Welcome back to another week of Tah Talk with Jay Lenton, brought to you by our good friends at Invest Blue!
BILL’S BREWING PERFECT FORMULA
We are fortunate to have some terrific coaches and mentors spread throughout our men’s and women’s program at Manly.
And right up there with the best of them is our Brewers Shield (under-18s women’s) coach Bill McLerie.
Bill has been in and around the MWDCC coaching setup since 2017, helping guide daughter Chelsea through the MWDCC pathway system and into our first grade ranks.
Last year he decided to get more involved, taking on the Brewers top job.
“I’ve always enjoyed coaching team sports and the opportunity to help other young girls do the same as Chelsea really appealed to me,” he explains.
“Hopefully I can provide guidance and support to the girls in their cricket journey and have some laughs along the way as well.”
So far, so good this season.
The Brewers have recorded five wins to sit in second position on the ladder, winning a number of close games and underlining the competitive nature of the team.
The individual skills the girls bring into the collective team environment has been a cornerstone of their success so far.
The great aspect of this team is its teamwork and ability to get contributions from all the girls throughout different areas of the game when needed, especially in the field.
Other teams’ coaches often tell Bill: “Your girls are so strong in the field”.
Bill is reluctant to single out individuals but when pushed nominates wicket-keeper Annabelle Croll and ace leg spinner Kaya “Ricky” Punter as his standouts.
Annabelle is a super competitive wicket-keeper, fast-scoring middle order bat and has great hands and balance behind the stumps.
Kaya has also provided her own highlight reels. She’s a deadly accurate leg spinner middle order bat and patrols the point region in the field with the same intensity as her namesake ‘Ricky’.
“Keep your eye out for these two as they push through the Manly pathway system,” Bill tells us.
The coach is excited about the talent at his disposal and the overall depth in women’s cricket.
There are now 14 teams entered in the Brewers competition compared to 10 in the first grade competition.
“It is a great time to be involved in women’s sport and cricket, with endless possibilities through representative honours,” Bill said.
FIGHT ON FOR CLUB CHAMPS
Listening to Mike Pawley’s very interesting and moving chat on Sam Hole’s Weekly Wicket podcast, one thing stood out when talked turned to winning club championships.
Mike was quite right when he said they are bloody hard to win and even harder to defend.
Rival teams come at you even stronger and the challenge is to maintain the rage from the previous summer.
We won the men’s CC last season and, it’s fair to say, not all has gone to plan in our title defence.
While second and fifth grade are pulling their weight – and PGs is chipping in – some inconsistency in the other grades has us off the pace a little.
We are sixth on the club champs table and certainly not out of the race, but some better performances across all grades are needed if we’re to threaten the leading clubs.
I know we’ve got it in us and now it’s a matter of getting out in the middle and performing.
It’s especially pleasing to see our women’s teams doing so well in their club championship campaign.
The girls sit third (of 14 clubs) after some very strong performances and will keep the heat on the sides above them as we strive for our maiden women’s CC crown.
JOEL’S INDIAN TAKE-AWAY
Joel Davies had just polished off a take-away dinner and watched John Candy classic Uncle Buck to celebrate mum Simone’s birthday, when the phone rang around midnight Monday.
At first Joel thought it was some sort of wind-up when the bloke on the other end said he was Australia selector Tony Dodemaide calling from India.
But this was no joke.
The battle-weary Australian T20 squad was sending a number of fatigued players home and needed reinforcements.
Tony asked Joel if he’d be available to run the drinks and act as a substitute fielder if needed over the last two games.
Oh, and by the way, we’ll fly you over business class.
By the time you read this, JD will have caught up with the Aussie boys in Raipur as they prep for the last two games of the series.
And while he won’t be playing (although they did ask him to take his kit), it’s a wonderful opportunity for Joel to see what it’s all about at the top level.
We look forward to hearing all about it when he returns home to start preparing for his debut season with the Sydney Sixers.
