After a dominant batting display that saw centuries to both Rav De Silva and skipper Jackson Eldridge, 2s were robbed of a victory by poor weather last weekend against Bankstown. Jacob Wood is back in the side this weekend.

The Randy Petes have won just six games from 16 clashes against the Rangers, which isn’t outstanding record. However, we do have the recent wood after beating them the last two occasions.

Rav De Silva has broken through for a big score, and now it should be all-systems go for one of the most talented players in the club. A local junior who has been at the club since he was about 12, Ravi will need another big knock if 2s are to get their first win of the season on Saturday.

In their first game of the season, they will be without recently-announced skipper Tom Holland – but in his place will be Jaya ‘Mal’ Murdita. Mal loves the club and has honed his leadership skills under some of the greats, such as Rod Stafford and David Bourke, and will be ready to grab the opportunity with both hands. Lachy Bird will make his 3s debut, while Mandar Mariguddi and Sadeep Deepak will make their club debuts.

We have won seven games in this grade against NDs over the years, including a tight game last year at Kenso. But prior to that, we had lost three on the trot – it’s time to start building our own streak on Saturday.

Luca Lopes is the player to watch in this clash. He has been looking good in the nets and the trial games, and should be ready to tackle the opening round head-on.

Back at Kenso due to a late switcheroo of grounds, 4s will be led once again by myself and new English import Dale Hackney as VC. We have plenty of young lads who are hungry for runs and wickets, as well as a couple of more experienced figures.

In 16 games against the Rangers in this grade, we have won just five games. A bitterly disappointing loss last year just after the Christmas break hurt our finals chances, so we will be looking for some revenge this weekend.

Sayem Sultan had a breakout year last year, scoring some quality runs when the side needed him and also taking poles when called upon. He loves to play shots and take on the attack, and should be ready to go after a long pre-season.

Veteran keeper Fabian Heaton will go around again in 2020/21, ready to lead a talented bunch of teenagers. The likes of Alan Mathews and Adam Coombs have been highly impressive with the ball during pre-season, while Max Robinson looms as a quality top-order bat.

Over the years, we have lost just three games out of 16 against NDs in this grade, which is mighty impressive. Recent history is against us however, losing the past two fixtures.

Simran Sandhu is one of the older heads in the team, and will need to take on a big role with the ball. The king of Side Bar (pre-COVID) is a great bloke to have around the side and will be full of encouragement for his younger teammates.

Metropolitan Cup gets underway along with the rest of the grades this weekend, and once again we’re awash with a sea of new faces to complement the stalwarts who continue to go around for the love of the game.

Jeremy Jastrzab takes over the captaincy of the Gold team, and has a stern challenge taking the team out to Bensons Lane for the first round to play Hawkesbury. But possibly better to travel there now than on a 40+ degree day in January. The Richmond boys returned to the competition last summer after a 3 season absence and impressed with their organisation and discipline – doing well enough to qualify for finals before COVID hit.

The evergreen Jay Patel takes the reigns of the Green team and will have the pleasure of hosting North West Sydney at Petersham Oval on Sunday. The NWS Hurricanes have been a robust addition to the competition and we have only bested them once in four encounters across both teams. We’re also looking forward to more Sundays at Petersham this season, to ensure that the grounds firmly stays in the hands of Randwick Petersham – especially after a so-far successful return from the higher grades.