LMS T20 (8-a-SIDE) EASTERN SYDNEY MIDWEEK DIVISION 2 ROUND 2A v ‘THE SHEAKEY BLINDERS’ AT MP 5 ROBERTSON ROAD, MOORE PARK ON TUESDAY 14 DECEMBER 2021: REPORT BY BEN GORHAM
No report has been received
The Team was: – Ben Gorham (c) 32, Mick McGrath 50*, Snigdhanil Barua 29*, Brad McGrath 13, Vipul Sonawane 14, Marcus Aldred-Traynor 12, William Jacobs dnb, Deepak Jassal dnb
The Result was:-
CCNSW: – 3-152 (20 overs) ( M. McGrath 50*)
Defeated
The Sheakey Blinders: – 8-111 (16.4 overs) ( )
By 41 runs
The Bowling was: – M. Aldred-Traynor 4-0-25-2; D. Jassal 3.4-0-16-2; V. Sonowane 3-0-27-2; B. McGrath 2-0-11-1, S. Barua 2-0-4-1, M McGrath 2-0-23-0
The Fielding was:-
Stumpings: – Nil
Catches: – 2 catches to B. McGrath
Run outs: – Nil
Player points (awarded by captain): – 3 points to M. McGrath; 2 points to B. Gorham; 1 point to S. Barua
CITY & SUBURBAN ROUND 6A v SAINT GEORGE VETERANS AT CAMPERDOWN OVAL, CAMPERDOWN ON SATURDAY 18 DECEMBER 2021: REPORT BY JIM HADLEY
CCNSW won the toss and batted on a hard dry wicket. Tom Robertson and Dan Turner put on a century partnership in customary good time till Turner butchered a big score with a missed timed on drive, out for 41. Robertson batted on till out for 94 putting us firmly in the box seat. Karthick Subramaniam 43 and Harry Bridge 29* pushed home the advantage to have us 7-290 after our 35 overs.
Our star cameo opening bowler Ed Smith unfortunately did a fetlock in his opening over leaving Harry Bridge to take up the charge from the northern end, Harry bowled beautifully for 8 overs 2-33 and backed up by debutant John Nicholas and Soren Hughes, St George struggled to 6-187 after their allotted 35 overs. Our game welcomed the return of our keeper Curtis Murray who makes a huge difference when in the field.
The Team was: – Tom Robertson 94, Dan Turner 41, Karthick Subramaniam 43, Soren Hughes 12, Curtis Murray (w) 19, John Nicholas 24, Harry Bridge 29*, Len Volkov 1. Matt Leong dnb, Ed Smith dnb. Jim Hadley (c) dnb
The Result was: –
C.C.N.S.W.: – 7-290 (35 overs) (T. Robertson 94;K. Subramaniam 43; D. Turner 41)
Defeated
St. George Veterans: – 6-187 (35 overs) (J. Hadley 3-17)
By
103 runs
FoW: – 1- 123 (D Turner); 2-167 (T Robertson); 3-184 (S Hughes); 4-220 (K Subramaniam); 5-239 (C Murray); 6-288 (J Nicholas); 7-290 (L Volkov).
The Bowling was: – E. Smith 1-1-0-0; M. Leong 9-1-48-1; H. Bridge 8-1-33-2; J. Nicholas 3-1-9-0; K. Subramaniam 2-0-28-0; S. Hughes 5-0-32-0; J. Hadley 5-0-17-3; D. Turner 2-0-14-0
The Fielding was: –
Stumpings: – Nil
Catches: -3 to C. Murray (w); One to M. Leong
Run outs: – Nil
Player points (awarded by captain): – 3 points to T. Robertson; 2 points to H. Bridge; one point to K. Subramaniam
CITY & SUBURBAN ROUND 6B v THE PRIMARY CLUB OF AUSTRALIA AT REG BARTLEY OVAL, RUSHCUTTERS BAY ON SUNDAY 19 DECEMBER 2021:
No report has been received
The Team was: – Gerry O’Shea 13, Harry Bridge 17, Jonathan Dupasquier-Green 3, Andrew Dadswell 38, Karthick Subramanian 38 , Soren Hughes 12, Brett James 8, James Murtha 11, Tom Robertson (c) 17, Ezekiel Hughes 7* and Jed Wesley-Smith (w) 2*
The Result was: –
C.C.N.S.W.: – 9-152 (35 overs) (K. Subramanian 38)
Defeated
The Primary Club: – 9-137 (35 overs) (
By 15 runs
FoW: – 1-30 (H. Bridge); 2-32 (G. O’Shea); 3-50 (J. Dupasquier-Green); 4-60 (A. Dadswell); 5-73 (S. Hughes); 6-104 (B. James): 7-113 (K. Subramanian): 8-140 (T. (Robertson); 9-147 (J. Murtha).
The Bowling was: – B. James 7-1-16-2; S. Hughes 7-0-24-2; J. Dupasquier-Green 4-0-22-0; A. Dadswell 7-1-26-1; H. Bridge 6-0-27-2; J. Murtha 1-0-3-0; E. Hughes 3-0-17-1
The Fielding was: –
Stumpings: – Nil
Catches: – One to J. Wesley-Smith (w); one to each of E. Hughes and G. O Shea
Run outs: – One to T. Robertson
Player points (awarded by captain): – 3 points to K. Subramanian; 2 points to B. James 8; one point toH. Bridge
CLASSICS OVER 50s ROUND 4 v WARRINGAH AT FRANK GRAY OVAL, WELDON PARK, CURL CURL ON SUNDAY 19 DECEMBER 2021: REPORT BY MIKE PINTER
There’s nothing like a trip to Curl Curl on a sweltering hot day in Sydney, yet this time we wouldn’t get the opportunity to dance across the baking sand, – then dive into the crystal-clear waves for relief. Today the ‘Men in Blue’ (CCNSW) had their chance to take on the ‘Men in Green’ (Warringah) at their home ground.
The covers were removed late, and the pitch looked a little bit damp, however in pretty good nick, with a dry well grassed outfield. Forecast for the afternoon was a steamy 33 plus degrees with storms to hit mid-afternoon. Upon initial inspection of the pitch and the forecast storm conditions I remember Scott “Scotty” Wells asking, “Is there any reason that we shouldn’t bowl first on this deck?” OK Skip- your call!
Unfortunately, three of our eleven must have relied on Weaves-Nav™ – (the navigational software that guarantees “50% of the time – it will get you to the right location and on-time, every time!”) to get them to the ground and hadn’t arrived with fifteen minutes to ball one. The opposition captain seized on this opportunity (after he won the toss) and sent the Men in Blue into the field. So far scores are level – one win for Blue and one win for Green.
Apparently, the oppressive heat had impacted the performance on Weaves-Nav™ (Author’s note No. 1: I have been reliably informed by the Technical Support division of Weaves-Nav™ that all technical faults have “kinda been fixed”). Now with one minute to go as we were taking to the field; we were still three men down. Unfortunately for us one of the three yet to arrive was our opening bowler Mick “The Showman” Tarrant. So, Scotty threw the new ball David “Beno” Benson who was still smarting from his last unsuccessful tour to Frank Gray Oval – however today he had the eye of the tiger and wanted his pound of flesh.
Somehow, the Founder and CEO of Weaves-Nav™ Michael “The Founder” Weaver miraculously appeared on the field (after bush-bashing his way through a jungle and dumping his gear on the far boundary). Then our second last man Gary “Gazza” James also made it onto the field just before ball one. Ten men in the field. Relishing his opportunity with the new rock Beno opened magnificently with a maiden over – keeping it tight and letting the Men in Green know that Blue was here to play. Then at the start of the second over The Showman ran onto the field, to complete our eleven, only to be informed that it was he who would be bowling from the other end. Naturally, being the ultimate professional, The Showman also only went for one run off his first over.
A few balls were then dropped short and the Men in Green took full toll, taking twenty-one runs off the next three overs before Paul “Nashy” Nash (2-36 off 8) took first honours with a well-executed lbw to take out their short-ball plundering opener. Then bang another wicket fell on the same score with Beno (2-26 off 9) clean bowling the other opener. Score 2-21 in the 6th. A couple more wickets fell soon after at 3-29 (lbw No. 2 to Nashy); then 4-31 in the 10th over off a spectacular catch diving forward from Ed “Crossy” Cross at short mid-off – Men in Blue were back on top.
Unfortunately, their middle order then knuckled down with some disciplined batting and decisive stroke play to build a solid partnership to see both their No.5 & No.6 batters retire. Martin “Marty” Speiser (0-14 off 3) chipped in with the ball, with no boundaries conceded from his brief spell.
The next wicket came in the 27th over when our two elderly statesmen Garry “Gazza” James (1-21 off 3) and Richie “Richie” De Silva combined for the fifth wicket score 5-111, Unfortunately Gazza was then shot by a sniper and suffered a hamstring tear whilst bowling and had to leave the field with thirteen overs to go. At this stage Green had two in the shed and a licence to thrill. We were concerned that we could be chasing anywhere up to 200+ runs. Green back on top.
There was another small partnership that advanced the men in Green to 6-133 in the 32nd over, with a nice caught behind by Scotty Wells off David “Maxy” Craig. There was a sniff of blood for Maxy as he then clean bowled three of their batsmen for one run in his second last over (7-141, 8-141 & 9-141) to end up with the very respectable figures of 4-48 off his nine overs. The Showman then finished off their innings with yet another lbw for the Men in Green to be all out for 170. Well done to Beno and Nashy for their outstanding fielding, after their bowling efforts in the oppressive heat – unfortunately (as sometimes happens) the ball just seemed to follow them both in the field. Awesome job – Men in Blue back on top – however even scorecard.
It was decided that The Showman should open the batting … well … it really was The Showwoman (or Mrs. Tarrant) as she had purchased some tickets to “Jagged Little Pill The Musical” and we believe The Showman was offered the option of either a) coming to the musical, or b) don’t bother coming home. It seems that Zeus (the god of rain and thunder) must have heard about The Showman’s dilemma and decided to make the decision easy for him, as it started to bucket down with torrential rain (no … not Tarrant-ial … torrential) and blustering gusts of wind. Exit stage left The Showman to the musical. Several of us ran to the pitch to help lay down the covers – it took six people just to keep the hessian on the pitch, as a further ten people struggled to drag the large cover – to save them both, as well as Maxy from being blown into the Pacific Ocean. Zeus now on top.
Some thirty minutes ensued and as fast as it started – the storm stopped and conditions cleared up – however Zeus managed to get his fingers under the covers, which resulted in one end being unplayable for the right handers on a good length. After agreement between the captains, it was decided to continue the game, however only bowling from one end. Fortunately, only two overs were deducted and the revised target was now 162 off 38 overs for the Men in Blue. The outfield was somewhat slower than before the rains; however all surface water was absorbed into the sandy base of Frank Gray Oval.
So, it was our turn to bat and we had to pry The Founder away from helping resolve his Weaves-Nav™ technical issues that were now further impacted by the rain and windstorms (Author’s note No. 2: I have again been reliably informed by the Technical Support division of Weaves-Nav™ that all subsequent technical faults have also “kinda been fixed”). Striding to the middle with The Founder was Mike “Punter” Pinter, and he was looking forward to spending some quality time in the middle with The Founder. Unfortunately, their partnership was short lived, because soon after Punter struck a glorious cover drive for three, and the Founder clobbered a pull short to the boundary, The Founder managed to find the inside edge of his bat onto his stumps – score 1-13 in the fourth over. The Founder seemed OK with this as it gave him more time to continue working on the Weaves-Nav™ technical support issues. Enter Nashy, as usual he was very watchful, and rightly so as he seemed to be getting the Spitting Cobras, the ‘Zooters’ and the ‘Garrys’ from the medium pace attack. Nashy was solid in defence and punishing in attack, with Punter at the other end also defending well and regularly pushing for the ones and twos. The partnership grew to 49 runs before Nashy (23) was caught off a skied top edge just before the drinks break. Score 2-62 off 18 overs. Green back on top with Blue now needing more than five runs per over to win.
After the drinks break our fearless leader Scotty then joined Punter in the middle ticking the score along, and within a couple of overs Punter retired on 31*. Enter Richie. Scotty and Richie did a fantastic job taking the ones and twos and punishing the bad balls to the boundary. However, Scotty was adjudged lbw to a ball that was questionably going down leg for a well-constructed 26. Score 3-104 in the 25th over. Richie was then briefly joined by Crossy but he was a victim of the tacky pitch being caught at cover for 1. Score 4-114. Now enter Beno who had come off a brilliant bowling and fielding effort, as well as 30* last week – cometh the hour cometh the man – it’s your day and it’s your time to shine. Unfortunately, the only shine he saw was off the side of the bowler’s shaven scalp who yorked him for a golden duck. Score 5-117 in the 29th over. The Men in Green now had the scent of our Blue blood on the pitch.
As Zeus hadn’t been on the scorecard for some time, he decided to let us know that he hadn’t gone anywhere and provided us with some gentle tears for Blue starting to fall from the sky. Not heavy, just kissing the pitch to let us know he was still in the game. Noting that if he had decided (at that time) to take this game from us, Green would have won as we were behind the required run rate.
Enter Martin “Marty” Speiser. With Richie still doing his thing defending the good ball, caressing late cuts, pushing into a vacant cover and Marty defending and glancing behind square, we were starting to get close to the required run rate. Richie then retired on a brilliantly crafted 30*. Enter Maxy – I hear you ask, “Why Maxy?” Well on cue, soon after coming to the middle, Maxy (our very own Glenn Maxwell) pulls out his reverse sweep for a couple to deep gully – yes, the reverse sweep … really??? Now with four overs to go Marty smacked one towards long-off, it somehow managed to both land short of their fielder, and then run through his legs to the boundary – we were finally in front of the run rate required. However soon after Marty was also out lbw for 17 trying to keep the run rate going. Score 6-149 with 3 overs to go. It is still anyone’s game.
Maxy was joined by Gazza at the crease and Zeus decided it was time to cry a lot harder, and the rain was quite heavy. It was then that the drenched one-legged Gazza lofted one to long-off to be out caught for 2. He “may” have been heard muttering something about the windscreen wipers not working on his helmet as he hobbled off the pitch. Score 7-151 with 2.4 overs to go. As The Showman had earlier (wisely) decided to exit stage left, he was effectively timed out. Score 8-151. It was then that our first retiree Punter re-joined Maxy in the middle, and the pair immediately took every half opportunity on offer. With three runs to get Punter struck a well weighted on-drive through mid-wicket, and immediately called for two – as the fielder was deep at cow corner. However, Zeus once again played his hand, because as Punter took off for the second run he slipped and fell on the wet pitch – he got up and tried to make his ground, however was run out for 34. Score 9-160 with two runs to win.
Re-enter our second retiree and last wicket in hand, Richie with three balls to go in the match. He perfectly assessed the condition of the pitch and decided that he would not advance, fearing he may suffer the same fate as Punter on the slippery surface. The bowler delivered the third last ball slightly outside off stump, and Richie rocked back and punched the ball through cover-point to score the two runs required for victory. Richie finished on a very elegant and well-constructed 32* and Maxy again did his bit with 10*.
Blue finished victorious in an outstanding game that was played in fantastic spirit by both teams – where absolutely everyone contributed to the result. Well done lads and bring on the New Year!
The Team was: – Michael Weaver 9, Michael Pinter 34, Paul Nash 23, Scott Wells (c) and (w) 22, Richie De Silva 32*, Ed Cross 1, David Benson 0 , Martin Speiser 17 , David Craig 10*, Garry James 2, Michael Tarrant 0 (timed out dnb)
The Result was: –
Warringah C.C.: – 10-170 (38.2 overs) (D. Craig 4-48) – run rate 4.25 p over
Lost to
C.C.N.S.W.: – 9-162 (37.4 overs) (M. Pinter 34, R. De Silva 32*) (Match reduced to 38 overs) – run rate 4.33 p over
By one wicket
(Editor’s Note: Match was rain affected, two overs were deducted, so the target was reduced to 162 to win.
FoW: – 1-9 (M. Weaver); 2-62 (P. Nash); 3-104 (S. Wells); 4-114 (E. Cross); 5-117 (D. Benson); 6-149 (M. Speiser); 7-151 (G. James); 8-160 (M. Pinter).
The Bowling was: – D. Benson 9-1-26-2; M. Tarrant 6.2-1-23-1; P. Nash 8-0-36-2; D. Craig 9-0-48-4; G. James 3-0-21-1; M. Speiser 3-0-14-0
The Fielding was: –
Stumpings: – Nil
Catches: – One to S. Wells (w) and one to each of E. Cross and R. de Silva
Run outs: – Nil
Player points (awarded by umpire): – 3 points to D. Craig; 2 points to R. de Silva; one point to P. Nash