Indoor Cricket Match at Leyton Cricket Hub
Norlington played their first indoor College Cricket game of the year at Leyton Cricket Hub with an extremely young squad, featuring Azaan Ali from Year 8, two Year 9s, Govind Virdi and Ayaan Azam one Year 10 Mohammed Murad and one Year 11 Shayan Farhat student and a lone 6th former Mustafa Faizal. Despite the age gap and limited experience at this level, the boys showed excellent character throughout the game.
Batting Innings – Norlington: 89 from 10 overs
We batted first and made a slow but steady start. The NewVic bowlers kept things tight early on, but our batters worked hard to build a platform. Shayan anchored the innings superbly, batting through and providing much needed stability. Around him the rest of the team chipped in with valuable contributions, but we struggled to consistently rotate the strike and keep the scoreboard ticking over.
A late push helped us reach 89 from our 10 overs, a competitive score but one we felt could have been higher with a bit more urgency in the middle overs.
Bowling Innings – NewVic chase the target with 5 balls remaining
Unfortunately our bowling performance let us down. Indoor cricket punishes wide balls heavily, with each one costing three runs, and we conceded far too many. When we bowled straight we caused real problems, building pressure and forcing mistakes, but the extras ultimately became the difference in the match.
There were still moments of real quality. Azaan produced an outstanding catch off Mustafa’s bowling early in the innings, a moment that lifted the whole side. We also created two sharp run outs which kept us in the game deep into the chase.
Despite the fight shown by such a young team, NewVic managed to reach the target with one wicket remaining and five balls to spare.
A brave performance from a very young Norlington side, full of effort and promising moments. With improved bowling discipline and fewer extras, this group will continue to grow and become highly competitive in future fixtures.
U18 Indoor Cricket
Norlington vs Newham College of Further Education
Norlington took on Newham College, the reigning national indoor cricket champions, in what proved to be a hugely competitive and proud performance. Norlington won the toss and chose to bowl first.
Norlington started with real quality. Azaan, our youngest player, set the tone early with accurate bowling that kept the scoring under control and forced Newham’s batters to work hard for their runs.
The bowlers were backed up by sharp work in the field. Norlington claimed five wickets in total, including two excellent catches and a brilliant caught-and-bowled from Shayan. Debutant Yusuf Hanslod was outstanding, fielding like a youthful Jonty Rhodes and showing great anticipation and commitment in the field.
Newham did capitalise on a few no balls and wides towards the end of the innings. In the fast paced indoor format these extras are punished heavily and helped Newham build a strong score. They finished on 145 for 5.
Chasing 145, Norlington suffered the worst possible start. A mix up off the very first ball led to opening batter Mohammad Murad being run out without facing, handing Newham immediate momentum.
To their credit, the boys responded superbly. Shayan batted well and ran quickly between the wickets, keeping us up with the run rate, but wickets fell around him until it was just Yusuf and Shayan left to rebuild.
Hanslod continued his impressive debut by batting with real confidence, scoring quickly and running excellently between the wickets. Norlington showed positive intent throughout the innings and at times put the national champions under serious pressure. The innings closed on 113 all out, leaving Norlington 32 runs short of what would have been a famous win.
Match result
Newham College – 145 for 5
Norlington – 113 all out
Newham College won by 32 runs
Player of the match
Yusuf Hanslod
Outstanding debut with superb fielding and a mature, positive batting performance.
Final reflection
This was a performance full of positives against one of the strongest indoor cricket teams in the country. The boys should be extremely proud of their efforts. Norlington are the only team this year to really test the national champions, asking serious questions and proving they can compete at a very high level.
U15 London Cup Final
Norlington Finish as Runners-Up
After a brilliant cup run, the Norlington U15 cricket team took to the field for the London Cup Final on Thursday 3rd July, facing a strong Eltham College side.
Having already overcome high-performing teams such as Westminster College and Robert Clack, the boys went into the final full of confidence and belief. The match started evenly, with both teams on near-identical scores at the halfway mark — Eltham at 60/3 after 10 overs, and Norlington replying with 50/4.
However, Eltham began to take control in the later stages. Their batters showed discipline and composure, accelerating well in the final overs to post a total of 156/4 from their 20 overs. In reply, Norlington struggled to build partnerships and lost wickets at regular intervals, eventually finishing on 110/9.
A standout performance came from Shafiq Molvi, who opened the bowling with great control and economy. His spell of 4 overs, 1 wicket for just 10 runs helped put Norlington in a strong early position and was a real highlight of the day.
While the final result was disappointing, the squad can be extremely proud of their achievement. Reaching the final of a prestigious competition like the London Cup is a significant milestone and reflects the growing strength of cricket at Norlington School.
U13 Cricket Team
Our U13 cricket team represented Norlington at the LSCA Finals Day, finishing 3rd overall – a strong showing at a competitive event featuring top schools from across London.
Semi-Final vs Wren Academy
A nervy start led to a below-par 89/6. Wren chased it down with ease, finishing on 90/4.
Batting: Azaan (23), Ayaan (10)
Bowling: Azaan, Ayaan, Govind and Yahya all took a wicket.
Fielding lacked intensity and pressure was minimal.
3rd Place Play-Off vs Kingsdale
Much improved second match. Kingsdale scored 114. We chased confidently and secured 3rd place.
Bowling: Ayaan 3-31, Azaan 2-13
Batting: Yahya 20*, Azaan 21
Reflections
- Excellent overall result, but we let ourselves down in the semi-final.
- Key takeaways: composure under pressure, fielding urgency, batting intent.
- Lots of promise in the squad – a valuable learning experience.
Photos from the Day
Team huddle before the semi-final – focused and ready.
Fantastic hospitality – thank you to Latymer for hosting so professionally
Proud representatives of the Norlington Cricket Academy.
Celebrating a top-three finish in London – well done boys!
Thank you for your continued support. We are incredibly proud of the team and look forward to building on this success moving forward.
Mr Abhay Bygott
Head of PE
Norlington School & Sixth Form
Waltham Forest U12 Champions
Norlington U12 vs Walthamstow Academy U12
Date: 14th July 2025 | Venue: Leyton County Ground
Norlington U12 were crowned Waltham Forest U12 champions in dominant fashion, chasing down a target of 65 runs without losing a single wicket against Walthamstow Academy in Monday’s final.
After winning the toss, Norlington elected to bowl first and immediately made an impact with the ball. Opening bowler Saim Basharat struck twice in the first over, leaving Walthamstow reeling at 5 for 2. Tight bowling spells from Yusuf Iqbal (2 wickets for just 3 runs) and Muhammad Hasnain Aziz (1 wicket) ensured that wickets continued to fall at regular intervals. The Norlington bowling unit remained disciplined, backed up by sharp fielding, restricting Walthamstow Academy to 65 for 5
In reply, Norlington’s batters showed their class and composure. Haadi Ali Akbar starred with the bat, retiring not out on 25 runs from 18 balls, including four boundaries. He was supported superbly by Muhammad Hasnain Aziz (19 not out) and Azaan Ali, who closed out the match in style with a brisk 8 not out from just 4 balls.
Norlington raced to 67 without loss in just 5.3 overs, sealing an emphatic 10-wicket victory and lifting the Waltham Forest U12 trophy in style.
Standout Performances:
- 🏏 Haadi Ali Akbar – 25* (18 balls)
- 🏏 Muhammad Hasnain Aziz – 19* (16 balls), 1 wicket
- 🎯 Yusuf Iqbal – 2 wickets for 3 runs
- 🎯 Saim Basharat – 2 wickets in opening over
Final Result:
🏆 Norlington U12 won by 10 wickets
A dominant all-round performance that reflects the hard work, discipline, and talent in the Norlington Cricket Academy setup.
