Division 16 stats
Leading all time run scorer (2011-2017) - Terry Bruton (Ashbourne) - 613 runs @ 51.083
Most runs in a Division 16 season - Sunil Kant Trikha (Carlow) - 528 runs (2015)
Highest score - Sunil Kant Trikha (Carlow) - 156 - Carlow 1 vs Bagenalstown 3 - Carlow RFC - 7 June 2015
Leading all time wicket taker (2011-2017) - Stephen Hadley (Bagenalstown) - 42 wkts @ 13.55
Most wickets in a Division 16 season - Aj Malhan (North Kildare) - 33 wkts (2015)
Best bowling - Mat Baker (Bagenalstown) - 8-21 - Bagenalstown 3 vs Ashbourne 2 - McGrath Park - 17 June 2017
Highest team score - 440-6 - Carlow 1 vs Bagenalstown 3 - Carlow RFC - 7 June 2015
Lowest team score - 34 all out - Ashbourne 2 v Bagenalstown 3- Ashbourne- 16 July 2016
Most Matches in Division 16 (2011-2017) - Tushar Verma (Adamstown) - 26 (2015-2017)
Another year is over. All that remains is for the performances of players across the province to be analysed; picked apart, and in some instances even praised! We'll look to see which teams exceeded expectations, which were a bit of a disappointment, and for which ones great things are expected in the future.
Each team has a bowling rating and a batting rating (as was used last year). This is the team's runs per wicket for and runs per wicket against when compared to the average across that league. An "average team" would have ratings of 100 for bowling and batting. And as the game changes, we have also included the run rate across each division, and the run rate scored and conceded by each team.
The reviews now make extensive use of our new Data Centre. All statistics for the last seven seasons can be found at http://www.cricketleinster.ie/data-centre/players.
We also have the return of our Team of the Year, based on the top five bowlers (on average, 10 wickets and five matches minimum), the wicketkeeper with the most dismissals, and then the top batsmen to fill the eleven (on average, 200 runs and 5 innings minimum, although this run qualification may be reduced if not enough batsmen qualify). Details are included of those players who have previously been named in Teams of the Year.
Team of the Year (in batting order) - Rozeen Ahmad (Adamstown), Adarsh Kotwal (Leinster), Fahad Ansari (Leinster) (Div 13, 2016), Anoop Bolledla (Ashbourne), Paras Goel (Balbriggan), Saeedullah Azizi (Leinster), Tayyeb Hassan (Balbriggan wicketkeeper), Asif Hussain (Clondalkin), Iftikhar Sabir (Balbriggan), Nurujjaman Khan (Clondalkin), Kumar Jesu Ranjan (Adamstown)
Review
Runs per wicket for all teams - 16.73 Runs per over for all teams - 4.37
Bagenalstown 3 - Champions - (Predicted 5th) - Batting Rating 104 - Bowling Rating 142 - RpO for 3.66 - RpO against 3.48
A triumphant year for Bagenalstown 3, winning their first league title in only their third year in existence. It is fair to say that their title didn't match the patterns displayed by most title winning teams. You may have spotted that Bagenalstown players don't feature in the Division 16 team of the year, which although unusual, would suggest a solid all round effort. But there weren't a huge amount of players who led the charge to the title - especially with the bat. No one scored more than 150 runs, with Rana Faheem Riaz leading the way with 148 runs at 74. He also scored two of the team's three 50s during the season, with Ray Stapleton getting the other. Faheem Riaz was also excellent with the ball, taking 10 wickets at 6.6, but the team's talisman was Mat Baker, who was supreme with 21 wickets at 10.76, including 8-21 against Ashbourne in June - the best figures recorded in Division 16. The season was built around four sucessive wins in June/July when Clondalkin, Ashbourne and Civil Service (twice) were beaten. The only other win was in the title decider against Leinster 6 in September. The club has celebrated its 175th anniversary in fine style.
Leinster 6 - Runners up - (Predicted 1st) - Batting Rating 139 - Bowling Rating 109 - RpO for 4.57 - RpO against 4.37
Our tip for the season just failed to lift the big prize, ultimately down to losing to Bagenalstown in their last match in September, but not helped by a sticky patch in July when they won only one from four. Leinster 6 had three players on the Team of the Year, and not surprisingly those three dominated proceedings. Fahad Ansari made the Division 13 Team of the Year in 2016 as a wicketkeeper, and after stepping down a level this year, scored plenty of runs to prove the selectors wrong. He scored 296 runs at 32.89 to be the top scorer in Division 16. Saeedullah Azizi was more than useful in his debut season in Leinster cricket, with 170 runs at 18.89 and 21 wickets at 8.14 and Adarsh Kotwal made a big impact in the six games he played, scoring 287 runs at 47.83 and 20 wickets at 6.80, including taking five wickets in an innings three times. Justin Cramp also passed the 100 run/10 wicket milestone and Trevor Dunne was as dependable as ever with 113 runs at 22.60. Despite all that positivity, it was still the lowest Leinster 6 have finished in the league by a long way - their 118th along way behind 2013's 99th.
Clondalkin 2 - 3rd - (Predicted 6th) - Batting Rating 98 - Bowling Rating 105 - RpO for 4.40 - RpO against 3.92
As strong debut season from the Tymon Park side. We thought 6th would be a good return, but they were much better than that, winning seven matches which was more than anyone else in the league. A strong start to the year, followed by a good July meant that at the start of August, Clondalkin 2 were 6-2, before three losses in a row dented their hopes. But that closing run shouldn't detract from an excellent start in Leinster league cricket. Two players made our Division 16 Team of the Year, and not surprisingly, they lead our profile. Four batsmen passed 100 runs for the season (Asif Hussain, Syed Bukhari, Wahed Firdous and Abul Shapon), but is was Hussain who took the plaudits with 183 runs at 20.33. The Clondalkin bowling attack was a bit stronger than the batting (the batting being marked as below average, and the bowling as above average), and it was led by Nurujjaman and Syfuzzamman Khan. The veteran Syfuzzaman played in only three matches, taking an incredible 13 at 4.38 (he didn't play enough Division 16 matches to qualify) but Nurujjaman took 14 at 9.43, enough to earn his selection. Shapon completed the allrounders double with 11 wickets at 13.64. A fine first season for the team.
Adamstown 5 - 4th - (Predicted 2nd) - Batting Rating 128 - Bowling Rating 85 - RpO for 5.02 - RpO against 4.99
Something of a disappointing season for Adamstown's 5th string (pictured above), although a positive spin could be put on it depending on your outlook. It was their highest ever finishing position in the league - 120th, bettering last year's 122nd. But with less teams competing in 2017, they were fourth from bottom in Division 16, as opposed to sixth from bottom last year. But against that, they won six matches, and lost only three, which was the lowest amount in the division. The bowling was where the problems were, with four of the seven highest totals in the league being against them. Only Kumar Jesu Ranjan took 10 wickets, his ten costing 9.50 runs a piece - wnough to earn a place on the Team of the Year. Adamstown's other representative was part of a strong batting line up. Three players passed 100 runs, all at an average of over 40. Rozeen Ahmad led the way with 205 runs at 41, Tahir Shahzad scored 177 at 59 and Sanjeev Kumar 163 at 40.75. Adamstown are now one of only seven clubs in Leinster to have five teams or more, an interesting start in itself. Three clubs, YMCA, Civil Service, North County and Railway Union all dropped their 5th teams in 2017. Adamstown 5 need to up their game though to catch the next highest - Malahide 5 who finished 21 places ahead of them in the league.
Balbriggan 4 - 5th - (Predicted 4th) - Batting Rating 107 - Bowling Rating 115 - RpO for 4.57 - RpO against 3.92
So near but yet so far for Balbriggan 4. Taking their first three and last four matches together, they had a record of 6-1, with thumping victories against Leinster (twice) and Bagenalstown. Our rating system has them as the third best team in the division. But yet the spell from May 6 to June 3 saw them lose four times - twice each to Adamstown and Civil Service - losing any chance of winning the league. But this was only Balbriggan 4th's second season, and for us to be sitting here lamenting how they really should have won the league is a mark of how well the season nearly went. There were also three team members who made our Team of the Year - a fact that contributes to that feeling of "Oh what might have been". Four batsmen passed 100 runs, four bowlers took 10 wickets - and one did both. Iftikhar Sabir has long been the scourge of opposition players, and hs played plenty of Division 3 cricket in the past for Leinster, as well as a decent standard for Railway. Not surprisingly, he was too good in Division 16, scoring 142 runs at 23.67 and taking 13 wickets at 7.46. The other run scorers were Paras Goel (184 at 46, and a Team of the Year selectee), Chris MacMahon, (129 at 25.8), and Tayyeb Hassan who scored 147 at 16.33 as well as making the divisional selection as wicketkeeper. The three bowlers not yet named are Eoin Birch (10 wickets at 9.90), Steven Harper (12 at 14) and Mick McDonnell (11 at 20.09). A team to watch for next year.
Civil Service 4 - 6th (Predicted 3rd) - Batting Rating 71 - Bowling Rating 80 - RpO for 3.70 - RpO against 4.31
It's important to make sure that the reviews in Division 16 are not too harsh. For many teams it is the aim to give players a match, whether old or young, a newbie or a grizzled veteran. But there is no getting away from the fat that it wasn't a great season for Civil Service 4, the team slumping to its worst finish in recent years. The stats don't give much cause to throw a party either. Only one player scored more than 100 runs; only one player took ten wickets or more - and it was the same player. Muhammad Faraz did everything he could do with 177 at 19.67 and 10 wickets at 15.7. There was a hint that things could have been much better - on the morning of July 8th, Civil Service were still unbeaten, having won their first three matches. There then started a six match run without a victory .
Ashbourne 2 - 7th (Predicted 7th) - Batting Rating 70 - Bowling Rating 79 - RpO for 3.62 - RpO against 4.62
And as with Civil Service, Ashbourne 2 may have come bottom, but they have much to be happy with. 14 players made their Ashbourne 2 league debut this season - 30 players played throughout the season, for the second team of a club that didn't exist four years ago. And to be even more positive, three of the last four matches were won, giving hope for 2018. However, as with Civil Service, the team's efforts were built around one player, and remarkably for a team that came bottom of the league, that player forced their way into the Team of the Year. Anoop Bolledla scored 203 at 25.38 and 16 wickets at 12.44.
The full Division 16 batting averages can be found here, whilst the bowling averages are here