Survival and silverware give Newmarket plenty to celebrate

The 2026 season will be one that Newmarket Cricket Club looks back on with great fondness.

For the men’s first XI, it was a case of mission accomplished as they safely secured their Onyx Premier League Division One status for another campaign.

Having been promoted the previous term, for a period Newmarket were riding high in third. Their form tailed off slightly in the closing weeks, and they ultimately signed off in seventh, but it was nevertheless a positive few months.

Captain Mark Nunn said: “The goal was to stay up, and in a lot of ways, we’ve exceeded that aim because we did it pretty comfortably.

“We had some really good runs at different points in the season, and to be up in third showed that on our day, we’re a match for anyone in the division. At times, though, it was tough to get our strongest team out each week, and we also lost our overseas player, Taheer, early, and our form did drop off a little bit.

“But it’s definitely a season that we can build on. We’ve been a bit of a yo-yo side, and that’s what we’re looking to move away from.

“It’s not like we scraped survival, we stayed up with a bit to spare, so I think it was a successful year.”

And there was also plenty of cause for celebration elsewhere at the club.

Earlier in the summer, Newmarket were crowned Adams Harrison Solicitors Midweek Cricket League Division One champions, while over the weekend, Newmarket’s second team triumphed in the CCA Junior Challenge Cup play-off and the Sunday side wrapped up the Suffolk Cricket League Division One title.

Nunn added: “A lot of people see the success of the first team as the benchmark, but it’s important to have successful teams throughout the club. The second team, the third team, the Sunday teams and the Ladies, we want them all to enjoy some success because they deserve it.

“It’s good to have winning sides throughout the club, and with the second team bridging the gap to the first team with their promotion, that can only be a good thing.”

The attention has now switched to 2027, with Nunn having already added to his first XI squad.

Bowling all-rounder Sam Robinson, who has played in the East Anglian Premier League for Saffron Walden and Cambridgeshire at Minor Counties level, has agreed to join the Stampede.

“Sam is a left-arm spinner, which is not something we’ve really had before,” said Nunn. “It’s a really big signing for us, and I think we’ll make a few more additions across the club as well.”