2nd Grade

Rd 12 vs Ulladulla United @ Lighthouse

Stunning Reversal

Won the toss -yet again! Sent understrength opposition in to bat on very good deck. Harding smashed by Mick Ylias btu eventually got his man. Snared threefa at the top of the order but stubborn young pups proved difficult to remove.

Feeling confident at 7 for 75 although not quite as happy when 3 for 6 chasing 109 at stumps. Thank god rain stopped play.

Day 2 saw a great fighting recovery from Jeffro 32, Woolfey 29 to guide us to safety against the wooden spooners. Slogger, not gritty, Danny turned up and smashed a quick 44 before sacrificing a deserved hal century.

Funky Miller and Shearsy demonstrated power-hitting at its best whilst the skipper actually made a few and then was able to declare for the second game in a row at 8/229.

Ulladulla crumbled under Rooty Hill assault from Bradley Miller who is a fine exponent of the art of inswing bowling. The former Macquarie Uni lower grader returned 6 for 6 in an incredible display.

The spin twins ended proceedings just as things were getting tense. Ulladulla were all out for 33 with only 5 overs to spare. All six captains happy with the result which ensured second place and a home semi!

Rd 11 vs North Nowra-Cambewarra

Awesome Outright

Won the toss, elected to bat. Usual good opening stand followed by collapse. All out for a disappointing 113. Hardon stroked 37, Breno an effortless 26.

Hardon 2 for 8 off eight was TIGHT but it was Poppa Dolbs with 5 for 7 in a devastating 10 over spell that changed the match. NNC rolled for a paltry 50.

Old Pro Boardo hit his straps in the second dig with a classy 58 not out. Mad Dog Miller crashed a zack over the fence as we declared at 6/157.

Harding and L.O'brien wrecked the top order as Norths were left reeling at 4 for 5. Eccles was relieved of duties at mid-off and handed the ball in a spin twin assault with Rastafarian Smith.

Eccles was ale to dominate lead footed batsmen and finished with an impressive 4 for 11 to secure the outright and fourth position.

Rd 10

Back To Earth With A Thud

Lost the toss on a scorcher of a day. Solid bowling but a serious of annoying gritty partnerships helped Berry post a total of 163.

Hot, exhausted, tired and emotional - poor decisions and shot selection has us reeling at 6 for 44.

A pretty forgettable day. Other than Shearsy's fantastic 5 for 18 that is - nothing like the sight of a big rig barrelling downhill.

Rd 9 vs Nowra CC

Pride Restored

A home game was just the tonic after the disappointment on the One Day final. Nowra in all sorts early but another rearguard action lifted the score to 153.

Ended the day in all manner of trouble at 3 for not much. Danny and Damo played beautifully to deny the Nowra bowlers in the last session.

Super sub Sudge (Kai) took over from Damo but only lasted one ball. In came Boardo who combined with D.Eccles in a matchwinning partnership.

Eccles went stumped (somewhat suprisingly) for 40 and then Dom showed the various strokes in his repetoire. Old Man Dolby eked out some runs as we notched up a gritty first innings win, establishing a 30 something run lead. Boardo was the last out, run out by Jyle for 45.

Nowra went back into bat and Sudge showed he can play a bit. Thrown the new ball Kai got back into the groove after 12 months off, responding with an incredible 8 for 46 that equalled the club record (held by some former pie chucker).

Great spells from Dom and Shearsy at the other end and voila, we had ourselves an outright!! Happy days.

One Day Final vs Ex-Servos

Devastation

Arrived at Hayden Drexel full of hope. Lost the toss but happy enough for the opposition to set a total for us to chase - that was, until the heat kicked in!!

Opening session rained boundaries and then we managed to reign in the run rate. Thought we were in with a show at 6 for 98 but alas, the tail wagged nicely for the home side and we were chasing 201.

Outclassed batting second and all out for a paltry 75. Credit to the One Day Champs - too good and we must now lift our game.

Rd 8 vs Bomo

Thrilling Victory!!

Wow! What a day. It began with a torrential downpour similar to the first round and delayed the start of play.

Bomo batted first and set a competitive total despite reasonably tight bowling. Young Breno did well when thrown the ball and captured three.

Another good start followed by a middle order collapse that we're becoming used to. Things started to get tense as we neared the total but kept losing wickets.

Enter one Hero stage right - M.Hiriart. Batting with his son, the old swashbuckler was swinging hard enough to knock the ball into the Basin. He actually connected with a couple and when the young gun finally got back the strike he guided the penultimate delivery to the boundary.

Amid chest thumping and blokey hugging we were into the One Day final on a day the Hiriarts will cherish forever.

Rd 7 vs Ulladulla United @ Sanctuary Pt

Back To Winning Ways

Thank heavens the rain let up for L.O.B. to prepare a wicket. The skipper won the toss (on fire with the heads/tails thing) and confidently chose to bat. Others did not share this enthusiasm however!

Luke Harding and Santino Battags took calculated risks over the infield for a great opening partnership. Creaky Boardo cranked up the pull shot and we were on our way to a good total.

Breno Hiriart and Dom O'Brien chipped in with late runs as Ulladulla felt two kinds of heat.

First three showponies proved frugal but ineffective (although dropped catches seemed to point to another one of those days). Good bowling changes brought wickets - leftie Jyle Smith ripped the heart out of the middle order to put paid to the runchase whilst Hiriart (the younger) displayed the right stuff in cleaning up the tail.

A good 61 run victory. Winning might not be the only thing BUT gee it's nice!!

Rd 6 vs North Nowra - Cambewarra @ Bernie Regan

Historic Tie Ends in a ... Tie!!

What a match - an unforgettable experience against a decent group blokes. From the outset we were pumped but dismal with the bat yet again (dear reader, is this becoming a recurring theme?).

Sat morning centurian Breno Hiriart continued his good form with 36 but unfortunately this rest of us too continued our recent batting form. Newby Braedon Shears played some nice shots in 13 whilst D.Eccles copped a stinker LBW decision. The rest of the batting card resembled Turtle's mini golf card for nine holes with fives, sixes and sevens.

All out for 91 and battling uphill. Bowlers to the rescue! Dom O'Brien (2 for 17) started the ball rolling removing Peters and Mailo in quick succession. Dolby was back to his frugal best, frustrating batsmen into playing reckless shots.

Limping to 5 for 23 at drinks the match was delicately balanced. NNC skppier Banger caused a scare, rattling off a few boundaries until bowled by el Kapitan (4 for 13 off 8).

Poppa (2 for 11) snared a couple from wily full tosses but Webbeck hung around posing a threat. Things got tense - lots of captains with field placement advice, new ball bowlers given a second spell, field up when the scores were locked AND then Breno jags the LBW to secure a momentous tie.

Bloody cricket, it's a funny old game.

Rd 5 vs Berry-Shoalhaven Heads @ Sanctuary Pt Oval

Disappointing Loss

All signs pointed to a glorious day of cricket at home BUT ...

With the skipper having won the toss AGAIN, we were on a high at 0 for 54 with Luke Harding in scintillating form, dispatching the ball frequently to the boundary.

Then the collapse came. Pastor administered the last rites to the middle order as the wickets fell in quick succession. At 6 for 68 Hardon and Franky staged a brief fightback before the wickets started tumbling once more.

All out for 106 with Luke scoring 55, Thomas Frank stroked 22 while opener Chris Battags got 12 - everyone else in single figures!

Good effort with the ball to restrict the runrate but Langy showed us how to persevere at the crease. Catches win matches and this was simply a game we shouldn't have lost!!

Rd 4 vs Nowra

Gritty Win In The Gloom

Super sub Solid Sudge came, saw and smashed an entertaining 56 in a tense run chase at Nowra Showground.

After a rain interrupted first session, the Nowra side scraped together 109 in their 28 overs.

Benny looked sturdy as opener but it was Tommy who guided us home to satisfy the skipper that we are made of the right stuff and not just 2nd grade pretenders.

On to the next round against BSH and one-day glory (without the coloured garb of the nancy boys in 1st grade).

Rd 3 vs Bye

Fairly certain we get to keep these points in spite of the rain. Lovin' La Nina!!

Rd 2 vs Bomaderry

Back To Earth With A Thud

Solid effort in the pulsating heat to limit Bomo bats. Top order fragility exposed by AJ and Wello.

Vengeance will be ours!!

Rd 1 vs Ex-Servos

New Season, New Dawn?

Day 2: Rain rain go away, we wanted to win!

Day 1:

Great opening days play. Loads of runs, solid partnerships, young gun on fire, old heads dispensing pearls of wisdom...

Breno Hiriart 79 - Super Stuff!!!!!