 Stobo's Salute 1
Preview of Round 1 v St George
Bloody St George. Never easy to beat. Last year, in 2nd Grade, defending 360-odd, Howitt – the last captain-coach since Changa and the white boots in 1975 – managed to snatch victory in the final over of the day, with two runs up the sleeve.
(Ed Howitt celebrates last wicket)
But that’s the way of it against St George. They’re a club with a grand tradition, and they never give a game away without a fight.
In a dozen or so years of 1st Grade, I think I was only in one winning team against St George. At Killara in about 1990. And Gordon fielded some pretty handy sides those days.
 I have hazy recollections of one or two bloody long days at Hurstville in the early 1980s. The wicket was magnificent, heat pounded off the bike track, and we got belted.
Always lost the toss, always found ourselves chasing 4,000, and never quite managed it against Bernard, Done, Bennett, Osborne, Smith.
Incidentally, at about that time Graham Smith hit one of the longest sixes ever in the history of the world.
Off me, I seem to recall.
It was straight, into the suburbs, and landed three or four days later.
And I remember dear old Sid Dowsett, a wonderful man and very tidy left-arm finger spinner – but not the sprightliest of fielders – running around under a towering ball at deepish mid-off, only to see it land 10 feet away from where he had been doing his circle work.
(Mark O'Neill with that classic push past point)
I’ve never seen a fellow apparently work so hard not to catch a ball.
It sort of summed up our success against them for some time.
Then there was Mark O’Neill’s famous final game at Hurstville, in about 1991. Wayne Seabrook hit 150 in the first innings for them, nearly carried his bat, and it was masterly. Furthermore, it was all done while being involved in one of the most wonderful sledging matches ever, with our very own O’Neill.
 Imagine the depths that that reached.
They went past Brant and Todd.
But then it was Sparky’s turn with the bat, and his innings was similarly masterful. 147*, I think. It was a highlights package and coaching session in itself. And he and Seabrook were at it throughout that innings as well.
For nearly twelve hours of a first grade game they kept at it.
I can’t imagine two better innings in one grade game, and certainly not by two more memorable men.
St George won the match – not by a lot, I think – but that was almost incidental.
(A young Phil Emery)
A year or two earlier, Phil Alley took the first two wickets – Cant and Emery, both clean bowled – with the first two deliveries of the match at Killara. Emery was back in the changing room before O’Neill, batting at No. 4, knew what was going on. When Sparky asked him what he was doing, Emery said something to effect of, “I’m f***ing out, and you’re f***ing in, so you might want to bloody hurry up and get out there.”
But times have changed.
We knocked them over in four of the five grades a couple of years ago, I think. Certainly it was good to find success against them with two winning teams, in consecutive seasons, in 4th Grade. Marty Reynolds played a tremendous unbeaten innings of 80-odd to dig us out of a hole, chasing runs in a one day game at Cahill Park two years ago.
 And then there was “Howitt’s Match”, in 2nd Grade, last season.
To me, a spell had been broken, and all was right with the world.
But this weekend it’s on again. Round 1, 2006-07. It’s a long season, but it’s always good to get off to a winning start in Round 1.
(Michael Cant against St. George)
And this is a resurgent Gordon, with a 1st Grade side leading the way. As it should do.
I can’t recall when Gordon last fielded four first class players in the one team, if ever. Last year the expectations of success probably lay mainly within in the team itself. This year, those expectations are more widely held, and that is good. Teams will have to be on their mettle.
But take nothing for granted.
St George certainly won’t. | 
