LMS T20 (8-a-SIDE) EASTERN SYDNEY MIDWEEK DIVISION 3 ROUND 12 v ‘VIKINGS’ AT MP7 ROBERTSON ROAD, MOORE PARK ON WEDNESDAY 10 FEBRUARY 2021: REPORT BY BEN GORHAM
Having won the toss and electing to bat we got off to a terrible start with the top 3 combining for just 15 runs. Some good batting from the middle order Scott, Brett and Jamie got us to a defendable 145 total.
Our bowling started off well with the opening bowlers working a 3 man partnership each picking up a wicket in their first or second over. From then on it was difficult for us to create chances with no dropped catches or midfields. Well played to Vikings who didn’t give us a sniff after the early wickets.
The Team was: BenGorham (c) 9, Josh Johnston 0; George Arnold 6, Scott Williams 15, James Bonkowski 47, Brett James 46, James Murtha 15, William Jacobs (w) 4
The Result was:-
C.C.N.S.W.: – 8-145 () (19.3 overs)
Lost to
‘Vikings’: – 5-150 (18.4 overs)
By 3 wickets
The Bowling was: – B James 4-0-20-1; S. Williams 3-0-32-1; J. Johnston 3-0-23-1; B. Gorham 3-0-18-0, J. Murtha 2.4-0-25-1, J. Bonkowski 2-0-17-1, G. Arnold 1-0-15-0
Fielding
Stumpings: – Nil
Catches: – 2 to S. Williams; one to J. Murtha and one to W. Jacobs (w)
Run outs: – Nil
Player Points (awarded by captain): 3 points to B. James; 2 points to J. Bonkowski; One point to J. Murtha.
CITY & SUBURBAN ROUND 10 v NONDESCRIPTS AT CAMPERDOWN OVAL, CAMPERDOWN ON SATURDAY 13 FEBRUARY 2021
Match cancelled because of rain.
MASTERS ROUND 7 v LANE COVE AT CAMPERDOWN PARK ON SUNDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2021: REPORT BY DAN TURNER
It was nice to be back at Camperdown for our clash against Lane Cove, which was shaping as an important fixture for us as we were 4th, coming up against 3rd place.
Inspecting the wicket, it looked pretty good considering the rain we had, albeit with one or two softish spots. Captain Ian Allmey thought with the sun out and a nice breeze, it would harden up and get better as the day went, so promptly won the toss and sent Lane Cove into bat.
As was the case in the previous game, Ben Stanic opened the bowling with his pace and swing from one end, while Andrew Dadswell took the new ball from the other end with his wily off spin. The Lane Cove batsman didn’t cross or change ends for the first three overs and that pressure took its toll in the fourth over. Having faced eight dot balls in a row from Dadswell, the opener attempted a reckless drive, spooning a return catch to the off spinner and the first breakthrough was made. Not to be outdone, next over Ben got a full ball to hoop in and clean bowl the other opener. A perfect start, 2-9 in the fifth over.
Brett James came on as first change and immediately settled into a beautiful line and length. Along with Lee Witherden at the other end, they were combining well and keeping it very tight. The pressure on the batsmen soon told as they attempted a quick single to mid wicket. José Poothokaren pounced and side armed a throw that ‘The Viv’ would have been proud of, knocking down the stumps at the bowler’s end with a direct hit. Not long after, our keeper Scott Wells took a brilliant catch down the leg side off Brett, and Lee enticed an edge with Wells taking another very good low catch. Brett and Lee went in tandem again soon after, both trapping a batsman in front. Lane Cove was deep in trouble at 7-41 at drinks.
Looking at the score, it might be assumed we had a helpful wicket but that was not the case. The wicket was playing well, but the bowling and catching had been good. Lane Cove still had their best batsman in and he proved difficult to remove after the break. José Poothokaren and ‘Jono’ Shaw were bowling in this phase quite tidily but without much luck as a couple of chances went down. Brett returned for a second spell and took his third wicket as Ben Stanic ‘swallowed’ a good catch in the outfield. Jono Shaw claimed a wicket as Dan Turner took one coming in from cover (making amends slightly for one earlier off Jono’s bowling), and Ben finished off the innings in his 2nd spell removing the dangerous skipper as Brett took a very nice high catch which seemed to be in the air for ‘5 minutes’ as Brett put it. Lane Cove bowled out for 112 in a very good bowling performance.
There was some discussion in the innings break focussing on future games and what we could do, forgetting we actually had to win this game first. Never a great preparation to go out and chase a small total.
For our innings, the instructions from the Skipper were to be positive and Ian Allmey and Mike Weaver started that way, with Mike cracking a beautiful cut shot to the fence early. Mike then got a nice ball that seamed back in and caught his gloves, popping up to slips. Ian was playing his shots but soon gave a return catch to the bowler and was caught for 12. Harry Bridge joined Dan Turner at the crease but got a ripper of an off-cutter, taking the top of middle for a 3rd ball duck. We were 3-17 in the fifth over and were now in a battle.
Scott Wells joined Dan Turner in the middle and the pair were going along steadily, playing the main opening bowler cautiously but dispatching anything over-pitched. With the score on 49, Wells played across the line and got wrapped on the pad, and was given out LBW for 13.
Lane Cove felt like they still had a sniff at that point but Brett James strode to the crease and looked assured from the outset. Dan and Brett got us to drinks at 4-89 and Lane Cove could sense the inevitable. Upon resumption one of the slips made a comment that ‘this is going to end quickly’. Dan retired on 41* on the second ball after drinks which brought Lee Witherden to the crease. Brett and Lee didn’t muck about and brought up the victory in the twenty fourth over.
A resounding victory in the end, well set up by our bowlers, and finished off with the bat. Another good team effort.
The Team was: – Ian Allmey (c) 12, Mike Weaver 4, Dan Turner 41* ret not out, Harry Bridge 0, Scott Wells (w) 13, Brett James 35*,Lee Witherden 6* , Jonathan Shaw dnb, José Poothokaren dnb, Andrew Dadswell dnb, Ben Stanic dnb.
The Result was:-
Lane Cove: – 10-112 (37.4 overs)
Lost to
C.C.N.S.W.: 4-115 (D. Turner 41*; B. James 35*) (23.1 overs)
By 6 wickets
FoW: – 1- 8 (M. Weaver); 2-16 (I. Allmey); 3-17 (H. Bridge); 4-49 (S. Wells); (D. Turner retired not out at 93)
The Bowling was: – B. Stanic 6.4-0-19-2; A. Dadswell 6-3-10-1; B. James 8-1-14-3; L. Witherden 9-2-27-2; J. Poothokaren 5-0-16-0; J. Shaw 3-1-24-1
The Fielding was: –
Stumpings: Nil
Catches: Two to S. Wells (w); One to each of A. Dadswell, B. James, B. Stanic and D. Turner
Run outs: One to J. Poothokaren
Player Points (awarded by umpire): – Three points to B. James; Two points to D. Turner; One point to L. Witherden.
VINTAGE ROUND 7 v NORTHERN STARS AT MANDALONG ON SUNDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2021: REPORT BY PETER ROLLS
Third game of the season and a “Stirling” effort to get us on with 41mm of rain the previous day!
Round 7 and a picturesque country oval with 25°C and a drying south west wind.
Sittampalam Ragavan (‘Raga’) to the rescue getting some of his Sri Lankan mates, Ashok “Viktor”( Ponnudurai, Ashok Peiris and Ganeshan Vaseeharan to play for us with Garry Winney, David Wright and Ross Dalgleish playing an Over 65 carnival and some others not available.
Frantic phone calls and texts Sunday morning to see if we had to drive the 1.5 hours north to the oval or not with the amount of rain the day before. Full credit to captain Stirling Hamman and a player helper Richard Warren to get the covers off early, soak up a couple of wet spots on the pitch and outfield and rolled the wicket hard to get us a game.
We gathered round Stirling for his pre-match talk and for him to explain the school yard toss of a bat instead of a coin. Hills or Flats was the choice and Peter called Flats. The bat bounced on the ground and landed showing Hills for a split second then rolled over for Flats. We sent them in on a pitch with not much grass but rolled hard. A big boundary and a very damp, slow outfield. The wicket played generally slow and low like usual with the odd ball bouncing high.
Northern Stars innings:
Stuart Ridge opened and was on target from the get-go and rewarded with a wicket in his third over,.caught and bowled with a skied hit after their opener lost his patience and tried to pull a just short of a good length delivery. 1 for 6 off five overs. Stuart followed up strategically next over with a gem of a cross seam delivery bowled close to the stumps to take the top of off to dismiss their other opener. Both openers gone after seven overs for just 9 runs. Ajoy Roy commented after the wicket that he also was strategic in that he leaked a single run misfielding backward of square leg to their gun number 3 bat (Evans) so Stuart could take out their second opener. Stuart completed his fifth and final over with another maiden for a miserly total of 4 runs. Well justified for three points man of the match.
Paul Georgiadis opened the other end and he too was very economical bowling five of his seven overs for 6 runs and two overs saved for the end.
Our next wicket came from a direct hit by Peter Rolls from backward of square leg to the striker’s end to dismiss Kenny Hall who is always hard to get out. They took a risk due to the tight bowling of Greg Brooks. 3 for 18 after thirteen overs. Greg was rewarded in his seventh and final over hitting top of off to dismiss their number 5 for 13 runs who was starting to accumulate easy singles. 4 for 39 off twenty three overs.
Ashok (“Viktor”) Ponnudurai replaced Paul and did a fine job for five overs and saved his two final overs to the end.
Mick McCormick replaced Greg and his off target balls were pounced on by Evans who was looking very solid and pushing up the run rate. Raga replaced Ashok and his variety had them guessing. A wide outswinger made Evans stretch for a cut shot and a bottom edge was brilliantly taken by a diving catch low right by keeper Ashok Peiris. Evans out for 25 was a key scalp and halted their momentum. 5 for 65 off thirty overs.
Mick, sweating up in the humidity like a heifer bull on a reproductive mission, then chimed in with a wicket in his fourth over with an easy catch at cover to Stuart. 6 for 68 off thirty one overs.
Raga’s next over saw a dismissal rarely seen at any level of cricket. The batsman’s snick was palmed off (attempting a wide catch) by the wicket keeper Ashok to Greg at gully. The batsman could not believe it! 7 for 70 off thirty two overs.
The return of Paul Georgiadis saw instant success with 2 wickets in his sixth over. Danger man Humphries for 27 stumped by Ashok Peiris and incoming batsman cleaned bowled two balls later. 9 for 86 off thirty eight overs.
Ashok Ponnudurai completed his final 2 overs with containing Stirling Hamman and their number 11 to only a couple of runs.
9 for 92 off forty overs. A job well done by all the bowlers but we knew a score on this ground of around 100 is more like 160 on a normal ground so we would have to be diligent.
CCNSW innings:
Raga and Ajoy Roy opened and were greeted with tight bowling; however they managed to keep the scoreboard ticking over at the required run rate of 2.3 per over for seven overs. Then in the eighth over it all changed quickly with Raga caught behind and Ganeshan Vaseeharan caught at point the next ball. 2 for 14 off eight overs.
Ajoy followed two overs later when run out from a fine throw to the keeper from a deepish mid-on. Jim Robson (“Jungles”) and Peter Rolls showed some quick running between wickets to keep us moving in the right direction.
Enter Kenny Hall with his left arm off-spin darts. With decades of 1st grade cricket for this wily coyote, he knew every trick in the book including more chat than Shane Warne. Some turning square with bounce on a flat track…amazing bowling! Jungles and Peter knew we had to keep Kenny out or he could rip threw us. So we took our chances against the bowling at the other end with success. We absorbed Kenny’s spell and he ended with figures of 0 for 3 off 7 overs with 5 maidens. Peter retired the next over for 30* and Jungle two overs later for 31*. 3 for 67 off twenty six overs with still 26 runs to get in fourteen overs.
Mick McCormick and Greg Brooks made short work of the remaining 26 runs with Greg (sponsored by NASA) launching two balls into orbit for 6 over mid-on. Job done in under 33 overs. Not often that we get a win at Mandalong. Well done lads!
Stirling entertained us with his after match summary speech. He also produced from an old cupboard, a silver plate in a woodern frame covered in cobwebs. A memorial created in 2005 for John McDonald – our former Masters’ captain and a legend of the CCNSW club (Ed note: after whom the ‘John McDonald Medal’ is named) who sadly passed away from cancer on 28 April 2005 at age 47. He would have been 63 this April and playing with us in Vintage cricket.
A sobering thought that we are grateful to still be playing this great game.
The Team was (playing 11): – Sittampalam Ragavan 6. Ajoy Roy 7, Ganeshan Vaseeharan 0, Jim Robson 31* ret, Peter Rolls (c) 30* ret, Mick McCormick 4*, Greg Brooks 15*, Stuart Ridge dnb, Ashok (“Viktor”) Ponnudurai dnb, Ashok Peiris (w) dnb, and Paul Georgiadis dnb.
The Result was:-
Northern Stars: – 9-92 (40 overs)
Lost to
C.C.N.S.W.: 3-98 (J. Robson 31* ret; P. Rolls 30* ret) (32.5 overs)
By 7 wickets
FoW: – 1-14 (S. Ragavan); 2-14 (G. Vaseeharan); 3-14 (A. Roy);
The Bowling was: – S. Ridge 5-2-4-2; P. Georgiadis 7-1-11-2; G. Brooks 7-1-7-1; A. Ponnudurai 7-0-21-0; S. Ragavan 7-0-14-2; M. McCormick 7-0-28-1
The Fielding was: –
Stumpings: One to A. Peiris
Catches: One to A. Peiris (w); two to S. Ridge; one to G. Brooks
Run outs: One to P. Rolls
Player Points (awarded by umpire): – Three points to S. Ridge; Two points to P. Rolls; One point to J. Robson.
Umpire: Warwick Vyse
Over page for photos of 2005 Memorial Plate and Teams playing
CCNSW and LINDFIELD TEAMS AT JOHN MCDONALD MEMORIAL GAME AT MANDALONG IN APRIL 2005
Back row: Brian Fallon, Simon Nelson, Anon, Mick McCormick, Col Erikson, Gil McGrath, Anon, Laurence Natale, Ajoy Roy, Tony Wright, Sandy Grant, Anon, Craig Somers, Dean Galvin
Front row: Mick Cohen (w), Stirling Hamman, John McGruther (President CCNSW), Mr and Mrs MacDonald, Greg Currie. Mike Birchall
On Ground: Garth Jones; Adrian Hawkes
John McDonald Memorial Plate