SUCC 1st - 5th Grade v Penrith.
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First Grade Match Report – Penrith v SUCC – 26th September 2009.
A beautiful day for cricket. Seventeen degrees, a westerly wind that threatened to move the Blue Mountains east of Penrith and dustier than Ian Moran the morning after a night at the Three Wise Monkeys.
We were fortunate that the former O’Reilly medallist and fantasy league favourite recently upgraded his vehicle, as I am unsure whether the old Daewoo would have made it up the M4 into the wind.
Our traditional warm-up went exactly as expected, with the top five out-classing a clumsy bottom six, despite Tim Ley’s best Chris Judd impression. (best player on ground in a side that was never going to seriously threaten.)
Penrith won the toss and elected to bat on a pitch resembling the aforementioned motorway. Sustained control and aggression from Marty “I’ve still got a bit of parrot in me” Paskal and Ian “FORM” Moran gave the students the early momentum and had the Panthers 2-20 after ten overs. Mitchell Cook bowled with exquisite control in trying circumstances to collect 2-31 from his ten overs. Tom Keirath took advantage of his new aerodynamic frame to master the blustery conditions and pick up two wickets as well. Perhaps the most pleasing element was the attitude and energy in the field, movement not seen since it was announced Ian had put his credit card behind the bar at his 30th birthday party.
Forty-five minutes of solace from the wind and it was our turn to try to scratch centre in the concrete wicket. An accurate reflection of the state of the pitch and the fantastic job done with the ball and in the field, was that we lost only two wickets in the knocking off the 170 runs in 35 overs. The two were your correspondent barbequing Will Hay, and playing a poor shot with twenty to get. A great start against last year’s club champions and semi- finalists. A stronger challenge awaits at Hurstville next week.
Finally, the three members of first grade in my fantasy team performed strongly. The ICC may consider it match fixing. I call it good captaincy. A beer at the trivia night if you can decipher “FORM” Moran.
GM
Result: Sydney University (7/210) were defeated by Penrith (5/211)
Batting: Faraday 50, Ryan 51, Robertson 34
Bowling: Cowell 2/41, Ryan 2/41
Round 1 2009/10 started as last seasoned finished; that is playing Penrith.
We had a low scoring game of NASH to start the year. The standard old versus young team was introduced, and the trash talk was at a minimum; especially from our new fines master / keeper / bulldogs nut / resident 2nd grade vet (for PIG injuries....and there are many) and Master in charge of nicknames, James Crowley. The veterans decided it would be good for the young guys to have a win, and gave them a narrow victory.
On other things off the park, both Suda (yes, I do have two first names) Sivapalan and Josh “I speak lots” Laurence contributed a case (1 x beer, 1 x soft drink) to their team mates. Very generous!
The uni boys were sent in on a good wicket. Mark “I could be dangerous bowling on this wicket” Faraday lead from the front with the bat, continuing his good form and getting through some good new ball bowling. Faras played some typically great shots on his way to 50 before getting caught on the fence. Josh “twinkle toes” Ryan also continued his good form with a solid 50. Others contributed towards our 210 total, including Liam “I impersonate TK and his injuries” Robertson who scored 34 with the bat, and managed to hit a 6 whilst twisting his knee. He batted on valiantly with a runner and continued to knock them around the park.
Whilst 210 was below par, it was a winnable total. We needed to bowl and field well!
Our bowling efforts were good in parts, but lacked consistency. This combined with a few injuries made for a less than fantastic start in the field. Both Nigel “cough cough” Cowell and Rig lead the way with the ball and showed some good signed for this part of their game this year.
Special mention to Josh Lawrence who impressed with the ball, and stepped up when we were hit by injury.
Onward and upward; a good time to learn some hard truths about the work we need to put in.
“CAPTAIN OF THE SHIP” our Indian friend, Kevvy
Adam Theobald
Penrith 7/201 defeated Sydney University 197
( M Skinner 35, S Mclean 31, C Withers 1/20, AJ 2/34)
Beep, Beep….8.25am (Saturday morning), how good is life? The smell of Krispy Kremes, the new healthy menu at McDonalds, single mums pushing prams…..and all I have to do is crawl out of bed, comb my permed mullet, put the Sydney Uni training kit on and walk down to god’s country at Cook Park for Nashball at 8.30am….pure ecstasy! Well, that was the thought’s of one member of our team (Chris “Trent” Withers), where as the other remaining 10 blokes woke up like this…”F*#k Me!”.
Who would have guessed? The sun was out, the gods were smiling, round 1 of a fresh season, and the old boys were towelled up by the youngsters in Nashball 6-0. The enthusiasm, skill, speed and freshness only tells me one thing…..the youngsters didn’t save a dollar the night before! While the likes of Hasi “Footlong” Balasurija and Stu “Leunig” McLean were magical with the Nash, the underbelly members of this 3rd grade side, like Michael “Fadi Ibrahim” Culkoff were preoccupied with just simply looking pretty.
Heads was called, Tails fell, and the Sydney Uni boys were sent in on what could be described as an interesting wicket. With the prospect of facing his identical twin, Jack “Weasley” Benson decided on an early drink, with Matt “Snow Leopard” Skinner taking the attack to the boys from the West. He was joined by Ash “Beer Mat” Cowan, who decided to uppercut anything that was short of a length. I must say, my relatives travelling on the Homebush to Hornsby train line the previous evening from ANZ stadium would have been proud of Ash’s uppercut….but let’s not be prejudice. After a solid start by the Uni boys, the students felt comfortable enough indulging in the weekend’s crossword, where AJ showed why he is an exceptional student of the education system. One word of advice….ask for a refund on your degree.
After negotiating the score to 2/80, with Jack Hill looking comfortable at the crease, we lost a few quick wickets to be in trouble at 5/90. Some poor discipline, lack of responsibility and careless batting saw the boys struggle to be all out for 197. After looking a chance of being bundled out for 125, some sustained batting from Stu “Mush” McLean and Hasi “Footlong” Balasurija saw the good guys reach a defendable target of 197. Hasi decided to drive the bus like a Jamaican, which definitely got the captain all hot and sweaty. (Please Note: Hasi has made the dward X1 for bus driving)
The lunch interval then proceeded, with a team indulgence in subway…while Alisdair ‘Pectoral’ Grant decided to watch his waistline by indulging on the supermodel diet of 1 mango slice and a pistachio nut (equivalent of half a subway….and he calls himself a man!) The Uni boys started promisingly in the field, with Trent Withers claiming his first wicket of the season with a caught behind. An inspired spell from AJ also added to this exceptional pressure, with the Penrith boys reeling at 5/60 just after the first drinks break.
However, the day’s highlights ended at this point, with our initial effort’s not being replicated in the next two sessions. As a core group we were unable to execute our gamelan’s which saw the boys from the West claim victory in the last over of the day. An expectation of walking over the Penrith batsmen with the score placed at 5/60, as well as a drop in intensity brought about our disappointing downfall…however I believe it was a fundamental lesson that needed to be learnt if we are to move forward as a group. As disappointing as the loss was, I believe this group of players have enough fortitude, skill and passion to make amends in the coming weeks.
Danny Ward
4th Grade
SUCC 5-264 (Hackett 111, Huckle 66, Younes 34) def.
Penrith 173 (Khalko 6-29, Bragg 2-15)
Nine nerds, one wolf and a jetlagged Pom arrived at St Paul’s on Saturday looking to draw first blood against last year’s Club Champs, Penriff (aka, home of the endless pokie aisle).
Nash: forgettable. I don’t even recall if points were scored. Several players’ debut to the game played in heaven and gale force winds probably didn’t help. A disappointing start to the Nash Campaign 2009-10. Things can only improve.
What I do recall is winning the toss and electing to bat, with the wicket looking drier than a Christopher Walken monologue. Mark “Sorry I’m late, I was out picking my dress for this year’s Xmas party” Hackett and Justin Younes got us off to a strong start.
With drinks at 0/80-odd, I was beginning to think this captaincy gig was easy. Fortunately, the boys kept delivering. After Justin departed for 34, Ken “Ken Huckle” Huckle joined the party and muscled a few around the park for 66. Steady at the other end was Hackett, who was dismissed going for a dip in the 40th for an excellent 111 (David Shepherd would’ve shat himself). The middle order kept the pace up, enabling us to set the Panfers 264 to win.
Notwithstanding Geoff’s puddle of over-enthusiasm just wide of leg stump (ask him yourself), we took the field fired up after lunch. We started poorly. Our intensity in the field was low, betraying some decent bowling from Kags and Luke. The Pokie Players capitalised with good running and positive intent, taking the upper hand at drinks. However, with Hackett and Charlie “The Statistician” Cull putting together 5-6 maidens on the trot, the match turned. We bowled well to a tight ring field, and the energy improved.
A sharp catch by Hackett off the bowling of some nuffy off-spinner removed their key player, and at that point the Panfers packed up.
Sanjiv “Baby John” Khalko was the beneficiary, ripping through the middle order and taking 6-29 for his efforts. Net result: a bonus point to the good guys. Famous last words: this captaincy gig is easy.
In all seriousness, it was said on the day but I feel we were let off the hook with our fielding. We bowled well at times and this lifted the energy, but if we are going to be the top of the table force that we should be, we need to set the bar much higher. Let’s take that into our attitude at training this week.
Dan Bragg
SUCC 9-256 defeats Penrith 9/188 with 1 bonus point.
The picturesque suburban setting of Werrington and Rance Oval greeted the visiting SUCC 5th Grade side for the season opener against Penrith. Gale force winds and another dust storm out of the west ensured that everyone (even those who had not taken a "Pepsi Challenge") was pretty dusty by the time they reached the ground.
The younger members of the side were given their first lesson in Nash Ball, then Jimmy "This is definitely my last season" Rodgers won the toss and elected to bat. Nick "Too new for a nickname" Fitzgerald and Michael "Beautiful Mind" Barwick fell early allowing Pete "Keanu" Jordan and Paul "Pegs" O'Halloran to combine to take the score to 2-140. Pete brought up a well earned 55, and Paul got to 41 before both lost their wickets around the 30 over mark. Ed "After a 2 year break I have mellowed" Quoyle was adjudged LBW first ball, and there was no hint of surliness. Dave "Scorsese" Jessep smacked some good boundaries, and David "500 Theories" Crawford batted to the end of the 50 overs making 65 not out, including hitting 17 from the last over. Special mention to Dave "My lens is bigger this year" Stanton for capturing Jimmy Rodgers playing a copybook cut shot on film (see link: http://dksphotography.smugmug.com/Sports/Cricket-2009-10/Penrith/9753171_wqdAi#661949617_n6jiC).
Ben "Longshanks" Joy and Kerrod "Rubik's Cube" McPherson combined to terrorise the Penrith top order. Both bowled with good pace and control to feature in early wickets. Cam "Rowdy" Hawkins came on to bowl and collected his first wicket in grade cricket as Ben Joy took a diving catch on the fence. As the two celebrated, the 6 foot 6 inch Ben "Norm Provan" Joy put his arm around 5 foot 2 inch Cam "Arthur Summons" Hawkins, causing Dave Jessep to reflect that the two looked like they could be the pair on the Winfield Cup. Wickets fell at regular intervals: Jimmy Rodgers and David "I'll lead the club song without knowing the words" Crawford collected a couple of wickets each and Pegs collected three.
At one point, the rotund Penrith skipper was struggling with cramps causing a minor delay as a runner came onto the field. Ed "I'm not surly, I'm pensive" Quoyle mused that if we sped up the play we could all go home sooner. Shortly thereafter, the Penrith captain retired hurt which prompted Ed "Old habits die hard, I really am surly" Quoyle to note that you shouldn't get a runner for being fat!
The day was rounded out with beers from the local bottle shop, consumed in keeping with local tradition - out of a brown paper bag.
Pegs
Paul O'Halloran
Metro Cup – 6th Grade vs Sydney
SUCC – 199 (A Barwick 77, S Cowell 25, A Crasto 20) def. Sydney 152 (V Poologasundram 2/14, G Metcalfe 2/21, S Cowell 2/32) by 47 runs
A healthy win for 6’s first up, in a pleasing performance that bodes well for the rest of the season. A bonus point and contributions from pretty much everybody have set a good standard for the following weeks.
South Sydney Council promised our opposition captain that prior to the weekend, two tasks would be completed – the removal of the football posts from each end of the ground, and that the sprinklers would be turned off to protect the square. Needless to say, neither of these tasks was completed, leaving us with hazards at both straight boundaries and a delayed start because of water at one end of the pitch. When play eventually got under way just after 10:30, the good guys were on top from the start – the opening partnership between Ash ‘man, can you put my box in my pocket? I can’t run with it on...’ Crasto and Alex ‘I kept for college’ Barwick put on 92, and from there we never looked like losing this one. Wickets in hand were always going to be important on a strip that was typically 6th grade – deader than dead. Alex in particular should be commended for a great innings – he was patient early on a pitch that demanded it, and was rewarded as he got used to the conditions and cashed in, although changing to a non-broken bat halfway through his innings also might’ve helped. Plenty of extras from our opposition and a few lusty blows down the order got us to what was a very respectable score from 45 overs.
Four and a half runs per over on that deck was always going to be hard to chase, but the way in which we fielded as a team was excellent for most of the day, and made it even harder. The bowlers bowled well in partnerships, and loose balls were few and far between (four players took two wickets – to the consternation of at least two who had fantasy points riding on a threefer from someone), and the catching was excellent, particularly a millimetres-from-the-grass pickup at second slip from Srin ‘Arjuna’ Vasista and a spectacular horizontal diving catch at point from Sam ‘Jonty’ Mahadaby. The main area for us as a team to improve on, and one which will be far more important in two-day games, is maintaining the intensity and pressure in the field that brings wickets. For 25 or so of the 35 overs we bowled, it was excellent and the scoreboard showed it. In those other 10 overs, though, we were guilty of going through the motions, and the fact that their last wicket could put on 30 out of 150 showed the necessity to be pro-active in the field and not expect things to happen for us. Overall though, it was a highly impressive start to the season, and more performances like that will see 6th grade pushing yet again for the Metro Cup.
Special thanks should also go to our opposition for agreeing to supply a substitute fielder for most of their innings after Srin strained his hammy. They were under no obligation to do so but did it in the spirit of the game anyway. Bravo.
Simon Cowell