LJ’s Round 1 Preview vs St George

Welcome one and all to another fantastic season of Randwick Petersham Cricket! And have we got a great season ahead! Strong teams, enthusiastic players, dedicated volunteers and of course, devoted followers and supporters. It’s great to be a part of it! And the good thing is—it all starts THIS SATURDAY!

After many years of hard work doing the round previews, Lyall Gardner has stepped away from the role this season but will still be heavily involved with the club and in particular, the annual report which we all know he does such a great job on each year.

All five NSW Premier Cricket grades will play a one-day limited overs match (50 overs a side) against St George commencing at 9:30am and will be looking to start the season off with victories.

A BIG WELCOME to all our new players this season. DAYA SINGH will be the new face in 1st Grade and brings a wealth of experience and talent to the ranks, previously being part of the NSW Under 23s team. In 2nd Grade there are a plethora of new players joining us – MITCH CALDER, brother of Matt, will captain the side this year and take the gloves; DYLAN HUNTER joins us from Newcastle; HARRY TECTOR, brother of Jack, comes across as part of our connection with Cricket Ireland after captaining the Ireland U19s at the World Cup earlier this year; JACOB WOOD, Qld u17, Toombul (QLD) First Grade and Scotland Premier League off spinner; and JASON RALSTON, a fast bowler who was a part of the Australian U19s side at the World Cup this year also. We also welcome ADAM SENN and ISHRAK IMROZE to the 

Fourth Grade side, and WILL HUTCHINSON and REID MCNAMARA in the Fifth Grade team.

With all these new additions, we have had to say goodbye to a few players throughout the grades. These include GREG WEST who had been part of the First Grade ranks for the past two seasons, and JASON HUGHES who played in 1’s last year as well. We also farewell retirees DAVID BOURKE, ROD STAFFORD, MATT HILDER and JOHN MCLOUGHLIN. The four men mentioned there will always remain part of the club and we again congratulate them on their efforts over the years both on and off the field!

1st GRADE is at Coogee Oval:
We again start the season with a match at Coogee Oval. Last season we secured a victory in the first round and Anthony Sams’ boys will be looking to repeat that effort again this Saturday. Our history against St George is fair over the years, with 22 clashes against them resulting in 10 wins, 3 draws, a tie and 8 losses. The Saints are always a strong outfit in First Grade and this season will be no different but the Randy Pete’s are more than up for the task at hand.
Daya Singh makes his debut in First Grade this weekend, and we also welcome Australian Test batsman Dave Warner into the side for the opening game.
We have narrowly missed a spot in the finals the past 4 seasons. Chance to amend that record with some early points this season.
Our ambition remains the 1st Grade Belvidere Cup. With three runners-up prizes, a third place once and fourth twice, we have been knocking on the door for years and our time can’t be far off. Let’s hope this is our year!

2nd GRADE is at Olds Park:
Mitch Calder will take over the side this season from Tom Holland who had been in the role for a few years. We finished 10th last season with Saints 18th. Over the years we have clashed 14 times recording 7 wins and 7 losses.
The first round team this season is quite different to the side from the last round of the 2017/18 season with many new faces joining. Mitch Calder takes the gloves and the captaincy, and is joined by fellow newcomers Jason Ralston, Dylan Hunter, Jacob Wood and Irishman Harry Tector who will look to make a fresh start for 2’s after they missed the finals last year. The side remains a young one but certainly a team with unlimited potential this season.

Irishmen Harry Tector

3rd GRADE is at Petersham Oval: 

Ben Stares remains as skipper this season after a reasonably successful year last year where he managed to build a strong culture but unfortunately just missed out on a finals spot. Tom Holland comes into the side from 2’s and will add plenty of experience, while young guns Bailey Kenzie and Alex Deller join the 3rd grade ranks and will look to make an immediate impact.
St George finished 13th lasts season while we finished in 9th place. Traditionally we have struggled against the Saints in 3rd Grade, as in our 13 clashes we have only secured just the three victories.

4th GRADE is at Cahill Park:
After the departure of club legend David Bourke from the captaincy role in 4’s, ithe has been taken over by yet another legend of Randwick Petersham in former First Grade Nigil Singh. Our boys were a very close 8th last year, just missing the finals on percentages, while Saints finished 16th. The side has a strong record against their opponents, having 14 clashes for 8 wins, including an outright last year, and just the 2 losses.
Ishrak Imroze and Adam Senn make their club debuts in 4’s this weekend.

5th Grade is at Kensington Oval:
Former First Grader Fabian Heaton makes his return to the club this season and will take over the side as captain and wicket-keeper. After winning the competition in 2016/17, the Fifth Grade side struggled last season finishing in last spot and only securing the one victory, while Saints ended up 11th last summer. Our record against them is pretty fair, and this included a victory in the Grand Final two seasons ago. There is again plenty of fresh faces in the 5th grade side as Noah Jedwood, Dane Coombs, Reid McNamara and Will Hutchinson all make their debuts while a familiar face returns from the UK in Sam Boyns.

Just a reminder the Phil Tressider Memorial Golf Day will be held on Friday 19th October!

Good luck to all sides this round and for the entire season!

Liam O’Loughlin

Metropolitan Cup 

Following a rough transition season, maturation and strong off-season refreshment puts the Randwick Petersham Metropolitan Cup squad in a fantastic position to tackle the ever improving and expanded competition. While UNSW trimmed a team, there’s been a Shires influx with Balmain South Sydney returning to the competition after a lengthy absence, North West Sydney joining for the first time and Georges River adding a second team – taking the total team number to 14.

The Green team have been completely revamped from last season and take on reigning premiers and Metro maestros Penrith at the vastly improve Marricville Oval. In a youthful but hungry side, 7 debutants will be itching to make a name for themselves by giving the Cats a big shake-up. The Gold team, under the continued leadership of club CEO John Stewart, start their season on Sunday at the subarban paradise of Petersham against the prodigal Balmain South Sydney. The team’s group of nascent batsmen will look to take advantage of second day conditions.