18.10.23
A round of mixed results, with highlights being Div 6 chasing down a massive total in their 2 day game, and the battle between our 2 Division 8 sides, Gold and Blue, coming down to the last over.
Read on for more details.
Umpire Training – less than a week to go : Wednesday, 25th October
Our Umpiring Course is not far away – and we have 3 Registrations from our Senior Players so far – it would be great to have 2 or 3 players from each team attend.
Current International, Sheffield Shield, BBL / WBBL Umpire, Claire Polosak, will be doing the training. She ran a wonderful course for us last year, and is very, very knowledgeable!
If you ever umpire during a match, or would like to, please make every effort to get there. I guarantee you will learn something about our great game.
When: Wednesday 25th October
Time: 6pm, for a 6:30pm start. Concluding by 9pm
Where: Pratten Park Bowling Club. 42 Arthur St, Ashfield
Cost: Free. Non compulsory exam cost refunded for all SHCC players ($40)
Register online here: https://events.humanitix.com/shcc-community-cricket-umpiring-workshop
Cricket World Cup Tipping and Fantasy
Thanks to Jay Karim, Captain of 3rd Division for organising a Tipping and Fantasy Competition for the Cricket World Cup. It’s not too late to join
Predictor/Tipping:
Fantasy – Nominate the best performing batters, all rounders, and bowlers for each match
Tipping Leaderboard
Sachin pandey 5
Kavitparekh 5
Dr Phil 4
T4 4
Umer 2
Jkarim 2
Dharmin85 0
Fantasy Leaderboard
Jkarim 369.50
Dr Phil 359.50
T4 321.50
Umer 276.50
Ben-Rawat 210.00
Imperator108294 169.50
Last Round Batting and Bowling highlights
Batting
95* Kavit Parekh Div 6
63 Madushan Bandara Div 3
62 Mark Gibson Div 8 Blue
61 Alex Tzoumas Div 2
53 Andy Manchester Div 6
Club Milestones:
Games
50 Gaurang Parekh Div 6
Wickets
50 Rafael Bruzzese Div 3
Runs
2,500 Rob Sanderson Div 8 Gold
500 Mark Gibson Div 8 Blue
Training
When: Every Thursday
Where: Lees Park - Harmony St, Ashbury (Park in Crieff St & walk down the alley)
When: From 5:30pm until dusk – and there may be a few there earlier too
Enjoy your Cricket!
Phil
Phil – President
m 0417 234 761
2nd Division
Match Report: Harsha Bhogle
Round 5: Summer Hill 188 def by Summer Hill Seniors 6/172 (DLS)
In the picturesque setting of Ewen Park, it was a day of cricket that will be remembered for its spirit and camaraderie, marred only by an unfortunate injury. Summer Hill 2nd Division locked horns with their rivals, Summer Hill Seniors, in a closely fought contest that ended in less than ideal circumstances due to a serious knee injury to Josh Stanton.
Summer Hill took the crease first and got off to a strong start, reaching the drinks break at 2/113. The crowd was treated to some elegant strokes and clever batting, but post-drinks, the story took a different turn. Some controversial decisions from the umpire saw eight wickets tumbled for just 75 runs, leaving Summer Hill 2nd Division all out for 188 in 32.4 overs.
In reply, Summer Hill Seniors showed their intent with a flying start, but on several occasions, they were pegged back by resilient bowling. The match ebbed and flowed as they pursued their target. Ultimately, they reached a total of 172 for the loss of 6 wickets. The game was cut short following a season ending knee injury to our very own J. Stanton. All parties agreed to end the game there seeing Seniors clinching victory by 4 runs on net run rate.
In the bowling department, it was N.Everitt who stood out with figures of 2 for 36 off 7 overs. His tight lines and crucial wickets turned the tide of the game. A.Nawaz also played his part returning to the bowling stocks with 2 wickets for 25 runs off 6.3 overs to keep us in with a chance at the death, earning him the well-deserved "Best Bowler" award.
With the bat, it was A.Tzoumas who shone the brightest, playing a blistering innings that set the tone for Summer Hill Seniors. His score of 61 was laced with aggression but was eventually undone by a peach of a delivery. A.Tzoumas is duly recognised as the "Best Batsman" of the match. S.Gracias Flor contributed with a steady 36, while J.Stanton chipped in with a gritty 30.
Our thoughts are with J.Stanton as he embarks on his journey to recovery from knee surgery.
Best Batting
61 Alex Tzoumas
36 Savio Gracias Flor
30 Josh Stanton
Best Bowling
2/25 Armaan Nawaz
2/36 Nic Everitt
3rd Division
Match Report : Dilir Ali
Round 5: Summer Hill 116 def by DLSK 3/117
What is the anatomy of a collapse? It begins with the head, and slowly trickles down…
When Summer Hill 3rds met DLSK this Saturday, bellies full of democracy sausage and eyes eager with anticipation, all seemed well. Word on the street was that DLSK had only reached 55 in their previous innings – there was a reason they were down from 2nds after all – and we were back in our home turf of Waterworth park on a brilliant, sunny day. Our Captain, Jay, won the toss and elected to bat, looking to pile on early and send our opposition packing. Rafael was promoted to open and the fearsome Tanzim had just flown up from Melbourne to celebrate his wedding and brought the in-laws to come watch along. What could go wrong?
The mouth feels dry, hope beginning to claw its way up your throat…
Tanzim fell quickly, caught behind on his second ball. The new ball zipped off the pitch as Rafael and the illustrious Madushan dug in to see out the opening bowlers. DLSK pressed their advantage, keeping Terelink (7-1-22-2) and Matt ‘Spacey’ Whibley (5-0-23-0) on until they broke through and sent Rafael back to the sheds on 11. There was no need to fear, however, as the ever-consistent Arup picked up the baton and put on a swashbuckling 28 off 35, including six fours and two dropped catches. Madushan, on the other end was chanceless, toiling away under the pressing heat to edge ever closer to his half century. The two batters came to drinks two down for 71, plenty of gas still left in the tank. “Let’s aim for 200” was the instruction given, and, As Madushan and Arup ambled back to their crease, all agreed it was within reach.
And then it hits. Panic takes over. Steely eyes go out to face the fire, only to come back doused in shame, with nothing but scattered thigh pads for comfort…
Brace yourselves. This makes for tough reading.
J. Karim 0 (4) – LBW
T Rahman 0 (0) – Run Out
D Ali 0 (2) – Caught
S Kalam 3 (3) – Caught
S Chen 0 (5) – Caught
F Mazmuder 0 (1) – LBW
Facing a barrage of medium paced full volleys and unmoving attempted inswingers, 6 batters left the sheds and 6 batters came back - with only 3 runs off 15 balls between them. Heads were hung in shame with Mudashan, stranded at the other end only 3 runs short of 50, struggling to see if there’s a way out from this hole. Only Niloy would rise to the occasion, batting out 20 balls and helping Mads to farm the strike, slowly rebuilding until SHB finally passed the 100 mark and 33 overs had elapsed. When the imperious Madushan finally fell on 63 (104), he had contributed over half of SHB’s middling total of 113 and, drenched with sweat, was met with solemn applause.
The hope comes back, the fear subsides, but the scars still linger in the dying light…
Call it madness but, despite this, we believed. The boys arced up, excited for the fight – with every voice on the field filled with the same chirpiness of a team with 400 on the board. The bowlers, invigorated, steamed in at full throttle with Rafael drawing blood, dismissing the opener cheaply for 8 off 18. Tanzim was tidy behind the stumps and as vocal as ever, but was joined now by a chorus of believers, who kept pushing the bowlers forward, throwing daggers for every play and miss and praising every leave. It wasn’t long until Salman joined the party, moving the ball on a string consistently until finally taking the edge of the other opener and bringing SHB right back into the contest. Jay’s magic (and a bit of friendly banter) drew the next mistake, as the next man in overstretched himself in an attempted sweep – only to pull his hammy and go limping back to the sheds. As the team circled around, hope was etched on every face.
Ultimately, though, it is the hope that kills you. DLSK steadied the ship and built up a solid partnership – playing a low risk but busy style of cricket to take back control over the game. Fahim was able to strike one last blow, breaking the partnership with an absolute peach to take the top of off, but, as the batsmen headed to drinks with just 27 left to score, it seemed like too little too late. As Summer Hill returned to the ground, the last bit of fight had left us, with two dropped catches, expensive overs and a sudden silence all marking DLSK’s victory with 7 wickets to spare. It was a valiant effort in the end, but not enough to make up for our collapse.
Despite some standout performances from Madushan, Rafael (7-1-26-1) and Fahim (4-0-17-1), there’s little to celebrate after that loss. Hopefully, however, SHB can put this bad form behind us, exercise the demons from our mind and come back next time stronger than ever. After the absolute highs of the first game, we’ve found rock bottom – now all we have to do is climb back to where we belong.
Best Batting
63 Madushan Bandara
28 Arup Saha
6th Division
Round 4: Summer Hill Def 5/274 vs Revesby Workers Club /269
Best Batting
95* Kavit Parekh
53 Andy Manchester
36* Samarth Shrivastava
35 Roland Cheung
Best Bowling
3/36 Dan Jeffrey
3/44 Andy Manchester
2/54 Nash Chance
7th Division
Match Report: Dharmin Thakkar
Round 5: Summer Hill 9/156 def Revesby Workers Club Maroon 6/151
We were geared up for the decisive 5th round, aiming to put in a solid performance and conclude the first phase of the competition on a high note.
The toss fell in our favour, and we opted to bat first, well aware of the prospect of cloud cover providing some respite from the scorching sun during our subsequent fielding innings. Our opening batsmen got off to a flying start, with Hamza slamming four quick boundaries, instantly applying pressure on the opposing team. However, the jubilation was short-lived as Hamza succumbed to a beautifully executed in-swing delivery, departing the crease.
Nonetheless, this setback failed to deter our momentum. Ben strode to the crease and unleashed a similar assault on the bowlers, propelling the scoreboard to a rapid 71. Just before the session break, we lost Ben, followed by a string of quick wickets in the middle order. At one stage, we were reeling at 116 for 8, a far cry from the initial target we had set at 180 runs. Compounded by a slow over rate from the opposition, the match was reduced to 32 overs.
With the odds seemingly stacked against us, the arrival of new batsmen, Gourav and Dharmin, provided a glimmer of hope. They managed to forge a crucial partnership, inching the scoreboard to a respectable total of 156 runs.
In response, Dharmin's first over proved to be an expensive one, conceding 16 runs. However, he made an impressive comeback from the second over. Prabhu struck our first wicket with a remarkable catch by Gourav. Their opening batsman, despite surviving a couple of missed catch opportunities, continued to pile on the runs. Our bowlers, on the other hand, maintained their resilience and consistently took wickets.
In the 18th over, we finally managed to dismiss their in-form batsman who had amassed a staggering 78 runs. After the session's break, the opposition required 46 runs in 15 overs, holding eight wickets in hand. It was a tense situation, but brilliant spells by Chetan and Gourav, complemented by incredible catches from Hamza under immense pressure, turned the game around in our favour. A direct, almost unreal throw to the stumps from deep square leg by Ben, along with another run-out by Chetan and Dharmin, denied our opponents a victory by the narrowest of margins, sealing our triumph by a mere 5 runs.
Best Batting
30 Gourav Tripathi
29 Ben Rawat
Best Bowling
3/25 Chetan Kondur
2/14 Gourav Tripathi
8th Division Blue & Gold
Match Report : Luca Agius
Round 5: Summer Hill Blue 9/140 def Summer Hill Gold 7/133
The big game of the round was here, arguably the most important game on the cricketing calendar, the Summer Hill 8th Division Blue vs Gold rivalry. While this fixture is may still be young in age, the flame of competition is always at its brightest between these two teams.
Thus it would be captains Phil Tarbox and Jim Bandas to do the toss for Blue and Gold respectively, with the former winning the toss and electing to bat first. Not long afterwards, openers Mark 'Gibbo' Gibson and Luca Agius went out to bat.
Making 15 odd from the first few overs until Agius got out to absolute floater from opening in swinger Pat Cullen, bewildered at his dismissal he had to go, and he wouldn't be the first reluctant batsmen to leave the pitch that day. With Gibbo plodding away and Phil only just getting into his innings after having his stumps rattled by Bandas (but no bails dislodged), the platform was beginning to build.
That was until Sarfaraz, bowling from the nets end, hit the infamous Lee's Park dead spot. Nigh on mully grubber territory, it hit Phil square on the bottom of his pad and going on to hit the bottom of middle stump. LBW, dead as a doorknob, and the very next ball, Sarfaraz would trap Leo Tarbox equally as plumb this time with a yorker on leg stump.
A few overs later, PJ Rosenberger’s consistent line and length drew Mike Davies in to a false shot, who held out to mid on. 4/64 at drinks a rebuild was needed to push Blue towards a defendable total.
With Gibbo still there however there was light when he and Jud Agius began to build a partnership. Of course that was until Pat Cullen again bowled an absolute floater on middle stump to dismiss Jud. Cullen picking up both Agius’ with the same delivery. Knowing the importance of his innings, Gibbo continued to plug away, all the way up to a truly formidable 62. With some crucial run-scoring assistance from Asher Tarbox (12) and Rayhan Islam (15*) to close out the innings, Blue managed a respectable 140 from their 35.
Wickets were needed for Blue and partnerships for Gold - the game was in the balance.
Captain Phil would turn to seamers Luca Agius and Sidhant to get that new ball break through. Tidy opening spells with movement in and out, both bowlers would pick up wickets. Sidhant (1/5) trapping Michael Metry in front and Phil athletically sliding to take a skyball from Ken Campbell off Luca Agius. With the innings now well underway, Blue introduced spinner Rayhan and pacer Asher into the attack to challenge the batsmens application and intent from both ends. While Asher struggled to find his radar, Rayhan struck gold twice to dismiss Kaustav Gupta and Rob Sanderson in his spell. Leaving Blue firmly in front at drinks with Gold 4/52. However, Gold still had plenty of batting to get them over the line.
Left armer Jasper Cohen tied up one end for 7 overs with his awkward in swing, and Owen Gibson equally up the other, producing some consistent leg spin. Blue began to strangle the batsmen, taking three wickets in the process, and leaving Gold with an ever harder challenge. Then, with 5 overs left and needing 50, Gold's chase was on its last legs with Sarfaraz and Leo Cirillo surviving, despite skying the odd one. 2 good overs from Leo Tarbox and one from Luca Agius then saw Gold needing 40 off the last two. The game seemed done and dusted considering how little the batsmen had managed to get away.
But as rivalry matches go, they always manage to give you something unexpected. That was certainly the case when 21 was scored off the second last over and 19 needed off the last. With an uncharacteristic no ball and 4 off the first two balls of Luca's final over, the game heated up another notch. Yet, some accurate bowling outside off, refusing to give the batsmen anything in their hitting arc, the seamer was able to comfortably close the game out with Blue holding out to win by 7 runs.
A classic encounter between Blue and Gold, or the young and less young, it took the entire team's best efforts with the ball, bat and on the field to get over the line against the experience of Gold. Both sides will have learn something from this match – and the next promises even more.
Blue
Best Batting
62 Mark Gibson
Best Bowling
2/14 Jasper Cohen
2/14 Owen Gibson
2/24 Rayhan Islam
Gold
Best Batting
38* Sarfaraz ali Nangyal
25* Leo Cirillo
Best Bowling
4/39 Zeeshan Zeeshan
2/28 Sarfaraz ali Nangyal
2/28 Pat Cullen