Round 14 Day 2 v Northern District + Metro
Feature Image: 1st Grader Jason Ralston who took 6/34 inc a hat-trick!
MATCH REPORTS (by Eddie Otto)
1st to 5th Grades – Round 14 Day 2 v Northern District (Two-Day Matches)
Metropolitan Cup v Warringah & Sydney Uni
The Randy Petes had vital Club Championship points to play for as we tackled Northern District on Day 2 of Round 14 matches across the Grades on Saturday. Sitting in 14th in the Club Championship, a few wins were needed in order to boost morale and our standing late in the season. Second Grade had a huge game ahead with them still being in the mix for finals, whilst Metro Cup also maintained hope of making the post season, as the season came to its penultimate week.
1st Grade – Northern District v Randwick Petersham @ Mark Taylor Oval
Team – Eaton, Everett, Chhibber, Ayre, A.Sams (+c) , D. Singh, Semple, Hunter, Wood, Ralston , McKenzie
Result – Randwick Petersham 5(dec)/216 – 72 overs (A. Sams 115*, Chhibber 59, Semple 25*) Drew with Northern Districts 9/190 – 48 Overs (Ralston 6/34-12, Semple 3/46-10)
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First Grade were looking for their first victory since Christmas when they made the trek to Mark Taylor Oval to take on the 12th placed Rangers. Shaun Eaton also slotted back into the side, with Matt Calder back to Second Grade to try to help the boys qualify for the finals.
In what proved an entertaining finish, our boys fell desperately short of a much needed win, with the Rangers finishing on 9/190 against our 5/216 declared. It was a remarkable fightback from the boys, showing great character with only pride to play for. The Rangers were cruising at 2/141 before young quickie Jason Ralston took the game by the scruff of the neck, taking 6/34 from 12 overs, including a sensational hat trick. Ralston bowled fast and straight to claim a remarkable 4/0 including the hat trick, including two LBWs and two bowled. Ralston has represented Australia Under 19s, and is a bowler with raw aggression, and will be expected to push for higher honours in the next couple of seasons given he is now fully fit.
Suddenly with a sniff of victory, Adam Semple (3/46-10) was then all over the lower order, snaring three LBWs himself, as our pacemen bowled extremely well to the conditions, and we had the hosts 9 down and clinging on for a draw. Sadly, the final few overs were met with strong resistance from opener Badings who finished 98 not out, as we were forced to settle for another frustrating draw.
Earlier in the day, Captain Anthony Sams, in a return to the middle order, scored a very impressive century of 115 not out, after coming in with the side in all sorts of trouble at 3/15 early. Sams took his time early before increasing the tempo, finishing with 8 fours and 4 sixes in his innings. Soumil Chhibber played one of the more patient innings of the year, scoring 59 from 187 balls, as we built around his defiance, whilst a typically explosive cameo from Adam Semple helped us declare after 72 overs.
The side now sit in 17th place after a frustrating run of close losses and draws since Christmas. The boys will be looking to finish the season on a high when they take on 2nd placed Penrith at Coogee Oval next weekend.
Skipper Anthony Sams on his way to a century!
Jason Ralston with his 6-fa / hat-trick ball!
2nd Grade – Randwick Petersham v Northern District @ Coogee Oval
Team – Mahony-Brack, Lyle, Burton, Matt Calder, De Silva, Mitch Calder (c+), Holland, Radford, Jenkins, Loth, McKenzie
Result – Northern Districts 10/142 – 61.3 Overs (Mahony-Brack 3/26-9, Jenkins 3/42-14.3) and 4/87 – 23 Overs (Radford 2/35-6) Defeated by Randwick Petersham 6(dec)/145 – 38.3 Overs (Calder 48, Mahony-Brack 45, Burton 22)
http://www.premier.nsw.cricket.com.au/common/pages/public/rv/match.aspx?locx=MATCH&matchID=2928068
Second Grade were looking to ram home the advantage on Day 2, after having the Rangers in early trouble at 3/46 on a heavily rain affected Day 1 at Coogee Oval. The stakes were high, with the boys looking to maintain a spot in the Top 6 heading into another big game in Round 15 against Penrith. With the Rangers just 6 points behind us, their season would be over with a loss.
It was mission accomplished for the boys with a very comprehensive victory, chasing the Rangers score of 142 for the loss of 6 wickets, before declaring as we passed the total. Rangers then made it safely to stumps at 4/87 as we took home a big six points.
Two of the PGs youngsters were the stars with the ball on Day 2, with James Mahony-Brack (3/26-9) and Jenkins (3/42-14.3) claiming 6 wickets between them and 3 wickets each, as we took the remaining 7 wickets on Day 2 for 100 runs. Mahony-Brack showed his all-round qualities and is sure to push for a regular First Grade spot next season alongside Jenkins. Mac got some rewards for his quality bowling this year, as he has very often dried up an end, and enabled the quicks to take wickets from the other end, and helped skipper Calder control the game.
With the bat, after the loss of an early wicket, Mahony-Brack (45) and Burton (22) put on a solid and much need 57-run partnership for the second wicket to advance the score to 71. Burton played patiently and accumulated runs, whilst Mahony-Brack was the aggressor, although playing within himself, scoring just two boundaries for his innings. Enter Matt Calder who, coming in at 4, put the game to bed very quickly as he is capable of doing, with his usual blitzkrieg of 48 from 35 balls, including 4 towering sixes. Calder, with 545 run at over 100, and nearly 800 runs for the season, gives 2s a great weapon heading into Round 15 and a possible finals’ campaign.
Next weekend it’s a semi-final come early, with a do or die match at Howell Oval against Penrith. With our boys sitting in 6th on 48 points, and the Panthers 4 points behind on 44, the winner will advance to the finals and the loser will be out. We wish all the best to our Second Graders who have been extremely well captained this year, and have overcome the loss of players at Christmas time, to power on and be the highlight of this season for the Club.
James Mahony-Brack had a great all round game
Mac Jenkins took 3 wickets
3rd Grade – Northern District v Randwick Petersham @ Asquith Oval
Team – Powell, B. Stares(c), Lopes, Ahmed, Eldridge, Graham, Mullins, Fox, Deller, M. O’Loughlin, Stirling
Result – Northern District 9(dec)/183 – 78 overs (B. Stares 5/43-27, M. O’Loughlin 2/25-13) Defeated Randwick Petersham 10/103 – 46.3 Overs (B. Stares 24)
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Third Grade were looking to finish the job early with the ball on Day Two, with Rangers resuming after a cold, wet, slow Day One at 7/130 from 67, after a slightly rain interrupted day. The plan was to try and roll them for 140-150, setting up an achievable run chase.
However, the finals bound Rangers had the better of Day 2, winning by 80 runs, bowling us out for 103 after seizing the advantage earlier in the day. Captain Stares noted that the wicket was better on Day 2, however the outfield was thick and lush. The game got away from us early with one of their bats hitting 40 off 8 overs, and the Rangers ended up posting another 53 runs before declaring 9 wickets down. Ben Stares (5/43-27) capped off a great display with a 5-wicket haul, with Scott Stirling putting his body on the line to take the catch for Stares’ fifth wicket.
The Rangers came out with their tails up and they claimed three early wickets to have us on the back foot early in the run chase. Ben Stares (24) and Luca Lopes (17) both dug in and batted well on a painfully slow outfield, with balls getting drilled and not going far. We had recovered somewhat at 3/45 before Stares fell and the Rangers got on a roll again with a finals’ spot up for grabs for them. Luca dug in facing 70 balls and batting 90 minutes, with fellow youngsters Ruben Sach and Hayden Fox also making starts and getting further confidence and experience as very talented young players within the side.
Next weekend Third Grade will be looking to finish the season on a high, as they take on Penrith at Kensington Oval. We are currently in 15th spot , and the Panthers are 9th.
Skipper Ben Stares officially joins all-rounder status with his 5 wickets!
4th Grade – Randwick Petersham v Northern District @ Kensington Oval
Team – Crawford, Rushton, Sapariya, Ahmed, Saady (c), Hussain, Jedwood, Kashyap, Gibson, Boyns, Imroze
Result – Randwick Petersham 10/166 – 59.2 Overs (Saady 39, Ahmed 30, Rushton 29, Redwood 26, Sapariya 22) Defeated Northern District 10/143 – 56.1 Overs (Boyns 3/22-16.1, Imroze 3/39-13, Saady 2/33-15)
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Fourth Grade were looking forward to playing a rare game at Kensington Oval, with Petersham Oval now unavailable this season as it goes through a $170,000 upgrade to be ready for another great season next year. Fourth Grade are in 16th place on 26 points, and were taking on 12th placed Northern Districts. Nick Saady has been in great form this season, and he was up to captain Fourth Grade this week to give the side a boost in experience and quality. Jack Gibson was handed a debut after some really impressive performances in Fifth Grade so far this season.
With 120 overs of cricket ahead of us, the wicket at Kensington looked flattish with relatively thick coverage of outfield grass. Captain Saady had no hesitation in batting first. Rushton (29) and Sapariya (22) toughed it out in tricky conditions with some swing around as the boys put on 34 together after the loss of an early wicket. Rocky Ahmed (30) and Saady (39) came together with Ahmed playing a patient innings, whilst Saady started a blitzkrieg at the other end. The skipper blazed 39 from just 30 balls as he continued on his really strong form from 5th Grade throughout the season, to change the momentum of the game. Ahmed moved the ball around nicely with the odd boundary as we built some nice partnerships.
Jedwood (26) continued along with aggressive batting, with Gibson batting sensibly, Jedwood hit the bowlers to all parts late in the innings, as we looked to declare after 60 overs. We posted a good score of 10/166 with Sam Boyns getting another red ink with 44 runs for the season without having been dismissed!
Boyns (3/22-16.1) and Saady (2/33-15) were immediately all over the Rangers top order as they took the first 3 wickets between them, and bowled tightly to reduce the visitors to 3/22 early. Imroze (3/39-13) is a really smart bowler, bowling tight and got some wickets as they tried to take him on. Captain Saady said he was well supported by PK who bowled well without taking a wicket, with Gibson unfortunately injured and unable to bowl. Saady wanted to thank Belinda Gibson for scoring and the admin around the day, Peter Bannigan for taking some great action shots and to Mrs Saady for putting on a great lunch and tea spread
The Rangers had one solid partnership at the 7th wicket which got them close to the total, however we managed to chip away regularly to bowl the Rangers out for 143 in the 57th over, with good fielding towards the end under pressure. The side is now in 15th place on 33 points and will be looking to finish the season on a high as we take on 7th placed Penrith at Cook Park next weekend.
Skipper Nick Saady has continued his great all-round form
Sam Boyns has finished the year strongly in 4s
Veteran Sean Rushton contributed a key 29 at the top of the order
5th Grade – Northern District v Randwick Petersham @ Storey Park
Team – Segal, Iosifidis, Sapariya, Sultan, Heaton (c), Apostolakis, Connolly, Lee, Wanzare, Coombs, L.O’Loughlin
Result – Randwick Petersham 10/117 – 58 Overs (Sultan 31, Lee 21) Defeated By Northern District 1/119 – 34.4 Overs
Fifth Grade were looking for a few runs in the morning to put together a competitive score against Northern Districts on the second day of their game at Storey Park.
The wicket looked flat and hard like it had been rolled a lot, and had less grass cover than the previous week with the rain being around. The outfield was also mowed and the grass cut really low to add to the frustration of our boys. We managed to add another added 13 runs to the total. So, we were left to defend a total of 117.
The opening bowlers Anis Bugti and Adam Lee tried to swing the ball, but the deck was just flat and the batsmen were able to play through the line comfortably and punished anything just short of a length.
First change Dane Coombs, who came on in the 11th over, and second change Liam O’Loughlin in the 12th over, really impressed and, with some luck, could have had both openers and it could have been game on. However, the ND batsmen, with some luck and aggressive tactics, pulled off a win in 34 overs losing only 1 wicket.
Next week we are playing a one dayer against Penrith who are placed 7th, and Captain Heaton said we really have to lift our game to stay in the top half of the ladder and finish the season on a better note. Heaton wanted to pass on a special thanks to Brett Coombs for taking our team photo on the day and a big thanks to our whole Fifth Grade team who wore black arm bands in memory of Rocky Ahmed’s dad’s passing.
Metropolitan Cup – Randwick Petersham Green v Warringah @ Mike Pawley
Team – Jastrzab (C+), Antaw, Besgrove, Grills, Ganesh, Robinson, Robertson, Brennan, Thomas, Smith, Khoo, C De Silva
Result – Blacktown 107 – 48.2 Overs (C De Silva 5-26, B Thomas 2-38) defeated Randwick Petersham Green 75 – 37.5 Overs (W Grills 38)
http://www.smcc.nsw.cricket.com.au/common/pages/public/rv/match.aspx?matchID=2963761&entityID=2318
A week of glorious sunshine following the loss of day 1 had a curve ball through with midnight showers on the eve of the game. But the deck was completely unscathed and the moisture in the air set the scene for a fascinating contest. Ben Thomas got a couple of early breakthroughs, with searing pace and swing making use of favourable conditions. From there though, the Metropolitan Cup veteran of 128 matches, Charith De Silva, took over and made the day his own.
In conditions that couldn’t have been more perfect for his style of bowling, the big marn kept an immaculate line and length to have all the batsmen struggling in slow and humid conditions. After 5 overs of torturing the unsuspecting batsmen, Chaz finally put the number 4 out of his misery, snagging him lbw. A few overs later, he tripled his tally with leading edges finding their way to point and short cover. Heading into tea, Blacktown were struggling at 5-36. A quick water break later, and Chaz brought up his 100th wicket for Randwick Petersham with his fourth, before a beautiful dipping yorker fooled the impatient Blacktown captain into an errant slog. And so, a club icon got to raise the ball and celebrate his first 5 wicket haul for the Randy Petes – following 14 over on the trot, taking 5-26. The Blacktown tail wagged a bit more than we would have liked, with Max Robinson and E-Young ‘Pingu’ Khoo taking a wicket each to leave a target of 108. Chaz led the team off the field to very generous applause for both sides – showing just how cricket can be a game for all.
What should have been a standard chase, particularly from 1-46, turned into a hard lesson for the nascent side. Despite a typically belligerent cameo Will Grills (38) and the presence of hard-hitting left-hander Pingu at 6, the cricketing Gods deemed that this was not the day for Randy Pete batsmen. A series of errant shots and decisions sent the Greens spiraling to all out for 75. While not the ending they would have liked, there is still plenty to look back on a difficult but fulfilling season.
3 – Charith De Silva
2 – William Grills
1 – Ben Thomas
Veteran Charith deSilva raises his first 5 wicket ball in triumph with a double bonus of reaching 100 wickets!!!
Metropolitan Cup – Randwick Petersham Gold v Sydney University
Result – Match abandoned
http://www.smcc.nsw.cricket.com.au/common/pages/public/rv/match.aspx?matchID=2963763&entityID=2318
Gold now play the waiting game, as they will receive full points from Balmain South Sydney forfeiting, but will need at least two results to go their way if they’re to make the Metro Cup finals.
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