Welcome to this week’s edition of Tah Talk with Jay Lenton.
This week Jay talks through Bertie Foreman’s impact to our M1s side, Brewers Shield and W3s Grand Final preparations, and a celebration of W1s and W2s great season.
As usual, Tah Talk is brought to you by Invest Blue. For all your financial planning needs visit them at www.investblue.com.au
BERTIE’S IN FOR THE LONG HAUL
Bertie Foreman’s love of this club was underlined this week when he successfully fought to extend his stay with the Tahs.
The popular Pom was due to return to English county side Sussex a week before the first grade grand final at Easter, but lobbied hard to remain an extra week.
His persistence paid off when Sussex signed off on another seven days, meaning the cheeky off-spinner will play in the decider if we are good enough to make it.
One of our favourite “posh Alberts”, Bertie has slipped into the Manly set-up seamlessly and brought an infectious energy to the group.
And while he is never wrong, his cheeky confidence is translated into performances, where he continues to shine with bat and ball.
He is producing one of the better years we have seen at Manly for a spinner.
Off the field, Bertie’s stint out here has proved just as successful after taking to the Manly lifestyle like a born and bred local.
We have a lot of work to do over the next few weeks just to make the grand final, starting with the second day of our clash with Penrith on Saturday.
But knowing we have Bertie in our corner for the entire journey has given us extra incentive to go all the way.
GIRLS SET FOR GRAND OCCASION
A bit of revenge mixed with a touch of history awaits two of our women’s teams this weekend.
Our third grade side is into its second consecutive grand final against the same opponent – St George-Sutherland – after a tremendous semi-final win last weekend.
Defending a very skinny 96, our bowlers stepped up to the mark to dismantle UTS North Sydney for just 56.
Sophia Chick and Sallie Molyneux led the charge, both finishing with 3-7.
Only one Norths batter made double figure and there were five ducks in all.
The going will be a lot tougher when they line-up against the girls from the south at Balgowlah Oval on Saturday.
St George-Sutherland is coming off a strong semi-final victory but it’s hard to pick up an accurate form-line for the GF as both regular season games against Manly were abandoned due to weather.
I do know last year’s loss in the decider still stings those involved and a win on Saturday would be a wonderful reward for a terrific season.
The Brewer Shield (under-18) team is into its first grand final, taking on Greater Hunter Coast in Newcastle on Sunday.
The Manly Brewers have been around since 2017/18 and played semis in 20/21 and 21/22 but both were weather-affected draws and we didn’t progress.
The young Tahs chased down 140 to beat minor premiers Northern District in an epic semi-final performance, with Kaya Punter (39) and Charlotte Croll (4-29) the standouts with bat and ball.
The whole club is behind both side as they hunt grand final glory.
Go Tahs!
SEASON ENDS WITH HONOUR
We were hoping for a four from four run on women’s grand final weekend, but unfortunately it wasn’t to be.
Semi-final losses in 1s and 2s means their campaigns came to an end, but not before a tremendous fight.
Both sides were set challenging run chases and came up just short, much to their disappointment.
But once the fog cleared and the debriefs were underway, it was clear there was much to be proud of.
1s and 2s finished inside the top three in their respective competitions, making a huge contribution to our maiden club championship triumph.
And there were a number of outstanding individual performances to applaud along the way.
“With such a young team/squad in general, it bodes well for the years to come as they all gain more 1st grade experience,” coach Don Wheeler told Tah Talk
“Credit to Sas Horley for taking the reins as captain and leading from the front – all the girls look up to her and she sets a fantastic example for everyone else.
“Club spirit is at an all-time high & winning the club champs was a just reward for all the hard work and effort everyone has put in.”
Congratulations girls on making it to the second last week of the competition and let the disappointment of not making the GF act as extra motivation next season.
