1s, 4s and 5s progress to Semi Final as Little plays his final game – Monday News Qtr Finals

The Waratahs have made a successful start to their finals campaign with great wins in 1st grade, 4th grade and 5th grade in a heart stopping weekend of finals cricket.

The games were played hard, as they should be, but fair in what was a great showcase of what finals cricket is all about. Our 1st grade side showed massive character in coming back from a seemingless hopeless position with Penrith at 0/90 chasing our 243 to win by 41 runs. Unfortunatley our 3rd graders bowed out of the finals but not without giving it a read hot go. After being behind on the first innings by 70 runs with only 55 overs left on the last day, the Tahs built a lead of 110 runs before putting ND’s back into bat and getting them to 7 for 70 before the end of play. Close but unfortunaltey we werent able to recover from our poor batting on day 1.

4th grade made it tough for themselves by getting bowled out for 101, however a great all-round bowling display and then some tough batting from Sam Hole in the 2nd dig meant the Tahs got up on 1st innings. And of course our 5’s had a heart stopping win against Gordon, winning by 14 runs thanks to a superb 90 from Toby Poole and a great all-round display from Jack Carden.

So we have a 1st grade home semi at Manly Oval, and 5th grade home semi at Mike Pawley Oval in a weekend for the Manly cricket tragics. We also have our 4th grade side travelling to Sutherland to tackle the higher placed Sharks.

Your heart says give it to Craig Little for an amazing ton to get 3rd grade back into the game in his last game, however your head says Ahillen Beadle. And AB it is. His brilliant 126 on Saturday against a top quality bowling attack was one of the best 1st grade innings seen at Manly for many a year. He combined patience with his usual scintilating stroke play to anchor the innings and ensure our bowlers had something to aim at. Ultiomatley it was a match winning innings. AB has now powerd to 758 runs across all forms this season at an average of 47.38, a fantastic year so far. Add to that his 27 wickets and it’s easy to see why he is a very important part of the Waratahs.

First grade had an amazing win over the 2nd placed Penrith side on the weekend. After winning the toss and batting on a good deck we struggled early with two early wickets placing us at 2-16. A few mini partnerships ensued, however at 4-88 the game was on a knife’s edge.

Luckily, two of the most talented bats in the comp stood up just when we needed it. Beadle, who came to the crease at 2-16 played one of the toughest innings in Manly crickets history to eventually post 126 off 257 balls in nearly six hours. It was a master display of concentration against two first class bowlers in a do or die clash. He played all the shots and was totally in control of the situation from the outset. The fact it was made against his old club too was an added bonus.

Timmy Cruickshank also played a great supporting role scoring a crucial 50. Timmy as usual was his dominant self and really helped turn the momentum of the match our way.

We ended up with 243, which was probably a bit below par however still runs on the board.

Things didnt get off to the best of starts on Sunday morning with a few missed chances and some good batting resulting in Penrith going to lunch at 1-90 odd. They were well and truly in the box seat however after lunch our bowlers were on their game and dried up the runs. As the ball starting reversing the wickets started coming and all of a sudden at tea Penrith needed 85 runs in 40 overs with 5 wickets in hand.

Unfortunately we lost 8 overs due to the lightening rule, however in a tense finish we ended up bowling the Panthers out for 202. All the bowlers were terrific with Dan Babula putting in a herculian effort with 4-62 off 30 overs, Nick McLachlan leading the charge in the final session ending up with 3-60 off 18 and Mickey Edwards who was incredibly impressive in his return to the top grade and took two vital wickets in the middle session ending with 2-48 off 20. Luke Edgell also bowled very well in the middle session drying up runs and appllying pressure finishing with 1-20 off 11.

Overall a great team win, something special to be a part of. We now turn to the weekend where we take on Bankstown at home.

Jack Ritchie

3rd Grade Vs Northern Districts – Manly 110 and 2 dec for 169 (C. Little 100*, L. Stewart 27*) lost to Northern Districts 162 (C. Little 4 for 31, R Davis 3 for 25, S. Alexander 2 for 42) and 7 for 78 (R Davis 3 for 16, C Little 2 for 9)

3rd grade arrived at Asquith oval looking to continue our great form from the back end of the season. On what looked a pretty good batting deck, ND’s won the toss and elected to bowl first. Unfortunately, through a combination of good bowling from the home side and a slow, seaming wicket we were in early trouble. Adam, Ryan and Jarrod were dismissed in quick succession and Manly were 3-26 after the first hour of play. It didn’t get much easier in the second hour either! Sam was undone by some more accurate and consistent bowling. Lance (16) batted for over an hour and fought hard to get a partnership started before he too was caught behind. In what would prove to be his last game, skipper Craig Little provided a counter attack before the lunch break until he was caught at point for 21. We were in trouble at 6-61.

After lunch, Luke (14) and Matt (20) attempted to resurrect the innings putting on a partnership of 30 before both were dismissed in the space of two overs. James Boyer and Ronnie then got together and looked good before Jimmy fell victim to the slowness of the wicket. Sam was the last man out, however, together with Ronnie managed to edge us over 100. We were all out for 110, in a disappointing start to the day. We came out to bowl fired up and looking for early wickets. Ronnie got the opening breakthrough of the innings with the score on 25 after some tight bowling from Matt and LG. All of the bowlers continued to grind all day until Ronnie and Sam got back to back wickets and ND’s were 3-55. Game on! Unfortunately, despite fantastic bowling at the end of the day, the batsmen somehow survived and finished 3-81 at the end of day 1. No doubt, it was going to be an uphill battle from here.

After ND’s won the first hour of day 2, they found themselves in a commanding position at 3-95. Matt eventually got our first pole of the morning, however ND’s passed our total just 4 down. From here, many teams would have folded. We’re were in serious trouble and it looked bleak. But the Manly boys kept on fighting. It’s a credit to Genie and the culture he’s created. Thanks to wickets from Ronnie and Sam we steadied the ship before the captain ripped the heart out of the ND’s middle and lower order. Craig ended with figures of 4-31 and took the last two wickets of the innings in consecutive balls! He was on a hat trick next innings! Ronnie, Matt and Sam were also among the wickets as we bowled them out for 162 and a lead of 52. We were running out of time.

We went out to bat in our second innings needing plenty of runs… and quickly. In his final innings for the club Craig promoted himself to the top of the order to open with Jarrod. From his first ball, he put on an absolute clinic! Despite ND’s having 8 or even 9 fielders on the boundary for the majority of the innings, Genie tore them apart. He got great support from Jarrod, Ryan and Lance, but this was all about the skipper. He raced past 50 off about 35 rocks and kept on motoring. Craig hit 7 boundaries and 3 bombs and did a hell of a lot of running in an innings that suddenly gave us life. On the stroke of tea, Genie reached an amazing 100* off just 63 balls! His determination and stroke making was unparalleled and it was a fitting close to an outstanding career. Watching the skipper’s innings gave everyone a massive lift. Amazingly, after just 21 overs of batting we were 2-169 with a lead of over 110!! With 39 overs remaining in the day, the declaration was made. It was going to need a miracle but we had a sniff of victory!

Matt got us off to the perfect start in the final innings, dismissing the opener with the score on 0. Backing up his amazing 100, Genie missed out on his hat trick but managed to snag our second wicket. Ronnie then followed that up with a pole of his own and ND’s were 3-31! And then the heavens opened. After a 40 minute + delay and the loss of 3 overs, we were back on the field needing 7 wickets in 19 overs. A partnership managed to take ND’s to 3-59 and the game looked to be over. But we still weren’t done. Sam Gainsford chipped in with an extremely important breakthrough before we pinned our hope on the two veterans. Ronnie and Genie steamed in for the last 6 or 7 overs of the day and were outstanding. Together, they took 3 wickets in the space of about 4 overs! With 12 balls remaining, we needed 3 more wickets. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be. ND’s finished 7-78 after playing a very negative day of cricket which nearly backfired. It was fitting that Craig bowled the last over of the match, in his last game for the club. His amazing 100 won’t quickly be forgotten! It was a great fight back from all of the boys but we just ran out of time. Well done on a great season!

Thanks again to Wrighty for being the greatest bloke in the world and congratulations to Genie on an outstanding career! You’ll be missed.

Luke Grant

Craig Little and Manager Alan Wright after the game

 

4th Grade vs Parramatta – Manly 101 (M. Cole 30, J. Petersen 28) and 177 (S. Hole 53*) Defeated Parramatta 71 (W. Evans 4 for 9, A. Virdi 2 for 14, B. Wilson 2 for 20) and 4 for 95 (N. McCallum-Toomey 3 for 31)

Manly Oval looked a picture and a few of us enjoyed returning to this great oval. The pitch looked OK but we were not too sure about it. Not a bad toss to lose and as it turned out we won it and batted. They bowled good lines early and Rowan Hamman (0) had one come in sharply as he shouldered arms and lost the off stump, Max Burgess (5) was well caught in the slips and Ross Trewartha (0) got a tickle to make us 3/5. Sam Hole (4) and Mat Cole (30) attempted to resurrect things but Sam got one that stayed a bit low and was LBW to make it 4/13. Arshdeep Virdi (9) battled hard before getting an unlucky LBW to make it 5/43. Cole on the stroke of lunch then also got an LBW that could have gone either way (maybe the umpires were too busy chatting to each other to make correct decisions) to make us 6/68 at lunch. The same ump gave Josh Petersen not out when he smashed it so it was going both ways. Evans (7) and Peterson (28) tried to rebuild but a tickle from Evans put pay to that, 7/89. Josh then got a leading edge to end his excellent innings. He and Cole, who batted very well for his 30, were the only blokes to reach double figures. Brad Wilson and Nick McCallum-Toomey did the usual thing and the quick one, Nick, was run out again. Dylan Marshall then edged into the slips to end it on 101.

As a captain I was thinking along the lines of winning this late on day 2 after giving up first innings by say 70 runs. The pitch surely wasn’t this bad? The opposition can surely score 102 runs despite our strong attack? No chance, this is finals cricket! Brad got us off to a flyer by ducking one in sharply and a second player not willing to play a shot lost his off stump. Not long after an LBW to Brad (2/20) making it 2/8. Nick (1/23) then got the umpires involved with another LBW to make it 3/16. Evans (4/9) soon after joined in and delivered Josh three snicks in pretty quick succession. Arshdeep (2/14) kept the pressure on with Wilson snaring a smart catch in the covers. Another edge to Rowan at 2nd slip from Evans made it 8/52, Arsh the got a tickle 9/53. Some bold hitting out from the tail gave Parra hope but another good catch by Brad from Dylan gave us a fantastic 30 run lead with a mere 117 overs left in the game.

13 overs to go. Rowan listens intently to the talk of being positive and proceeds to nail the 2nd ball straight to mid off. Ross (22) and Max (10) steady the ship against some good bowling but a dreadful last 10 minutes sees both blokes depart the scene, Max playing an uncharacteristic heave and Ross shouldering arms to a ball too close and a third player to lose his off stump. We finish the day 3/38, effectively 3/68.

2nd day Dylan (5) and Sam (53no) look good before Dylan plays across one and he is adjudged LBW. Ditto Cole (12) and Arsh (17). Some wise words from Lozza (who was a legend all game, thanks for your help mate!) in the change rooms after the game reminded us that we need to play straighter. Much straighter. Make it a focus this week boys. We can’t be playing across our pads before we are 50. Anyway news filters in that Fairfield lost and Sutherland are looking likely to win so the pressure comes off but still good to win. Josh (8) again looked good before one kept low which he chopped on. Evans (6) played a nice shot through he covers first ball but doesn’t go on with it and plays loosely at a straight one and is cleaned up. Brad plays beautifully and looks very comfortable batting for 68 mins in compiling 15. The spinner brought him undone – use your feet Wilson!. Nick then followed on with a well made 14 in 32 minutes. Sam Hole though played his best innings to date. In a situation that could be considered high pressure he looked cool as he played straight and occupied the crease, not going anywhere. A great, self assured innings that is exactly what we needed. This combined with Nick & Brad’s efforts meant Parra had 207 to win in 38 overs. They know their fate, they’re happy to play Easts, we are happy to play Sutherland and despite Nick almost snaring a hattrick (3/23) the game was played out by Parra who finished at 4/95 from 21 overs.

Great effort boys, looking forward to the SF. Well done.

Warren Evans

 

5th Grade vs Gordon – Manly 222 (T. Poole 90, J. Carden 59) Defeated Gordon 208 (J. Carden 4 for 38, T. Kelly 2 for 45, W. Outred 2 for 47)

Manly had a great victory over Gordon in 5th grade on the weekend, taking the biscuits in a very close encounter against an always tough opponent.

The wicket at the start of play on Saturday was hard and dry, but with toughs of dead grass on most of the pitch it was a bit of unknown, but ultimately we thought a good cricket wicket. Skipper Dave Farrell won the toss and chose to bat first. Opening up with Joel Mason and Billy Darcy, the Gordon openers bowled some good areas and constantly beat the bat with a bit of movement, as there always should be at the beginning of the game. Runs were initially hard to come by and Mason went early for a plumb LBW, and Billy followed not too long afterwards in the same manner. Hamish Ferguson edged to 2nd slip and after an hour of play we were 3 for 15.

Jack Carden and Toby Poole have both had very impressive years so we were still confident of a good total. The fellas started to show some great intent and were very positive in both their stroke play and their running between the wickets, and before long they began to take the game away from Gordon. Both passed their half century however Jake spooned one not long after to cover for a well made 59. Tom Kelly joined Toby at the crease and together they continued with some good batting, and we were 4 for 185, a fantastic position after being 3 for 15. However, as so often happens in finals, Tom got out and we began to loose wickets in clumps. Jacob Graham came and left, as did Will Outred. Toby was next to go for a fantastic 90 in his best innings of the season. It was very disappointing not to see him go on and get a big hundred, but his debut ton for the Tahs can’t be too far away.

The rest of the tail also did not last long and we were bowled out for 222, losing 6 for 37 at the end. Special mention to Sam Kelly who remained not out and is still to be dismissed in grade cricket….. can play

Gordon had 20 overs to face and started cautiously. After 2 dropped catches, Zach Trewartha got us started with a wicket at cover, and Tom Kelly got their confident looking opening bat LBW to leave Gordon 2 for 41 at stumps on day 1 and with the match evenly poised.

The Waratahs started day 2 very well, mainly through the antics of Billy Darcy. Billy stood at first slip for the first half of the day and proceeded to talk absolute gibber for most of the time, gaining the irk of the batsman but also the humor of his fellow slip cordon and, on occasions, the umpires. “Spartan Saturdays and Kookaburra Sundays” was particularly entertaining, as was the call to send the batsman who had a carbon fiber Kookaburra back to ’06.

Anyway, back to the cricket. Tom Kelly bowled their night watchman with a beauty, and Jack “Ping” Carden got Billy’s man out caught behind after a juggle from impressive ‘keeper Sam Kelly (did I mention that the kid could play?) saw us hold the advantage at 4 for 68. Although some small partnerships formed of 20 runs or so, we bowled consistently well and bounced around the field to have the Stags 6 for 101 not far from lunch.

Unfortunately play was then halted for a period of time, and an early lunch taken, as the Gordon batsman Borg dislocated his shoulder badly attempting to foil a runout plot. It was bad luck for the young bloke, who was batting well and has apparently had 2 shoulder reco’s already. He was in alot of pain and an ambulance was called to take him away, the only piece of good news for him was the 2 shots of morphine that sent him into his own world, something Dollars reminded us that he could relate to. We hope he is doing OK.

Starting after lunch we got a quick wicket, however the Gordon number 8 began to hit the ball very well. The boys were still bouncing around the field and bowling well, but the ball was getting old, the pitch flater, and at 7 for 200 we were looking at the scoreboard.

Skipper Farrell threw the ball to “Ping” and the golden child didn’t disappoint, dismissing the hard hitting number 8 for 55, and then finishing it off with another caught and bowl (his eleventieth in the last few games) much to the delight of the boys and the big crowd.

So a great win for the Tahs. Special thanks to Winga who was with us all day and provided some great guidance, as well as Dollars (as usual) and Ian Ferguson who managed the canteen and was a hero all day around the boys.

Onto Randy-Petes next week at Mike Pawley Oval. See you there.

Go Manly

 

Jake Carden takes the all inportant 2nd last wicket on Sunday

Will Outred watches the ball move towards the fielder for a catch…..

…. and Dave Farrell takes the catch

Mason and Bradstreet lead the team song