Saturday started with another early wake up, a few nerves and ominously dark skies. Throughout the season (and for the last few), we have always been a rather laid back team down in 5’s, but you could tell how important this game was - almost everyone was warming up in the morning!

Makeshift opener, and victorious skipper, Monaghan led his side into battle from the front line 

A slightly damp outfield, but no sign of rain was as good as we could hope for and the toss was won by the St George captain who conservatively chose to bowl on a slightly patchy wicket. We hit the sheds where Dave tried to convince everyone it was just another game, the other captains had a word and I think heard the phrase ‘runs on the board’ about thirteen times.

Batting didn’t start too well with Dom failing to break his Grand Final curse and snicked off early before Dave was joined by one of our two Greenies in Axel.

Things were going well as the score crept beyond fifty and Dave started to really get moving, driving well up and over the infield but a slow outfield meant that he was often left unrewarded, whilst Axel supported him well from the other end looking solid in defense. 

Nick Miller, a player of the club's future, combined to steady the ship 

But the St George boys were keeping it quite tight and as so often happens we lost three wickets with the score on 67, 69 and 71 and we were back to being in a spot of trouble.

Our other greenie Nick batted well with Darren, in conditions that were not easy to start in. Things were looking set before a run out sent Nick back and Darren glided the spinner to the keeper and we again had two new batsmen in with the score at 6/103. 

Not much resistance from the lower order this time bar a quick-fire 18 from Oz which helped the score creep to 139. We knew were a little under par, but with the slow outfield and a bowling attack which had been our strength all season we went back out in search of quick wickets. We had been given a good reminder of the value of pressure as we couldn’t move the score along, particularly with their spinner who took 3/30 off 28 overs.

Our openers started well and kept the scoring down and we got to see another re-run of Oz beating the bat over and over again before Jack finally found the edge to Dave at second slip to end the opening batsmen’s long vigil of 4 off 39. 

Darren Jayasekera nudges one through the Saints' infield 

Their number 3 came in with good intent and started to lift the ball around a little and got the score moving before Dave knocked off the other opener and, in what would be the last ball of play, Jack pinned their number 3 for 38 and the score was precariously sitting at 3/66.

It was anyone’s game.

We turned up on Sunday morning greeted with blue skies with the knowledge that a few quick wickets would get us in with a chance. But things didn’t go as planned and the score crept ever so slowly past a hundred without a wicket falling. 

When David brought me on and I managed to sneak one past one of the batsmen, what would happen next was probably the most outrageous pieces of cricket I’ve ever witnessed.

Matthew Selby with his right arm rapids would turn the game on its head.

Beginning the collapse, Deva sneaks one through the gate 

In his first over he took 3, the last being the most important as he took out the skipper to a stinger of a catch to Nick Miller at short midwicket.

The next few overs were much of the same and wickets fell left, right and centre. A screamer of a catch to Darren and one more caught behind and we were almost home. The art of dibbly-dobbling will never be the same.

7 overs, 1 maiden, 5/15, thanks for coming. 

Straight after the lunch break, Jack took the last wicket, going straight through the number eleven and the comeback was complete as we took 7/18.

Matt Selby leads the team from the ground after a match changing display of bowling 

The job wasn’t done yet and a fired up St George came out with one last swing at the title. A few wickets made everyone a touch more nervous than we would have hoped, but the pairing of Dave Monaghan with 62 (no surprises there) and a very impressively mature knock from our 16 year old Nick Miller of 39 that included some exquisite on drives ended any chance of another twist in the game.

A big thank you must be said to the Wests Cricket Club who hosted a great grand final over two days. Also, a big thank you to the friends and family who turned up to watch and support us. It was great to have some familiar faces around. 

The skipper shows off the silverware! 

It’s been a great season, and though we said throughout that the goal was to go for back to back Sherwoods, to achieve that with only two players from team from last year has been a great achievement and shows how strong the club is. A quick look at the engravings on the Sherwood shows that back to back Sherwoods has actually been done quite a few times, but no-one’s gone the three-peat.

I guess 2014 is a good time to change that.

Deva Nirthanakumaran

The Stags hosted Parramatta at Beauchamp Park in the 5th Grade Semis. Arriving on Saturday morning, the covers were lifted to reveal a green but flat wicket. Winning the toss, ‘Fantasy Points’ Monaghan elected to bat. With our regular opener ruled out, Dom Thompson took on the role. 

Axel "Axe" Cahlin in his maiden Grade semi final making a solid contribution with the bat 

Together, Dom and Dave set out to knock the shine off the ball and provide a good platform for the stags, and boy did they. Both batsmen showed great confidence and patience, playing each ball on its merit, grinding down the opposition. As the day progressed, the conditions favoured the batsmen and the two openers capitalised on this. However Dom and Dave were not rewarded for their text book stroke play from a rather slow outfield. 

The score continued to tick over and the boys were on top of Parramatta’s bowling attack, adding more than a 100 for the first wicket. Hitting the ball to all parts of the ground ‘Fantasy Points’ reached his 50 but was unfortunately dismissed soon after.

With the score 1-110, Axel joined Dom in the middle. Together, the two continued on and Dom reached a well-deserved 50, showing great style and maturity, although he was also dismissed soon after. With two new batsmen at the crease, the Stags needed to rebuild, but the dismissal of ‘Elton’ Coleman for 1 run gave momentum to the opposition. The score was now 3-138 and Nick ‘Funky’ Miller joined ‘Axe’ at the crease and the youngsters were determined to give momentum back to the Stags.

With batting conditions getting better, ‘Axe’ played a fairly aggressive innings, hitting the ball hard and managing a few boundaries. Also, Funky joined in, piercing the gaps while keeping the score moving. Momentum was starting to shift back to the stags however Axe didn’t take advantage of a good start and he was dismissed for a solid 35. 

Monaghan continues to add points to the Webmaster's fantasy team 

Darren ‘DJ’ Jayasekera looked in good form out in the middle. He struck the ball cleanly and scored several boundaries. Funky and Darren were beginning to build a decent partnership but Parramatta had the opportunity of a new ball. This did not stop the pair. Funky scored a few more runs before being caught for a well-made, patient 33.

The score was now 5-228 and Parramatta were tired. The new rock flew off the bat and Darren scored a quick-fire 34, smashing the ball all over park before being caught. Jack ‘Richo’ Richardson and Matt ‘the Teacher’ Selby were the two new batsmen at the crease. With Richo coming of a half century, he was keen to make it a repeat, although this was not to be as he was out for 2.

‘Oz’ Dowler was now out in the middle using Elton’s bat. He was quite worried at this, expecting his blade to fall apart at any minute, just like his other one. Matt Selby chose his old punter, and this seemed a good choice. He struck the crisply and kept the runs ticking with Oz. Both Oz and the Teacher knocked the ball around but were dismissed for 13 and 14 respectively.

The score was 9-258 and Deva ‘Alphabet’ ‘Second grader’ Nirthanakumaran combined with the legend himself, ‘Mr Matt Todd’. Unfortunately to everybody’s disappointed Parramatta bowled Gordon out for 261. 

We thought the day was over but we were ordered to bowl one last over. Mr Todd was called upon and with a rather aggressive field he bowled a hilarious, yet inspirational over and the day finished with Parramatta 0/0

On the Easter Sunday, the Stags arrived at Beauchamp with some cloud over head. After taking the covers off we had a very sloppy warm up (maybe a few too many Easter eggs in the morning), but we were determined to turn this around. 

Cahlin, in another first, is rumoured to have enjoyed a beverage after their win over the Two Blues 

Oz and Richo kicked us off, bowling excellent lines and lengths, being rewarded with an early wicket each. They were 2/10 and the stags were building pressure early. The pair continued to beat the bat on many occasions but were unrewarded. Toddy joined the attack and was amongst the wickets, snaring the third. 

Fantasy points also took wickets applying more pressure on Parramatta. 

With the score at 5/28, Parramatta was in need of a good partnership. Two of their batsmen applied themselves and with a bit of luck they smashed some boundaries and got the score to 107 before the next wicket. The Stags were creeping into the tail and the play-off for the Sherwood was in our sights. With Richo applying some excellent shine on the ball throughout the day, he and Oz were brought back into the attack. Oz added another wicket to his tally and the score was now 7/124. 

The Stags were clearly on top and had the opportunity to close out the match quickly. However, the opposition were able to muster a tail order fight back. To their credit, they knuckled down and hit the ball in the gaps adding just fewer than fifty for the 8th wicket. 

The score was now 8/171 and the Stags were confident. Wasting no time, the “second grader” cleaned up the tail and the Stags were one step closer to the Sherwood. I would also like to thank Dan Stickland, Iqbal Ahmed and Dan Richtor and all the other s(unfortunately I do not know all of them) for coming to support over the Easter weekend. It means a great deal and hopefully we will see a few more in the future (although not all did appreciate a hooligan commenting on the match). 

To top it all off, the song was sung with style and Toddy shared a few beers with ALL (if you know what I mean).

Axel ‘First beer’ Cahlin

Arriving at a newly reopened Ryde Oval for the last match of the season the Gordon boys were very relaxed. Sitting in a guaranteed second place the pressure was off – and this showed in the arrival times of a few of the Gordon contingent. 

However, Dave ‘Fantasy Points’ Monaghan is not one to be easily phased, and so in laconic fashion he welcomed the tardy with a good wack to the ankles in throw downs. 

Young Nick Miller stamps his authority on the game in his first grade appearance 

According to unnamed sources, Matthew ‘Teach’ Selby and Mick ‘Energizer’ Falk have been investigating the possibility of employing similar techniques over the upcoming school term.

After having examined at least a good twenty metres of the field during the warm-up (a new PB for 5’s), the two skippers met in the middle. Dave promptly won the toss and elected to bat on a rather tricky wicket.

Being the first game on the new surface, the track proved rather unpredictable: more than one variable delivery claiming a scalp (including the Skipper’s). Amil ‘Heskey’ Premawardhana showed some talent at the top of the order with a gritty 28, ably supported by young Nick ‘Funky” Miller (25) and the ever present skipper (24). 

In the end the Stags were bowled out in the penultimate over of the innings for 159, a score the boys considered at least par given then state of the conditions. In what must have been a rare occurrence for grade cricket, extra’s top scored for the Stags with 29 – highlighting the treacherous nature of the pitch and (in light of the Sydney innings) proving once again that line and length is telling on all surfaces.

Lunch brought a nice change of scenery for many of the team (author included) who managed to mix a leisurely car ride to the shops with a hasty sprint to the middle prior to the start of play. Luckily all eleven were accounted for in the nick of time, leaving the two umpires more than happy to make a few jokes while starting play at the stroke of two.

With the usual opening combination of Richardson and Dowler absent, the new ball fell to Funky Miller (in his first bowl in grade cricket) and David ‘Captain’s Prerogative’ Monaghan. 

Funky bowled great lines, forcing the Sydney batsmen to play at everything and taking full advantage of the treacherous wicket. At the end of his spell he was duly rewarded with the outstanding figures of 6 overs, 5 maidens, 2 for 5. 

Dave "Fantasy Points" Monaghan wheels away at the opposite end 

While Funky was doing the damage from the park end, Dave Monaghan was his usual self – hooping the ball nicely and finishing up with 2 for 24, leaving the Sydney top order reeling.

An inspired bowling change (perhaps forced by age restrictions) saw the two Matthew’s replace the quicks at this point. ‘Bottle’ Todd (3/ 17) and ‘I think he is really in charge’ Selby (3/4) maintained the pressure and the rest of the Sydney team collapsed to be all out for 51. 

The control of both bowler’s was a delight and, if this author may be so bold, clear grounds for a well-deserved Colts call up.

It is always great to have a convincing win going into the finals and it was particularly pleasing to see both old and new players finding form at the pointy end of the season.

Onward to the Sherwood.

Andrew Coleman

The match against last placed UNSW saw Gordon chancing maximum points, but after playing only 8 overs in 2 hours the previous week, Gordon chances to capitalise on this looked unlikely. With the students running low on numbers, Gordon needed only take 7 more wickets after snagging one on the first day. 

Jack Richardson grabs one for his side in the brief amount of play on the first day 

Orion started with his usual aggression and took the top off off-stump on two occasions with straight full balls which left the batsmen bemused as to how they missed the ball. From the other end, Jack Richardson had come to some previous arrangement to allow Dave Monaghan to score as many club champions points as possible. This saw Jack angling the ball across the batsman looking for edges to second slip, and so began Dave’s run of 8 catches for the match. 

After their spells, they were replaced with Matt Todd who claimed a couple of wickets and Deva (Raja) Nirthanakumaran who picked up the last one. All in all a good show from the bowling group which resulted in the students being dismissed for 80.

The great leveling shot. After the scribe boost's the skipper's ego, the roving photographer captures his demise  

To pick up more points, Dave promoted himself to open the batting. Combining with Tom Carruthers, the two showed that the deck was a little better than UNSW had shown. 

After they both lost their wickets, it was left up to Andrew ‘Elton’ Coleman to show everyone how to bat. Ably supported by Nick Miller (41) and Jack Richardson (48*), Elton battled his was through to 84. He was eventually dismissed chancing his ton, after Dave had informed him that he was going to declare on him. Gordon eventually declared 6 down for 243 on a now very flat Beauchamp wicket.

This allowed the bowler second go at the batsman, and another opportunity for Dave to pick up some more points. The stars of the second innings were Dave Monaghan picking up another four catches which included a spectacular one-handed diving chance at short fine leg. 

Regardless of where Dave positioned himself in a field, the students had decided that he was a good person to give catching practice. The other star of the second innings was Matt Todd who had claimed, in the sheds, that we could rely on him to pick up the wickets. True to his word, Matt picked up 5 wickets which included the last two in quick succession when the outright points seemed to be slipping from out grip.

Tom Carruthers flicks one to the legside in the search for quick runs 

Whilst we picked up the 10 points, we remain in second place, but the momentum is building towards the finals series.

Matt Selby 

With all games washed out in the first week, the second week was played under one day rules. Arriving at Beauchamp to a well grassed wicket, Gordon lost the toss and were sent in to bat. David Monaghan and Nick Coleman walked to the middle determine to get the Stags off to a good start and boy did they. 

Jack Skilbeck charges in for his skipper 

Both batsmen looked very comfortable from ball one, hitting the ball to all parts of the ground with great power. The score ticked over and we were on top of Sutherland. David was scoring at a rapid rate smashing boundaries on many occasions while Nick played very well supporting David and rotating the strike. David reached a well-deserved 50 and from here the run rate climbed. Dave was hitting very big and Nick continued to play his shots. The Stags past the 100 mark and were in an excellent position to post a good total.

Nick unfortunately fell for a solid 46 to leave the Stags 1/128. 

This brought Dom to the crease and he looked in good touch, timing the ball sweetly. However, Dave suffered from cramps and was dismissed for a captain’s knock of 81. A better training regime is needed for the skipper. Perhaps with a baby on the way, all the lifting and carrying will get him fit!

Darren came to the middle but was soon out for 3. Axel joined Dom and the two added a quick 38 in less than 4 overs, hitting the ball strongly and running very hard (I think Dom will agree about the running).

Axel was dismissed for 25 and the score was at 210. With a few overs left and several wickets in hand 250 was gettable. Tom ‘TC’ Carruthers joined and the pair pushed the run rate. Dominating the attack, Dom scored a quick fire 70 and ‘TC’ made a handy 11 to close the innings at 6/259

The wicket was flattening and it was going to be tough but the boys were up to it. ‘Afro Jack Richardson’ and ‘Jack Skrillex’ Skilbeck lead from the front. Bowling tight lines, they both restricted the runs but were hardly rewarded with only 1 wicket which went to ‘Skrillex’. ‘Toddy’ and ‘Oz’ Dowler continued and bowled very well together. Oz got good lift and the bat on many occasions and Toddy was unplayable taking 3/18 off his ten. Well bowled to you both! 

Matt Todd continues his good form for the 5th Graders 

Wickets fell at regular and the boys fielded very well taking the chances given while keeping the runs to a minimum. Alex ‘Jacko’ Jackson contributed with a great spell of bowling. He had good flight and landed the ball in good areas taking two good wickets. Gordon continued to apply pressure but Sutherland were able to hang in. David backed up his efforts with the bat by snatching a wicket from his five overs. 

All of the bowlers were rewarded for their efforts, snaring at least a wicket each. Sutherland were 9/94 and everyone was looking forward to a possible early finish. But credit to Sutherland who put on a good fight. One of the tail order batsmen slashed their way to 50 and his partner did just enough to hold his wicket. Their batsmen played almost every shot in the book including a few sneaky reverse sweeps and it was clear we were getting frustrated (although some were in a state of uncontrollable laughter, laughing at anything, as described by Oz).

We did not take the final wicket and after 50 overs, Sutherland were 9/147.

After a long day, including some very interesting off field conversations about DJ’s and what not, Gordon came away with the points. Once again the team song was not sung, therefore I think we 5th graders need to attend a meeting at training again.

Axel Cahlin 

The 5th Grade side arrived at Don Dawson Oval, or Cabramatta Sports Ground, [no-one is still overly sure, especially Dom Thompson], with a couple of key players such as Matt Todd and Nick Coleman suffering injuries throughout the week.

Carruthers knocks one through the off-side... a much better photo than the other taken that afternoon 

However, the side was still confident with the return of the in-form Reagan Klemt to help bolster the batting lineup and Jack Skilbeck to open the bowling.

Up against an 8th placed Fairfield-Liverpool side, who needed a win, we were well aware that it would be a tough fixture on or hands. They won the toss and elected to bat on a hard and sure wicket.

We started well with both Jack "don't walk down the islander staircase" Skilbeck and Jack "laaard" Richardson picking an early wicket up each to have Fairfield in a bit of trouble at 2/30. However, they mounted a strong fight back and despite good measured bowling from Jack Skilbeck 19 overs, 2/44, and Iqbal "I don't like Dirtybird" Ahmed 19 overs 2,56, they were 3,140 at the rain delay. 

Tom "she's the opposition’s sister" Carruthers, was said to have enjoyed the delay talking Cash_Bash. 

After the rain halted and we returned to the field, Fairfield continued the strong batting and at the close of play we unfortunately found them at 4-214, knowing that we would have a tough task on the second week of play.

We returned to Fairfield for the second week of play hoping to pick up some quick wickets and them over fairly cheaply.

Unfortunately with a few dropped catches early on and some big shots coming off they were able to declare at 6/275 from 88 overs.

We knew that with the batting lineup we had, and on a flat pitch, that if we picked up the singles and dispatched the bad balls, we would easily be able to keep to the 4.5 runs an over needed. 

Reagan lofts one through the onside 

Liam and Tom were the new opening pair this week and unfortunately Liam fell early, which brought Dom to the crease to attempt to establish a partnership. Dom "I love TITF" Thompson, rotated the strike efficiently picking up sharp singles in the ring and Tom showed an elegant flourish of stroke play which included cover drives, cuts and even a flick off the pads for six. This has been widely accredited to Skilly's bat because the old GM's supposedly have a lovely middle… 

After building an 80 run partnership Tom fell for a well made 61, this brought myself to the crease. 

Dom also fell just two balls later, perhaps not wanting to be associated with me, leaving us in a lot of trouble at 3-82

Then I played a “Pomersbach” and was caught to make it worse and we were 4 109 and in a serious amount of strife. Matt "the adventures of" Selby and Reagan combined to give us a glimmer of hope. However, Matt was caught out after playing some big shots and Reagan fell shortly after. 

Reagan showed great composure for a well made 73 which is his second good knock in two games. Some poor middle order batting left us underdone. Hopefully the team can bounce back after the loss, with some new players coming back to replace Liam, Reagan and myself who are returning to school cricket. 

Connor Jackson

Saturday brought with it the return of a veteran. A veteran with a passion for the game of cricket and consistent quoting from the summer advertisement by AAMI car insurance. “Like a sunrise” has never been heard quite so much in a cricket match before. Welcome back Matt Todd.

Speaking of Abdul, Iqbal “The people's champion” Ahmed has taken up volleyball throughout the week, spiking the ball down as it reached him in the slip cordon. As most of you know Iqbal is a very competent leg spinner, he has promised to leave volleyball to those who know it best. Brazilians.

The opposition being Blacktown left Orion “Bob Marley” Dowler pondering, that somewhere in this world there must be a Whitetown. It could only be fair. After a long period of discussion there is. Arkansas near Mississippi, USA. Thank you Google.

A thrilling game of cricket was played on Saturday, won by a promising 5th Grade side. A mixture of young talent to the knowledge and experience of Matt Todd and Iqbal Ahmed. Blacktown acknowledged the pitch conditions and chose to bowl on what seemed to be a wicket for the fast. To commence the innings, Nick “I pull worldie's” Coleman and Liam “I went to Riverview” McElduff were dealing with the longest over ever set in the history of cricket. 

A steady start was exactly what the captain ordered. with runs on the board and no wickets down in the first few overs. Messer Wide and NoBall were looking for a well deserved hundred. However, this was not the case. They scored 40 between them. With the bowling lifted to a proper standard after a shaky start from Blacktown, Liam was dismissed after seeing off the new ball.

The Stags lost another one after the drinks break, which only left Dominic “That's not my girlfriend” Thomson to release a bombshell at Beauchamp Park. Dom was allegedly aiming for the clubhouse as the timber roof made his square leg bombs sound better. Taking apart the attack was made easy as Connor “Pup” Jackson, joined allies with Dom in despatching the cricket ball. My coach once taught me to keep your eyes on the ball, I did so, especially in this case. Thank you 'Gaffer'. 

Both batsman were successful in respecting the bowler, remaining patient until the bad ball was delivered, and these were managed with ease. 

71 runs later. Dom Thomson is dismissed, bringing the arrival of Tom “That is what it's about” Carruthers knocking it around, to aid Connor in continuing his flow of scoring. Unfortunately Tom was dismissed just as 'The Gaffer' arrived to the ground. As Connor continued to show what he was capable of, he decided the only way we were going to reach 264 was if he also targeted the clubhouse, playing some brilliant strokes. 

Axel “accchhhwell” Cahlin performed with few overs to spare. He had a point to prove losing the ball once or twice, rotating the strike nicely. Axel agrees Gordon is far more glorious than the cricket played in Dural. Well batted.

Proceeding with a passion, the interchange mainly involved Toddy sharing several more quotes from Rhonda and Katut. Iqbal “Born in England” Ahmed found a breach in the advertisement which may have to be referred to at training. 

As Dave “Joel” Monaghan swung them both ways the Stags were off to a good start. Orion “Oz” Dowler showed his flare whistling the ball past the batsmen; even managing to stay fast and consistent later on to pick up some much needed poles. The Stags fluctuated with their bowling throughout the innings with periods of sharp consistent bowling to periods of letting extras do the work. 

Not on some of us learnt.

Matt “I park in the hybrid car section at Hornsby” Selby bowled with a purpose, shutting down Blacktown with his consistent bowling. Consistency then leading to wickets. The pick of the bunch of course, bowling in a leg-spinning partnership of knowledge from different parts of the globe, Matt Todd and Iqbal Ahmed. 

As a local cricketer once told me, before the game, retired now, Katzy they call him, “You can learn a lot from an experienced cricketer, they are full of knowledge”. Went on to prove why these two will not be replaced as leg-spinners. Through patience and getting the batsmen out it is an easy game. Well bowled.

A conclusive 50 run win to the Stags. There will be a team meeting for all 5th Graders in relation to why the song was not chanted. There is no excuse as there is a large laminated cut out with the words. 

That is all. 

Blacktown deserved it. Simply glorious.

Tom Carruthers

Patience is a virtue; this is what the 5th grade side discovered during their game at Kensington Oval. Skipper Dave Monaghan lost the toss and we were sent into bowl on a seemingly dead wicket. Initially the opening bowlers, Deva ‘the Big Fella’ and Dave, had no luck. However, Icky continued his great run of form, bowling great lines and lengths and snatching the first wicket. 

Darren "DJ Dazza" Jayasekera assists Reagan in the run chase 

This is when the Big Red machine (Harry Middlebrook) and Iqbal teamed up, bowling awesome corridors, areas and spots repeatedly. Their patient efforts slowed the run rate and Harry eventually snared the key wicket of the other opening batsmen. DJ Dazza (Darren Jayasekera) bowled a respectable spell of tactical full tossers and an unlucky Tom ‘Playboy’ Curruther’s bowled a great spell, finding the edge several times. 

Reagan ‘Cheat Superstar’ Klemt similarly bowled very well, utilising his short run up to suspiciously surprise and trap a batsmen in front of the stumps. 

Reagan turns one on the on-side before accelerating his scoring later in the innings 

After a slow start, the Stags did well to peg Randwick back to only 8/198 after 50 overs. However, the boys bowled 24 wides in total; extras making a large addition to the oppositions score. As such, in order to be more successful, our bowlers should be more patient and attempt to repeatedly bowl outside off stump. In doing so, the boys will avoid bowling too straight and slipping down the leg side. 

With the pitch staying lower and lower as the day wore on, the batsmen knew it would be a challenge scoring 200. The openers Amil ’get-a-proper-shirt’ Premawrdhana and Nick Coleman both fought valiantly however were both dismissed for less than 10 each. The opening bowlers were getting good movement into the right hander; Dom ‘The People’s Captain’ Thomson and Reagan both playing the ball late and successfully.

After Dom was found LBW for 28, the Reagan show began. He sought to destroy all the bowlers, clipping spin and pace to all parts of the ground. He raced to his 50 and even quicker towards his 100, playing some particularly spectacular lofted drives. Darren welcomed back some form with the bat as well, assisting Reagan with a promising 21. Axel Cahlin also looked good with the bat before an unfortunate run out, most definitely being Reagan’s fault. 

"Big Red" Middlebrook does the damage at the top of the order 

Fittingly, Reagan brought up the run chase with an awesome straight six, finishing on 111*after a mere 30 odd overs bowled.

Well done to all the boys on a great win, especially Reagan with a great effort with the bat and ball. Enjoy the Christmas break and a happy New Year!

Dominic Thomson

The boys drove out to Cahill Park for an inevitably exciting game that was set to unfold against the Saints. Gordon welcomed back Tom Carruthers who enlightened us with several stories of his journey around Europe… and Africa (not sure how he ended up there). 

Dave Monaghan continues to sure up the middle order for 5th Grade 

Skipper David Monaghan won the toss and elected to bat on what looked like a good deck. Our openers Nick ‘14yrs old’ Coleman and Connor Jackson were coming off sound performances prior to walking onto the field and were determined to set a solid platform for the team. Alas, Connor decided that he was Usain Bolt hitting one straight to mid off and running, only to be sent back and run out halfway down the wicket. 

Dom Thompson (32) and Amil ‘sober since 93’ Premawardhana (32) steadied the ship as they brought the score past 50, accumulating runs at ease. Amil’s dismissal lead to a quick collapse which brought Dom and David ‘Joel’ Monaghan (46) to resurrect the innings. Their stay at the crease brought about an array of boundaries and cheeky singles which brought the score to a respectable total. 

Orion ‘Ozzie’ Dowler, Iqbal Ahmed and Matt Selby made contributions that brought the overall score to 9/168 from the 50 overs.

There were high hopes amongst the dressing room, as 168 seemed very defendable. Ozzie Dowler bowled solid lines, keeping the batsmen on the backfoot and was unlucky not to pick up a wicket in his first spell. With St George’s openers looking like they were taking the game away from us, up stepped the good bloke himself Iqbal Ahmed. Iqbal’s perfect execution of flight and spin allowed him to claim his first scalp.

This however did not result in a chain reaction of wickets, as the St George batsman continued to play their strokes and edge closer to our total. Deva ‘alphabet’ Nirthanakumaran (3 wickets) and Matt Selby (2 wickets) took the game into their own hands as their tight, deceptive bowling resulted in well-deserved wickets. 

Welcome back Tom Carruthers. Your all-round contributions will be valued highly by the side 

With Deva and Matt leading from the front, David Monaghan and Ozzie Dowler backed them up well which brought the equation to 2 runs needed off 2 overs with 2 wickets in hand. 

Special mention must go to Matt Selby, bowling a crucial maiden over. You could say his bowling was better than his ability to pick up girls (should have approached her mate). Deva put his hand up to bowl the last over as his wicket on the first ball gave us that glimmer of hope. Unfortunately, St George managed to get over the line getting the 2 runs to win the game. 

Well done to the Stags for not giving up throughout the game, unfortunately things didn’t go our way. Despite the loss, 5th Grade still remains in 2nd place. With our last game before Christmas next week, lets go out with a win!

Darren Jayasekera

P.S. Just like to thank Connor Jackson for getting me lost on the way home. Looks like you have similar 'car troubles' as your brother. Cheers.

P.P.S. Ozzie I shall be collecting my $20 from you as soon as possible for this report

Our skipper Dave Monaghan won the toss and quickly decided for Gordon to bat first on a flat and dry Beauchamp wicket. The Mosman opening bowlers bowled tight and made it difficult for the young openers Liam McElduff and Nick Coleman to score. 

Blaize Irving-Holliday looks to get behind the line and defend the Whales' bowler... for six 

Both openers were determined not to lose their wickets and established a strong platform for the middle order. Unfortunately Liam got cramped on a full toss and was caught at mid off for 41 - another classy effort from Liam - and Nick ended up with 42 when finally succumbing to the Mosman bowlers. 

Corbin Edgar was next into bat and batted brilliantly even know he had little sleep the night before! Corbin ended up with 92 and was very unlucky not to reach three figures due to a great throw over the stumps from the outfield. The middle order hit some great shots and looked in great touch but were cut short due to some great catching on the boundary by the Whales. 

Dom Thompson ended up with 14, Reagan Klemt with 18 and Blaze with 27 through some huge sixes hit out of the ground. The tail- end did a good job including some strong running from Iqbal – something that probably hasn’t been reported on this website before - resulting in the Stags reaching a total of 266 from 49 overs.

5th Grade is experiencing some strong support from the parents of the boys, none more so than Reagan Klemt’s folks. Just like when your girlfriend ‘over-shares’ and embarrasses you in front of your mates, Reagan’s mum was particularly good at cutting him down to size. 

Corbin Edgar makes light work of the bowlers on his way to 92 

Leaving the field at the first drinks break, Mrs Klemt yells out to her son that “You manage to carry drinks out onto the ground for a bunch of your teammates, but you barely lift a finger around the house.” Another on-looker asked whether Reagan was equally helpful when at his girlfriend’s place. Without pausing, Mrs Klemt replied “A girlfriend? Reagan doesn’t have a girlfriend. He has a cricket bat.”

Take from that what you will.

Then we took the field and, from the first ball, Gordon bowled with control and enjoyed the fresh afternoon breeze. Both Ozzie Dowler and Blaze Irving-Holliday looked threatening in the field and kept the pressure on the steady openers. 

Blaze took the first wicket of the afternoon through his sheer intimidation. He certainly celebrated his wicket and made sure the Whales captain knew was out! Dave bowled nice and tightly and ended up with one wicket for 10 runs off 7 overs. 

Liam McElduff turns one onto the legside during his opening stand with Nick Coleman 

Iqbal shrugged off the pain of the previous night’s partying and ripped through the middle order ending up with 4 wickets from 9 overs.

The rest of the Gordon bowlers chipped in with Reagan, Blaize and Deva all getting one wicket each. Thanks to Reagan’s long limbs he was able to take the last wicket through a neat caught and bowled which meant Mosman was bowled out for 86 after 36 overs. 

The Stags also claimed a bonus point through a great day’s performance!!

Nick Coleman