LMS T20 (8-a-SIDE) EASTERN SYDNEY MIDWEEK DIVISION 3 ROUND 6 v ‘THE BATS’ AT MP7, ROBERTSON ROAD, MOORE PARK ON WEDNESDAY 2 DECEMBER 2020: REPORT BY JIM HADLEY
Lost the toss and was asked to bowl. Bats got off to a reasonable start with the help of a very quick outfield and hot conditions and had two retirees and a total of 208 after their 20 overs. Best of our bowlers were James Murtha 2-28 off 4 and George Arnold 0-12 off 2.
Our chase got off to a good start till Scott Williams holed out for 17 but James Bonkowski and Murtha slogged on till Bonkowski holed out for a quick-fire 37 off 17 balls and Murtha retired 56* off 28. The rain started to slow the outfield and the light deteriorated dramatically for the final 10 overs and we finished 22 short on 186.
Given the same conditions to bat in I would have thought we would have won this game pretty comfortably.
The Team was: – James Bonkowski 37, Scott Williams 17, James Murtha 56*, George Arnold 13,
Jonathan Seifman12, Benjamin Bloore 19, Josh Johnston 28, Jim Hadley (c) 0
The Result was:-
The Bats: – 2-208
Defeated
C.C.N.S.W.: – 7-186 (20 overs) (J. Murtha 56*)
By 22 runs
The Bowling was: – J. Murtha 4-0-28-2; B. Bloore 4-0-31-0; S. Williams 3-0-40-0; G. Arnold 2-0-12-0,
J. Seifman 2-0-21-0, J. Johnston 2-0-35-0; J. Hadley 2-0-23-0, J. Bonkowski 1-0-16-0
Fielding
Stumpings: – Nil
Catches: – One to J. Seifman
Run outs: – Nil
Player Points (awarded by captain): 3 points to J. Murtha; 2 points to J Bonkowski; one point to G. Arnold.
SOCIAL T20 v THE PRIMARY CLUB OF AUSTRALIA AT REG BARTLEY OVAL, RUSHCUTTERS BAY ON THURSDAY 3 DECEMBER 2020: REPORT BY JIM HADLEY
Lost the toss and asked to bowl. Steady starts from openers Soren Hughes 2-19 off 4 overs and Bloore 2-27 off 4 overs. We held all the Primary Club batsman other than Greg Starkey (60) to low scores with Mick McCormick 1-16 off 3 and David Craig 1-30 off 5 bowling tight middle innings overs. Great catches from Hughes and Craig helped to restrict the Primary Club to 8-134.
We got off to a reasonable start against a pretty good new ball attack and looked on course till Scott Williams lost his wicket for 14 and the opposition bowlers came up with some good deliveries early to new batsman after that. A delay in proceedings due to a falling pedestrian had David Ince using all his professional skills to revive an unresponsive man back to life till ambos arrived. The 45 minute break in proceedings seemed to benefit the bowling team as we were soon all out for 108 . Considering we played 2 men short due to late cry offs. the opposition had their hands full for most of the day. Reg Bartley oval was magnificent and all the CCNSW players had a ball playing on it.
Kudos to David Ince who not only bowled well but possibly saved the life of a passerby.
The Team was (playing two short): – Jim Hadley (c) 35, Scott Williams 14, Oscar Jacques-Ball (w) 0.Soren Hughes 1, Mick McCormick 5, Adrian Bault 4, Ben Bloore 24, Josh Johnston 9*, David Craig 0 (Nos 10 and 11 absent)
The Result was:-
The Primary Club of Australia: – 8-134 (20 overs)
Defeated
C.C.N.S.W.:- all out 108 (batting 2 players short) (J. Hadley 35) (18.4 overs)
By 26 runs
FoW: – 1-29 (S. Williams); 2-38 (O. Jacques-Ball); 3-40 (S. Hughes); 4-66 (J. Hadley); 5-67 (M. McCormick); 6-82 (A. Bault); 7-108 (B. Bloore); 8-108 (D. Craig);
The Bowling was: – B. Bloore 4-0-27-2; S. Hughes 4-0-19-2; S. Williams 3-0-14-1; D. Craig 5-0-30-1; M. McCormick 3-0-16-1; J. Johnston 2-0-25-0
The Fielding was: –
Stumpings: Nil
Catches: Two to O. Jacques-Bell (w); two to J Hadley; one to B. Bloore and one to D. Craig
Run outs: One to Josh Johnston/Soren Hughes
CITY & SUBURBAN JACK PACE ROUND 4 v KNOX OLD BOYS AT CAMPERDOWNOVAL, CAMPERDOWN ON SATURDAY 5 DECEMBER 2020: REPORT BY SOREN HUGHES
Our chance to put Knox out of the JPS semis was the motivation. We were greeted, again at 1.30pm (Editor’s note JP Rules stipulate 1pm start), by one of the youngest Knox teams we had seen in recent memory. We won the toss and batted which brought a reward from C. Bangs and his offsider, who opened with 15 ball overs each and after two overs, we were about 0-23 from wides. Curtis Murray and Tom Robertson got off to a good start before Curtis departed for 6. Simon James (54) and Tom 922) also progressed well, however at an unusually slow pace. Perhaps these two just like each other’s company and enjoyed the chat at the end of the over. Admittedly the bowling was good, lost of shape in and cut away and good line and length. Brett James (2) and George Arnold (3) departing promptly after arriving following Tom’s wicket. Craig Kitson (28) put up some resistance, partnering with Simon to take us into respectable territory with Soren Hughes and Jim Hadley coming out of the box with a couple of overs left to score as much as possible. 7-156 from 35 overs might have been enough.
Our ‘fierce’ bowling line up offered some loose calls here and there; however Knox were playing for a finals spot and seemed to be able to put one ball per over away for a four. This pattern continued late into the game with almost no wickets down. While we eventually took a couple of wickets, Knox had cruised into a winning position and continued gliding over the finish line with about 7 overs to spare. Best of luck in the finals ‘Knobs’.
The Team was: – Curtis Murray (w) 6, Tom Robertson 22, Simon James 54, Brett James 2, George Arnold 3 , Craig Kitson 28, Soren Hughes 11, Jim Hadley (c) 6*, Edward Robertson 4, Matt Leong dnb, Ian Robertson dnb
The Result was:-
C.C.N.S.W.: 7-156 (Simon James 54) (35 overs)
Lost to
Old Knoxonians: – 2-157 (27.3 overs)
By 8 wickets
FoW: – 1-27 (C. Murray); 2-69 (Tom Robertson); 3-72 (Brett James); 4-78 (G. Arnold); 5-125 (Simon James); 6-144 (S. Hughes); 152 (C. Kitson)
The Bowling was: – S. Hughes 4-0-25-0; Ian Robertson 4-0-22-0; Brett James 7-0-44-0; Matt Leong 5-0-20-1; J. Hadley 3-0-18-0; Edward Robertson 8-0-17-1; C. Kitson 1-0-11-0
The Fielding was: –
Stumpings: Nil
Catches: Nil
Run outs: Nil
Player Points (awarded by captain): – 3 pts Simon James; 2 pts Mathew Leong; 1 pt Brett James
CLASSICS ROUND 3 v CASTLE HILL AT KENTHURST OVAL , KENTHURST
ON SUNDAY 6 DECEMBER 2020:REPORT BY DAVID CRAIG
CCNSW over 50s CLASSICS TEAM AT CASTLE HILL ON SUNDAY 6 DECEMBER 2020
Back Row (l to r): Mick Tarrant, Stuart Ridge (c), Garry James, Greg Brooks, Ian Allmey, Martin Speiser,
Peter Nielsen.
Front Row (l to r): Andrew Spedding (w), David Craig, David Benson, Mike Pinter, Mick McCormick.
Another close win, and a win away from home, but to call this a great cricket match would both devalue the word “great” and insult the noble game of cricket. At times it was more Keystone cops comedy than Swiss watch precision, but the Cricketers’ Club knuckled down and produced the goods when it mattered.
It was a hot day in the Far West of NSW, and after clearing customs we were greeted with a brown, lifeless strip which duly provided slow, low and inconsistent bounce throughout the day. Local knowledge (Jamesy) suggested the pitch would only get lower and slower as the day progressed, so winning the toss and batting was a good start. Ian Allmey began proceedings in great style, driving the first ball to the mid-on boundary, followed by 4 byes and another sweetly struck boundary; 0-12 after 3 balls and a big score looked in prospect. It was hard yards after that, with the next 27 overs producing just 97 runs and 3 wickets, all to the sub-military-medium bowling of Wright (9-1-33-3): Peter Nielsen (surprisingly!) adjudged LBW for 2, David Benson holing out after a typically busy 23, and Mick McCormick scuppered by the low bounce, bowled for 10. Meanwhile, Ian Allmey had moved efficiently to 30* with four 4s and one cracking 6, an innings of pure class.
At 3-77, Martin Speiser joined Mike Pinter in a steady 53 run partnership. Between ‘Punter’s’ propensity to smack the ball straight to cover and shout “yes”, and Marty’s suspicion of any “quick single” that wasn’t worth at least one-and-a-half, the running between wickets provided some champagne comedy. As all cricketers are taught, there are only three possible calls: yes, no, and “for f*&k’s sake!” Just as they were accelerating the scoring rate (with some help from a rare 5 penalty runs as the ball hit the wicketkeeper’s discarded helmet), Marty was bowled by the lesser off-spinning James brother, Paul. At 4-130 after 30 overs, Greg Brooks joined Punter at the wicket and the pair hit the gas pedal, taking 18 off the 33rd over (Perry the bowler) including a big six over midwicket from the Prez.
The revolving door was in action thereafter, with Pinter retiring on 30* in the 34th, Brooks (20) bowled by the returning Reaney in the 35th, Andrew Spedding bowled by CCNSW alum Mitch Sturt for 1 in the 36th, and Garry James (3) lobbing a catch to his own brother off Sturt in the 38th (7-181). The in-form Mick Tarrant was joined at the crease by David Craig, and the pair added a breezy 26 off the last 14 balls, including a maximum from Micky T off Reaney. Cricketers’ Club had the momentum going into the break, with the last ball of the innings being smoked by D. Craig for a straight six.
Although 7-207 felt like a below par total against an attack that appeared to have all the penetrating power of a pop-gun stuffed with a cork, CCNSW were confident it could be defended on a dead track producing the occasional submarine ball. In the absence of a regular keeper, Andrew Spedding took first shift with the gloves. The Castle Hill innings was off to an invigorating start when a streaker from a nearby campsite began cavorting around the mid-wicket boundary. This certainly seemed to jolt the openers into action, as Paul James cracked 5 boundaries in quick time before being bowled by Tarrant for 27. You could sense the import of the moment as he lingered for several seconds post-dismissal, head downcast (1-38 in the 7th over).
Spin was introduced early as Craig relieved Stuart Ridge in the 10th over, and Garry James took over from Micky T in the 13th. The off spin of James did the trick, trapping the opener Petrie LBW for 13 (2-71 after 13 overs). On a wicket offering plenty of slow turn, the spin twins were hard to get away, conceding just 42 runs off a combined 14 overs. However, wickets were proving difficult to come by, and the number 3 batsman Hall looked in ominous touch as he reached 30*. Castle Hill looked to be slight favourites at the drinks break, at 2-92 and the RRR at 5.8 per over with plenty of wickets in hand.
After the drinks break, some tight bowling from Brooks and James began to build scoreboard pressure. Trying to lift the run-rate, Mitch Sturt hoisted the Prez for a maximum, but perished while attempting to repeat the trick, picking out the safe hands of Craig at mid-wicket. 3-120 after 26 (RRR 6.3). Prianta and Stanley remained tied down, inducing a panicky attempted single off James that resulted only the run-out of Prianta as Ridge fired the return in to wicketkeeper #2 (Pinter): 4-126 in the 29th, advantage CCNSW.
David “Benno” Benson took the ball for the 30th over, with Brooksy changing ends, and the change yielded an important dividend when in his second over, Benno bowled the stubborn lefty, Stanley, for 26. At 5-145 after 32, 8 an over required, and only one man in the shed, CCNSW looked to be firmly in the box seat. Unfortunately, Benno’s success earned him another over, and the ensuing 17 runs brought the target down to an achievable 6.5 an over off the last 6. It was a funny/not funny period in the game for CCNSW in the field, with a couple of sitters being spilled, a missed stumping, misfields and numerous overthrows conceded. Some sage psychological advice was offered by Brooksy to the talkative Reaney (Castle Hill allrounder), and our normally mild mannered skipper offered a heartfelt scream of “for f#$k’s sake” as yet another fielding mishap tilted the odds towards Castle Hill. A bit of passion is fair enough, is all I’m saying.
As the RRR shrank below a run a ball, it became obvious that wickets were required, and in a hurry, and opening bowlers Ridge and Tarrant returned to close out the innings. After Reaney retired (gifted his last two runs by an errant throw later claimed to be “tactical”), the skipper stepped up to pin Gunawardhana first ball, and bowled Wright for a duck two balls later. 7-183 after 36, 25 needed off 24 balls. Iveson tonked a couple of boundaries before lofting Micky T to Ridge at long-off. Unfortunately, Stuart had left his glasses at the bowling mark at the other end of the ground, yet somehow miraculously clung on to the catch. Still, at 8-201 after 38, and the retired batters returning to join number 11 Perry, a minor miracle was needed. Cometh the hour, cometh the man, and Micky T pawed the ground at the top of his run, charged in and CLEAN BOWLED the top scorer Hall to bring the cocky and abrasive Reaney back to the crease. Next ball was full and straight, just what the doctor ordered, and the LBW appeal was instantly upheld, victory by 6 runs to CCNSW!
With quick runs, four wickets, and great athleticism all day in the field, Mick Tarrant was a deserving man of the match. Ian Allmey’s aggressive innings gave us early impetus and earned the two points, while Mike Pinter won the final point with 30* in the middle order, a solid wicket-keeping stint and some fine out-fielding (with a DRS available, he may have pulled off a memorable run-out with a long throw from the boundary to the “wrong” end). It was a performance this team could clearly improve upon, but a win is a win, and away from home especially valuable.
The Team was (playing 12): – Ian Allmey 30*, Peter Nielsen 2, David Benson 23, Mick McCormick 10,
Mike Pinter (w) 30*, Martin Speiser 24, Greg Brooks 20, Andrew Spedding (w) 1, Mike Tarrant 23*,
Gary James 3, David Craig 12*, and Stuart Ridge (c) dnb
The Result was:-
CCNSW: – 7-207 (I. Allmey 30*; M. Pinter 30*) (40 overs)
Defeated
Castle Hill: -10-201 (M. Tarrant 4-43) (38.3 overs)
By 6 runs
FoW: – 1- 20 (P. Nielsen); 2-64 (M. McCormick); 3-77 (D. Benson); 4-130 (M. Speiser); 5-167 (G. Brooks);
6-169 (A. Spedding); 7-181 (G. James)
The Bowling was: – M. Tarrant 8.3-0-43-4; S. Ridge 6-0-33-2; D. Craig 5-0-20-0; G. James 9-1-22-1;
G. Brooks 7-0-38-1; D. Benson 3-0-26-1
The Fielding was: –
Stumpings: Nil
Catches: One to D. Craig and one to S. Ridge
Run outs: One to S. Ridge
Player Points (awarded by umpire): – Three points to M Tarrant; Two points to I. Allmey; One point to M. Pinter