Round 2
(3rd October 2026)
Match Reports
A1 Grade
WPHC (Cam #25) 3/189 defeated Kissing Point 8/77
Hello loyal readers and welcome, welcome, welcome back to round 2 of the HKHDCA competition.
Now before I get to the game I must apologise to one of the A grade captains for last week’s match report. What was said was wrong, omitted many details and was not up to the journalistic standards of this great club that I stand by. So I apologise, not to any of the captains of the other teams I might have offended but rather to our own captain Cameron.
Coming through the Club as a young tearaway quick over a decade ago and batting 11, he has transformed himself into an esteemed A grade batsman and brought up 1000 runs for the club last Saturday which I failed to mention.
So congratulations Cam and it was so nice to see Preeds celebrate the occasion but completely BBQing him.
Currently in 1st place after our win last week, this round we were up against Kissing (Six) Point(s) who went down to new members Castle Hill in round 1.
Onto the game and it was a wet end to the week but luckily some of the boys put their hands up for covers and after leaving late Thursday arvo, they just got there in time to put the covers down at around Friday lunchtime.
However, unfortunately a still slightly damp square meant for a delayed start but with 27 overs a side agreed, we had a game.
Dane made his A grade debut and started positively with young DA who made a nice 50.
Preeds, stoked to find out T A Love wasn’t playing, got a start with 20 odd before being dismissed, but in good news didn’t run anyone out today.
Billy with the blessing of his lovely partner was allowed to drive down from a romantic getaway in Nelson Bay and made the trip worth it with a nice 47* off 35.
Speaking of Billy’s partner, a side note before we go on to say a massive thank you all the A grade WAGs for their continued support which is very much appreciated. For those singles reading, we do still have a number of eligible bachelors (rhymes with Hack Jando) so please reach out if keen.
Back to the game and Hawwy combined well late with Billy making light work of the so called death bowling as he peeled off 38* from 28 and we ended our innings on 189 from the allotted overs.
To be honest I got a bit bored and there wasn’t really much to report after our batting and realising we were home.
Jando and O took the new ball with the former snagging one early, whilst Wu went unrewarded.
Then Cam and Dane, in what I’m now calling the spin twins, much like McGill and Warne (you can decide who is who) but with offies took 3 and 4 respectively. Not sure if it was bad light or a Gandis like pea heart that ended the game but regardless KP finished with 8/77, we won and are now 2-0 to start the season, looking forward to round 3.
A2 Grade
WPHC (Todd) 199 defeated Kissing Point 8/88 (DLS)
Welcome back to our beloved game, at our home ground The Glade. Big thank you to Lachy and Alec for doing covers on Friday morning.
We arrived to a moist, squelchy, damp, unpleasant Glade.
This is something we are quite used to. The Geneva conventions state that “civilian populations receive clean, adequate shelter and basic survival necessities.” Lucky there’s 2 benches and a water fountain at The Glade.
Skipper KT lost the toss and we were sent into bat. The umpires didn’t like our stumps, so we had to drive to Jamaicans house to grab different stumps, great start. 30-minute delay. No overs lost apparently.
Anyways, Lachy and Zach set us the perfect platform getting us to 0-92 at drinks, keeping out the good balls and thwacking away the bad balls, pumping Kissing Point around The Glade. Lachy brought up 50 and departed soon after,
Zach out for 46 also. Shaan finally arrived at the ground. KT and Shaan continued the onslaught, putting on a 60 run partnership together. Shaan hit 2 daddy 6s and Kissing Point had 6 blokes fielding at deep extra cover attempting to stop KT. Shaan (26) and KT (38) departed as the middle – lower order finished our innings off for an excellent 199, basically 300 in Glade runs.
The pitch was only getting worse.
Dan and Riken started us off with some fantastic bowling, both beating the bat several times and having the openers in all sorts.
Riken (2-7 off 5) and Dan (0-8 off 4) was unlucky not to pick-up a wicket or 4. Tanay (3-13 off 6) continued the destruction. Dan took a fantastic catch in the deep via perfect field setting from KT. Jacko, Willy and Alec all picked up a wicket as we passed the 20 over mark and we knew we were home. In the end, bad light ended play after 28 overs, Kissing point struggling to 8-88.
This was a great team performance by the boys, it showed our depth in both batting and bowling.
Everyone understands their role and everyone is unselfish, I am extremely excited for this season. Big thank you to Riken and Volc for filling in. How goods 1 A2 team! Viva la Glade.
B1 Grade
WPHC Blue (Prats) 82 lost to ARL 93
A warm welcome and hello to all long-term and new readers of the famed B1 match report, sit back relax and enjoy the tales of why batting is overrated and everybody should just be a bowler
We rocked up to Headen to plush & green surrounds – a fair-cry from whatever the Home of Cricket has been recently, the boy’s were stinging to get the red cherry in hand and get to business
The innings started on fire with Pinkeye Carlin & Captain Prats putting the red cherry in all the right spots and reducing ARL to 4 for 9 after the first 7 overs and we were all over them like a rash….
Unfortunately, we were not to find a breakthrough for countless overs to come being outplayed by a Ex Grade Player who made us look quite silly…
With ARL playing their way into the 70s it was time for the Grade Player to hit his 50 run dispensation and retirement which all but ended any hopes at further runs as we turned the screws once again
5-14 followed as we ripped through a very thin tale who were bamboozled by the mystery spin of bomber bliss who’s replaced Judas #2 as the lead spinner for the blues (more on traitor cousins later).
Knocking over ARL for 93 with a bowling attack barer then the supermarkets shelves in April 2020 it was a glowing endorsement to the spirit & fight shown by the Blues – just a bunch of hungry lions
Unfortunately, that fight & spirit does not translate with us finding some batting form…. With a lack of early season runs & balls under the belt we really hit the classics in reply & found ourselves in a hole at 4-21 after 15.2 overs….
Together came Pls Respond Oli & Vinky who in our time of need delivered and gave us a pulse in a game slipping away from our grasp minute by minute, both men found the boundary and rotated the singles to keep the run rate in check
Big O was controversially given out going for a maximum and caught on the boundary…. Independent sources to this humble match reporter believe the fielder may have carried the ball over the boundary before catching it (6)??
Nevertheless, Stevey & Prats came to the crease and parted very quickly after and at 8-50 this chase was crashing quicker then Ticketmaster at 10:20 on Monday Morning (more on this later)
Then a spark, a shot of life and a chance to win the game as Mridul our trusty fill in and Vinky put on 30 in quick time and reduced the total needed to under 20 and with a shot to win the game we never stopped believing
Unfortunately, Mridul parted company at 9-80 and in came “Goo” Carlin to hold the line, unfortunately his ability with the bat is close to Chris Martin (not the Coldplay Singer) and with vinky looking to get the job down he unfortunately perished after a fighting 30 with our backs well and truly up against the wall
Dismissed for 82 we feel 12-short in a game we were somehow never really in but also never really out off, that’s the beauty of seniors cricket and everybody being well and truly half rubbish most of the time (except that grade bloke, he was good)
A few special shout-outs before we hit the road
- To our 2 Judas cousins who’ve left us to play for another club… We shall not be needing your support, enjoy playing in blue & yellow – however this humble match report writer thought Judas #1 was playing grade cricket… #notselected
- To my 2 favourite Novacastrians who I know were unfortunately stung by the Terrorist Regime known as Ticketmaster, I hope you have an eye opening Sunday & it would be a shame if the signal dropped out in the country and you couldn’t watch a famous evening (for the chooks)
I’d like to part with this message.
Everybody have a fantastic GF Sunday & long weekend, drink plenty and don’t forget the tricolours are the greatest team the world has ever seen
Viva La Blue
Till Next Time!!
Easts to Win!!
WPHC Red (Warren) 105 lost to Mt Colah 9/110
Match Report not provided.
B2 Grade
WPHC (Sparsh) Vs St Ives Wahroonga
Scores and results not received.
C1 Grade
WPHC Blue (Aniket) 96 defeated Castle Hill 60
Another week, another lost toss for skipper Ani.
The toss-losing streak continued, but somehow he still managed to get exactly what we wanted. Asked to bat first on a humid day that looked likely to offer plenty of assistance to the bowlers, we backed ourselves to put enough runs on the board and let our bowlers do the rest.
What followed was a true test of patience and determination.
The humid conditions made batting incredibly tough.
The heavy air drained energy levels, concentration was constantly tested, and run-scoring was hard work from the very first over. Castle Hill bowled disciplined lines and gave away very little, forcing us to scrap for every run.
Ani and Saurabh laid the foundation with an opening partnership of 37 runs, giving us a steady start in challenging conditions. Valuable contributions from Saurabh Kapoor (18), Hari Sankar (16) and Mohit Chadha (12) helped keep the scoreboard moving when batting was far from easy. Despite the effort, we were eventually restricted to 96, one of our lowest totals in recent memory.
Defending 96 was always going to require something special.
Despite the low total, there was never any panic within the group.
If Castle Hill could restrict us to 96, we believed we could do the same, and perhaps even better. There was confidence in our bowling attack, confidence in our fielding, and most importantly, confidence in each other.
We answered with discipline, energy and teamwork. From grinding out runs in difficult conditions to suffocating Castle Hill with relentless bowling and fielding pressure, this was a performance that showed exactly what this side is capable of when everyone contributes.
The bowling attack wasted no time proving that point.
We opened with Advay Rathor and Lakshya Rao, and both started brilliantly. Runs were hard to come by and Castle Hill were given no room to settle. After starring in the previous match, Advay simply picked up where he left off. Every over built pressure, and before long Castle Hill found themselves under enormous stress as we sensed an opportunity to take complete control of the match.
Advay was sensational.
He consistently hit dangerous areas, found movement and never allowed the Castle Hill batters to settle. Every over felt like a wicket was around the corner. His devastating spell ripped through the top order and laid the foundation for what would become a dominant bowling performance.
While the wickets will grab the headlines, this victory was built just as much on the efforts of the entire bowling group. Every dot ball increased the scoreboard pressure and forced Castle Hill into mistakes.
Lakshya’s opening spell helped build that pressure from the other end, ensuring there was no respite for the opposition. Isaac Taylor continued the squeeze with a superb spell, maintaining control and forcing the batters to take risks against the bowlers at the other end.
When Castle Hill threatened to rebuild, Mohit Chadha stepped in to continue the damage, claiming three crucial wickets and opening his wicket account for the club in style. Mohit and Isaac effectively helped finish the job that Advay had started. Together, the trio formed a relentless attack that never allowed Castle Hill to find any rhythm.
Equally important were the supporting bowlers, who ensured that even when wickets weren’t falling, runs certainly weren’t flowing. Tight spells, disciplined lines and smart bowling plans kept Castle Hill locked down throughout the chase. There were no easy singles, no loose overs and very few scoring opportunities as we slowly squeezed the life out of the innings.
The fielding effort was equally impressive.
This wasn’t a victory won by a few individuals. It was a complete team performance in the field. Every player hunted the ball, backed up throws, cut off boundaries and maintained intensity throughout the innings. Castle Hill were never allowed to rotate the strike freely and were constantly forced into taking risks.
Our returning player Hari Sankar led the way with an outstanding five catches, grabbing everything that came his way. However, the commitment and energy from every fielder played a major role in controlling the game. The constant pressure created by the fielding unit meant Castle Hill never felt comfortable at the crease and never managed to build any meaningful momentum.
By the time the wickets continued to tumble, the result felt inevitable.
Advay finished with extraordinary figures of 6 wickets for 11 runs from 7 overs, while Mohit returned 3 wickets for 11 runs from 7 overs. Isaac’s excellent spell of 1 for 16 from 7 overs was every bit as important, helping create the pressure that made those breakthroughs possible.
Eventually, Castle Hill were dismissed for 60, handing us a memorable 36-run victory.
The scorecard will show a win by 36 runs, but it tells only part of the story.
This victory was built on resilience in difficult batting conditions, disciplined bowling, relentless fielding and complete belief in the team and the game plan.
Ani may have lost another toss, but once again ended up with exactly what the team wanted, and the bowlers made sure it counted.
🎯 Advay – 6/11
🎯 Mohit – 3/11
🎯 Isaac – 1/16
WPHC Red (Roger Francis) drew with Beecroft
Match scheduled at Bannockburn was abandoned due to wet surrounds.
C2 Grade
WPHC (Chintan) ) 6/166 lost to Kissing Point 9/219 (DLS)
Highlights
- Pritam Damija – 65
- B. Ramamurthy 3/28,
- C. Shah 2/31,
- A. Chakraborty 2/46
Match report
Kissing Point won the toss and elected to bat first, but West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Cricket Club (WPHCCC) struck early blows thanks to a disciplined and incisive opening spell.
Ram and Anand Dixit set the tone from ball one, testing the outside edge and drying up runs.
Ram trapped Rohan Sivanathan lbw for the opening breakthrough at 22, before Anand struck just two runs later, having Joshua Hamilton well-caught by Aaryaveer Tangri. Ram was back in the action immediately after, clean bowling Alex Jameson to leave Kissing Point reeling at 25/3.
The pressure never let up.
First-change bowler Pritam Dhamija pegged back Steve Best’s stumps (45/4), and middle-overs breakthroughs from Agniva Chakraborty (2/46) and Chintan Shah (2/31) triggered a collapse that reduced Kissing Point to a precarious 102/7.
A resilient 83-run eighth-wicket stand frustrated the attack, but a sharp stumping by Jagjot Singh Mangat off Chintan broke the partnership. Ram returned to polish off his stellar shift, castling Cameron McLagan to finish with match-best figures of 3/28 off his 7 overs as Kissing Point closed on 9/219 from their 35 overs.
Chasing a target of 219 WPHCCC got off to a flyer start.
Openers Pritam Dhamija and Chintan Shah put on a commanding 67-run opening stand in 7 overs, blunting the new ball and punishing anything loose. Chintan departed for a fluent 23 off 24 deliveries, but Pritam shifted through the gears, anchoring the chase with a blistering 65 off just 50 balls (including 9 boundaries and 2 towering sixes).
Supported by a composed 30 (46) from Aaryaveer Tangri, WPHCCC looked cruising at 118/1. However, the contest took a sharp turn with the reintroduction of their spearheaded a fierce fightback for Kissing Point.
Pritam’s dismissal sparked a rapid middle-order wobble of 5 wickets for just 28 runs, sliding WPHCCC from 118/1 to 146/6.
Vikrant Sunkale (12* off 14) and Sachin Narayanan (5*) dug in under climbing pressure to steady the innings and take the total to 166/6 after 28.3 overs when play came to a halt due to bad light followed by heavy rain.
Result:
Despite a spirited fightback and standout performances across both innings, WPHCCC fell agonisingly short as Kissing Point secured victory by 8 runs via the DLS method.
C4 Grade
WPHC (Ravi) 75 lost to Thornleigh 8/129
Our latest outting at Arcadia Park against Thornleigh was a classic game of two halves – a brilliant display of bowling and determined fielding effort followed by a batting performance that could be described as ‘strange’.
Losing the toss and bowling first, our attack was disciplined and relentless.
Led by skipper Ravi (3/14) and Gihan (0/17), we successfully restricted Thornleigh to a very chase-able 8-129 from their 35 overs.
Sayantan (2/17) and Amith (1/12) chipped in with wickets, while our spinners kept things tight & Siby, who came in towards the end of the innings deserves a massive shout-out for bowling two brilliant maidens on the trot to finish with figures of 1/0!
Chasing 130 for the win, our innings unfortunately didn’t go as planned.
Despite a valiant 19 from Jassi and a fighting 13 from Sayantan, we couldn’t string together the partnerships needed.
In addition, the turn of events at the end didn’t help our cause. With the score at 7-75, Thornleigh’s strike bowler stepped up and casually bagged a hat-trick to wipe out our last 3 batters, leaving us all out for 75 in just 24.4 overs.
While not the outcome we would’ve liked, there are plenty of positives to take into the next round. Our bowling was disciplined and fielding sharp.
With a few more partnerships with the bat and a little more luck and we should be back to winning ways. Onwards and upwards!
D1 Grade
WPHC (Diggers ) 6/92 defeated Beecroft 89
With the rain holding off, we arrived at Fred Cat 4 with a lot of anticipation, only to find the pitch half under water.
Beecroft were keen to play and got working on the pitch with towels and a broom.
This writer thought it would be a good day to start at the Club early, but the rain held off and the towels seemed to work.
Capt Diggers was away in Hilston, so stand-in Capt Buzz stepped up to the plate and quickly lost the toss and we were asked to bowl in a reduced game of 30 overs aside.
Disco (2/24 – should have been 3 fa) and Deano (2/12) opened the bowling and both took early wickets.
A nonchalant throw from the short boundary by Zac to Gus, saw Beecroft 5/29 and we felt on top early.
But a partnership of 30-odd saw Beecroft start to build an innings, before another run-out from Zac to Gus, and wickets by the better Gerber, Grant (2/18) and stand-in Capt Buzz (2/1) resulted in Beecroft being bowled out for 89 in 26 overs.
A great performance from the whole team and Capt Buzz to restrict Beecroft to the low score, which included 8 batsmen scoring a duck (yes, only 3 batsmen scored runs in their total).
After the change, Cliff and Tim opened the batting but both got good deliveries to see them off cheaply.
Then came Adi (39). A great display of technical batting and power hitting, which anchored the innings.
Nandit, Pete and Gus batted around Adi, and the innings was finished off with Zac scoring another unbeaten score of 25. Quan hit 0*.
We chased the score down in 21 overs.
A great win by the team – especially the 8 x ducks.
Senior Mixed One-Day Competition
WPHC Red (Pras) TBA defeated St Ives Wahroonga 125
St Ives batted first, with their openers both getting out cheaply due to the disciplined pace and seam opening bowling partnership by Will P (1/14) and Eshan P (1/15), both with a wicket and 2 maidens.
Then a middle-order recovery got St Ives to a decent score of 125. Paul H’s (2/20) spell and the run-out assisted by the boundary throw from Luke P got the collapse underway. Sam (1/18) and Anush (1/11) spun their web to clean up the tail. Special note about two 14-year olds, Joe and Alice – who held the middle order steady.
A couple of classic catches: 1 by Mick diving forward at gully, Luke P juggling a snatch and Skipper Pras finally got his contribution with a high-catch.. even though he dropped a sitter on the boundary.
WPHC Red’s batting innings had a solid start, even after losing our opener at 1/0.
Then the 68-run partnership between Jaydev (20) and Jimmy’s (48) solid innings got us going, Anush (12) and Paul (8) played their shots to go at the required run rate, and the ever-reliable Sam (21) and Eshan (4 not out) got us over the line in the 32nd over, before the lightning and thunder began to threaten.
Both Paul and Jimmy were equal MVPs today!
PS: Thanks to Parin (WPHC OD White team) for lending us a great super sub – Anush…and we were certainly entertained by Jimmy’s classy batting, thanks to Mick for getting him to fill-in.
WPHC Blue (Roger Friend) 3/154 defeated Berowra 8/153
Berowra won the toss and elected to bat, posting 153/8 from their allotted overs. ODC WPHCC Blue produced a disciplined bowling performance to restrict the opposition, with Bala Raghuraman (3/28) and Mahesh Kadaganchi (3/17) leading the attack. Roger Friendalso contributed with 1/16.
The fielders backed up the bowlers superbly, with wicketkeeper Sandeep Patel taking three catches, while Malinda Dharmadasachipped in with two catches.
In reply, ODC WPHCC Blue chased down the target comfortably, reaching 154/3 and sealing victory with four overs remaining.
The innings was anchored by impressive half centuries from Bala Raghuraman and Vinoth Sambasivam, whose crucial third-wicket partnership laid the foundation for the successful run chase and guided the team to a convincing win.
A strong all-round team performance saw ODC WPHCC Blue secure an excellent victory and valuable competition points.
WPHC Green (Rob) 7/166 tied with WPHC White(Parin) 166
Despite some heavy rain leading into the match, the rain stayed away at Karuah Park to host the latest edition of the One-Day Sheep Station Cup. Rob won the toss and chose to bat first.
Mudi (13) and Munish (4) opened the batting for the Greens, facing tight bowling from Lachlan M and Flynn.
Despite starting to deal in boundaries early on, Mudi fell early on.
Lachlan M and Flynn continued to pressure the new batters, with three wickets taken in fairly quick succession.
Indranil (57) and Manu (14) then were the mainstay of the Greens innings, putting on 71 for the 4th wicket partnership.
Manu was then castled by Jacques, bringing Ansh (40) to the crease. Lachlan J followed suit with another peach of a delivery, removing Indranil for a well-earned 57. Ansh made an aggressive cameo, scoring 40 off 32 balls, but was shortly removed after a ripper from Sachin sent the stumps flying.
Greens finished the innings with 7/166, with mentions to Lachlan M bowling 2/13 off 5 overs and Flynn bowling 2/17 off 7 overs.
Ross S (11) and Sachin (4) began the chase, with Malinda and Nathan opening strong from the Greens. Nathan then tore through the Whites top order, removing Sachin and Samridh (0) in consecutive balls.
Nathan didn’t claim a hat-trick but was consistently swinging the ball well and kept the Whites batters on their toes, and shortly thereafter removed Ross.
The skipper Parin (44) then walked out to bat, and was looking to score from the first ball, as always.
Parin and Raymond (30) made a 66-run 3rd wicket partnership, until Manny caught Parin off a leading edge off his own bowling.
Lachlan M (14) and Raymond kept the scoreboard ticking, until Aahren hit Raymond’s off stump. After Ishan (26*) and Lachlan M were keeping the chase going, Rob then opted for a change of bowlers, which brought the game back in the favour of the Greens. With 5 overs to go, Jon was brought into the attack and bowled Lachlan M with his first ball, earning his first Seniors’ wicket.
Jon continued to keep things tight until the second last over, allowing Nathan to come back and claim three wickets in the penultimate over.
The game was then on the line, with the Whites needing 4 runs off the final over with only one wicket in hand. Ishan and Lachlan J (1) were looking for singles, and claimed two important singles, although Manny was bowling tight in response. It came down to the Whites needing two runs off the final ball.
The ball fell into a gap and ran down field, however, a mix up on the call for a second run caused a run out, leaving scores tied.
In the end, cricket was the winner, producing another nail-biting Sheep Station cup that went right down to the very last ball.
A special mention goes to Nathan with his first wickets in Seniors, producing 6/32 off 7 very impressive overs.