 2nd Grade Report v Blacktown (Day 2)
Gordon 8-299 defeated Blacktown 208.
Brad Rasool … 154 Not Out.
Cover drives regularly piercing the gap, hustled singles, straight drives, cuts …
Brad Rasool. 154 Not Out.
Outrageous. Sensational.
The fellow can bat.
The day began predictably enough, with Blacktown batting on. 97 overs on Saturday, 8-192. Thankfully, Wright picked up a wicket early – the young lad who’d batted for over five hours for 74. Extraordinarily, it was Connell who took the catch, lunging (dare I say ‘diving’?) in the gully. Given that he put one down on Saturday that travelled happily at waist height to mid off, it was quite unbelievable that he clung on to this one. But he did, and all was good.
A couple of boundaries to the No. 11 took the score past 200, but the moment he found himself on strike to Connell he learned that lobbing on to the front foot as the bowler is halfway into his run up has its drawbacks. Particularly if you don’t wear a helmet. I’m not sure what protection the small piece of cardboard in the peak of his cap offered, but mercifully he gloved a ball through to Makepeace before we had the chance to pin him properly.
All out 208. 108 overs.
 Piccolo and Rasool ran from the field to get padded up. Not sure exactly why, but it did give the impression of urgency in Rasool’s case. For Piccolo, I suspect it was more about trying to squeeze in as many bloody cigarettes as he could before having to front up to the bowling.
Either way, they began brightly enough, and put on 33 for the first wicket, before Sherman was bowled for 21.
(Gareth Wright in action)
Dowsley looked in command for 17, but then fell to a long hop which he hit, rather obligingly, to point. At least I was told this is what happened, as at the time I was at the Plumpton Marketplace getting coffees for the Captain, the Vice-Captain, and the Scorer. Cashman looked comfortable for 18, and put on over 50 with Rasool, before staying on the crease (rather inexplicably) and being trapped in front. The Captain then settled in and also looked remarkably comfortable, before hitting a ball straight back to the spinner, who held the catch.
Gordon was certainly in command, with well over 100 on the board, but it is reasonable to say that the four dismissals to that point had all been due to batting lapses, rather than the bowling. Everyone had made a start, but only one had passed 25.
Makepeace then stepped in to join Rasool, and the two added 60 very easily, before Makepeace departed, again with a start, but not a substantial score. However, he had helped take the team to the edge of first innings points. Danny Redrup ensured that those first innings points were secured, right on Tea.
And, of course, in the period before Tea, Rasool brought up his century with a straight driven boundary; a fitting shot to mark the moment, if ever there was one.
 His innings was terrific on a number of levels. Not only had he carried his bat to the first innings points, he had kept the ball on the ground, regularly placed the ball into gaps in the field, and his running between the wickets was good from the word go. His only problem in this area was when his Captain came to the wicket, pushed his second ball to the left of mid on, called (loudly) YES!, then a few moments later (almost as loudly), NOOOOOO …, by which time Rasool was accelerating. Fortunately, Rasool was able to turn quickly and regain his ground before awful things happened.
And news was filtering through about the goings on at other grounds, and the news was good. Wickets falling at Killara, buckets of runs at Beauchamp and Turramurra, and the 4th Grade side crushing them at Whalan Reserve. All was right with the world.
Falks M and A visited for a bit, as did Selector Hickman. It was noticed that Falk A turned up just in time for tea. Coincidental? Possibly. Or not.
Either way, great to see the greatest GDCC Club Secretary since T Hartigan (1916-16) at Joe McAleer Oval.
After tea, it became a matter of batting without the pressure, and in the hope of seeing Rasool to at least 150, as well as improving the quotient, if possible.
Redrup fell, and was followed by Wright. Note that it was Wright, and not Howitt. This led to a moment of tension, as Howitt hurled his bat and pads away in disgust, when told of his demotion. But no one else cared. Found it all rather amusing, indeed. Either way, he got his opportunity, and really showed his skipper by scoring a superb 4.
Stobo joined Rasool, with three overs to the final drinks break, and 8 runs for Rasool’s 150. With two balls to drinks, Rasool was on 148. With one ball before drinks, Rasool was on 154, having driven the off spinner straight over long off for six. A great way to bring up his highest score in a game of cricket.
He played the last ball sedately, the game was ended, we all shook hands, and walked from the field.
Rasool’s innings was superb, and marks him as a player with a real future.
Therefore, a great weekend for the Club, and for the 2nd Grade side in particular. The bowling was good, the ground fielding and keeping excellent, and the run chase was managed with relative ease. However, a number of dropped catches, and too many batsmen made starts, but didn’t go on with the job. In fact, after Rasool’s 154*, the next highest score was 22 (having said that, there were three partnerships over 50).
The 2nd Grade side is a good one, and this win was important. Bring on Parramatta next week. Richard Stobo
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