Hampshire opener struck a back-to-form 63 (seven fours) as his adopted Australian club Fitzroy Doncaster made 240-7 against Cricket Victoria Premier Division rivals Dandedong, who made 223-8 in reply.  
Former South Wilts batsman Jake Winter hit an unbeaten 81 to steer Glenelg to a three-wicket win over East Torrens (216), while one-time Totton & Eling all-rounder Cameron Valente stole the show, hitting 108 for Port Adelaide (224) and then took 5-17 as Kensington sank to 83 all out. 
St Cross Symondians raised George O'Connor, now with Surrey Championship winners Sunbury, took 4-18 but his Adelaide club Southern Districts took a 342-run mauling from the South Australia U19s. 

South Wilts have signed teenage Hampshire Academy all-rounder Tom Cheater to strengthen their side for next summer's ECB Southern Premier League challenge.
A 'white ball' specialist, the 18-year old top order right-hand batsman and seam bowler was this past season's Premier League Young Cricketer of the Year, with 399 runs and 14 wickets.
South Wilts skipper Ben Draper said: "We're very excited to have Tom on board. He brings a lot of talent with bat and ball with him. 
"He will fit in perfectly with us at South Wilts and we look forward to playing with him."
Cheater is currently on a gap year winter cricket season in Australia - for Bayswater in Melbourne - while potential Bemerton team-mate Archie Fairfax Ross (pictured batting below) has just made his best score yet Down Under.
Playing as a spin all-rounder for Mudgeeraba in Queensland's Gold Coast League, he top scored with 71 (nine fours/two sixes) and later took 2-34 - but opponents Queens chased down a target of 226 to win by three wickets.

Winchester College all-rounder Sebastian Morgan is knocking ever loudly for a place in England's ICC Under-19 Cup squad - the 16 nation tournament having being switched to South Africa's high veldt (instead of Sri Lanka) in mid-January 2024.
Opening the bowling as England defended a modest 265 against Bangladesh, Morgan took 2-47, having earlier played an important lower-order role with the bat.
England dropped from 179-4 to 228-8 (Luc Benkenstein 79) - Dom Kelly having played a part in several partnerships - when 16-year old Morgan made 20 and added vital runs with Eddie Jack, the pair hoisting the tourists to a winning 265 all out.
Bangladesh, whom England beat last Friday, were dismissed for 197, Kelly again rested from the bowling attack with a back strain. India's B side beat the country's A side on an adjoining ground.

​Arising from the vote at last week's Annual General Meeting which resulted in the administrative rule banning the payment of players to stay in place, Southern Premier League chairman Steve Vear has written to all clubs as follows:
"As I explained prior to the end of the AGM, these decisions are rightly yours to make as member clubs, and as explained in detail in my previous letter, this is not an easy area to navigate or manage.
"That said, the Management Committee of the SPCL must now look at the consequences of this decision and the indictive request to effectively ‘double down’ on this rule.
"To confirm the comments, I made on behalf of the Committee last Wednesday evening:
1. Any complaints or conversations regarding the payment of players by given clubs will immediately be stopped and considered closed unless there is evidence presented either immediately or soon after the allegation is made. 
Member clubs are reminded that any initial discussions regarding payment of players that took place between the papers being released and the AGM vote could be considered to be a breach of these rules, which was still in effect.
2. Should a member club be found guilty of paying players, an EGM will be called where there
will be a motion laid to terminate the membership of the club in question, rendering all
remaining fixtures void for that club for the rest of the season and beyond.
3. In the case of the player, it is likely (subject to further decisions) that the player will be
banned for a minimum of one season.
                                                                           Foreign nationals
4. Payment of players could include any extraordinary travel expenses or coaching fees and certainly a reduction in match fees or subscriptions if this differs to what is being charged throughout your club.
5. We are aware, of course, of the varying levels of agreements and contracts that exist between clubs and foreign national players. Clubs should bear in mind, however, that the ability to pay players to play applies to all members of the club, including foreign national players. Paying them to coach or play an otherwise active part of your club however would continue to be considered in line with our rules.
6. The league would strongly advise clubs to consider creating or revise the club match fee and subscription policies so not to fall foul of point 4 above, given that as we heard some clubs wish to offer a concession scheme for those facing hardship.
7. The Management Committee will now seek to form an official sub-committee of the league to discuss this matter further and to further develop a set of policies and expectations to sit along the administrative rule.
I am grateful to Steve Hatcher (South Wilts) and Chris Tona (Fawley) who have volunteered as the first two members of this sub-committee.
It is my intention to chair the subcommittee myself and to require membership of at LEAST one club from each division before considering it constituted.  Should you wish to volunteer to join this subcommittee, then please get into contact with either myself or our General Secretary, Adam Smith
The exact terms of reference for this sub-committee will be built during the first meeting of the new group
Thank you for your attention in this important matter and for your support in allowing us to carrying out your wishes to continue to find a way to apply this administrative rule.

Steve Vear MBE

​Hampshire's cricketers will be packing their winter warmers, bobble hats and gloves and plenty of long sleeve sweaters for their opening 2014 County Championship match on April 5 - away to newly promoted Durham !
After that, its back to the sunny south coast for home matches against Lancashire and Warwickshire before a late April visit to The Oval to play Surrey, the 2023 champions.
Hampshire's opening T20 match is also against Surrey on May 30 - a double header also involving the Southern Vipers.
In the 50-over cup, Hampshire have been allocated home games against Northants, Essex, Somerset, Lancashire and Derbyshire. But there are currently no matches earmarked for Newclose on the Isle of Wight.  

Sussex head coach Paul Farbrace is Thursday's guest speaker at the Dorset Cricket Society, who meet each week at the Hurn Bridge Social Club (aka Christchurch FC) at 1.45pm.
An excellent speaker, 'Farbie' has enjoyed considerable success as a coach, wining the ICC World T20 Cup and the Asia Cup with Sri Lanka in 2014, and being assistant coach to the Ashes winning England cricket team.  
A superb afternoon ! 

England Young Lions were shot out for 142 and beaten by seven wickets by India A in the latest Under-19 Quadrangular competition match - but none of the three Hampshire-based youngsters was involved.
By squad rotation, neither Eddie Jack, Dom Kelly nor Sebastian Morgan played, Kelly resting up a back strain which has riuled him out of playing in the tournament.
The ICC Under-19 World Cup, in which the local trio will all hope to be involved in January, has been moved from Sri Lanka to South Africa, with England playing Scotland, the West Indies and the young Proteas up on the high veldt at smaller provincial grounds outside Johannesburg.  The switch follows Sri Lanka's recent ICC suspension.

Burridge run gun Mathew Goles smashed 114 as Cape Town piled up a sizeable 264-8 before bowling Western Province CA Premier Division rivals Green Point for 84.
Batting in the shadow of Cape Town's international stadium, Goles hit three sixes and nine fours in his innings.  He had begun the season poorly with only 11 runs in his first for innings but is now back to his best, having made a half-century the previous week.
Portsmouth's Fraser Hay joint top scored with 81 and shared a century third-wicket stand as Melville chalked up 241, but an unbeaten 162 by Western Australia's Hilton Cartwright carried South Perth to a three-wicket WACA pennant win.
Hampshire's Toby Albert is fully recovered from a minor knee problem and plan to fly to Perth in early January and play the second half of the season with Joondalup.
Hampshire Academy opener Wilf La Fontaine Jackson is getting a taste of first grade action in the powerful New South Wales Premier League and made 21 of Sydney University's 345-8 against Eastern Suburbs at Waverley.
Alton's Zac Gadsby took three top order wickets but was unable to save Melbourne University from defeat in Victoria's Second Grade Premier.  The students posted 323, but Essenden cruised to a six-wick defeat despite Gadsby's 3-54 return.
Archie Fairfax-Ross bowled a crucial final as Mudgeeraba staved off defeat by Broadbeach in Queensland's Gold Coast competition. Broadbeach only needed four runs to win off the final over  but Archie took a crucial wicket to save the day. It been bucketing down with rain this week, so the weekend's matches are in doubt. 
Portsmouth & Southsea's Matt Benfield has made two impressive performances with the bat for Washington Park in Melbourne's South East District competition.  He made 73 on debut and an unbeaten 83 (eight fours + three sixes) in a last ball T20 win over Cheltenham Park.
Tom Cheater took a wicket and made 24, but his Melbourne side Bayswater lost.  He's been in good form in the local T20, smashing 70 (three 6s and 8 fours) off 43 balls against Knox Gardens and 33 in quick time off the Eildon Park attack. 

Bournemouth’s teenage keeper/batsman Ben Rogers has a New Year date at the Sydney Showground to look forward to after his glovework behind the stumps helped his adopted Greater Illawarra representative team reach the final of the New South Wales CA Plan B T20 Bash.
Rogers, who is spending the winter playing for Albion Park Eagles in Sydney's southern suburbs, snapped up four catches, a stumping and had an assist with a run out as Greater Illawarra beat 2022 champions Newcastle by 21 runs in the northern group final in Tamworth, a cool 7-half hour coach ride away.
Rogers’ batting skills weren’t needed but his glove work impressed the locals as he snared four of the top five Newcastle batsman and finished things off in the final over with a diving catch to complete a surprise victory for his side
The Grand Final is due to be played at the Showground on January 17, as a prelude to the Big Bash League fixture between Sydney Thunder and the Melbourne Renegades.
Rogers continues his Greater Illawarra action in the NSW McDonalds Country Championship, with three 50-over games against North Coastal and Central Northern zones before a rematch against Newcastle.

​Top order batter, Ali Orr, has joined Hampshire from Sussex ahead of the 2024 season, on a multi-year deal.  He has made 51 appearances across the formats for Sussex, but missed a large chunk of the past summer season with hand injuries.
In all formats, the Eastbourne-based left-hander accumulated 2,810 runs at an average of 39 for Sussex, including six centuries. His record in the one-day format is particularly notable, with 670 runs in 14 matches at an average of 47.85.
A Loughborough University graduate, Orr’s debut came in June 2021 in the County Championship against Yorkshire, in which he scored 67. He recorded his maiden First Class century soon after against Kent, making 119 from 254 balls.
His real breakthrough came in the 2022 season, demonstrated by his 206-run outing against Somerset in the Royal London One-Day Cup in August 2022, which was shortly followed by an impressive 198 just a month later, this time in red ball format against Glamorgan.

​Winchester College's Sebastian Morgan smacked 15 off six deliveries to help England Young Lions chase down India B's 319-4 to win by three wickets with four balls remaining of their fourth match in the Under-19 Quadrangular tournament.
A century by Shrewsbury's Theodore Wylie (118) and fifties by Noah Thain (51) and Hamza Shaikh (54) put England in a strong position, but Hampshire pair Dom Kelly (unable to bowl due to a back strain) and Morgan still had work to do.
Kelly hit a quick 11 before Morgan struck a six and two fours off the six balls he faced to complement some big hitting  by Luc Benkenstein, who launched three massive blows out of the ground to clinch an England victory.
Earlier, Eddie Jack took one of the four India B wickets to fall.

​Travis Head, who topped the ECB Southern Premier League batting charts for Ventnor ten years ago, powered Australia to ICC Cricket World Cup glory with a superb century against hosts India in front of more than 110,00 home fans and millions of tv viewers across the globe.
He made a historic 137, helping Australia win its sixth World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India's 240 being overhauled by six wickets with 42 balls to spare.
Just shy of his 30th birthday, left hander Travis, who played for Ventnor in 2013, earlier caught out India's captain, Rohit Sharma.
Head was part of the first Ageas Bowl International Cricket Academy intake that summer, when he made 968 runs at 64.5 for the island club, 733 of them in the Premier League.
And it didn’t take the club too long to realise they had a tasty prospect when the 19-year-old Head stepped off the Red Funnel ferry in 2013.
“I remember him coming out to bat for the first time and he hit a full toss from a spinner over mid-wicket after maybe three or four balls,” says former teammate Robert Snell. “This ball just went like a tracer bullet and it went miles.
“He was just a phenomenal cricketer but a great guy too. He was very confident in his own ability, that was clear, but he had a down to earth quality to him.
“He was fun to be around – and definitely the best overseas player we’ve ever had.
“We had to play our league games at Newclose [the home of Isle of Wight cricket] that season, but he did play at Steephill. The only difference was that instead of smashing balls into the Solent, he was hitting them into a field of alpacas instead.”
Head revealed the impact that the stint had on his career.
“I was living in Southampton at the time but the Ventnor boys looked after me. Just living away from home and having to do stuff on your own for the first time is a big thing when you’re a young guy.
“You know when you’re an overseas players that there are expectations placed on you – you have to score runs and you have to win games of cricket for your side.”
He certainly did that, scoring an unbeaten 142 against Bashley (Rydal) alongside six fifty-plus scores, and 108 against Hambledon in the T20.

Teenage Basingstoke & North Hants prospect Abdullah Abid has been named Hampshire Under-15 Cricketer of the Year in recognition of his run scoring exploits for the county's development pathway teams.
Pictured with the Peter Lewin Memorial Plate, Abdullah scored over 560 runs for the Hampshire U15 and U16 teams this past summer, including eight scores of 50 or more. In all cricket, he made some 1,271 runs.
He made his debut for Basingstoke's Southern Premier League Division 1 title winning side late in the season.
The annual award is presented in memory of Southampton schoolteacher Peter Lewin, who ran Hampshire schools cricket for 30 years or more between 1961 and the early 1990s.

Hampshire Academy all-rounder Eddie Jack produced a devastating five-wicket return to bowl the England Young Lions to a 13-run win over Bangladesh in Mulapadu - their first victory the pre-ICC Under-19 World Quadrangular tournament taking place in India.
England had lost their two previous 50-over matches against India's A and B sides, but their 322-9 against Bangladesh, centred around a double-century third wicket stand between Warwickshire's Hamza Shaikh (126) and Noah Thain (88) put them in a strong position.
Bangladesh lost wickets at fairly regular intervals and, after Jack's pace had been rewarded with two nicks behind to wicketkeeper Jack Carney, looked down and potentially out at 209-7.
But eighth-wicket pair Parvez Rahman (60) and Wasi Siddiquee (32) struck back with an 83 run stand, which left Bangladesh (292-7) requiring 31 runs to win from the last four overs.
But Jack, who finished with 5-57, produced a devastating finale, breaking the stand and then taking the last two wickets to leave Bangladesh 309 all out.  Academy team-mate Dom Kelly, unable to bowl due to injury, snapped up the match winning tenth wicket catch.

England Young Lions, containing three promising local teenagers, suffered a second consecutive defeat when India A beat them 46 runs.  
India powered to 293-8, with Eddie Jack taking 2-67 and Sebastian Morgan 1-52.  England replied with 247, Morgan making 20 and Dom Kelly (who didn't bowl) 15.  England's next match in the Quadrangular Under-19 tournament is against Bangladesh on Friday.

Southern Premier League clubs have booted out a Management Committee proposal to remove the current ruling which restricts the payment of players in the competition.   At Wednesday evening's AGM,  total of 22 clubs voted against the proposal with 12 voting in favour.   Status quo therefore applies in 2024.

Portsmouth are believed to have lined up a former Bangladesh Test captain as their overseas player for next season's Southern Premier League Division 1 campaign.
Mohammad Ashraful captained his country in 13 Tests, and 38 ODIs between 2007 and 2009.  
In total, he made 261 international appearances in 12 years, racking up 6,655 runs with nine centuries and 30 fifties, amongst 17,044 runs (33 x 100s, 78 x 50s) in all domestic cricket.
Ashraful, pictured, who will replace Australian Fraser Hay as Portsmouth's overseas player in 2024, is a household name in Bangladeshi cricketing circles. 
He struck stardom from an early age becoming the youngest Test centurion in 2001 (17years, 61 days) by striking 114 against Sri Lankan on debut.
His international career was an absolute highlight reel. A flashy stroke-maker, Ashraful struck the fastest fifty in Test, ODI, and T20I matches for Bangladesh.
A hundred against Sri Lanka in his debut Test in Colombo 22 years ago and an even more fluent 158 not out in the first innings versus India in Chittagong three years later were followed by a splendid 100 against the likes of Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie, which led Bangladesh to their maiden ODI win over Australia in Cardiff in June 2005.
With the ball, he was an often under-used spinner, capable of bowling both off and leg spin, Ashraful bagged 47 international and 313 domestic wickets with eight five-wicket hauls.
Those were still Bangladesh’s early days on the international circuit, but Ashraful seemed well on course to stardom till losing his way a few years later.
                                                                                          Spot fixing
International cricket has long deserted him due to spot-fixing allegations during the 2013 Bangladesh Premier League. He was banned by the BCB for eight years, which was subsequently reduced to 5 years, with 2 years suspended.
Not wishing to recall much of the past, he said: “I still play the game. Alongside the Dhaka league, I’ll be going to the United Kingdom to play for Portsmouth next April.
“Coaching is another area I wish to pursue and for that, I’ve already done the ICC (International Cricket Council) level III (coaching) course in Abu Dhabi in May.”
But the former batsman, who many considered more talented than even current captain Shakib-Al Hasan, has found another way to remain involved with cricket at the highest level.
The 39-year-old has been an expert and analyst for Bangladeshi television channel TSports, following Shakib and Co. to all venues of the ICC World Cup in India.
Following his suspension, Ashraful returned to playing domestic cricket and In recent years  has sought to salvage his reputation and his return to not only domestic, but UK cricket.
In 2019 he played for Blackheath, whom he helped  narrowly avoid relegation from the ECB Kent Premier League with 397 runs in 13 knocks.
He was a popular member at the Rectory Field, where he coached juniors from nearby Tower Hamlets.
In the sun baked 2022 season, he made over 825 runs for Lullington Park in the third tier of Derbyshire County League cricket.
Ashraful is the owner of a Chinese cuisine restaurant, Sichuan Garden, in Dhaka since 2011.

A BASINGSTOKE school has had new cricket nets installed as part of an initiative aiming to get more young people to play the game.
Brighton Hill Community School in Basingstoke has unveiled new nets at a launch event attended by former Hampshire & England cricketer Shaun Udal.
The nets are part of the Hawks Academy initiative, which is a pioneering project run by the Hampshire Cricket Foundation which aims to nurture talent in some of the county's most economically disadvantaged communities.
It provides opportunities for young people who would otherwise not have access to top-level coaching and cricket facilities, specifically those living in urban areas where, traditionally, participation in the sport is low.
Shaun Udal praised the importance of giving young people access to the sport. He said: “It’s the lifeblood of the future of English cricket. The more young people that are playing, the more opportunity they get to come and practice their skills.
“The coaching is very important. When you’ve got good coaches, like we’ve got here at Hampshire, it is a special thing to be involved in, they help you perform at your peak and most importantly enjoy the game.”
Following the expansion of Basingstoke Hawks Academy and the installation of the new net facility, sessions will take place every Monday at Brighton Hill, with 16 players currently involved.
The talent identification process for the academy is ongoing across schools, competitions, and community-based Street Cricket programme, which provides free cricket all year round for boys and girls aged 9 to 15.
"It’s a great day for cricket in Hampshire, it’s fantastic to see it. There are four different schools represented from Basingstoke in the first session,” said Charlie Freeston, Hampshire's Head of Player Development.
Basingstoke Hawks Academy has been part-funded by Persimmon Homes Thames Valley, through the housebuilder’s Community Champions scheme, which has now donated more than £1.5m to sporting clubs and charities in the last two years.
To learn more about the Hampshire Cricket Foundation, based at The Ageas Bowl, please visit ageasbowl.com/foundation.

Andy Murtagh, a member of Hampshire's (last) County Championship winning side of 1973, is the guest speaker at the Hampshire Cricket Society's November meeting at the Romsey Golf Club on Wednesday afternoon, 2pm.
Murtagh, who played Southern League cricket for Southampton University (where he studied English) and Old Tauntonians, helped the SL win the prestigious Club Cricket Conference Inter-League Cup by beating Middlesex by nine wickets in the 1979 final at Chelmsford.
Andy will be talking about former Sussex & England captain Tony Greig, based on his book, 'If Not Me, Who? The Reluctant Rebel'.
On Thursday afternoon (1.45pm), Gareth Berg is the guest of the Dorset Cricket Society at the Hurn Bridge Social Club (aka Christchurch FC) and will talk Cricket Italia, alongside his career in the county game with Middlesex, Hampshire and latterly Northants. He currently plays for Lymington in the ECB Southern Premier League.
Berg, who recently retired from the county game at 42 years of age, is Italy's player/coach and will chat to the Dorset folk about his role there and also his first class career.

Burridge opener Mat Goles put a recent run of poor scores behind him to hit a key half-century which set up Cape Town's four-wicket win over Western Province in the WPCA Premier Division at Plumstead.
Goles, pictured above, had only managed to score 11 runs in his previous four knocks, but he came to the party with 59 as Cape Town chased down Province's 189. It was a restrained knock of one six and seven fours. Hambledon's Justin Behrens took four of the six CTCC wickets to fall, trapping Fareham & Crofton's Craig Jeffery leg before.
Apart from Portsmouth's Fraser Hay making 81 (five sixes and eight fours) in Melville's 241 at South Perth, it was a quiet round for the majority of UK locals down under. 
Academy's Tom Cheater is gradually coming to terms with the Australian conditions and made an important 31 not out after Bayswater had slipped to 139-5 against Malvern. His side recovered to post 182-6 and then bowl Malvern out for 133.
Up on Queensland's Gold Coast, South Wilts teen all-rounder Archie Fairfax-Ross, restored to opening the batting, made 30 as Mudgeeraba (230-9) attempted to chase down a Palm Beach total of 243-5, only to lose by 13 runs.  It was their first loss in seven matches, but they still lead the log by eight points.
One of Archie's clubmates at Mudgeeraba, Gareth Morgan took six wickets in six balls in a third grade match in Gold Coast's Division 3.  Opponents Surfers Paradise had victory in their grasp. Chasing 179, they needed just five runs from the final over with six wickets in hand to win. Gareth Morgan then took six wickets in six balls to seal the unlikeliest of victories. "The umpire told me I need a hat-trick to win this one. It was a bit of a laugh at the time, I thought it was extremely unlikely," Morgan said. "When we won it was very chaotic. My team - half of who are under 19 - were excitedly running around. I was in a state of disbelief. The umpire just shook his head, walked up to me and said 'that's unbelievable'.

Winchester College prospect Sebastian Morgan hit an unbeaten 33 on his England Under-19 debut, but was later unable to halt a brutal run assault that swept India B to a seven-wicket victory with 23 overs to spare.
Morgan, the youngest player in the tour party, helped salvage a desperate start to the 50-over international in Vijayawada - four of the top five England batsmen bagging ducks in a disastrous  19-4 start.
Luke Benkenstein (69), whose father Dale was previously Hampshire's head coach at the Ageas Bowl, led a fightback which, with the aid of Morgan (33 not out) and Academy all-rounder Eddie Jack (17) saw England rally to make 201.  Hampshire's Dom Kelly didn't play.
But when they shared the new ball, Jack and Morgan found themselves on the receiving end of a relentless India onslaught, the pair conceding 78 runs between them off the initial eight overs.
Morgan did, at least, manage a breakthrough by taking a catch, but the hosts swept to a seven wicket win in the 27th over.  Spinner Benkenstein took two three India B wickets to fall.

The SPL Management Committee is proposing to Wednesday evening's AGM that Administrative Rule 4.1.3 - the restriction regarding the payment of players - is removed.
Chairman Steve Vear MBE explains: "The SPL is conscious that it has been silent on this matter in our 2023 Management Report, but considering the amount of communication that has started recently in the last 24 hours, we thought it would be helpful to provide some background information and to make the position of the Management Committee unequivocally clear.
"Since the inception of the Southern Premier League, it has always been clearly understood through our rules, that the payment of players is not acceptable and that any proven breach of this rule would likely lead to a removal of league membership. We know however that for the majority of this time been the ‘elephant in the room’ within our rules, with suspicion rife amongst clubs and players around this topic. 
"The Management Committee receive multiple requests every single year, from clubs and players demanding to know that the Management Committee intend to do about the payment of X player by Y club or the free match fees given by Club A to Player B. In the last 20 years, we have come close to being provided evidence on just three occasions that this rule has been breached. On each occasion there has not been clear enough evidence to appropriately charge a club of actual wrongdoing.
                                                                                         Survey
"The decision to offer the removal this rule after 23 years has not been an easy one to make. We have done so only after consulting with all of our member clubs several weeks ago and at the same time surveying other Premier Leagues in the country. Only two of our member clubs responded to the communication and 11 of the 14 premier leagues that responded to us confirmed they have either had no such rule or have in recent times removed the restriction having concluded leagues cannot possibly police it, making any such rule defunct.
" Laying a motion to remove this rule is a governance decision following consultation with you and other Premier leagues. This should not be confused, however, with how the Management Committee feel about this subject. To be clear 
i. We do not wish the SPCL to become a ‘professional league’ – but at the same time we see no way to police or enforce the restriction we have in place.
ii. As clubs do not receive any cash award for winning any of our divisions, we see no motivation for wanting to pay players. Indeed, these funds could and should be diverted elsewhere for the good of all members of our member clubs. 
iii. We would actively discourage any club from paying players, including the ‘below the line’ payments of reduced subscriptions or match fees, or travelling expenses that are over generous.
iv. Should the payment of players have a demonstrable detrimental effect to the league or our members we shall not hesitate to reverse our position as quickly as our regulations allow.
                                                                                         Impact
v. Laying the motion to remove the restriction is a chance for our member clubs to, as always have the final say. Clubs should think very carefully about the impact of this decision – both in terms of the impact to clubs but also the practical options open to the Management Committee to continue to manage the rule in question.
"In making the proposal the league need to make clear that legal and financial liability in relation to payment to players would be a matter for clubs alone and you should carry out your own research in relation to any future decision you may take.
"With all of this in mind, clubs may wish to consider:
1. The possible impact on CASC status for those clubs registered and the guidance regarding the payment of players
2. Contractual status of those receiving payment, including any issues relating to tax/NI and other accompanying rules such as IR35
3. The creation of a player market and the impacts this may have In the event clubs decide that this motion should not be supported, the next steps would be for a sub committee to be formed in order to establish how the Management Committee should deal with the multiple demands for ‘something to be done’.
Mr Vear wishes to remind clubs that, as things stand, the rule not allowing the payment of players is in place and at any point up to the motion being tabled, the Management Committee have the ability to remove this motion. It is therefore inadvisable for any clubs to be entering into speculative financial arrangements or advertising of payment for players.
The chairman trust this helps to provide context to what is a very difficult and complex area for those of us who are charged with the running of the ECB Southern Premier League.

Run gun Tom Morton is closing in on his £1,600 personal fund raising target after spending a grueling three days in the saddle peddling over 250 miles on the Professional Cricketers' Association charity bike ride from from London to Paris.
The former South Wilts batting record holder, who switched to play for his local side Sarisbury Athletic last May, was among 38 current cricketers who took part in the ride to raise funds for the Professional Cricketers' Trust created to support the lifelong health and wellbeing of members and their immediate families. 
The players' charity looks out for players throughout their active careers and long afterwards, funding life changing medical assistance, crisis helplines and educational programmes in England and Wales.
A fitness fanatic who annually participates in triathlons among other events, Morton backed the fund raising bike ride following a nasty brush with cancer three summers ago.
He explained: "Back in February 2018, I walked off a rugby field thinking that a high tackle caused swelling in my neck. It had nothing to do with rugby and two years later I was in Southampton General Hospital successfully being treated for Thyroid Cancer. 
"As part of the recovery process I got into open-water swimming which, one year after the operation, developed into training for the Eastbourne triathlon.
"I now see every June as an opportunity to challenge myself physically. 2022 was the Bournemouth Triathlon, which I did before a Southern Premier League match against Bashley (Rydal) - in which he made a century - and in June 2023 signed up to ride my bike from London to Paris for the PCA. 
"Cricket has been my life and given me so much, so I'm happy to give something back to the sport I love."

​Morton, who is within sight of reaching his £1,600 target, said what a "a great experience" the bike ride was.
"Fortunately, the weather was kind, and the ride went pretty smoothly. We did it in three phases, initially 92 miles from the Kia Oval to Portsmouth then, after the overnight ferry to France, another 92 to Evreux, before the  final leg  into Paris.
"There were definitely a few hills where I wondered what I was thinking when I signed up for the challenge, but looking back it was all very worth while and I'm delighted to have supported such a worthy cause.
"I would like to thank those people who thank those people who sponsored the ride, but I'm not quite there yet."
After 257 miles and multiple hills, the 38 riders crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées in front of the famous Arc de Triomphe in the French capital.
As the riders completed the epic challenge, the flagship event for the Trust in 2023 had raised over £38,000 for the players’ charity which will help fund life-changing assistance through expert advice, rehabilitation programmes and a dedicated 24-hour Confidential Helpline, all vital services that riders will be using as inspiration throughout three day cycle.
Morton added: "It seemed pretty daunting at the start but it was really good fun and the driving factor is obviously the money that we’ve raised for a great cause in the Trust. Having everyone under the Arc de Triomphe was great and I’m sure everyone was extremely sore afterwards.
The link to Tom Morton across the line and achieve his £1,600 fund raising target is www.justgiving.com/fundraising/tom-morton8?utm_source=copyLink&utm_medium=fundraising&utm_content=tom-morton8&utm_campaign=pfp-share&utm_term=7a45227ce7774eb7ab9abc4c215459c5

​Hampshire Academy all-rounders Dom Kelly and Eddie Jack will be joined by exciting Winchester College talent Sebastian Morgan on a weekend flight to India with the England Young Lions for a Under-19 Quadrangular Series to be played in Vijayawada starting next week.
Sebastian Morgan, a top order batsman and pace bowler from the College, has been selected for the England U19 squad for the first time to play against India A and B and Bangladesh U19s, starting on Monday.   The four sides will play each other twice in 50-over format games, which take place on Mondays, Wednesdays and Friday's during the next fortnight.  
Academy pair Kelly and Jack played regularly against Australia in limited overs and four-day matches last month, with Kelly really catching the eye.  Morgan enjoyed a fine past season helping Winchester enjoy one of the best seasons in their long established history.
The series will provide the final competitive preparation for the Young Lions ahead of the 2024 ICC Under-19 Men’s World Cup, which will be staged in Colombo, Sri Lanka from 13 January - 4 February. Selection for the 2024 ICC Under-19s Men’s World Cup will be announced in December.

​Teenage Burridge Southern Premier medal winner Francis Moore [left] spent a long day in the field for Adelaide, but returned a respectable 1-59 off 14 overs as West End SACA rivals Southern Districts piled up 321-9. 
St Cross Symondians' raised George O'Connor, who played a lead role in Sunbury's Surrey Championship triumph this past summer, smacked three fours and a six in a quick-fire 24. The pair are both wintering at Darren Lehmann's academy.
Past Hampshire Academy skipper Joe Eckland looked on as Joe Gatting struck an unbeaten 129 for Tea Tree Gully against Port Adelaide, while Scott Currie took two wickets and later made 29 for Adelaide University who closed on 134-6 (they were 87-5 when the Poole teenager arrived at the crease) after East Torrens had been dismissed for 149.
Fletcha Middleton, who made a first grade hundred on debut for Fitzroy Doncaster, managed only one against Ringwood, but his side romped to a big win after posting 244. Ringwood made 115 and were 52-1 second go.
Wilf La Fontaine Jackson's unbeaten second grade century for Sydney University earned promotion to the first grade, but had to content himself with a day behind the stumps. 
Tom Cheater made 46 for Bayswater, whose 197-8 was overhauled by two-wicket winners, Box.  Bournemouth's Connor Smith, who made a crash-bang 69 last weekend, took 2-18 to help Altona North (276) to a convincing 165-run win over West Coburg St Andrews (111).
South Wilts teenage left-hander Archie Farifax Ross was the eventual match winner for Mudgeeraba against Coomera Hope Island up on Queensland's Gold Coast.  Chasing 132, Mudgeeroba were struggling at 113-8, but Archie (coming in at ten) showed ice cool nerves to get his side home without further loss, making 12 not out.  
Suited and booted, Archie and his team celebrated with a three-hour midweek flight to watch the Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse, a kaleidoscope of colour, where 'Without a Fight' romped home in 31C heat.  Archie's still looking for the bookie who took his winning bet ...
Bournemouth keeper/batsman Ben Rogers had a surprise 19th Birthday present with a surprise call up to join the Greater Illawara Zone squad in next week's New South Wales Plan B Regional Bash and McDonalds Country Championships. 
The call up follows some impressive performances with the gloves, for his Sydney Albion Park Eagles Club side and the South Coast District representative team in their recent Creighton Cup games.
The competition takes place from 16-19th November in Tamworth, a mere seven-hour drive from Rogers’ winter residency in Albion Park and consists of a day's T20 Bash, along with 3 One Day games against North Coastal, Newcastle and Central Northern Zones.
Rogers will be hoping to find some form with the bat when the Eagles take on North Nowra Cambewarra on Saturday.