Seniors

Headline achievements

The Grand Finals are now over and there were many highlights:

• 2 wins (B1 & C1) and 3 losses (A1, B2 & C3)
• Justin Paterson (A1) took 7/35 from 21 overs – the best bowling performance in an A Grade Grand Final for West Penno
• Daniel Fiedler (B1) and Andrew Fiedler (C1) are the first father / son Captain combination to win a Premiership WPHC – a Club first and possibly an Association record
• Andrew Fiedler became our 1^st Captain to win back-to-back Premierships in C1 Grade
• Justin Edwards taking a 5-wicket haul in B1 Grade.

Seniors Match Reports

A1 Grade

WPHC 9/134 drew with Berowra 135

Day 1 – WPHC Vs Berowra 2/47

After 2-weeks of heavy rain there was a chance of getting on with breaks in the weather. The boys put in a huge effort all week by being at the ground to put covers on and off and then drying the pitch with 4 commercial blowers hired from Bunnings – a game we had to win as we finished 2^nd. We eventually got on at 4.00 pm.

We won the toss and elected to bowl. The pitch was playable but offered a bit if we got it in the right places. There were lots balls popping into space and a few close appeals but Berowra negotiated a difficult session to be 2 down. With 90 overs to play on Day 2 there is a lot of cricket left in this game and with the chance of batting in the best conditions later on the day this is very much game on.

Day 2

The sun was shining and the day promised to be an exciting finish and it didn’t disappoint. Berowra batted sensibly with balls again popping into space but they survived to be 2/72 off 45 overs in a grinding game. Over the 6 years our fast bowlers would dominate. Today it was Justin Paterson, the left arm orthodox who bowled 21 overs straight and finished with 7/35 – just the 142^nd time in our history anyone has taken 7 wickets or better in an innings and the 3^rd time in a Grand Final – the first time in A Grade. This gave us a shot at victory – needing 136 to win in 45 overs.

Phil Wurth and James Makin opened and got us off to a flyer. Phil batted with great intent and scored a rapid 48 in just 15 overs to leave us 1/64 and well placed to chase down the remaining 71 runs in 30 overs. James was outstanding also getting 48 before falling as our 7^th wicket with the score on 121. With good bowling and a comfortable 2 runs an over required the run rate slowed. After promising starts, wickets fell regularly and we got down to needing 8 off the last over to win. We got 7 runs and missed the win by just 2 runs. Just one run would have given us a tie and Joint Premiers.

This was a great game and with many highlights but we just missed out in what was described by Geoff Hasler, the long-term as the best A1 Grade Grand Final he has seen in the 20 years.

Team members: Nick Bennett, Alex Connell, Scott Henderson, Matt Jobson, James Makin (C), Josh Mathias, Riley Miedler, Justin Paterson, Michael Robertson, Lachlan Vile, Phil Wurth.

Postscript

On Saturday 31 March 2017, the Sydney Morning Herald ran the following story in the ‘Fitz Files’ – a weekly column by Peter Fitzsimons:

“Perfect pitch

As if you didn’t know, last weekend in Sydney was the scheduled cricket final for many suburban comps across our fair metropolis, meaning there was more angst than usual, contemplating the wet weather, and nowhere was it stronger than among the lads of the West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Cricket Club, due to play and Berowra at the latter’s home ground. WPHCCC needed to play to win. BCC didn’t. But say, the West Pennant lads asked, would you Berowra blokes mind if, in the course of the week, we came over your way, and kinda looked after your oval? Not at all! And so it went, all week, as the Pennant posse covered the pitch, aired the pitch, hired leaf blowers to dry the pitch, removed covers so that the grass could be mowed, and covered the pitch once more. And it worked! Come Saturday the two-day match started only at 4pm, but it started, due to their vigilance. Star of the show, as it turned out was WPHCCC’s Justin Paterson, usually a fast bowler, who was called on to bowl spin to shut Berowra down after their big start, and did so, taking a magnificent 7/35. WPHCCC was left with a target of just 136 runs to win. And who, do you suppose comes in at last drop, late Sunday arvo, with one ball remaining, needing four to win? Justin Paterson. He takes centre, he furrows his brow, he steps down the wicket, he connects! He runs … as Berowra scrambles scramble like scalded cats to stop the boundary and … does so. A mighty heave back to the wicket-keeper, and WPHCCC has only run two. It is a draw as WPHCCC remain with two not out batsmen, meaning Berowra take the trophy.

 I know it, you know it, and they know it. Gotta love this city!”

Source: here

B1 Grade

WPHC 83 & 0/68 defeated Hornsby 78

Day 1 – WPHC 83 Vs Hornsby 3/38

We lost the toss against top placed team Hornsby and were sent in to bat. Runs were hard to come by and wickets fell slowly but consistently throughout the first day. At 20 overs we were 1/23. At 60 overs we were 6/75. Michael Banner displayed excellent patience and helped us put a semi-decent score on the board with his 35. Funnily enough, second top scorer was sundries at 9, with no one else reaching double figures but fighting hard to keep their wicket. We were bowled out for 82 and had 18 overs at Hornsby at the end of day one, to which we made up for a low score having Hornsby finish on 3/38 at the end of the day.

Day 2

Day two was looking 50/50 all day as to who was going to win, as we needed 7 wickets to get. At a drinks break, Hornsby needed 12 runs to win, with 2 wickets in hand. It was so close and both teams were just a few balls away from winning or losing the premiership. Dan Costigan struck the first of those wickets bowling out their number 10 batsmen. Then Justin Edwards finished them off to which the team nearly squashed him in glee after bowling their top batsmen on the day who got 22.

They were all out for 78, 4 runs short of our score, but the day wasn’t over yet. Justin was the star of the day with 5/22 off 21 amazing overs. Finally, Michael Banner and Ashane De Silva were sent in to which Hornsby hoped they would get quick wickets and go for the outright win. This was to no avail however, as Ashane turned it on and decided to play T20 cricket and finished with 51 not out off 14 overs, to which Hornsby called it off and we officially claimed the premiership finishing on 0/68. Well done to our boys and to Hornsby who put up a fight the whole way.

Team members: Josh Banner, Michael Banner, Dan Costigan, Calvin Breytenbach, Ashane De Silva, Justin Edwards, Kyle Faber, Daniel Fiedler (C), Joel Herzog, Tim Leyshon, Cameron McBrien, Tis Mistry, Taki Manolelis.

B2 Grade

WPHC 44 & 7 dec 103 lost to SKLPS 73 & 7/58

Day 1 – 44 Vs SKLPS 6/37

Our game was moved to a very lush Fred Caterson Reserve as Kenthurst Park was closed. We lost the toss (no surprise there – that’s 13 lost tosses for the year) and we were asked to bat. The going was tough with good first up bowling from SKLPS and the ground not conducive to scoring from good cricket shots. Aaron Carlini got a peach in the 3^rd over and we were 1/0. At the 15 over drinks break we were 2/5. The session after drinks belonged to SKLPS as wickets fell regularly as we tried to hit over the top to score. At 30 overs we were 6/18. After lunch we kept digging away but were bowled out for 44 off 45 overs. Our top score was 9 (Dinuka).

Now it was our turn to put some pressure on with the ball and Bailey Miedler and Peter Flook lit up the ground with some raw pace. In the first 5 overs we had SKLPS 4/5 – we were all over them. Their skipper and wicketkeeper then engaged in a block-a-thon and were scoring runs with edges, tickles to leg and scraping runs. They lost their 5^th wicket in the 34^th over and were 5/25. We continued to chip away and had them 6/28 in the 42^nd over. A few lusty shots at the end of the day got them to 37. It’s very tough batting but we are still in the game. This game will go to 2 innings so anything can happen.

Day 2

The game resumed with SKLPS at 6/37 and we needed quick wickets. They managed to scoot past our first innings total for the loss of 1 additional wicket. We dropped a couple of catches, lost a bowler (Peter Flook) to a broken thumb trying to take a catch (he grassed it by the way) and another removed for bowling a couple of beamers with a very wet cake of soap masquerading as a cricket ball. We eventually dismissed SKLPS for 73 (off 71 overs). Best of the bowling Bailey Miedler 4/22 (11), Peter Flook 2/8 (11), Dinuka Jayasuriya 2/9 (13.5), Anushka De Silva 1/3 (6) and Ben Meikle 1/17 (15). OK so we lost on first innings.

The job was to go and bat with intent and try to build a lead we could defend in a second innings battle. We got off to a flyer scoring 18 in the first 3 overs and went to the lunch break at 0/18. We continued the charge after lunch with players sacrificing themselves for the team effort. We managed to score 7/103 off 24 overs before the captain declared just before tea. We had a lead of 74 with 43 overs to play. Best of the batting Dinesh De Silva 31, Aaron Carlini 21 and Patrick Phillips 17.

Things could not have started better snagging a wicket in the 3^rd over and SKLPS were 1/1 at the tea break. We immediately broke through again straight after tea and SKLPS were 3/2 after 7 overs. It took a while o get another break through as SKLPS dug in. 4/18 off 27 overs. The Captain rung the changes looking for breakthroughs. We removed their 2 best batsmen in quick succession and SKLPS were reeling at 6/51 off 38 overs (but time was running out). Another wicket in the next over 7/51 off 39 overs. SKLPS managed to fish for an edge and the catches hit in the last few overs didn’t go to hand. SKLPS finished 7/58 off 43 overs when time was called. We had given it everything but fell just short. Best of the bowling Bailey Miedler 4/9 (12), Ben Meikle 2/17 (5) and Patrick Phillips 1/10 (5). Honourable mentions go to Dinuka Jayasuriya 0/2 (10) and Anushka De Silva 0/5 (5).

A great season for the B2 boys going 1 better than last year and making the grand final but falling just short.

Team members: Aaron Carlini, Anuska De Silva, Dinesh De Silva, Peter Flook, Michael Gunn, Dinuka Jayasuriya, Ben Meikle, Bailey Miedler, Patrick Phillips, Rick Turner (C), Chris Williamson; Ravin Wijesuriya (12^th), Taki Manolelis (13^th).

 C1 Grade

WPHC 8/135 defeated Normanhurst-Warrawee 131

Day 1 – WPHC 1/12 Vs Normanhurst-Warrawee 131

We had an interesting start to proceedings today when our turf ground at Roseville (why were we placed our there??!!) was deemed too wet for play, so we moved to Auluba Park which was a far more palatable proposition. Due to some overnight rain, we lost an hour, before tossing and electing to bowl. Footnote: Skipper Andrew Fiedler cannot EVER remember winning a toss & bowling, so maybe has turned the corner in his Captaincy!

Our bowlers got off to a bit of a rusty start having not bowled in a game since 18 Feb with the recent weather. Some wayward short bowling was greeted with open arms by the Normo top order and they got off to a good start before we made our first breakthrough with a fine run-out to Ray Khamis. The Normo top order saw off our fast men in the first session and looked threatening against our spinners, reaching a dangerous 3/112 midway through the afternoon.

Then came the game changer. Matty Marsden caught a screamer taking one of those over-the-shoulder catches running back to take a skier, and we lifted as a result. We proceeded to crash through the Normo middle and lower order over the next 12 overs, with Matty taking 3/18, Kyle Townsend 2/28 and Semonn Oleksyn 3/12 our main destroyers. We finished off the Normo innings taking 7/19 in this period. Stanton Tam continued his great catching this season snaring 4 catches while Mat, Aaron Hawkins and Fieds took one each.

We had 13 overs to negotiate to finish play and lost the vital wicket of Stanton. We have a deep batting order and remain very confident of running down the remaining 120 runs that will see us defend our C1 premiership victory from last year.

Day 2

We resumed day 2 with all day to score a further 120 with 9 wickets in hand on a very slow Auluba ground. Rahul Mucherla had done the job of nightwatchman perfectly for the 3^rd C1 Final in a row now, and with the in-form Mat Marsden, they saw out the first 20 overs of the day before both fell in quick succession – Mat for 25 & Rahul for 20.

At 3/48, we had to rebuild to ensure our young line-up weren’t too pressured at the end of the run-chase. Rohit Ninan (19) and Eric Junkkari (20) added a further 36 runs in the next 28 overs, taking few risks whilst putting the bad ball away. When Eric departed, Normanhurst made their last roll of the dice and took the new ball. It paid dividends as our nerves started to get the better of us. In a reflection of the Normanhurst 1^st innings, we lost 5/25 and the supposedly comfortable run chase became extremely tense.

At 8/109, Aaron Hawkins joined skipper Andrew Fiedler and the boys really knuckled down. The opposition were getting rowdy and were appealing for everything, but the boys resolved to see things to the end. Azza was the aggressor and patiently waited for the right balls to hit, finally finishing the match with 10 runs off the final 3 balls – the last of them sailing over square leg for 4, as he made the most vital 20 runs of his career.

 

The relief was enormous and celebrations were well deserved. Though we were Minor Premiers, it was a very tight competition throughout the year, so we never felt like the competition was ours to lose. We had to fight every game with both bat and ball, and had contributors right throughout the team all season, without having the superstars some other teams in the Grade had. Well done boys and a special congrats to the ‘retiring’ veterans – you know who you are!

Team members: Andrew Fiedler (C), Michael Fiedler, Aaron Hawkins, Eric Junkkari, Ray Khamis, Rahul Mucherla, Rohit Ninan, Semoon Oleksyn, Matt Marsden, Ben O’Meara, Stanton Tam, Rob Hitchcock, Nathan Fathers, Kyle Townsend.

C3 Grade

WPHC 105 & 8/50 lost to Castle Hill RSL 185

Day 1

A wet week in lead up to the grand final meant we were looking at a ground that was still not dry and some areas on the periphery had to be taken out with boundaries. Toss was crucial which was won by Castle Hill captain. No surprise that we were asked to bat first. Start was very cautious with first 10 overs yielding just 6 runs. In the 11th over we lost first wicket followed by second wicket in the 16th over with no addition to the score.

Indranil Mukherjee and Captain Tarun Lath started to rebuild innings and batted together for next 25 overs. With total score on 57 and 3rd wicket partnership on 51, Tarun (28) was run out with a direct throw and paying price for not grounding his bat. Soon after Indranil (21) miss-hit a drive and was caught at mid-off.

Rhys Flynn and Gautam Ayyar took score to 81 when Rhys (11) was caught off a short ball. Score was 5/81 into the 62nd over.Rommel Pandey (15) combined with Gautam (10) to add valuable runs. But our lower order did not have a good day either with the bat and we were all out for 105 after 70 overs.

With 10 plus overs left in the day’s play we needed quick wickets and Dean Carlin got a wicket with very first ball of the innings. Ryan Loveridge from other end also got breakthrough with his very first ball. 2/4 was a perfect start that we wanted defending a below par score. Dean got another breakthrough into the 7th over of the innings with Castle Hill on 3/15. After this Castle Hill batsmen started taking some chances and finished day one with score on 3/30.

Day 2

We needed to take some early wickets. But fortune seemed to favour the brave as Castle Hill batsmen took aerial route and managed to push score to 68. A miscommunication in running between the wickets and Dean throwing to the correct end had us finally a breakthrough. After this, Castle Hill batsmen stopped taking risks, we dropped few catches and they batted through to pass our score without losing another wicket.

We wanted to wrap up innings soon to have chance to force a second innings result. But it took us another 30 overs to take 6 wickets with first innings deficit of 80 runs. Dean 3/49, Ryan 2/24 and Perry Waldron 2/24 were best in bowling.

We had about 35 overs left in the day and we decided to give a crack at scoring quick runs and setting a target. Not to be on this day as we could not take aerial route enough and agreed to call off innings with score on 8/50 after 16 overs.

A season where we finished minor premiers and then did not find our best cricket when it mattered most. Still some smiles for the deserving Opposition on Grand Final victory.

Team members: Gautam Ayyar, Cameron Bish, Dean Carlin, Ramil De Silva, Dean Carlin, Rhys Flynn, Tarun Lath (C), Ryan Loveridge, Indranil Mukherjee, Asees Rajput, Ben Waldron, Perry Waldron.

Elite performers

The following information is on our top fielding performances as at the end of the Semi Finals:

Top 3 fielders

1. Tarun Lath (C3) – 15 catches
2. Stanton Tam (C1) – 13
3. James McBrien (A2) – 11
4. Alex Robertson (A1 & A2) – 10
5. Brent Larkham (C2 Red) – 10

Top 5 wicket-keepers

1. Joel Behlevanas (C2 Blue) – 21 dismissals (15 catches +2 stumpings + 3 non-keeper)
2. Gautam Ayyar (C3) – 21 dismissals (17 catches + 4 as a non-keeper)
3. Nick Bennett (A1) – 15 dismissals (14 catches + 1 non keeper)
4. Michael Fiedler (B1) – 13 dismissals (11 catches + 2 non keeper)
5. Kyle Faber (B10 – 14 dismissals (11 catches + 3 non keeper).

Champion player points

Champion player points for the top 5 players are:

1. Andrew Morris (C2 Red) – 134.4 points
2. Dan Costigan (B1 & A2) – 105.1
3. Ashane de Silva (B1) – 95.2
4. Perry Waldron (C3) – 87.6
5. Joel Behlevanas (C2 Blue) – 84.5