romford at Coopers. Five batters made it into double figures for Ian Munn’s side, but only Andrew Berry was able to add any impetus to the innings as they made 140-9. Mark Hope was in the runs for Park, as he always seems to be against Upminster, and with Cameron Kennett making 46 the visitors cruised to a six wicket win.

The rest of May proved a tough period for the 3rd XI as they fell to defeats at Shenfield and at home to Brentwood. At Shenfield, Ryan Oakes impressed with the ball for Upminster, but 98 from veteran Shen opener Laurence Tredget saw the home side make 234-6, and despite 51 from Zoran Suneel that total was to much for Upminster. A week later, Adam Quested and Sam Twine helped Dan Simpson’s side to post 178-6 at Coopers, before 63 from Jatin Patel saw Brentwood to a four wicket win. By contrast, the end of May saw the 4th XI pick up two brilliant results. They bounced back from their opening day defeat with a fine win against Hornchurch in the derby at Coopers. Veteran bowled Kevin Roome picked up 4-31 after Hornchurch had made a good start, the visitors eventually posting 196, before 64 from Matt Mccarthy put Upminster in charge, and Bal Kullar, Ollie Clarke and Joseph Brooks helped seem them to a six wicket win. At South Woodford a week later, Nathan Brown and Shrey Shah claimed three wickets each as South made 217-8, and then captain Ian Munn made 59, and with runs from Matt Ingleson and Mit Shah Upminster won a tense affair by two wickets.

The 3rd XI have rarely suffered three consecutive defeats in recent years, but they lost a third game in a row as they were beaten at West Essex at the start of June. Michael Jones picked up 3-37 as West were restricted to 186 at the Rolls, but only Alex Ward and Rob Healy offered much resistance in reply with Upminster all out for 125. A week later and the 3s played in one of the games of the season, or of any season, as they took on Wanstead and Snaresbrook at Nutter Lane. Captain Dan Simpson made 92 at the top of the innings while Rob Mack returned to form with 41. Wanstead fought back though, and Upminster’s total of 207-8 looked like it may be slightly under par. Wanstead opener Pranav Nair made a half century to put the home side in a good position, but Tom Young and Ethan Berry brought Upminster back into the game with two wickets each. Stephen Ramdial made 38 and although Upminster kept scrapping the game was the home side’s to lose as they needed seven runs from the final two overs with two wickets in hand. Ethan Berry bowled the penultimate over and conceded just three runs whilst picking up a wicket, meaning Wanstead needed four to win from the final over. Two runs came from the first ball before Michael Jones bowled four dot balls. Wanstead tried to scramble a bye from the last to tie the game but the batter was run out to give Upminster a one run win. The mid-June contest against Chelmsford at Chelmer Park was rained off before the chaotic fixture schedule meant Wanstead came to Coopers the following week. On an excellent Coopers wicket Upminster made 285-4, with half centuries from Adam Quested, Ethan Berry and Alex Ward. In reply Pranav Nair repeated his effort from the first game, making another half century, and with Anthony Smith also in the runs Wanstead were able to calmly bat out for the draw at 255-4. The 3s finished June with a home win over Woodford Wells, largely thanks to the all-round efforts for Rob Mack. Ralph Dorey made 108 for Wells before becoming one of six victims of Mack, who picked up 6-78. Wells total of 227 looked a challenging one when Upminster fell to 71-4, but Mack made 45 and with Alex Ward and Stanley Moore also chipping in down the order, Upminster scrambled home by two wickets.

June was also an up and down month for the 4th XI. The all-round efforts of Joseph Brooks could not stop them falling to defeat against Hadleigh and Thundersley, a result which would go on to be Hadleigh’s only win of the season. Amir Ashraf’s 120 for Frenford the following week proved to much for Upminster, despite 52 from Dave Brown, but they did put in an efficient performance against South Woodford to pick up an important victory. Nathan Brown claimed 3-5 as South were skittled out for 90 before 33 from Matt Ingleson helped Upminster to a comfortable win. Hornchurch gained revenge for their defeat earlier in the season as they won by five wickets at Cromer Road the following week. Cousins, Fenton Everingham and Will Frost helped Upminster to post 182, but the experienced Myles Wells made 61 not out for Hornchurch as they won with plenty of time to spare. Upminster finished the month with one of their best performances of the season, against Orsett and Thurrock 3s at School Lane. Ian Munn and Andrew Berry were the pick of the attack as Orsett made 215-7 before Sam Twine stole the show for Upminster. Twine made 96 from 112 balls and with Fenton Everingham making 49, Upminster ended the month in style with a five wicket win.

July began with both the 3s and 4s games being washed out, before the 3s started the second half of the season with a hard-fought draw at title-chasing Brentwood. Mark D’Cruz and Stanley Moore were in the wickets for Upminster, but Brentwood’s powerful middle order enabled them to reach 254-9. Dan Simpson (40) and Sunette Viljoen-Louw (89) put Upminster into a good position in their chase, and Arun Kullar (30) looked in good touch as they reached 182-3. However, wickets fell at crucial times and what looked like it could be a thriller petered out somewhat, with Upminster ending on 204-8. That result left Upminster nearer the bottom two than the top two in the table, but they then embarked on a remarkable run of form, beginning in late July with two excellent wins against two of the top three. Kullar made a sparkling 116 against West Essex, an innings which enabled Upminster to make a massive 304-8. Rob Mack then continued his renaissance with the ball, picking up 5-34 as West were bowled out for 193. A week later and there were four wickets for D’Cruz in Harold Wood’s innings of 262-6, but that total was nowhere near enough as Viljoen-Louw made a brilliant unbeaten 104 and with help from Rob Healy Upminster cruised to a seven wicket win (albeit with only a few balls to spare).

The rest of July proved an excellent period for the 4th XI as well. They beat Oakfield Parkonians in an excellent game at Coopers thanks to three wickets from Fin Tolan and 59 from Mit Shah, and they gained revenge for their early season defeat against Hadleigh the following week, with Aedan Daly and Nathan Brown helping them bowl out the home side for 93 as Upminster won by seven wickets. The 4s ended the month with a solid draw at Frenford. 91 from Amir Ashraf led Frenford to a total of 284-7 and Upminster looked in trouble early in their chase. However, they showed great resolve to bat out for the draw with youngsters Joseph Brooks and Fenton Everingham batting well and Ben Hamberger making an unbeaten half century.

The 3rd XI’s burst of good form continued into August, where they began the month with a low scoring win at Harlow. Harlow, champions in 2022 and runners-up in 2023, were not having their best season, and Mark D’Cruz helped his side roll them out for 122. However, that looked for a while like it may be to many for Upminster as they fell into trouble. Rob Healy and Nathan French got their side back on track with an excellent partnership, but French’s dismissal brought a further clatter of wickets to leave the game in the balance. Healy kept his nerve though and ended on 52 not out as Upminster won by two wickets. Things were a little more comfortable a week later against Shenfield at Coopers. There were three wickets each for Rob Mack, Jordan Tolan and Tom Young which helped bowl out Shen for 147. Steve Limn (67 not out) and Dan Simpson (66) then saw Upminster to an eight wicket win. The charge up the table, and Simpson’s good form, continued when Chelmsford came to Coopers as the match formats returned to the limited overs set-up. Simpson’s 75 was the mainstay of Upminster’s 230-9, which looked like a huge total as Tom Young then tore through the Chelmsford top order. Yong claimed 4-50 and Ollie Burley took 2-20 to take Upminster to the brink of victory, before Sunette Viljoen-Louw signed off for the season in style by claiming the last two wickets as Upminster won by 109 runs. That win saw Upminster move into fourth place as they mounted a late charge for the title, but there was frustration on Bank Holiday weekend as most cricket across the league was washed out, including the 3s trip to Ilford. The 3rd XI concluded August by winning a thrilling penultimate game of the season against Harlow at Coopers. Upminster’s innings was a stop start affair with wickets falling regularly, but Alex Ward made 52 and late runs from Burley and Fenton Everingham took the home side to 216-7. Harlow knew a win would guarantee their Premier Division survival and Eliot Koopowitz and Dipendra Basnet put them into a good position with an excellent second wicket partnership. Mark D’Cruz took three wickets as Upminster came back into it, and the run rate grew as the light drew in. 25 were needed from the final three overs, but that was reduced to seven needed from the last, which was bowled by Fenton Everingham. Everingham produced a wicket with his first ball and then conceded just one run from the next four deliveries to leave Harlow needing six from the last ball. It went for just one and Upminster won by four runs. Results elsewhere meant that Upminster could still take the title on the final day of the season. They would need to beat second placed Harold Wood and hope Brentwood and West Essex slipped up in their last matches.

The 4th XI enjoyed a solid August, losing just one match from five (the final one of the month). Sam Twine began the month in fine style, making a brilliant 103 against runaway leaders Chingford at Coopers. There were also runs for Matt Ingleson, Will Frost, Joseph Brooks, Stanley Moore and Jordan Tolan as Upminster piled up 303-7. Despite their lofty position Chingford seemed happy to bat out their innings, finishing on 178-4 as the game was drawn. There was also a draw a week later, as Upminster were forced to hang on at Gidea Park and Romford. Fenton Everingham and Brooks took three wickets each, but 80 from Dave Croker helped Park post 239-8. Ingleson made 59 at the top of the order for Upminster, and Ben Hamberger made 48, but Upminster ended on 186-8. Ingleson’s good form continued at Oakfield Parkonians. The stand-in skipper made 67 while Matt Mccarthy made an unbeaten 68 as Upminster cruised to a nine wicket win. Aedan Daly had earlier claimed 3-39 as Parkonians were bowled out for 148. The game at Hutton 3s was washed out before Upminster ended the month with a heavy defeat at champions-elect Chingford. Upminster’s young side bowled and fielded superbly with Fin Tolan picking up three wickets and Ian Munn, Lewis Munn and Nathan Brown all claiming two. Chingford were bowled out for 182, but that was more than enough on a very difficult wicket, with Upminster all out for just 73.

The final game of the season arrived and the 3s knew they must win at Harold Wood and hope other results went their way if they were to claim their fourth title in six seasons. Upminster didn’t enjoy their best day with the ball and with seven of Wood’s top eight making double figures the home side took control. Wood’s total of 276-5 looked a very good one and when Upminster fell to 50-3 it looked an even better one. Rob Healy and Ethan Berry didn’t give up the fight though, and their fourth wicket stand of 79 brought their side back into the game. They were both dismissed in quick succession by Brad Ayling, Healy for 66, and with their departures went Upminster’s hopes. Dan Simpson’s side were bowled out for 181 and with West Essex losing Wood ended on the same number of points as Brentwood but claimed the title by virtue of having won one more game!! Upminster ended fourth after a remarkable run of form in the second half of the season.

The 4th XI ended the season on a high and secured another top half finish thanks to a fine performance against Orsett and Thurrock. Nathan Brown, who enjoyed yet another consistent and successful season at this level with the ball, picked up 4-42 as Orsett were bowled out for 136. Matt Mccarthy, who had his best season yet in senior cricket, then made 52, and with Stan Moore making 39 Upminster won by six wickets to end in fifth place. They were once again the highest finishing 4th XI in the league and will be the only 4th XI competing at this level again in 2025.

The club is rightly very proud of the year-on-year achievements of both the 3rd and 4th XIs, and they showed once again in 2024 what a depth of talent there is at the club. A number of players in both of these teams would be playing in higher elevens at the majority of clubs in the league. More than ever in 2024, these sides also showed how many excellent young players there are at the club. The report above hopefully showcases the performances of a whole group of players aged 21 and under who will be pushing to move up the sides over the coming seasons. These young players were excellently led in 2024 by Dan Simpson and Ian Munn, and supported by a group of experienced players who continue to put in great performances week on week at the same time as guiding those around them. Both the 3rd and 4th XI will look ahead to 2025 with much anticipation.

3rd XI Leading Run Scorers (League):
Dan Simpson – 396
Sunette Viljoen-Louw – 320
Arun Kullar – 309
Alex Ward - 290
Rob Healy – 226

3rd XI Leading Wicket Takers (League):
Mark D’Cruz – 25
Rob Mack – 20
Tom Young – 16
Ryan Oakes – 12
Stanley Moore - 10

4th XI Leading Run Scorers (League):
Matthew Ingleson – 348
Matt Mccarthy – 284
Joseph Brooks – 250
Sam Twine – 199
Ian Munn 191

4th XI Leading Wicket Takers (League):
Nathan Brown – 22
Joseph Brooks – 20
Fin Tolan – 11
Kevin Roome – 9
Aedan Daly - 8