Week 15 Wrap vs Manly, Gordon, Penrith and UNSW

1st Grade Round 10: UTS North Sydney vs Manly at North Sydney Oval

First Grade: Manly 9/273cc (J Campbell 3/34, J Aitken 3/46) def by UTS North Sydney 6/279 (TA Jagot 104, TL Reynolds 78*, A Bariol 66)

Another beautiful day for cricket greeted players and spectators alike at the home of women’s cricket – North Sydney Oval. However, the game today was a men’s fixture and an important clash between UTS North Sydney and local rivals Manly.

The Tahs won the toss and elected to have first use of the hard, flat pitch, which was located on the far side of the ground closest to the scoreboard and 40 metres at best from the rope. The expectation was that this side of the ground would be targeted by all batsmen throughout the day.

The Bears got off to a flyer with James Campbell striking early, making good use of the new ball to claim a wicket in the first over of the game. Manly 1/0. Matt Alexander also had the ball moving around in his first over and with a little luck we could have made further inroads into the Manly top order. The wicket brought two former Bears, Jay Lenton and Ben Bryant together, and, despite a few edges and plays and misses, the Manly pair pushed the score past 100 by the end of the 25th over. A couple of expensive overs saw the score blow out to 151 by the end of the 30th over with the batsmen putting on a stand of 188 runs for the second wicket to place Manly in a strong position.

When Lenton passed one hundred in the 35th over, he attempted to pick up the run rate, lofting James Aitken down the ground into the safe hands of Jack James at long off. Regardless of the big partnership, captain Tom Jagot was still confident when addressing the boys at the fall of the wicket, with the runs having come at only a moderate rate with Manly 2/188 after 35 overs and dealing with a left and right hand combination to a short boundary throughout. Bryant was dismissed lbw a few overs later for 75, giving Campbell his second wicket, and Manly were 3/199 after 38 overs. Mac Jenkins and James Aitken were able to keep the runs in check with two new batsmen at the crease with Aitken eventually picking up his second pole with the catch taken on the boundary by Brent Atherton to leave Manly 4/222 after 42.

With five overs remaining, 249 on the board and 6 wickets in the sheds, the opposition only needed to score at a run a ball to reach 280 and would have expected more. However, the Bears bowling and fielding effort lifted with Jenkins getting a well-deserved wicket in the 46th over. This time the catch was taken by Tom Jagot and Manly were 5/255. Campbell came back on to close out the innings with immediate success, clean bowling the set #5 to have Manly 6/256 after 47 overs. The Manly # 7 and # 8 pushed the score along to 270 with one over remaining – to be bowled by James Aitken. The first ball was a dot; and the second went for one; the third ball was smashed towards cow corner with Jack James moving quickly into position to take a good catch; ball four produced another dot; ball five was hit towards square leg and was swooped on by James Campbell as the batsman attempted a second run with Aiden Bariol taking off the bails with the batsman short of his ground; ball six produced the same result with Jack James charging in from cow to pick up and throw and Bariol once again removing the bails as the square leg umpire’s finger went up. The end result was three wickets and three runs and Manly finishing at 9/273 – well short of where they would have liked to have been and opening the door for the Bears as they prepared for the chase.

The Manly opening bowlers bowled with good intent, claiming two wickets in the first nine overs to have the Bears 2/30. However, just as Lenton and Bryant had done, Tom Jagot and Aiden Bariol built a strong partnership with both players scoring fifties -Jagot in the 20th off 53 balls and Bariol in the 22nd over off just 38. The pair moved the score forward at a good clip to have the home side 2/144 by the end of the 25th over. This represented an extra 43 runs scored by our boys comparative to the Manly pair at the same stage. Bariol was dismissed to a sensational catch on the boundary for 66 off 56 in the 26th over, after hitting 8 fours and a six. His partnership with Jagot was worth 117 runs and placed the Bears in a strong position with half of the overs left.

Next man in to join his captain was Tim Reynolds. Reynolds started with two singles before pumping two huge sixes in the 28th over from the off spin of Vumbaca. Reynolds repeated the dose in the 34th over while Jagot was content to hit them along the carpet as he edged closer to a century. In the 35th over, Reynolds brought up his fifty off 44 balls (with just one four but five sixes!). The Bears also brought up the 200 to be 3/201 and, with 73 runs remaining, looked set for victory. The crowd kept one eye on the victory target and the other on Jagot who had moved into the eighties, then into the nineties and, with a rare three, moved from 99 to 102 to complete his third century of the season. Jagot’s knock included 10 fours and a six and he produced a 105-run partnership with Reynolds progressing the score to 250 by the start of the 44th and leaving just 24 runs for victory.

Well it wouldn’t be a game of cricket without a twist and, despite the strong position, the loss of Jagot at 250 and two more quick wickets to have UTS North Sydney 6/257, the door was slightly ajar for the Manly opening bowlers who had returned to close out the innings. James Aitken put any thoughts of an improbable Manly win to bed with a rapid 15 runs off 8 balls including 2 fours and a six to complete an impressive win by the home side against an opposition side who were yet to be beaten in the Belvidere Cup.

The win did nothing for our position on the table, as we still sit in 10th position. However, we have closed the gap on a number of teams above us on the ladder. Next week the boys take on fourth placed Fairfield in another must win game.

In a milestone moment, Tom Jagot has now scored more than 4,000 runs for the club across all grades. He is also currently the leading run scorer in the competition with 692 runs at an average of 79. Aiden Bariol has moved up to 7th place with his 454 runs at an average of 50.

2nd Grade Round 10: UTS North Sydney vs Manly at Manly Oval

Manly 9/267cc (W Graham 4/52, O Knight 3/43) def UTS North Sydney 187 (RD Alexander 41, G Aitken 36)

From the desk of Sam Alexander

The second grade sorts arrived to their grudge match with Manly at the proverbial fortress, Manly Oval. 

A sign at the front gate reads “No Alexanders”; sorry Ray - they’re allowed one. 

I stride past the sign with my right hand man - or lap dog - James Leary and two young women who I can only assume were ravenous for some Grade cricket. 

The girls say “see you later” but deep down I know I won’t be seeing them again - I have bigger fish to fry. 

The warm up is fast, aggressive and left me wanting more. It has me reminiscing of times past. 

GA suffers another loss at the toss and we’re bowling. Keep going, skip. 

A relaxed Fletcher May opens the bowling, having released all his burning anger and hatred at training on Thursday night at a particular teammate who can’t be named for personal reasons. 

A run-out ensues. Will Graham, stunned at fielding the ball cleanly, sent the pill straight to a waiting Leary who dismantled the stumps. What a start. 

The game trickled on with a pole here or there before a partnership formed. 

Enter Sam Alexander. 

Alexander proceeds to float them up, go at 7 an over, and drop one off his own bowling. Some say class is temporary, but mediocrity is permanent. 

Thank god Fraser ‘Hunchback of Notre Dame’ Noack was ringing the bell up the other end; he held the run rate down as Alexander let the game slip through his hands. 

A bowling change brings on our specialist fielder, Will Graham, and the big fella goes bang-bang, breaking the partnership, and the hearts of many. As I fielded yet another bomb from the pavement I thought to myself that he simply can’t be stopped.

Manly post a paltry 267 and we’re in the box seat. Our batting order has simply been a rock all year, with any fragility yet to be seen. 

We find ourselves at 4/30, bringing Ray Alexander and Glenn Aitken together. Our two most reliable batsman fight back again, laying the platform for an unlikely hero. 

7 down. 

150 to get. 

15 overs left in play. 

The stage is set. 

I join Leary. He’s nervous. 

“Sam, I’m not sure we can score these runs,” he quips. 

“Follow my lead, young fella”

First ball. Block. 

Solid. 

Second ball. Block. 

A whisper of anticipation ushers across the ground. 

Third ball. In the wheelhouse. 

Alexander rocks back and with a quick slash of the blade, the ball is at the boundary within 2.8 seconds - that’s faster than a Bugatti Veyron. 

The crowd erupts. I remain composed. There’s still 146 runs to get. My job isn’t done. 

Leary: “Shot, mate”. 

I chuckle. He’s seen nothing yet. 

The Manly bowlers, once looking so confident, quickly fall apart as Alexander lets loose. 

Boundary follows boundary. Single follows single. Strike has never been rotated quite like it. 

GA runs out a message - it’s an iPhone. He looks at me. 

“Answer it.”

It’s Trevor Hohns. 

“Sam, today you lead your side to victory.”

“Thanks Trevor.”

I proceed to mow down the total. Leary tries to get in on the action with an attempted lap shot. 

“Slow down young fella, leave the razzle dazzle to me.” 

I dance down the deck and put the left-arm ortho into Wharf Bar. 

“Carlton thanks.”

As I run out of partners, the crowd of Bears, Waratahs and belligerent house mates continue to cheer, stunned at what this unknown number 9 has produced. 

Then, quick as blowing out a candle, the curtain comes down on the innings of a lifetime. 

Alexander finishes with 23 from 32 balls, only 80 runs short of victory. 

The standing ovation was a nice touch, but it would never fill the void of gut-wrenching disappointment of not only losing the game, but falling 3 runs shy of my highest score ever.

The beers were bitter, but the Bears will be back.  

Over to you, Fairfield. 

3rd Grade Round 10: UTS North Sydney vs Manly at Bon Andrews Oval

UTS North Sydney 125 (KS Allison 32) def by Manly 6/229cc (N Whyte 3/50)

The Bears approached Round 10 on the back of four straight wins, looking to make it a fifth against a notoriously strong Manly outfit. Blue skies and a typically hard Bon Andrews wicket saw Manly bat first upon winning the toss.

Whilst the Bears toiled hard early doors, they were not able to prevent a solid start by the Waratahs, with their openers ticking the score over at a reasonable rate. Just when it looked like it may get away from us, skipper Jacob Graham took a terrific catch off the bowling of Nuwan Whyte (3/50 off 9) to give Norths their first wicket, seeing us right back into the contest. Through the middle we again showed some fight, with some tight lines and lengths from Graham (0/32 off 10) and Izaak Merlehan (0/39 off 10), who bowled with great intent and looked to apply pressure. Eventually, the second wicket fell with some class leg-spin bowling from Ben Knox (1/28 off 7) dismissing the other opener. Unfortunately, Manly continued to score at a decent clip, soon progressing the score to 2/170 as they looked to get out in front of the game. Opening quick Harrison May (1/46 off 10) answered the call, finding himself on for a second spell and quickly in the wickets, getting a key breakthrough and cracking into the middle order as the Bears took the score to 3/171. Three became four in quick time as Knox capitalised on a run out chance with the assistance of Merlehan, breathing a bit of life into the bowling innings along with the sight of two new batsmen. A couple of wickets late offset by a few leaked boundaries saw the score reach 6/229 at the 50th, but there was still plenty of optimism in the home sheds.

Unfortunately, things didn't quite go our way early, with the score reaching 3/24 in fairly quick time as Manly used the new ball well. Graham and Lachlan Stewart showed solid resistance, weathering the storm slightly as we looked to get back into it. After biding his time, Stewart looked to attack the off-spinner as the run rate crept forward. After initially lofting the ball over cover, he came down to attack further, but was unfortunately out stumped for 16. What followed was another tough period, with consecutive runouts hampering the chase, dismissing Jake Holmes (8) and Graham for a gritty 22. This slew of wickets saw the Bears fall to 7/67 and in dire straits. Kobe Allison looked to resurrect some pride for the locals, compiling a well-made 32. Known for his ball striking ability, Kobe batted with control on this occasion, facing plenty of balls before eventually being dismissed as the score reached 105. Despite the best efforts of the tail, we couldn't hold the innings up for much longer, being bowled out for 128 in the 40th over, well short of what we sought out to accomplish.

Overall a tough day for the Bears, and a performance which really didn't showcase our best cricket. Some reflection and strong efforts at training should see us bounce back next week against Fairfield-Liverpool.

4th Grade Round 10: UTS North Sydney vs Manly at Graham Reserve

UTS North Sydney 8/249cc (C Spratt 57, D Thorat 57, C New 56) def Manly 237 (B Wilson 4/39 C Savage 3/33 J Thomas 2/47)

The Bears fourth grade side were looking to bounce back against local rivals Manly after the disappointing loss vs Campbelltown in Round 9.

Skipper Pat Lindsay called correctly again but this time chose to bat first on a flat pitch and a lightening outfield at Graham’s Reserve.

Openers Chris Spratt and Cam New (57) got the Bears off to the best kind of start putting on 101 before Spratt was dismissed for an eye-catching 57 off 62 rocks. New batted stylishly for his 57 at the top of the order and we saw a welcome return to form for Dhruva Thorat (57), however, the rest of the innings was a little bit of an anti-climax as we posted 249. This was perhaps 30 or so short from the ideal total based on our lightening start.

The Bears were largely on top for most of the bowling innings, bowling tightly and building run rate pressure. However, two strong Manly partnerships for the 4th and 5th wickets nearly undid the good work.

However, Brad Wilson - against his former side and on a ground he knew all too well - kept his cool and dismissed the numbers 6 and 7 in successive balls in the 48th over to tilt the game back in the Bears’ favour. Chris Savage in the following over picked up two wickets and it was left for Wilson to take the final wicket on the last ball of the innings, fittingly caught by Savage.

The Bears prevailed in a tight match against a spirited opposition, largely off the back of Wilson’s tremendous 4/39 and Savage’s 3/33. The fielding was a huge improvement on the effort in Round 9 with Cam New and Drew Sellers leading the way in that regard.

4s are 4th on the ladder and look forward to Fairfield in Round 11.

5th Grade Round 10: UTS North Sydney vs Manly at Tunks International Sports Park

UTS North Sydney 83 def by Manly 194 (A Thomas 3/34, B Revai 3/44, S Vohra 2/34)

After coming off a convincing bonus point win, the fifth grade Bears turned up to Tunks International Sports Park brimming with confidence and keen on the local derby against the Manly Warringah Waratahs.

Although the toss was lost with Manly choosing to bat on a flat wicket, the Bears were not phased, backing their bowling capabilities.

Manly made a quick-fire start to be 0/61 at the first drinks break, making it look like a good toss to win. Sol Balbi, Alex MacGill, Ben Revai and Hamish Reynolds were all unlucky in this spell not to grab themselves a wicket.

Post drinks, the Bears came out with a plan and began the comeback. Shiv Vohra (2/ 34) and Aidan Thomas (3/34) bowled spectacularly together through the middle session, showing grit and fight. This was infectious through the field with Balbi picking up a crucial run out. The fight back saw the score move to 6/90 at one stage having the Bears firmly in control, however there was yet a counter punch to come from Manly.

A few missed opportunities swung the game back in favour of the visitors. Revai along with Jack Thomas bowled well at the death both finishing with 3 wickets.

Set 195 for a chance to sit in the top 6 of the competition, the young side got off on the right foot, with Hamish Reynolds and Adi Nigul setting up the innings nicely before a couple of unlucky decisions dislodged the openers. Charlie Rose was unlucky to fall after showing promise. Nick Hay and Alex Perry began to steady the ship, however when Hay was trapped in front, it triggered a dismal 7 wickets for 10 runs collapse to have us all out for 83 and hand Manly the victory.

Lots of learnings came from this game, and with the finals still within reach, the team looks forward with intent to next round against Fairfield-Liverpool.

Poidevin-Gray Shield Round 6: UTS North Sydney vs Gordon at Chatswood Oval

UTS North Sydney 201 (49.3 Overs) (JN James 70, A Bariol 52, KS Allison 33) def by Gordon 3/202 (47.5 overs) (N Whyte 1/33, JN James 1/44)

It was a very interesting final pool round of the Poidevin-Gray Shield with the top four sides (Gordon, St George, North Sydney and Manly) playing each other and all needing a win to be certain to qualify for the finals with the threat of Mosman sitting in fifth place able to leapfrog any team into the semi-finals.

After winning the toss, captain Aiden Bariol elected to bat first on the worn second day pitch at Chatswood Oval, hoping to post a good score and place the opposition under pressure. Jack James and Tim Reynolds opened the batting with James hitting two fours with front foot pushes that raced to the cover boundary on the lightning outfield to have the Bears 0/11 after 1. At that stage, hopes were high for a big score. However, aided by a few field changes, the Gordon opening bowlers then produced consecutive maidens before James hit another boundary and it was 0/16 after 4 overs. A double wicket maiden in the fifth of the innings put us back on our heels, losing both Reynolds and Cavenor, however, it did bring the in-form Bariol to the crease. Baz faced 10 dots at the start of his innings and was dropped at mid-wicket before getting off the mark with a single. From there, Baz put on a masterclass, making use of his life and cracking eight boundaries and two sixes on his way to a well-made half-century.

James was content to play the anchor role at the other end, with the pair putting together a 69-run stand for the third wicket. James Leary (10) had a brief stay at the crease in a 26-run partnership with James before the explosive Kobe Allison (33) strode to the middle. Kobe was circumspect early but after noodling a few around he took on the bowlers, smacking 4 fours and a six to move the Bears’ total to 5/158 after 39.

The tail needed to wag to post a winning total and, despite contributions from all of the lower-order players, the Bears lost regular wickets including James who was caught at long on for a valuable 70 and we were bowled out in the final over for 201 runs. James fought hard, despite a lack of timing at times, holding the innings together hitting 5 fours and 2 sixes. The Gordon bowlers offered very little and the field placings were effective, but the lack of singles was probably the most obvious deficiency that will need further work. Despite hitting 19 fours and 5 sixes, we probably needed an extra 30-40 runs to place the Stags under any significant pressure.

Fletcher May and Nuwan Whyte opened the bowling with Whyte successful in his first over with a catch behind to Bariol, and Gordon were 1/8. Despite the good start, the Gordon batsmen scored consistently at around five an over for the next 15 overs without any real risk. The drinks break gave the squad an opportunity to reflect and re-energise and shortly afterwards James threw to Bariol to affect a run-out and put some life back into the game. Gordon 2/106 after 23. From here the spin trio of Mac Jenkins (0/26 off 10); Ben Knox (0/46 off 10) and Jack James (1/44 off 10) built pressure, producing a number of near misses and one wicket to James who took out Josh Claridge lbw for 75.

With the second drinks break approaching, we became aware of Mosman’s likely demise, but did not count on a bonus point win to Sydney. All the mathematicians on the sidelines agreed that we needed to take the game deep to at least the 45th over to guarantee a finals place (with a loss) ahead of Sydney (assuming Mosman did in fact lose). At 3/166 after 39 overs and 36 runs needed from the final 11 overs, it was going to take a brilliant performance to effect the victory.

With all the confusion, dropped catches off James and then May and a couple of misfields made the task a whole lot easier for Gordon, and had they been taken we may have forced the issue. In the end, Jenkins bowled out for an impressive 0/26 off 10 and May got five balls into his second spell before the winning runs were struck with 13 balls to spare.

The game was a mixed bag, with some bright moments, but certainly plenty of room for improvement. It was a testament to the determination of this team to keep fighting to the end and only falling short by a couple of overs in the end.

A massive bonus point win by Sydney was not enough to displace any of the top four and allowed us to hang on to fourth spot. This means that we will play the same opposition again at the same venue in two weeks’ time. Manly and St George will also play again at the same venue in the other semi-final. The boys will know that they need to be better to progress to the final and defend the Sixers Conference title they won last season.

AW Green Shield Round 6: UTS North Sydney vs UNSW at Tunks International Sports Park

UNSW 7/162cc (J Dhanoa 3/32, J Hedges 2/35) def by UTS North Sydney 8/163 (B Champion 52*, B Rogers 30)

We arrived at Tunks to rain, and unfortunately the covers were not put in place quickly enough to avoid some damage to the square. We did not get to start until 12:45pm with the game reduced to 43 overs each.

UNSW won the toss and chose to bat. Our openers started well with Hamish Reynolds and Declan Fitzpatrick keeping it tight. The pressure was building and our first change bowlers picked up wickets with a catch to Aki Rana off Jaiveer Dhanoa and an LBW for Jamieson Hedges. Next our spinners, Everett Oxenham and Aki Rana, came on and kept it super tight with risky runs being taken, and Jayden Botfield struck with a brilliant direct hit run out. The two spinners bowled 17 over straight and, when our pace bowlers returned, the pressure was on UNSW to score quickly allowing Jaiveer (8 overs 3/32) and Jamieson (7 overs 2/35) to take wickets and a second run out to Everett assisted by Jamieson. Overall, it was a great performance in the field to restrict the Bees to 7/162. The boys stayed up in the field with plenty of talk and did not let much go, despite having a couple of walking wounded out there.

A gettable score, but we would need to bat smart and believe we can do it. We started of a bit shakily with Jayden departing early (1/4) followed by Dilraj Singh for 8 (2/26) and the in-form Harrison Allomes (3/29). Jamieson then went for 6 (4-41). Billy Rogers, playing his first game of the season, was turning over the strike and building his innings very nicely, keeping us in the game even if only just at this stage. He was joined by Aki Rana but both departed in quick succession with Billy out for 30 (5/59) and Aki for 6 (6/64).

Ben Champion had come in at No. 7 and was joined by hobbling Hamish Reynolds who had injured his foot, taped it up and was determined to just run through the pain, which he did. At this stage we needed over 98 at almost 6 per over. Ben and Hamish put on over 50, starting by playing themselves in, then hitting some big shots to get the field back and then milking the runs to perfection. By the time Hamish ran himself out trying to pinch a single, the score was 7/121 and the momentum had shifted in our favour. There was still plenty to do and Jaiveer came in at No. 9 and scored a well measured 13 off 13 before being stumped off a wide. By this stage we were 8/156, needing just 7 to win, Aden Clark came in and finished the job with 3 not out with Ben Champion finishing on 52 not out. Congrats to Ben on a fantastic match winning knock.

What a win with just four balls to spare and two wickets in hand! Even when wickets fell, our batting line up showed belief. It was smart batting - after playing just a few big shots to put the field back, scoring a run a ball became easy without taking big risks, the opposition then stumbled with the odd bad ball, no-ball, byes, wides… and next thing you know we had turned things in our favour as the Bees’ heads dropped and we took the initiative and crafted another hard-fought win.

So proud of our baby bears, three wins with one game to go on Thursday against Bankstown and still a chance to make the finals.

Brewer Shield Round 11: UTS North Sydney v Penrith at Bon Andrews Oval

Penrith 4/137cc def UTS North Sydney 9/76 (G Keating 40*, L Warren 28)

Ready for a new year and a change in fortune the Bears headed out to Bon Andrews to kick off the second half of the season with a T20 against Penrith. Unfortunately, we brought last year's form with us again losing the toss for the 9th consecutive time (there is only 0.2% probability of this happening). Look out Nasser Hussain, we are gunning for the test record of 10 consecutive.

Penrith, as you would expect, elected to bat and got off to a good start despite riding their luck with a number of shots finding gaps at a catchable height. A couple of economical overs from Charlotte Moss (who finished 2 overs 0/6) helped stem the tide with the score at 0/50 after 8 overs. Elizabeth Buckley (3 overs 1/14) was then able to turn this pressure into wickets, taking a caught and bowled.

Unfortunately, a lack of wickets was telling, as the girls finished the first 10 overs at 1/60, allowing Penrith to launch into the second half of the innings. A late wicket by Lucy Warren and two run-outs to Mabel Oxenham did little to stop the flow of runs with Penrith taking 77 runs off the second 10 overs to post an imposing 4/137.

Despite being confident we could chase this total down, a poor start really put pay to any legitimate chance we had, with the Bears losing three quick wickets and stumbling to 3/10 after 4 overs. Grace Keating continued her great form from the first half of the season and, despite feeling unwell, was able to score 40 off 33 including two sixes. No other batters managed to reach double digits.

We have hopefully shaken off the rust in the first game of the year and will be ready to compete through the remainder of the season.

Women’s 3rd Grade Limited Overs Round 1: UTS North Sydney v Manly at Tunks International Sports Park

Manly 199 (G Keating 4/37, E Buckley 46, 3/23) def UTS North Sydney 146 (E Buckley 46, G Keating 31)

Manly are always a tough side for us - last time we played them, we only made 89 and then only took 3 wickets as they easily cruised past our score in the 13th over. Would today be different?

Manly won the toss and batted first, with their numbers 2 and 4 both making 50s, taking the score up to 2/166 and looking to make a score of upwards of 250 off their 40 overs. But some much tighter bowling, improved bowling length and a real lift in our fielding saw us keep them to 199 - their last 8 wickets falling for only 33 runs (including the two retirees who returned at the end). We also managed a new milestone as a team, picking up all 10 wickets for the first time ever - well done Bears! There was some excellent bowling from Grace Keating (4/37) and Liz Buckley (3/23), with Grace bowling well at the stumps and throwing in some variation leg-cutters to great effect, and Liz's extra pace completely undoing any batsmen playing across the line, especially when she pitched it up. Sherrie Elliott, our new vice-captain, also put in a fantastic performance, bowling tight line and length against well-set batsmen and getting plenty of respectful forward-defensives, and Evelyn McKay returned fantastic figures of 1/5 off her 3 overs. In the field, we held good catches from Hetti Blackburn and Evelyn McKay, before Urzana Ghadially took one of the catches of the season - a looped spinning high catch coming over her shoulder- awesome catch!

Evelyn McKay (importantly soaking up 20 balls) and Zoey Ridgway (15) diligently did the duty of openers - seeing off the opening bowlers and keeping the runs ticking over, setting a platform for those that followed. Liz Buckley (46) and Grace Keating (31) thanked them for that, batting beautifully and aggressively as the score raced on to 92 before we lost our next wicket. At 4/114 at the halfway mark, we had quiet hopes of an amazing upset against Manly as Caitlin Thomas (10) and Liz Buckley put on 31 runs for the 5th wicket. Ultimately though, Manly's power and depth showed through as they rattled through our remaining batsmen and had us all out for 146. Nevertheless, Manly would have had a few moments of doubt ... and we'll claim a moral victory from that!

It is interesting to see how our attitudes and expectations have changed since October - we've moved from a team who was happy to just be on the park, then to expectations of making 100 as a total, and now to a team who now believes we can get plenty of runs and wickets and be competitive in every game ... all of that in just a few months in what for many is their first season of cricket ever. Looking at our team scores so far this season we can see the progression: 72, 89, 94, 105, 69, 113 and now 146 ... another new record for our 3rd grade team, in addition to taking 10 wickets for the first time ever!

Well done 3rds, great cricket!

Media courtesy of Tony Johnson, David James, Sarah Berman, Greg Buckley, Lachlan Reynolds and team captains.