Milestones Monday

Damien Mortimer's brilliant 115 against Mosman was his second century for Sydney University, and the fourth of his First Grade career.

Tim Ley's invaluable 55 against Mosman was the fourth half-century of his First Grade career.

Hayden Kerr made his First Grade debut in the thrilling Twenty20 one-run victory against Bankstown.

During his brisk opening innings in the Twenty20 match against Bankstown, Liam Robertson passed 2000 runs in First Grade.

Ryan McElduff made his Second Grade debut, hitting 32 against Mosman.

Charles Litchfield's 103 against Mosman was his second century for the Club, his second in successive innings, and his first in Second Grade.

During his unbeaten 28 against Mosman, Jono Craig-Dobson passed 500 runs for the Club.

Tom Kierath's 55 against Mosman was his first half-century in THird Grade.

AJ Grant's 5-53 against Mosman was his best analysis in Fourth Grade and his second five-wicket haul for the Club.

Devlin Malone and Lawrence Neil-Smith made their debuts for NSW Metropolitan Under-19 today at the National Under-19 Championships in Adelaide, sharing in a conclusive victory over the Cricket Australia XI.

ROUND 7, DAY 1 RECAP AGAINST MOSMAN

1st Grade:

Sydney University 10/267 (D Mortimer 115, T Ley 55, M Day 5/39) Mosman 3/17 (T Ley 2/5)

The students entered round 7 brimming with confidence after their dominant victory over the previously undefeated Grodon in round 6. Skipper Larkin won the toss and elected to bat on what looked like another very good cricket wicket.  Good bowling by the Mosman quicks saw us in a bit of trouble with both Larkin and Carters out before the score had reached double figures, brining Greg Mail and Damien Mortimer to the crease.  These two dug in and scrapped along getting the score to 42 before mail was caught for a dogged 15.  May and Robertson both came and went leaving us struggling at 5/91.  Ben Trevor-Jones joined Mortimer and these two battled hard, pushing the score up past 140.  Trevor-Jones’ 80 minute stay was instrumental in allowing the students to post a relatively respectable score, he and Mortimer batted with fantastic patience and calmness before he was dismissed for a vital 20 runs.  This saw Tim Ley join Morts, and these two wrestled the momentum back from Mosman and put on 110 for the 7th wicket.  Mortimer brought up his second hundred for the season and pushed his season average up past 80. Damien once again batted with poise and control during his 210 ball stay at the crease.  Tim Ley brought up his first half-century of the season before they were both dismissed in quick succession which brought Ben Joy to the crease.  Needless to say Ben’s innings was short and eventful, scoring 8 off 4 balls including what has been described as a “dirty slog sliced over cover for six.”

Eventually we were dismissed for 267 in the 85th over, with 9 to bowl in the day.  Tim Ley fresh off his half-century terrorized the Mosman batsman bowling with great control and pace, well supported by all the quick’s.  Dugald Holloway took his first wicket in first grade for the year as well, catching the edge for a sharp catch at gully by Ashton May

2nd Grade: 

Sydney University 9/289 (C Litchfield 103, D Miller 43, H Kerr 38, T Slack 4/69)  

The students arrived at Allan Border Oval sitting at tenth on the ladder with a 3/3 records to take on the 5th place Mosman.  An uneventful nil all draw at Nash preceded the new warm up game “shot at the Nash ball”.    Skipper Dave Miller won the toss and quickly chose to bat. 

William Hay and Jack Holloway headed out to open the innings against a very disciplined attack.  The first breakthrough quickly became three as we found ourselves struggling at 3/25.  Charles Litchfield, fresh from his 109* in 3rd grade last round, joined skipper Miller at the crease and battled through to lunch with the score sitting at 3/83. 

Soon after lunch, Miller departed for a solid 43 brining Hayden Kerr, also fresh from an unbeaten 100 last week in third grade. Kerry and Litchfield love batting together, after putting on 235 last week they put on a very respectable 69 in quick time, before Kerr departed for his highest second grade score of 38.   Crowley was unlucky to be dismissed first ball to a fantatic delivery, which brought NSW U17 All-Rounder Ryan McElduff to the crease in his debut 2nd grade game.  Ryan and Litchy combined beautifully batting with patience beyond their years putting on a 90 run partnership.  Charles brought up his second successive hundred and third for the year just after tea quickly followed by McElduff for 32 off 107 balls.  This brought Jonathon Craig-Dobson to the crease with the score 7/257.  Birdy who has had a tough start to the year with the bat decided it was best to hit out or get out and powered his way to 28 off just 16 balls to help the students finish the day on a very respectable 9/289.

3rd Grade:

Sydney University 8/296 (M Powys 68, TKierath 55, A Shaw 53, M Ali 3/57)

A highly contentious and heated game of Nash ended with the 2 all draw, giving old the victory and ensuring Lewis McMahon remained ropable for the remainder of the day.  As per usual, Ash Cowan lost the toss, and we were sent in on a hard but green deck. 

Despite Tom Kierath trying to get out first ball, we rocketed to 0/76 with TK brining up his first fifty for the year and his highest score in the grade. Nick Arnold, joined Ryan Danne and the two of them ticked along nicely bringing up the 100 in the 25th over before Nick chipped one to cover. This brought Ed Arnott to the crease and its fair to say that his dismissal was one of the more unusual and unlucky dismissals, somehow managing to kick a ball from outside leg stump onto his off stump while trying to leg glance.  Ryan followed Ed shortly after and we went into two in a relatively precarious position of 4/119.  However Alex Shaw and Matt Powys quickly grabbed the momentum back and both struck dominant 50s. Shawry surprised everyone by outscoring Matt as the pair brought up their 100 partnership.  Shawry’s dismissal brought about a mini collapse losing 4/22 including skipper Cowan first ball. 

However this brought together Kieran Tate and Lewis McMahon.   These two added 52 very handy runs, with McMahon doing his best to frustrate the opposition into submission with a handful (or more) of cover drive play and misses.  Tate ended up 25* with McMahon up the other end with a season high 28* ensuring we finished the day with a respectable total.  

4th Grade:

Mosman 10/165 (L Kimber 66, N Heath 37, AJ Grant 5/53 off 26, A Peek 4/32) Sydney University 1/9

Sydney Uni fourth grade arrived at Rawson Park with the wicket looking like a beaten up boxer with spots everywhere. Skipper AJ Grant lost the toss and we found ourselves in the field.  Despite tight bowling from Holcroft and Aidan Peek early on, Mosman put on 82 for the first wicket, and some tight bowling restricted them to 2-106 at Tea. After tea our self-proclaimed rigsman and heroic skipper took control and ensured Mosman were dismissed for 165.  AJ bowled himself into the ground taking 5/53 off his 26 overs. To put this into context in the entire 2015/16 season AJ only bowled 27 overs.  AJ was well supported by Aidan Peek who took 4/32 off 17.  With both bowlers well and truly exceeding their previous PB for overs bowled in the day. 

Aidan’s day was not over as he was elevated to open the batting with last week centurion Jake Day.  Unfortunately Jake’s admission from the SUCC Rare graph had him riled up, however he was unable to convert his anger into runs as he was dismissed brining Nick Powys to the crease.  Nick and Aidan got us through to stumps at 1/8 chasing 166 for victory next week.

5th Grade:

Mosman 7/343 (D Patel 69, A Carre 62, A Nouree 55, Z Islam 3/42)

Another vey tough day for the students, as we were unable to make regular breakthroughs as Mosman batted incredibly well passing 340 in the day.  All our bowlers toiled hard, with Natesh the pick of the quicks with 2/58 supported by Islam who finished with 3/42, supported him. A huge chase is needed on day two to hopefully help get our season back on track and secure some points after a disappointing day 1.

Metro Cup:

Georges River 10/243  (A Salgueira 145) Sydney University 3/42.

It was a mixed day for the students dismissing Georges River for 213 on a decent wicket at Bland Oval.  Alejandro Salgueira scored 145 out of their total and batted exceptionally well, with the students unable to dismiss him or stem the flow of runs. Luckily he was unable to find a partner to go with him and we were able to restrict them to a very gettable target. The students had 24 overs to bat at the end of the days play, and unfortunately lost three relatively key wickets for 42 meaning a huge day two approaches next weekend still requiring 170 with seven wickets in hand. 

IN THE SHEDS... FROM THE SCORERS TABLE

December is here and there really is no better time of year to be playing cricket...Except, not everyone in the club is out in the middle on a Saturday. There are usually a few spectators viewing the spectacle of a grade cricket match - the fresher girlfriend yet to learn better; the incredibly committed parent; the stalwart patron; the odd hungover college battler; or the occasional cat on the hill…

But committed cricket supporters are a pretty strange bunch. This could explain why one decides to spend their Saturday's scoring for a cricket team...aside from an unhealthy and borderline obsessive relationship with order and numbers.

The Scorer's Club is indeed amongst the rarer group of characters amongst the club patrons, but has definitely produced some of the more memorable. Those who have been around the club a while would remember Martin Amy, who would destroy himself on a Friday night, before running a half marathon to the game to score each Saturday morning. Never short of an opinion, and always willing to impart his sage advice about how your batting technique needed some serious work, or to get that front arm up a bit higher and maybe you'll stop spraying them.

Les Carrington was a true stalwart of the club, devoting his heart and soul to SUCC 2nd grade during his time. With a customary McDonalds bag in tow, Les would spend the day producing mesmerising 360 degree diagrams of a batsmen's innings, to present as a prize for a knock over 50. While easy to take for granted, this was great incentive for the top 6 going through a lean trot, and a rewarding badge of honour for the bowlers who somehow managed to burgle their way to a cheeky half-ton.

Johnny Kilford is another club constant and true gentleman of the club, and somehow always manages to make it to every 1st grade game despite spending the majority of his time travelling around the world. He is a most recent recipient of a coveted 'Gold' and the club is lucky to have him around.

And who could forget Laura the Explorer? I know the scoobydoos certainly won't...

Let’s face it – as a player, the only thing worse than showing up to cricket knowing that you don't have a scorer, is a warm up without Nash ball. It's very rare to see a full time scorer in 3rd or below - which inevitably means not 1, but 2 nuffies trying to balance the books and make small talk.

There are so many inevitabilities. Standard fare is for the youngest/sticks to take the first 10 overs, which will likely turn into 20 as the next in line conveniently disappears to pad up or do a lap. At some point you will need to spend part of the day trying (and failing) to remember how to correctly code a leg bye. For even the most obvious of boundaries, the umpires will still refuse to see an upward raised arm acknowledging their ‘4’ signal. At least once an over someone will ask for the score, even if the last 15 balls were play and misses. Several people will spend great lengths of time 'examining' the book – ie: looking to see how well they went (typically a batsman coming off a decent score or a paceman who took a few poles).

There will be at least one shout of 'bowlers name?' Scoring balls is out of the question for 96 overs, so a vigil in the lower grades will have the boys embellishing that your 20-odd was definitely off at least 200 rocks. A batting collapse leads to as much panic in the scorebook as it does in the sheds. By the close of play the book will be a strange mix of indecipherable calligraphies. And the more recent 'Will Hay' effect means that if you complain loud enough and mess up completely, you will be exempt (banned) from scoring ever again.

On the whole, as a player, scoring leaves you aching to find a spare pair of whites and somehow find your way onto the field. But until then, pass the pen and let's keep this book clean.
 

Player of the Round: Round 6

Voting has been completed for the Sydney Uni Cricket Player of the Round following Round 5 of the McDonald's NSW Premier Cricket competition.

The Surjits Player of the Round goes to Devlin Malone for his second five wicket haul in first grade this year, helping defeat a previously unbeaten Gordon side.

The Nags Head Performance of the Round is shared by third grade destroyers  Hayden Kerr (129*) and Charles Litchfield (109*). 

Devlin took the ball half an hour before lunch on day two, by lunch he had all but secured the win for the students, tearing through the Gordon batting line up. Not relying on any of his team mates, with three of his wickets disturbing the woodwork and then grabbing two caught and bowled to finish with figures of 5/78 off 25 overs

Hayden and Charles shared a 235 run partnership off just 205 balls on day one so it is only fair they share the Nags Head Performance of the Round together.  It was Hayden's second century for the club after his match-winning 100 in the fourth grade grand final last year.  Hayden has started the year very well, building on his scintillating 64 against Hawkesbury in round 4.  Charles scored an impressive hundred in the annual trial game against UNSW, but has been unable to capitalise on a handful of starts leading into round 6.  The pair's 235 run partnership was just 12 runs short of the record for the highest third grade partnership. 

Devlin receives the Surjits Indian voucher for two people, whilst Hayden and Charles claim a $20 voucher at the Nags Head Hotel each.

In a very strong round for the club, there were a couple of honourable mentions:

Jake Day scored his debut 100 for the club in fifth grade, well and truly improving his previous highest score of 33.

Aiden Peek also grabbed his first five wicket haul for the club, claiming 5/47 in Gordon's second innings.

CLICK HERE FOR AN UPDATE OF THE FULL PLAYER OF THE YEAR LEADERBOARD

CLICK HERE FOR AN UPDATE OF THE FULL CLUB CONTRIBUTIONS TABLE

Five Things We Learned from Round Six

1   Malone won the battle of the leg-spinners

The cluster of old Gordon players who gathered in the stand at Chatswood Oval to drink Adair Durie’s wine billed it as the battle of the young leg-spinners – 19 year old English professional Mason Crane, for the unbeaten Gordon side, against Sydney University’s prodigy Devlin Malone.  Ultimately, the honours went to Malone: with University defending 340, he decided the outcome of the match with a devastating first spell.  With just his fourth ball, he bowled the well-set Steve Colley, and in his second over he held a return catch from Elliott Richter, a centurion against St George the previous week.  Then he bowled Max Papworth and Ashley Doolan, leaving Gordon six for 88 and with no way back into the contest.  Malone at that stage had four for 18, but although he removed James Kennedy later in the day, his figures were dented a little by a record last-wicket stand of 128 that more than doubled Gordon’s total.  Crane, who plays for Hampshire, didn’t go down quietly.  Although he took some punishment on the first day, he was still Gordon’s most successful bowler, and his four wickets included three of the best-credentialled batsmen in the match – Ed Cowan, Ryan Carters and Greg Mail.  On the second day, he showed that he could bat as well, scoring a defiant 80 before Ben Joy drew upon his genetic memory for dismissing English batsmen.  Crane, who bowls with a fast arm but gives the ball a stronger rip than many other English spinners, certainly proved what a strong competitor he is.  Still, the points went to University and Malone, who took all of his wickets unassisted (three bowled and two caught and bowled) and has become the leading wicket-taker in First Grade so far this season. 

2   Northern District are the quiet achievers

Gordon’s defeat left Northern District as the only unbeaten team in First Grade, and the Waitara club cemented its place at the top of the table with a methodical victory over Penrith.  This NDs team doesn’t have the star power of some of the club’s past sides, but it produced a methodical and disciplined effort with the ball to contain Penrith to 280 at Howell Oval, and then recovered from 2 for 62 to stroll to an eight-wicket victory.  Andrew Harriott, who has been exceptionally consistent this season, tempered his usual explosive approach to bat for nearly four hours for his 135 not out – although he still deposited the ball over the fence five times.  And Jonathan Whealing, after a near-miss against Parramatta in Round Four, notched his maiden First Grade century for NDs. 

3   There’s only one answer to the North Sydney problem

For the best part of twenty years, North Sydney Oval has had a reputation as a graveyard for bowlers.  Its flat, dead pitch and modest boundaries have resulted in the routine posting of massive totals, especially in the first half of the season.  There were hopes that the introduction of drop-in pitches early in 2016 might improve matters, mitigating the impact of the Oval’s heavy winter usage.  So how’s that working out?  Well, it plays as though a section of the Pacific Highway has been dropped in to the centre of the Oval.  After two First Grade games have been played on North Sydney this season, 25 wickets have fallen and 1692 runs have been scored – that’s an average of 67.68 runs for every wicket.  In Round Six, Manly’s four for 443 was run down by North Sydney who smashed four for 444 with 12 overs to spare.  This isn’t good cricket – the game is supposed to involve some kind of contest between the bat and the ball, and scoring runs isn’t meant to be so easy.  There’s only one solution left.  The man in charge of North Sydney is the Sports Field Manager, Peter Devlin who, back in the day, was a very handy all-rounder in a strong Randwick team.  Randwick could then field a formidable pace attack, with Test fast bowler Mike Whitney and State players Evan Gordon and Gary Bensley, and somehow, the Coogee pitches always seemed to have a good amount of grass, and plenty of pace and carry. Devlin bowled behind those guys: medium-fast, with an off-cutter and plenty of attitude.  He’s getting on a bit now, but perhaps he should be called out of retirement and forced to bowl on North Sydney Oval.  Every week.  Until someone at North Sydney remembers that the game is for bowlers, too.

4   Johan Botha plays better as an Australian

When former South African one-day captain Johan Botha finished his stint with South Australia, he moved into that strange limbo of the full-time Twenty20 player, turning up in odd tournaments around the world.  You may have missed his most recent appearances, which were for a team called the Leo Lions in a Masters tournament in Dubai (his captain was Brian Lara, and he played against teams like the Libra Legends).  Anyway, he’s still on contract to the Sydney Sixers for the Big Bash and last week he became an Australian citizen.  With the Big Bash approaching, and Botha not having played competitively since his stint with the Leo Lions in February, he arranged to play some Twenty20 games for Mosman to get some match practice.  That was how he came to be at Allan Border Oval on Sunday when Sydney turned up, confidently expecting to maintain its unbeaten record against Mosman.  And, to be fair, Sydney accounted for Mosman pretty comfortably.  It was Botha who gave them trouble.  From his 23 deliveries, Botha took five for 12, including a hat-trick: he removed Daniel Jacob, Liam Gibson and Nic Bills with the last three balls of Sydney’s innings.  The other Mosman bowlers between them managed four for 174 from 16 overs.  Mosman’s chase of 186 was far from easy, and ten Mosman batsmen managed only 78 runs between them.  But Botha, batting at four, hit an unbeaten 102 from only 45 balls with six 4s and a ridiculous nine 6s.  Mosman still needed 37 runs when the ninth wicket fell, and Botha blasted them home, smashing the runs in just over two overs.  If ever there was a case of one man winning a match on his own, this was it.  And he followed with an unbeaten 87 from 45 balls against Illawarra later in the day.  It’s fair to say that he got the practice he needed, and that he plays much better as an Australian citizen.

5   It’s just a thought, but Ajay Singh might be ready for Third Grade

Northern District’s lower grade selectors are not easy men to impress.  Spinner Ajaypal Singh was graded in Fourths this year, in his second season with the club.  After a slowish start, he took 5-63 against Randwick-Petersham and then destroyed Mosman in Round Five, taking 6-19 and 5-19.  He had a tougher assignment in Round Six at Asquith Oval, but bowled with excellent control to take 6-55 against Penrith.  So far this season, he has 25 wickets at an average just above 8 (which makes him the highest wicket-taker in any one grade in the competition).  It’s just a thought, and of course it’s none of our business, but he might be ready for Third Grade.

TOP TEN TUESDAY: ROUND 6

MATCH REPORTS: ROUND 6 V GORDON

1st Grade:

Sydney University 10/340 (R Carters 113, E Cowan 58, May 48, M Crane 4/112) Def Gordon 10/249 (M Crane 80, M Junk 61, D Malone 5/78, B Joy 2/46)

A full strength Students outfit arrived at Chatswood to take on the undefeated Gordon, hoping Nick Larkin could get first use of the batting facilities on offer. A successful call had the bowlers putting the feet up and searching for the morning papers. With Larkin starting with a sublime cover drive first ball and two less convincing boundaries inside the first over, it was clear we would need to post a decent total to pick up the six points.

The pitch had just enough variable bounce and seam in it to make the batsmen work hard for their runs. Fortunately, Cowan and Carters possessed both the technique and temperament for the task, grafting their way to lunch against some high quality seam bowling from Stobo and leg spin from the English import Crane.

Cowan’s departure for 58 in the middle session brought Mortimer to the crease, who continued his recent good form. Carters and Mortimer added 87 for the third wicket before Mortimer got one that bounced sharply off a length and was caught behind. Carters reached his maiden century for SUCC, an invaluable 113 given the bowling and pitch conditions. The chase for quick runs and some terrible running saw wickets fall rapidly in the last hour. We were bowled out in the last over for 340.

Ben Joy stepped up to take the new ball in Rogers’ absence with immediate effect, removing Eccles caught at the wicket by BTJ. A stunning run out from Mortimer removed the in-form Kahlin and Gordon were reduced to 2-24. Disciplined bowling from Ley and Elley kept the scoring rate down and pressure on the batsmen, but no further progress in the wicket column for an hour or so. Enter Devlin Malone with about half an hour to lunch. Half an hour the later the game was as good as over, with Malone ripping through the Gordon line up. He did all the work himself too, three bowled and two caught-and-bowled. The list of batsman not able to pick him has moved to an electronic platform for ease of storage. Seven down at lunch has us thinking of a potential outright win, but the Gordon tail well and truly wagged and we had to wait until the second new ball to finally claim six points. Cold cans of Asahi tasted very good after a hard fought win.

1ST Grade Kingsgrove T20 Cup:  Sydney University 145 (D Mortimer 45, B Trevor-Jones 25) Def by ACT Comets 1/149 (A Blizzard 97*)

Game three off the Kingsgrove T20 Cup saw the students travel down to the nations capital to take on the ACT Comets.  Losing the toss, the ACT sent us in and we started well with Nick Larkin cruising to 20 off 12 balls, to have the students 0/33 after 3 before some disciplined bowling saw us lose 4/20 to be reeling at 4/56.  Damien Mortimer (45 off 45) and James Larkin (21 off 17) batted with controlled aggression to add some respectability to the score, before some late hitting from Ben Trevor-Jones (25 off 17) saw us post a defendable 145.

Despite Ben Joy taking an early wicket, we were unable to plug the flow of runs from Aiden blizzard’s bat, fresh from his 81* in the morning game, he was exceptional posting 97 off just 52 balls.  Tim Ley was the standout with the ball going for just 12 runs in his three overs well supported by Liam Robertson 0/18 off his 3.1 overs.

A second straight loss in the Kingsgrove T20 Cup has us sitting outside the top four, however with a slim chance of progressing through to the final series. 

2nd Grade: 

Gordon 270 (S O’Brien 56, D Smith 44, K Elley 4/80, L Whitaker 3/50) Def Sydney Uni 10/196 (J Crowley 53, D Miller 42, S Baker 4/38)

Day one against Gordon saw the students arrive to yet another belter at University number 1.  Unsurprisingly after winning the toss Gordon didn’t hesitate to bat, getting off to a reasonable start sitting at 0/40 before Kieran Elley made the first breakthrough bowling ex-student Cam New for 14. 

Wickets continued to fall at a pleasing rate for the students, with Elley being the chief destroyer, burgling four wickets while Dugald Holloway bowled with great pace and little luck to finish with 2/32 off 20.  Liam Whitaker also bowled with fantastic control and varied his pace well claiming 3/50 in his 24 overs. 

Just after tea, the students had Gordon at 7/190 with the hope of chasing a little more than 200, unfortunately some late order doggedness saw the Stags post 270 at the close of play. 

Heading into Day 2 the Students required 271 to claim a vital six points to establish themselves in the top half of the ladder. A bright start to the day ensued with ‘Old’ winning a scrappy game of Nash to the tone of 2-0. 

Jack Holloway and Will Hay began the chase in watchful fashion, Gordon pestering away with early swing and seam movement. Holloway after receiving a barrage of feedback on his technique from the fielding side departed, leaving Miller and Hay to remain resolute until lunch at 1-59.

Proceedings resumed with the Uni boys beginning to the find the gaps in the blanket like in-field. However, the game took a turn for the worst with a collapse of 3 for 4 left the students teetering at 4-88. This was further compounded half an hour later with the loss of the fifth wicket with the score at 107.

Newly induced Cardinal Nicky Craze and James Crowley set about righting the ship, battling against the older reverse swinging Gordon attack. It was not to be however, with the students were dismissed in the end for 196. Crowley was the standout with a fighting knock of 53 adding to his recent run of good form with the bat.

Next Round sees the Sydney Uni up against the fifth place Mosman at Allan Border Oval, the scoobydoos looking for nothing less than a win as it begins the important period heading into the Christmas Break.

3rd Grade:

Gordon 10/108 & 7/274 Def by Sydney Uni 2/309 (H Kerr 129*, C Litchfield 109*, T Kierath 49).

It was some rare shrapnel success from skipper Ash Cowan which set the tone for one of the most all-around dominant days in recent memory on Day 1 for the Students.

The decision to take first opportunity on a lively Killara deck was immediately vindicated as a ruthless bowling and fielding performance saw consistent breakthroughs mostly shared amongst the bowlers, with Kieran Tate the chef destroy taking 4 wickets for the second successive round. The Stags eventually dismissed for 108 in just over 30 overs.

It was from here that the day got better for the Nerds. A confident opening stand saw Tom Kierath increase his season aggregate by 700%, an aggressive 49 laying the platform for the afternoon fireworks. Enter Charles “Mr WorldWide” Litchfield and Hayden Kerr. The pair put on 235 off 205 balls; just 12 shy of the clubs all time 3rd grade highest partnership. No suburban yard was off limits as twin, unbeaten, maiden 3rd grade hundreds saw Uni reach 2-309 at days end.

After coming off maximum points last round, an overnight declaration had the bowlers licking their lips at the prospect of back-to-back 10 pointers. The Stags dug in with renewed resolve, however, and despite enthusiastic efforts with the ball Lady Luck had changed allegiances from week 1. 70 overs returned just 7 Gordon wickets, a feisty Ryan Kurtz the most damaging with 3. An opportunity missed perhaps, but 3 wins on the bounce has 3rd grade firmly seated in the top six just 3 points from first placed Mosman who arrive to fortress Pauls this week!

4th Grade:

Gordon 138 & 7/138 Def By Sydney Uni 4/147 dec (A Shaw 40*, H Kermond 29 J Hill 28*)

The 4s boys came out with a point to prove against a strong performing Gordon outfit. Looking at the table Gordon would have felt ready for the Uni boys given the form to date. However with the injection of some top 6 mercenaries (julios) there was an air of confidence in what we might be able to achieve at Pauls. Unfortunately this air of confidence carried onto the nashball field and the nuffies were again handed the cannon fodder status for another week. 

With a 50/50 decision at the toss, the skipper knowing full well he was the bowling clique for the game and silly season was only days away felt the conditions may favour those that stood the seam up. Some run-hungry batsmen queried the call but gathered themselves to swan around in the grippers (armchairs). The stags started well against the new ball and they navigated their way through the first 15 overs for no loss. However from here they lost their way and wickets began to fall steadily throughout the afternoon. The four bowlers worked hard and were well rewarded with the final result of the stags being all out for 138 with 25 overs still to bat. 

Amongst the group the feeling was that 138 shouldn't be enough but a good young bowling attack would be a test. The exam started early losing Denzel (Suda) without scoring. With the opportunity for some brackets to be utilised, Shawry was pushed up the order and had a telling impact on the game. Shawry with the support of Kev Jacobs moved the total on and by the end of the day we maintained the honours at 3/70. 

Returning the next Saturday we were pleasing greeted by a flatter, drier wicket that would make the stags task all the harder. Add a determined Hilly to the mix and the SUCC chase proceeded well to the needed total. 6 points bagged prior to tea. With the opportunity for some weekend hustling, we sought a little "let's make a game of this" with the opposition. 

Initially met with interest the Gordon guys came out offering the idea of some runs, wickets and maximum points. However, Aidan Peek (junior Toyer) went about denting any possible confidence the stags had and the students gallantly pursued taking all 10 wickets. Aidan grabbed Michelle. However, I mentioned it was flat and silly season had now begun, so the wind came out of the sails after an early surge. Stags finished 7 down for 120 odd with no time left. 

Great result for the 4s and the goal will be to continue to claim points into Xmas

5th Grade:

Gordon 9/308dec (D Monaghan 66, J Doolan 50, A Cusack 3/75) Def Sydney Uni 10/256 (J Day 103, L Hughes 57, L Stewart 5/43)

It was a game of missed opportunities for the students in fives, having reduced Gordon to 7/165 to let them off the hook to end up with an imposing 308.  Angus Cusack bowled with great pace on debut for the club to end as the pick of the bowlers with three wickets.  He was well supported by Sameer Murthy (2/36) and Natesh Yoganand (2/20). An aggressive declaration from the Gordon skipper saw the Uni boys with two overs to face on the evening of day 1. Unfortunately losing a wicket in the first over meant we arrived day two with a difficult challenge ahead.

Early wickets again on day two meant we were behind the eight ball right from the start.  Until Jake Day (103) and Liam Hughes (57 combined for a 124 run partnership to give us some hope.  Jake Day was outstanding, scoring his debut hundred for the club, and worked hard to get the students close to Gordon’s total. Despite some late hitting from A Cusack (25) and Skipper Mike Harris (20) we ultimately fell 50 runs short. 

Moving into next week the boys will have to capitalise on all opportunities to ensure the 6 points.

Metro Cup:

Sydney University 9/315 (B Frost 97, A Wilkinson 71, N Fitzgerald 51, MY Ali 5/103) Def Mosman 10/241 (C Barkat 82, MY Ali 45, L Hughes 3/31, TJ Drace 3/39)

The Metro Cup team delivered their second win of the season after a long day in the field - bowling Mosman out in the penultimate over of the day.

Chasing 316 for victory Mosman had successfully batted through 18 overs at the end of the first day to resume at 0/54. It was a promising start in the students' defence as Tom Draca collected 2 wickets in just the second over - on an uncommonly green St Andrews surface. Exceptional fielding and disciplined bowling prevented any attempts to score and at 4/75 (still 8 overs before the first drinks break) the signal came from the Mosman camp to play for the draw. Persistent defence to attacking bowling would mean only one Uni breakthrough for the next 57 overs as the pitch reverted to its typical flatness. However, the arrival of the second new ball injected new life into the students' attack to clean up the tail and claim the final wicket with just 10 balls remaining.