Monday News – Rd 9 vs Norths – One Dayer + PGs/Greenies vs NDs – One Dayer

After Gilly emphasised the need to back up our pre-christmas form and establish ourselves in the business end of the season, it was another spectacular week for the Tahs, winning 6 from 7 games over the weekend.

1st grade lead the way by winning their one-dayer against Norths convincingly, with Cameron Merchant and Timmy Cruickshank showing their class with the bat, and Jimmy Munting bowling beautifully to secure another 5fa. 2s, 3s and 4s also won their T20 fixtures with relative ease, while 5s unfortunately went down again in a close matches.

Sunday saw PGs and Greenies both get wins up against Northern Districts, with PGs cementing their spot in prelim finals next week at Hurstville, and Greenies getting their first points on the board for the season. Both wins pushed our lead out to more than 100 points in the Club Championships, with the top four grades all in the top 6!

4 Pines Brewery Player of the Week – Jimmy Munting
Munta bowled with pure class on Saturday at North Sydney Oval, picking up the amazing figures of 5-19 off his 10 overs. His combination of pace and swing was simply too much for the Norths batsmen, and hopefully all of Munta’s hard work and stand out performances will see him progress to higher honours.


Outstanding Performances
Jimmy Munting – 5-19 off 10 (1st Grade)
Cameron Merchant – 52* (1st Grade)
Adam Gummer – 97* (3rd Grade)
Matt Cranney – 58 (4th Grade)
Matt Mee – 65 (PGs)
Tom Kaye – 55 (PGs)


1st Grade Round 9 vs North Sydney
Captain Tim Cruickshank won the toss and had no hesitation in electing to bowl on the greenest strip imaginable at North Sydney oval.

A cautious start from the  Bears  saw them lose their first wicket in the 6th over.

Eight overs later Matty Mee was introduced into the attack and he had immediate success, capturing 2 wickets in successive balls to have the  Bears  at 3/38 from 14 overs.

James Munting returned to the bowling crease from the 25th over and an outstanding spell of fast bowling saw   Jimmy  capture 5 wickets for 4 runs in 4 overs  to now have the  Bears  at 8/92 from 31 overs.

Good batting from the last 3 North Sydney batsmen enabled them to add a further 61 runs before they were finally dismissed in the 46th over for 153.

The two Manly openers in Nick Watkins and Jack Ritchie {fittest man in the club} got the team off to a good start.

However, great contributions came from Sydney Thunder star Tim Cruickshank who scored a run a ball 46 {1/6  6/4} and Sydney Sixers star Cameron Merchant who finished 52 not out  {62b  7/4} and a little cameo from Mitch Cleary {20  n/o} saw Manly reach the target score in the 36th over and give the side a vital win.

The Observer


2nd Grade Round 9 vs North Sydney
Second grade returned after the Christmas break to a top dressed manly oval outfield and a grassy surface on the wicket. After an entertaining game of touch where nicos ended up on his backside again, it was clear that the bears clearly got excited by the grass and sent us in, however that suited us fine as we were going to bat anyway. A change in the order saw skipper douchman opening up with Maso and they got us off to a good start with douche immediately taking charge and finding the rope a couple of times and then clearing it with massive pull shot that nearly collected an unknowing spectator. He then departed for 17 off 11 and flat joined the don at the crease, these two took the partnership to 56 until Maso fell for a solid 23 off 22 and flat soon followed without adding to the total for 9 off 16. A new pair of Smitty and Patterson was then at the crease with Smitty working the ones and giving the strike to Patterson who immediately took a liking to a left arm spinner and hit him straight with a cleanest of strikes to split the buildings at the southern end and the ball was sent down to manly wharf. Smitty then dared him to go again so scotty responded hitting another clean bomb straight onto Sydney rd which smashed through the rear windshield of a passing cab leaving Fiona reaching for the chequebook. Scotty then fell the very next ball looking for a sneaky rotation and was caught at backward point for 17 off 10 balls with the score on 78. Doucheman then injected Mattoes to the crease looking to keep the bombs flowing but then Smitty soon fell for 4 off 7 without adding to the total. Digits then joined Matty at the crease and started a good partnership with digits finding the rope a couple of times and Matty getting good singles. With a fairly straight fine leg digits

then walked across his stumps and whipped the medium pacer over backward square adding to the bomb tally and scaring the birds from the tree. Mattoes then skyed a ball and went for 5 off 8 which brought ranga to the crease and started with good rotations which prompted digits to hit another bomb into the seats of the grandstand but fell in the next over after not being able the back up another boundary with a single and went for 33 off 21and the total on 122. Marksy lad joined ranga and took the total to 131 before Shaggas fell for 9 off 8, Nicos then went to the middle after a well-deserved promotion to number 10 and supported Marksy who was hitting some uncharacteristic balls in front of square for a few boundaries. These two took the total to 149 off the 20 with marks batting well and finishing with 19 off 12 and Nicos 3 off 5, with douche sweating on 150 as a par score he conceded 149 was good enough and we took lunch.

With Matty Mee up in 1’s a new bowling opening pair was formed with digits taking the new ball with Mattoes. With length being the key on a two paced wicket the pair bowled well however two balls in the slot from digits quickly went over the long on rope however Mattoes was leading the way combining changes in length and pace that the batsmen couldn’t get away and soon sent the opener packing for 0. Digits then followed Mattoes lead and had the number 3 skying one to the don at long on finishing with 1/23 off 4 and Mattoes 1/10 off 4 each bowling 3 extras. The new NSW U/19’s rep Dylan ‘ramshell’ Marshall replaced digits and picked up his standard first over wicket and the bears now struggling at 3/31. Dylan then made the fielding play of the day as he scooted across from cover and flicked the ball backhanded at the stumps leaving the batsmen stranded and Dylan increasing his swagger. Douche brought himself on and mixed up his pace and length which included a bouncer that digits learned all about from training, eventually trapping the batsmen in front from a quicker one, douche ending his spell at 1/15. Marshall continued his good form with the ball giving Shaggas and digits catches in the ring and finished with 3/19 off his 4. Another special run out from douche, hitting one stump from short cover confirmed the bears fate at 8/82 then Mclachlan and Flat were brought on and each claiming a wicket and bowling an extra and norths were all out for 86. Second grade now winning 6 straight and sitting outright 2nd on the ladder and looking forward to next week at manly oval. Special mention to all the boys (and the extras) who stuck around to watch fours have a good win, there’s now a particular bloke from norths nicknamed ‘shorts’ who especially won’t forget it.

Didge


3rd Grade Round 9 vs North Sydney
The main grade turned up to North Sydney #2 on Saturday for their second and final T20 fixture of the season. With skipper Genie out for the round, Gummer took over the reigns as the main grade looked to mirror their undefeated run from pre-christmas.

Winning the toss and batting, the Tahs got off to a good start with Anderson and Gummer finding the boundary regularly. Louis was caught on the fence at 3rd man, bringing Rockly to the crease to keep the momentum rolling. The pair combined well, finding consistent rotations and clearing the ridiclously short boundary on several occassions. Rockly parted late in the innings for a well made 38, with Reece Hodge taking over the hitting role and smoking 23 off one over, including a couple of huuuge bombs. He departed for 23 off 7, and Mickey Lindsay came in to nurdle 5 twos in a row before he was skittled by some great bowling. On the final ball of the innings, which was a free hit, Gummer needed a boundary to bring up his maiden tonne, however only managed to squirt a single to square leg, finishing on 97* and the Tahs posted a more than respectable 5-195 off their 20.

The boys knew we’d have to bowl to a plan and field well to restrict Norths, as the deck was very flat and the ground resembled a postage stamp. Reecie and Mickey opened up, and runs started flowing easily for the batsmen. Ash and LG took over, with Ashy picking up a crucial wicket, but the batsmen continued to find the boundary with relative ease. It was the introduction of Sam “Soup” Alexander that brought the momentum back in our favour, as he picked up a crucial wicket and only went for about 3 runs off each of his first 3 overs. However, a steady partnership was forming and the game was still in the balance. The introduction of Ryan Farrell was exactly what we needed, as he bowled beautifully, picking up 3-10, including an amazing outfield catch to crouching Burt hidden Rockly. Mickey Lindsay came back from a wayward first spell to bowl great areas and pick up 3 crucial wickets, with this combination taking the game well and truly out of reach from the Norths batsmen. The skipper eventually came on in the last over to burgle the final wicket, and Norths were rolled for 150.

Another convincing win for the mighty main grade, making it 9 from 9 for the season, and sitting 1 point clear on top of the table. Thanks again to the 5s boys for coming down early and providing some much appreciated support. Lets keep the ball rolling next week in a top of the table clash against Wests at Blick Oval. Up the tahs!

Gumms


4th Grade Round 9 vs North Sydney
Having a nice break away from cricket the boys had recharged their batteries and were ready to go. It was a new look team for the game with many old heads joining, with the likes of Matt ‘Loose’ Cranney and Adam ‘Inzi’ Parkinson, with Pete Lindsay joining the fold. Winning the toss Manly decided to have a bat and after losing the first wicket in the first over Loose and Ed Burgess combined for a 95 run partnership setting the platform for a solid total, Ed just fell short of his half century getting out on 47. Loose showed he still has it batting through the innings to finish 58*, allowing us to post a total of 6/149 from our 20 overs.

Setting out to defend our total the boys could not of done a better job, with the boys on it from the first ball, with the first over being a wicket maiden from the bowling of Sam Gainsford. Sammy bowled out of his skin, snaring figures of 2 for 13 from his four overs with a cheeky run out in his first over. This is not the first time that Sam has bowled well in 4s, every game he has come up he has applied the pressure from one end and swung the game back into our favour, even though he may not be getting the wickets. Will Jonkers bowled well and picked up well deserved figures of 2 for 28 from 2.4 overs. Parko, like Loose showed he hasn’t lost it picking up 2 for 21 from his four overs and taking 2 catches. Ed also bowled well picking figures of 1 for 25 from his four overs, with one over being another wicket maiden. Jacob bowled well at the death but unfortunately only bowled one over (1 for 2) as we were able to bowl Norths out in 16.4 overs for 103.

Finally would like to thank all the second grade boys, The Lindsay support crew and any lovely ladies that walked around Manly Oval, for the support, they really made the day even more special and enjoyable, that’s why Manly Oval is the best grade ground. Also thanks to Gordo for battling on and scoring after covering 2nd grade earlier in the day.

Maxy


5th Grade Round 9 vs North Sydney
Unfortunately 5th grade has another disappointing loss on Saturday at North Sydney 2.

Bowling first, the Tahs did well to restrict Norths to 7-123, with young Zach Trewartha (3-21) the pick of the bowlers.

However, as has been the case numerous times this season for 5s, not enough application was shown with the bat, and the boys were rolled for 105, with Billy Darcy (32) the only batsmen to establish an innings.


Green Shield Round 4 vs Northern Districts
Greenies won their first game of the season in what was a tight encounter against NDs at Asquith Oval.

On a slow outfield, the Tahs scrambled to 127, being bowled out in the 59th over. Sam Hole (33), Jimmy “Rabs” Boyer (29) and Hamish Ferguson (25) all got starts but couldn’t go on with it.

The boys bowled and fielded well to dismiss NDs for 112 in the 52nd, with M Levene picking up 4-22 off 10, and Sammy Gainsford bowling his accurate little tweakers to pick up 2-16 off his 12 overs.

Well done Greenies!


PGs Round 7 vs Northern Districts
PGs won their final round clash against NDs at Manly Oval, making it 6 from 7 for their season, and securing a finals birth at Hurstville Oval next Sunday.

Following some advice that Manly Oval flattened out considerably during Saturday’s T20 matches, we won the toss and batted on a deck that had a nice grass covering and that was already showing some wear and tear. Gummer and Webber opened up, and the NDs bowlers were moving the ball around nicely and bowling in good areas. Webber departed in the openers final over, and then Badyari went in quick succession. We continued to lose wickets in 10-20 run intervals, with Gummer, Alexander and Farrell all being dismissed, and the boys were struggling at 5-79 off 25 overs. Tommy Kaye once again showed great maturity to weather the storm and hold up one end, as the NDs bowlers didn’t relent with their consistent lines, and the pitch continued to offer variable bounce and sideways movement. Matty Mee joined Tommy at the crease, and the pair proceeded to turn the momentum in our favour, picking up singles and the odd boundary to keep the run rate ticking. The pair put on a crucial 112 run partnership, with Tommy (55) batting beautifully to score his maiden half-century for the club, and Flip Book displaying his awesome all-round ability with 65 of 58 rocks. We eventually finished with a more than respectable 8-209 off our 50, which we were confident in defending given the conditions.

After a short rain delay, we took to the field, and the NDs batsmen came out with an aggressive mindset and the runs began to flow easily. However, we managed to pick up wickets consistently, to have NDs in real trouble at 6-69, with all of the crucial wickets back in the shed. With a thought of a bonus point in mind, we continued to attack, however after what seemed like thousands of plays and misses we still couldn’t grab another break through. Dylan “Rammy” Marshall bowled spectacularly, putting every ball of his 10 overs of off spin where he wanted, while varying his pace, spin and drift, and he was unlucky not to pick up more than his 2 wickets. To the batsmens respect, they showed good determination, and with 15 overs to go they started to attack. Things were looking dangerous all of a sudden, but Matty Alexander got the crucial breakthrough with Javey taking a screamer, and McLachlan came on to clean up the tail, leaving him on a hat trick for next game. Special mention to Reecie who came on at the death to bowl superbly and pick up the final wicket, with NDs being rolled for 163 in the 44th.

Thanks to all the boys for coming down and supporting, and we’re all looking forward to the finals next Sunday!

Gumms