1st Grade UTS North Sydney vs Manly-Warringah at Manly Oval
UTS North Sydney 9/170 (T Reynolds 74, J James 40, G Lavelle 26*) def by Manly-Warringah 8/174 (cc) (M Alexander 3/42, O Knight 2/26, W Graham 2/43)
UTS North Sydney took a short trip over The Spit to take on local rivals Manly on a soggy Saturday. With the forecast indicating 100% rain all day it was a surprise to see the covers off on arrival. The players enjoyed a full warm up and were able to show off their football skills as they got ready for the important clash. However, with the completion of warm ups the Bureau’s prediction came to fruition with persistent drizzle hanging around into the afternoon. While the Manly players engaged in some sort of card game in the change room, our boys played wall ball, proving entertainment to all in attendance. After a couple of false starts the players eventually got onto the ground at three o’clock for a reduced 28 over per side game.
Manly had first use of the pitch after winning the toss and electing to bat. James Campbell (0/16 off 3) and Will Graham opened the bowling, with Manly getting away to a solid start, scoring at around 5 runs per over. Former Waratah, Matt Alexander (3/42) was introduced into the attack and was able to claim the wickets of both openers to have the home side 2/53 from the first 8 overs. Olly Knight (2/26) took the next two wickets all by himself with a sharp caught and bowled and a bowled as Manly advanced the score to 4/108 by the end of the 16th over. Opening bowler Will Graham (2/43) was rewarded in his second spell with two Manly scalps with both batsman providing catches in the outfield to Alexander and Jack James, respectively. Graham had plenty of time to stand by the pitch and watch on as his teammates held their nerve under the high balls. A third wicket to Alexander with the ball deflected to James in the gully for the simplest of catches and a clean bowled by veteran off spinner Robbie Aitken (1/25) reduced Manly to 8/150 with 25 balls remaining. A run a ball stand by the tail enders saw Manly finish at 8/174, leaving the Bears to chase 175 for victory.
A couple of missed chances and a few too many sundries, together with the odd ball that released pressure on the batsman, allowed Manly to put together a very competitive total. Had things gone our way and if we had been perfect in the field we could have saved ourselves 15-20 runs.
NSW contracted bowler Ryan Hadley bowled with pace and in good areas putting the Bears openers under pressure. However, it was his opening partner, Michael Visser, who took the first wicket with a tight LBW decision against captain Tom Jagot with eight runs on the board. Ben Bryant came forward to a leg side delivery in the next over from Hadley that struck him on the pads and he too was adjudged LBW, reducing North Sydney to 2/8 after three overs. New batsman Jack James and Tim Reynolds survived through some tough overs while keeping the scoreboard ticking, with Manly playing their strike bowlers up front. James and Reynolds displayed game management beyond their years chipping away at the total and then upping the anti with a few boundaries and sixes. Reynolds cleared the fence on four occasions as the pair pushed the score to 2/129, a partnership of 121 runs from 124 balls. At the same time, the poor start meant that the run rate was hovering around eight an over. When Reynolds was caught for 74 from 66 on the boundary attempting consecutive sixes from the last ball of the 22nd over it triggered a mini collapse. In the next over, James was run out for 40 off the first ball. A second run out in the same over reduced the Bears to 5/136, pushing the runs required to 39 from 24 balls. Wicket keeper batsman George Lavelle played a nice cameo scoring 26 runs from just 13 deliveries giving the red and black team a chance and taking the game into the penultimate over. Hadley came back on to bowl the last with 11 required for victory and two wickets in the sheds. Tight bowling and clever field placements meant that only byes and singles were achieved from the first five balls with Lavelle needing a maximum to seal the win from the last ball. Lavelle aimed for cow corner but could not dig the yorker out leaving the Bears short by 4 runs.
It was an agonising defeat after the Bears had clawed their way back into the contest with the loss of early wickets. Hopefully, the experience of playing in this tight game will better prepare the side on the next occasion.
After the loss, North Sydney are now one of four sides on 38 points in equal 4th position. There are 11 teams that could realistically make finals. Next week is a key match up against St George, with the loser of the clash likely to slip out of the top 6.
2nd Grade UTS North Sydney vs Manly-Warringah at Bon Andrews
UTS North Sydney 127 (RD Alexander 42, C New 29) def by Manly-Warringah 9/190 (N Naguleswaran 4/34, S Alexander 2/46)
The Round 10 battle between Manly and North Sydney was a rain affected fixture that unfortunately saw the Bears lose their second game of the season.
North Sydney won the toss and sent Manly into bat. The game commenced with light rain falling throughout the morning session. Manly got off to a very positive start, scoring freely. The constant rain assisted the batting with the ball sliding through instead of seaming and popping like it was hoped at the toss. The conditions became increasingly more difficult for the bowlers. However, James Aitken’s opening spell of 8 overs 1/31 in these conditions was excellent. He made the first break through, bowling their opening batsman for 33 runs. Fletcher May (1/34 off 6 overs), then made the second break through capturing the wicket of the remaining opening batsman to a good catch by Niranjan Naguleswaran at mid-off. The game was then stopped due to rain and unsafe conditions for the bowlers with the score at 2/80 from 16 overs.
The delay lasted several hours and when conditions cleared the match was revised down to 33 overs for both sides. When Manly resumed they remained positive. However, the ball was no longer sliding onto the bat and it became a more difficult contest. The dryer conditions allowed for the introduction of spin. The tweaking twins of Niranjan and Sam Alexander proved invaluable. Both bowlers used all their skill and control in the conditions to wrestle the game back into the balance. Niranjan turned in yet another excellent performance with great control and accuracy. He tied down the batsmen and took consistent wickets through his 7 overs. He finished with figures of 4/34, which is a testament to the quality and skill of his bowling. Nagulswaran now has 25 wickets for the season and sits in 3rd place, two places ahead of James Aitken with 23, in the bowling aggregates for the grade. Niranjan was ably supported by Sam Alexander who showed great precision and determination in his action. Sam’s fine spell of bowling saw him finish with 2/46 off 7 overs.
In the 17 overs after the break Manly scored 110 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. It was a much stronger second half performance by the Bears. However, with Duck-worth Lewis calculations involved Manly’s total of 190 was rounded up to 205 runs, making the chase a much more difficult task for the boys.
The total was always going to be challenging. The Bears needed everything to go their way if they were to be successful. Unfortunately, things started badly. Broc Hardy was unluckily run out at the non-striker’s end after a deflection from the bowlers hand! The Bears were 1/1 off 1. When James Leary (8) was bowled in the third over from a seaming delivery, things were not looking good. Ray Alexander (42) and Cameron New (29) steadied the ship. Both batsmen were positive in the conditions, as the wicket continued to deteriorate. They managed to push the score to 2/75 off 15 overs. This was on par with the Duck-worth Lewis requirement. Just as things were improving, both batsmen were dismissed in consecutive overs. This was followed by three more middle order wickets. Most of the dismissal were the result of seaming balls or balls popping on the wicket as batsmen tried to stay positive and on top of the run rate. To their credit the Manly bowlers maintained strong line and length and made the task even more difficult. Some late resistance was shown yet again by the irrepressible Nirnajan Naguleswaran, his 24 runs from as many balls, down the order, gave the Bears some hope. However, he managed to find a boundary rider and it seemed that all the luck after the toss had gone to Manly.
In the end the second grade side was dismissed for 127 off 25 overs, falling well short of the runs required. The run rate, good bowling from Manly and the conditions proved too much for the second grade side on the day. There were a lot of lessons learned and the team played in the great spirit that has characterised them this season. Hopefully they will take this loss and the lessons that go with it, as motivation in their preparation for the next one day match in Round 11 against 3rd placed St George at the bat friendly Hurstville Oval.
3rd Grade UTS North Sydney vs Manly-Waringah at Graham Reserve
UTS North Sydney 131 (J Hardy 23, JD Graham 23) def by Manly-Warringah 5/135 (H May 2/16)
The day started out very wet, however the pitch and outfield were in good condition so a game was likely as long as the rain stopped. It wasn’t looking good for a while however an unexpected break in the radar saw us with a starting time of 1pm and 40 overs a side. We won the toss and batted. A couple of early wickets had us in a bit of trouble before Jordan Vilensky (13) and Jake Hardy (23) took us to 2/47 off 9. Drizzle had restarted and by now the pitch had gone very soft and was seaming around. From here we struggled to 8/131 off our 40 overs with Jacob Graham finishing 23* and still a very competitive total.
Harrison May (2/16) and Jacob Graham (1/27) bowled well at the start keeping it tight to have Manly 1/20 off 9 before a couple of loose overs and a few missed opportunities let them get away. This became the story of the afternoon, as three tight overs would then be followed by a pressure relieving one. Graham claimed the second wicket of the day in his second spell, but by that stage the Tahs had advanced to 86 from 22 overs. We hung in with further wickets to Ben Knox (1/26) and Harrison May in the 25th and 26th overs but, ultimately lack of wickets allowed Manly to get home 5 wickets down and with 3 overs to spare.
4th Grade UTS North Sydney vs Manly-Warringah at Tunks International Sports Park
No play due to rain
5th Grade UTS North Sydney vs Manly-Warringah at Mike Pawley Oval
UTS North Sydney 85 (L Hodge 39*) def Manly-Warringah 84 (A Rana 3/9, P Lindsay 3/18, B Revai 2/17)
A sodden Mike Pawley Oval greeted the 5s boys when they arrived for Round 10 vs Manly. Both teams were keen to play with North Sydney seeing an opportunity to extend our lead at the top of the table and Manly, the opportunity to jump some sides into a finals position.
The rain eased after midday and play commenced, albeit in the rain, with the Bears batting (toss lost) with 34 overs to face. The Bears batted like they thought the game would be called off due to some heavy rain on the radar (it never came) and slumped to 5/24. UTS North Sydney Life member and former 1st grade skipper Matt White, now suited up for Manly, doing the damage. Thanks to Liam Hodge (39) we scratched our way to 85 but were well and truly on the back foot.
However, this team has made winning a habit and refused to submit. Abbott dismissed one opener, well caught by Stokes and when skipper Lindsay got two quick ones it was 3/14 and game on. The Manly skipper batted positively and threatened to take the game away from us, but with the score on 41 he swished at one from Revai and the door was ajar.
Enter young Aki Rana who’s 7 overs 3/9 turned the game further on its head and reduced Manly to 7/60. Two quick wickets to Lindsay (3/18 off 7) and Wright (1/9 off 4) had Manly reeling at 9/71, still 14 in arrears. However, Manly showed great grit and clawed their way to 9/80 with 2 overs remaining and then hit a 4 off the first ball of the 33rd over. Two needed off 11 balls and Manly were now favored to win. However Ben Revai (2/17 off 5.2) held his nerve snicking off the #9 to win the game by a run.
Another tight win was celebrated with a raucous rendition of the club song, these 5th Grade Doyens are 8 points clear atop the ladder
Women's 3rd Grade UTS North Sydney v Manly-Warringah at Tunks 4
No play due to rain
Poidevin-Gray Shield vs UNSW at Bon Andrews
Round 6: UTS North Sydney 9/217 (J Leary 59, K Alison 36) def UNSW 132 (C Savage 4/16, JN James 2/23, M Jenkins 2/25, B Knox 2/41)
The Bear cubs arrived at a damp Bon Andrews knowing that a win would secure a semi-final berth, but a loss could be fatal if results did not go their way. Captain George Lavelle called correctly at the toss and decided to have a bat on a somewhat tacky wicket.
The ball seamed around a bit early with some balls sticking in the wicket. This made scoring a challenge. Jack James (19) and James Leary (59) did a good job to get through the new ball bowlers, getting to drinks without losing a wicket at 0/52. After drinks, James was out driving a ball that was caught low down in the covers. Tim Reynolds (10) and George Lavelle (12) looked good before perishing to the opposition off spinner. A short rain delay at the 27th over worked in our favour initially, allowing the ball to slide on to the bat. Jake Hardy (17) took advantage of the extra zip, hitting three fours in quick succession. It also provided Leary with an opportunity to go past fifty for the second time this season in PGs. In the 33rd over with the Bears advancing to 3/126, the game changed direction. Hardy was run-out and Leary was also out to the offspin of Hreszcuk, who finished with 4/31. Broc Hardy and Mac Jenkins followed shortly after as North Sydney slumped to 7/142 in the 39th over. It could have ended badly, but, after one or two sighters, bowlers Kobe Alison (36 off 22) and Fletcher May (24 off 32) decided to have a bit of fun. With the rest of the team providing encouragement from the sidelines they took apart the UNSW bowlers, with Kobe hitting two fours and three sixes. Ben Knox also contributed a handy 10 runs and with 9/217 on the board we had a total that was defendable.
Chris Savage (see video inset) was given the new rock and he did not disappoint. After a very confident LBW was turned down off his second ball, he simply pitched up a brutal seaming delivery that took the edge of the opener on the next ball to have UNSW 1/1 at the end of the first. Fletcher May bowled a little shorter from the other end allowing the batsman, Geddes, to launch his fourth ball over the fence onto the freeway never to be seen again. With only one new ball in the kit bag we relied on the generosity of the UNSW team to provide us with one of theirs to continue the game. Mr Geddes did not add to his score of 6 with Savage smashing through his defences to take his second wicket of the day – UNSW 2/8. While May kept it tight from one end, Savage continued on his merry way taking a third wicket in his third over – Savage 3/6 UNSW 3/15 after 5. Savage completed the destruction of the UNSW top order taking his fourth wicket to have numbers 1,2,3 and 4. Spinners Ben Knox and Mac Jenkins replaced the opening seamers, with Jenkins successful in his first over with Jake Hardy holding his nerve to take a skied ball that stayed up in the air for quite a while. From their, UNSW started to rebuild, putting together a risk free 37 runs from the next 9 overs. Jack James (2/23) replaced Knox, (who had no wicket for 30 from his 8), immediately breaking the partnership by slipping one through to take the off bail of the set batsman. Although UNSW were now 6/73, the guy at the other end – Scoble, had accumulated 30 odd singles and still had belief. Jenkins (2/25) continued to bowl tight and was rewarded with a 2nd wicket with a nice catch at 1st slip by Tim Reynolds. James took his second wicket caught leary, with the score at 99. After taunting the opposition to have a go James Leary got the catch he wanted, but was forced to run around from mid off to take the ball on the run much wider from the stumps. The opposition watched closely, hoping for a drop to give a bit back. Ben Knox (2/42) then finished the job with Savage (4/16) steaming in from the other end in an attempt to claim a 5fa. In the end, UNSW was all out 132 and in a slice of irony we will play them again in the semi-final at their home ground on February 2.
Brewer Shield vs Gordon at Tunks International Sport Park
No play due to rain.
Images and recordings courtesy of David James, Tony Johnson, Chris Savage and team captains