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Essex County Cricket Club are pleased to announce that Academy graduates, Ben Allison, Feroze Khushi and Josh Rymell have all signed new contracts with the Club.

In a season that saw him make his debut for the Club, Josh Rymell has signed his first senior professional contract with a two-year deal until 2023. The 20-year-old batsman featured across all three formats this season but it was in the Royal London Cup where he impressed most, hitting his maiden Essex century against Yorkshire Vikings. His high score of 121 runs contributed towards 331 runs in the competition at an average of 55.16.

Feroze Khushi has committed to a one-year extension to his current contract, which extends his time with the Club until the 2023 campaign. The batsman featured greatly for the Second XI in 2021, featuring in seven of the 8 Championship games.

The 22-year-old also made his Royal London Cup debut this year, scoring 109 in his first appearance against Durham at Emirates Riverside. He went on to make a further five appearances for the Eagles in the competition, scoring 234 runs at an average of 46.80.

Ben Allison has signed a one-year extension which will keep him at the Club until the end of the 2023 season. The young bowler continued to make his breakthrough into the First Team this year with 11 appearances in first-class and List A cricket. This included taking 10 wickets across nine games during the Royal London Cup as the Eagles reached the semi-final stage of the competition.

Essex Head Coach, Anthony McGrath is looking forward to the trio developing further in the years ahead. “The bedrock of this Club has always been built on the talented youngsters coming through the Academy, so to have three players of this calibre commit their futures is fantastic.”, he said.

“I know it was a proud moment for Josh to make his Essex debut this year and to go on and score a maiden century made it even more memorable. This experience will prove invaluable next season where I hope he can make many more contributions with the bat.”

“Feroze found his red-ball opportunities hard to come by this year due to the depth of talent we have in this squad but I’m looking forward to him pushing hard for his spot in the starting XI next season. The Royal London Cup provided a great opportunity for our young players, so having Josh and Feroze come into the first team and hit big hundreds was great to see.

“Ben impressed us with his Championship performances before Peter Siddle joined us at the start of the season, especially his half-century against Durham which helped us to win the match. He will be an important option for us next season and I’m looking forward to watching him compete with Sam, Jamie and Shane for a place in the side.”

Chief Executive, John Stephenson, added: “It’s important that Essex Members and supporters can enjoy watching Academy graduates perform in the First Team, so having three talented players like Josh, Feroze and Ben sign new contracts is great to see.

“I’m looking forward to the three of them continuing to develop and making their mark at Essex, but also provide a further exemplar to others currently working their way through the age groups.”

Essex Cricket’s support for the Trussell Trust and local food banks continued this week with our festive food appeal.

During December, Essex Members, supporters, Club Sponsors and the local community generously donated food to drop-off points located at The Cloudfm County Ground.

The donations have been distributed to food banks in Southend, Colchester and Chelmsford in order to help those in need over the Christmas period.

The Club linked up with our Platinum Partners, Cloudfm, Woodland Group and Essex Ford who kindly delivered the food parcels across the county and we thank them all for their fantastic support to the appeal.

Special thanks also to the Essex Cricket Foundation who donated £250 towards the appeal.

Essex Cricket Chief Executive, said: “The Club have been supporting the local food banks since the UK was brought into the first lockdown. Being able to continue this support across the county with the help of our Members, supporters, Club Partners and the Essex Cricket Foundation is magnificent.

“The Trussell Trust’s network of food banks help so many people in need each day, and hopefully our contribution will help make someone’s Christmas a joyous occasion.”

Essex Cricket wishes to thank everyone who donated towards the appeal and we look forward to sharing our plans to support the Trussell Trust in 2022.

For further information on the work of the Trussell Trust or to locate your nearest food bank, visit www.trusselltrust.org.

Essex and Sunrisers spinner, Mady Villiers has been named England Women’s squad for the upcoming Ashes Series which takes place overseas in January.

An England Women’s A squad has also been announcedm which will accompany the senior group throughout the tour.

There is a 17-strong senior group, and 12 players in the England Women’s A squad.

Selection will focus on the senior group but there is scope for members of the England Women’s A squad to be called into the Ashes squad while on tour.

England Women’s Ashes Squad:

Heather Knight (Western Storm, captain)
Tammy Beaumont (Lightning)
Maia Bouchier (Southern Vipers)
Katherine Brunt (Northern Diamonds)
Kate Cross (Thunder)
Freya Davies (South East Stars)
Charlie Dean (Southern Vipers)
Sophia Dunkley (South East Stars)
Sophie Ecclestone (Thunder)
Tash Farrant (South East Stars)
Sarah Glenn (Central Sparks)
Amy Jones (Central Sparks)
Nat Sciver (Northern Diamonds, vice-captain)
Anya Shrubsole (Western Storm)
Mady Villiers (Sunrisers)
Lauren Winfield-Hill (Northern Diamonds)
Danni Wyatt (Southern Vipers)

England Women’s A Squad:

Emily Arlott (Central Sparks)
Lauren Bell (Southern Vipers)
Alice Capsey (South East Stars)
Alice Davidson-Richards (South East Stars)
Georgia Elwiss (Southern Vipers)
Kirstie Gordon (Lightning)
Eve Jones (Central Sparks)
Beth Langston (Northern Diamonds)
Emma Lamb (Thunder)
Bryony Smith (South East Stars)
Ellie Threlkeld (Thunder)
Issy Wong (Central Sparks)

Head Coach Lisa Keightley said: “It’s always exciting to head to Australia to take on the challenge of winning the Ashes and we’re really looking forward to going out there and making some memories as a team.

“This is the first time we’ve taken an England Women’s A squad alongside the senior team, which is a big step forward for us. It gives us great depth, and provides so much competition for places. It’s also an invaluable development opportunity for those players pushing for senior selection.

“Similarly, it’s also a good chance to get more 50-over cricket under our belts ahead of our defence of the ICC Women’s World Cup in New Zealand.

“We’ve got a nice blend of experienced pros and youngsters, and it’s a trip we’ve been preparing for since the end of our summer. A multi-format series is a great test of all our skills, and we can’t wait to get out there.”

England Women A will take on Australia A in 50-over and 20-over fixtures, while also playing the senior England Women’s team in a number of internal warm-up fixtures.

Women’s Ashes Fixtures:

Thursday 27 – Sunday 30 January: Only Test Match, Canberra, 12am GMT (4 points)
Friday 4 February: 1st IT20, Sydney, 9:10am (2 points)
Sunday 6 February: 2nd IT20, Sydney, 9:10am (2 points)
Thursday 10 February: 3rd IT20, Adelaide, 9:10am (2 points)
Sunday 13 February: 1st ODI, Adelaide, 12:05am (2 points)
Wednesday 16 February: 2nd ODI, Melbourne, 12:05am (2 points)
Saturday 19 February: 3rd ODI, Melbourne, 12:05am (2 points)

England Women’s A Fixtures:

Wednesday 26 January: 1st T20, England Women A v Australia A
Friday 28 January: 2nd T20, England Women A v Australia A
Sunday 30 January: 3rd T20, England Women A v Australia A
Saturday 5 February: 1st 50-over match, England Women A v Australia A
Wednesday 9 February: 2nd 50-over match, England Women A v Australia A
Friday 11 February: 3rd 50-over match, England Women A v Australia A

Warm-Up Fixtures:

Monday 17- Wednesday 19 January: Three-Day Warm-Up, England Women’s XI v England Women’s A
Saturday 22 – Sunday 23 January: Two-Day Warm-Up, England Women’s XI v England Women’s A
Wednesday 2 February: Governor General’s XI v England, Sydney

Essex Cricket are supporting the Creating Hope Through Light campaign, a week-long event that hopes to raise awareness of suicide prevention.

On Tuesday 07 December, The Cloudfm County Ground will be lit up green and open between 4pm – 9pm as a place for people to come and take a moment to reflect on what has been a tough 18 months.

The Creating Hope Through Light campaign is a joint initiative from Mid and South Essex Health Care Partnership and Thurrock and Brentwood Mind and is part of their #LetsTalkAboutSuicideEssex movement. It aims at reducing the stigma around talking about suicide and encourages people to take the free online suicide prevention training, which can be done by clicking here.

The following places will be turning green during the week:

• Southend City Beach
• Basildon Sign
• The Cloudfm County Ground, Chelmsford
• County Hall, Chelmsford
• Clacton Pier
• Clacton Town Hall
• Brentwood Town Hall
• Craig Tyler Trust Bench, Pitsea
• Colchester Castle
• Porters, Southend on Sea
• Civic Centre, Southend
• Colchester Town Hall
• Saffron Walden Castle
• Epping Forest Civic Offices

People can take part by joining the social media campaign by using the hashtag #CreatingHopeThroughLightEssex across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Essex Cricket has acted swiftly to facilitate an independent inquiry into historic allegations of racism at the Club and we can now confirm that the Terms of Reference have been drawn up by Katharine Newton QC.

The scope of Ms Newton’s independent investigation will focus on the allegations from former players at the Club, those made against former Chair John Faragher and the specific recommendations towards the organisational practice and/or the culture of Essex County Cricket Club in relation to preventing and responding to any allegations of discriminatory behaviour.

The investigation will commence on Monday 6 December 2021 and although no exact date has been set for completion, the findings will be presented to the Club in the new year.

Anyone wishing to contribute towards the investigation can do so by emailing the dedicated reporting channel at [email protected]. The closing date for receipt of information to be considered by this inquiry is 23 December 2021.

Essex County Cricket Club are pleased to announce that opening batter, Alastair Cook, has signed a two-year contract extension and will remain with the Club until the end of the 2023 season.

The 36-year-old is widely renowned as one of the greatest batters to ever play the game. During his International career, he made 161 Test appearances for England, scoring 12,472 runs at an average of 45.35.

The Academy graduate holds several International records, including England’s highest Test run-scorer (12,472), England’s most-capped Test Captain (59) and the most England Test centuries (33).

Since his retirement from International cricket, Cook has been instrumental to Essex’s success, contributing with important runs that helped secure the 2019 County Championship title, the 2020 Bob Willis Trophy and the 2021 Division Two title.

Upon signing his contract extension, Cook said: “I have really enjoyed my cricket here at Essex since my International retirement.

“We are lucky to have a fantastic dressing room and great coaching staff, led brilliantly by Anthony McGrath, and I’m looking forward to what hopefully will be another successful couple of years.”

Essex Head Coach, Anthony McGrath, commented: “It’s great news that Cooky has committed his future to the Club.

“Alastair is still one of the best batters in the world and he’s so important for us both on and off the field. He has the ability to take the game away from the opponents in both red-ball and white-ball cricket, and that’s something every Head Coach wants in their team.

“He’s also a great role model for the younger lads coming through and has a wealth of knowledge that all the players in our dressing room, including the senior pros, tap into from time to time.”

Essex Cricket Chief Executive, John Stephenson, added: “Alastair is a vital part of the team and has been imperative to the success that the Club has achieved in recent years.

“We want to continue to challenge for the major honours and Alastair shares that hunger and passion. He’s been there and done it all and won near enough everything there is to win, so having that talent and experience in the squad will certainly help us compete in 2022 and beyond.”

The announcement of the women’s and men’s domestic fixtures for next summer will be released as early as possible in 2022.

There are many factors that the ECB have to take into consideration when formulating the fixture list, such as tour schedules, venues for all internationals, men’s and women’s, and other major matches.

The ECB are working as quickly as possible to confirm those details and we look forward to starting the year by announcing the 2022 fixtures to our Members and supporters.

Key Points for the 2022 Fixtures

• LV= Insurance County Championship matches will be played regularly from the start of the season until the end of July.

• The Royal London Cup will run parallel to The Hundred and will be followed by the return of the Championship, which finishes in September.

• The Vitality Blast will commence at the end of May with Finals Day to be staged at Edgbaston on 16 July.

• The domestic women’s game is set to return to Chelmsford with the Charlotte Edwards Cup taking place in May and June, followed by the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy in the second half of the season.

We will update Members and supporters once we have further details on a fixture release date from the ECB.

Membership for the 2022 campaign is on sale now and there’s still time to secure a saving by purchasing before the New Year.

The First Team squad are back in training with a pre-season schedule building up to the opening fixture of the season. You can join them for an exciting year in prospect with the team competing across three formats.

Members of the Essex County Cricket Club can also take advantage of other great benefits, including the chance to watch domestic and international women’s cricket at The Cloudfm County Ground in 2022.

Being part of this Club as a Member also gets even benefits, including ticket priority and discounts for the Vitality Blast and knockout phases of the white-ball formats, access into the Member facilities, plus the chance to attend the Members’ events throughout the year with more planned for the upcoming year.

The 2022 fixtures are still being finalised centrally by the ECB but you can join us today and take advantage of the discounts on offer. Membership is the best way to support your Club at all levels, including the First Team, Women’s & Ability squads and Academy, as well as helping to development of cricket across our network of grassroots projects and communities.

A full list of benefits for both renewing and new Members can be seen by clicking here.

Other key points to Membership in 2022:

Early Bird Discount:

Early Bird: Purchase before 31 December to make an Early Bird saving on your Membership ahead of the new season. This applies to all packages except Eagles Club and Life Membership and ends at 11:59pm on Friday 31 December.

Renewing Members:

Members who are renewing from the 2020 and 2021 season can receive a renewal discount on the New Member Price in addition to the Early Bird discount. This is automatically populated within your basket when you log in to your online Membership account.

Life Membership:

Life Membership remains excellent value for money with prices frozen for 2022. You can show your loyal support for Essex whilst saving up to £1,050 in some categories compared to the 2020 price list.

Please note that Life Membership is not available to purchase online so please get in touch by phone for more information by calling 01245 254010.