New Forest Baseball’s ThunderKnights finished third in the Bronze Group at the 2026 British Baseball Federation Summer Cup after a weather-affected weekend saw three games squeezed into a demanding Sunday schedule.
The combined ThunderKnights squad, bringing together players from both New Forest Thunder and New Forest Knights, travelled to the National Baseball and Softball Complex at Farnham Park for this year’s Summer Cup, looking forward to the opportunity to compete together at a national tournament.
Instead, the weekend got off to a distinctly soggy start.
Persistent rain throughout Saturday delayed the ThunderKnights’ opening game, with play eventually getting underway at around 4pm. However, after just the first half-inning had been completed, further rain forced the game to be abandoned.
The disruption meant all three remaining Bronze Group games had to be squeezed into Sunday, with the ThunderKnights facing games at 9am, 11am and 2pm.
The first game saw New Forest make an excellent start to the day’s action, defeating the Great Britain Women’s National Team Development Squad 13-5 in a shortened three-inning contest.
The ThunderKnights struck first with four runs in the top of the first, before adding five more in the second. A combination of patient hitting, aggressive baserunning and pressure on the GB defence saw New Forest establish a 9-2 lead after two innings.
The Development Squad responded with two runs in the bottom of the second, but the ThunderKnights continued to apply the pressure in the third, adding another four runs to secure a convincing 13-5 victory.
Doug Sutherland took the win on the mound, giving New Forest an ideal start to their compressed day.
A little over half an hour later, the ThunderKnights were back on the field for their second game, facing eventual Bronze Group winners County Durham Spartans.
New Forest again made a fast start, scoring five runs in the top of the first. Darryn Stares opened the scoring before Lewis Kelly, Peter McKnight and Sebastian Chambers added further runs, with Al Galpin also bringing a run home with a walk.
The Spartans responded with two runs in the bottom of the inning, but New Forest restored their four-run advantage in the second when Sam Powell eventually scored on a single from Ben Coxhill.
The Spartans then produced a decisive rally in the bottom of the second, scoring five runs to turn the game around and take a 7-6 lead.
With the shortened format leaving New Forest just one final opportunity to respond, the ThunderKnights were unable to find the tying run and fell to a narrow one-run defeat.
The final game of the weekend came at 2pm against Thames Baseball, who had already defeated GB 15-0 earlier in the day.
The ThunderKnights took an early lead once again, with Darryn Stares singling home Doug Sutherland in the top of the first.
Thames responded immediately, however, scoring five runs in the bottom of the first before adding another four in the second to establish a commanding 9-1 lead. The ThunderKnights did their best to keep the game competitive, with Ben Coxhill producing two fantastic diving defensive stops.
New Forest added a further run in the third, with Stares reaching on an error before eventually scoring on a passed ball after Al Galpin drew his third walk in as many plate appearances.
The ThunderKnights were unable to close the gap, however, and Thames completed a 9-2 victory.
The result left the ThunderKnights with a 1-2 record and third place in the Bronze Group.
Despite the frustrating weather disruption and the demanding Sunday schedule, the Summer Cup provided a valuable opportunity for players from both New Forest teams to come together and compete as the ThunderKnights for the first time since 2023.
The squad produced a convincing opening victory, pushed the eventual group winners all the way in a one-run defeat and gained valuable experience against opposition from outside the South West & Wales Baseball League. Most importantly, they had a great deal of fun along the way.
Focus now turns back to the Thunder and their National Playoff Quarter Final, set to take place on 12 September. A win there means a return to Farnham Park for the semi-final the following Saturday.
