Over 50s State Tournament
A total of 86 nominations were received for the State 50’s, which was a pleasing amount given quite a few Port Jackson cricketers has been in Adelaide playing for NSW for a week at the Nationals not long prior. Port Jackson Vets committee had several meetings, discussing overall strategy towards the tournament and non-negotiable features of those we plan to select. Initially we were asked to supply six sides for the State 50’s tournament, and we set about selecting 72 players, but ultimately Vets NSW asked us for 5 sides. We selected 60 players and left quite a few players on standby and as usual, several were required to play, as work, illness (hope you’re feeling better Hardos aka “The Mad Prof”), and injuries took a toll. The State 50’s was for the first time split between Newcastle for Division 1 and beautiful Armidale for Divisions 2 and 3. This was largely due to logistics of having so many teams across the tournament divisions and finding enough grounds to allow concurrent matches each day. For us it also made good sense as many of our membership are just delighted to play cricket in a beautiful location out of Sydney and enjoy the social side without the stresses that higher-end competition can bring. Alternatively, we still have many Port Jackson men who are extremely competitive both on a State and National level at Over 50’s, and Newcastle was more their speed. The location split obviously did have the potential to cause consternation due to some fellows preferring to play in Division 1 and ultimately missing out. We make no apologies for this, and the standard is undoubtedly improving in these tournaments, so it goes without saying that there are difficult selection decisions and occasionally egos get bruised. The split locations also made selecting fit and ready cricketers very important as reserves moving up the teams wasn’t logistically as easy.
Results wise, in the hotly contested Division 1, we were asked to submit just two sides and did so, with two strong and experienced sides in this form of 45-overs multi-day tournament cricket. We were led in Newcastle by Paul Ryan and Mick Hall, and up in Armidale, our three sides were ably led by Peter “Perfect” Thomas, Jeremy Berenger and Brad “The Zodiac” Holland. In the Div 1 in Newcastle, unfortunately we didn’t come away with the silverware. We did suffer some key injuries and pull-outs, but no excuses, we didn’t perform well enough to win. We need to be focused on selecting fit and match ready players to cope with 3 to 4 days of competitive cricket. I would like to sincerely thank Paul Ryan for his input and assistance with the Port Jackson set up this season and for his marketing efforts. Paul’s reputation and record in Sydney Premier cricket is outstanding and to have someone of his calibre involved is a big step forward for Port Jackos. Similarly, Michael Hall is a sensational guy and cricketer and very much a part of the Port Jackson heartbeat. Thanks gents. But to the victors go the spoils. Congratulations must go to Johnny “The Energiser” Jewiss and his Central Coast lads who took out the Div 1 competition. Cricket is strong on the Coast and there’s always a good tussle between Port Jackson and the Cyclones. Well done to your boys Johnny.
Down the track, we’d like more teams in Division 1, as feel our player depth and strength is increasing. Our third side, (PJ White), which played in Armidale, played at a very high standard and ultimately swept all before them up there in the New England, winning Div 2 handsomely. Spies tell me they were also well performed off the paddock! A summary of match results for the State 50’s Championships is below:
Division One in Newcastle
PJ Red (1st XI)
PJ Blue (2nd XI)
Day 1 – Awesome Effort against a strong looking Newcastle side. We put 218 runs on the board and had a comfortable win in the end easily protecting the target with our slow bowlers running amok.
Day 2 – Pipped in the last over against a quality Riverina side. The game swayed both ways all the way through but in the end, we just couldn’t hold the reins in long enough to protect the 185 target.
Day 3 – We were down bowlers as lent players to PJ Red, and a few other players struggling with niggles, took its toll. But ultimately, we couldn’t chase down 170, which was gettable.
The leading batsmen for the PJ Blue were Matthew “Le Pistolet” Turner and Adrian Schwager with great knocks also from Andrew Varasdi, Dave “The Newlywed” Newham and Rod “Rocket” Ribet. With the seed, Giles “The Chameleon” Park led the attack well and Mick Hall, Dave Newham and Matt Turner all took turns to bag some wickets. Team camaraderie was reportedly extremely high.
Divisions 2 and 3 in Armidale
Division 2 - PJ White (3rd XI)
Match 1 vs Far North Coast was played on a green top with a slow outfield. PJ bowled first and Damien “El Hefe” Heffernan was outstanding with 4/17. New PJ boy, Ben “Fingers” Callaway, from the Old Iggies stable, chipped in with 3/12. Port Jacko restricted FNC to 123. It wasn’t an easy day for batting, and we slumped to 3/18 but Andy “Sir Hugo Drax” Davis batted cautiously steering us into the 60s. When Sir Hugo (Davo) was out the score was 5/62. New boy David Waterson looked like he was playing on a different surface. He struck 30 from 33 when everyone was struggling on a minefield. His departure left us 6/76 still 45 shy of what had looked an easy target. Trev “Odd Job” Whittall in his inimitable style threw caution to the wind and struck a breezy 40* getting us a few runs shy of the target. A well-crafted edge through the vacant slips saw David “Easy Rider” Craig and Martin “Trainspotter in Chief” Payne scamper a three to bring up the victory.
Match 2 vs Hunter was again played under grey skies on a water affected surface. A two-hour rain delay reduced the match to 40 overs. PJ were asked to bowl, and Ben “Fingers” Callaway destroyed the top order with a triple wicket maiden finishing with 3/8. This ripped out Hunter’s heart and in tricky conditions with PJ’s snaring some great catches, Hunter meekly submitted for 59 runs in total. A storm was threatening, so Rick “Dr Who” Howard wasted no time, scoring 28 in even time. Davo and skipper Pete Thomas chimed in for the winning runs and we just beat the rain to secure a dominant win and get an early mark to the public house.
Match 3 vs Port Jackson SHB Grey - So, to the 3rd day and the Div 2 final was played between Port Jackson White and PJ ‘Sydney Harbour Bridge’ Grey. The start was delayed due to water under the covers reducing the match to 40 overs. PJ White batted first and compiled 4/215 with contributions from many players. Peter Thomas and Trevor Whittall both got “in the bank” with 40’s. Andrew “Drax” Davis (30) and Ben “Graf” Frawley (30) got us off to a great start. Dave Waterson was again amongst the runs (31*) and Phil Goulstone scored 23*. All the bowlers went well but this time Martyn Payne chipped in with 3/5 from 8 overs bowling 6 straight maidens.
An outstanding performance from our 3rd XI (PJ White) and a great team effort with performance from all 12 players. New man David Waterson put in some eye-catching performances with the gloves and bat. “El Hefe” is one of the best fielders over 50 in the country and several new Port Jackson Vets representatives impressed. The off-field touring culinary phenomenon continues with Michael “David Lamb” Toal a sublime host of the after-party avec dinner mints...
Back Row: Phil Goulstone, David Waterson, Martyn Payne, Ben Callaway, Damian Heffernan, Michael Toal
Front Row: Dave Craig, Ric Howard, Trev Whittall, Pete Thomas (C), Andy Davis, Ben Frawley
Division 2 - PJ SHB Grey (4th XI)
Heavy storms on both Monday & Tuesday nights leading to ground changes, late starts, reduced overs and interesting bowler-friendly pitches across Tuesday and Wednesday.
Game 1 saw PJ SHB Grey up against Hunter Veterans at the beautiful UNE ground, Bellevue Oval. One week post Uni O-Week, there was no sign of any student shenanigans. No streakers and no pitch invasions. Pity... we won the toss bowled on a wicket that looked like it would offer a bit. It took us a couple of overs to get the radar right with the new pink ball, but PJ supremo Tommy “The Paddle-pop Lion” Reaney snagged the initial breakthrough and after that, we took wickets at a regular interval. Hunter reached 172. The pick of the bowlers was Darshan Mudaliar (4/29). Tommy took important early wickets and the skipper Brad “The Zodiac” Holland burgled 3/1 at the death. We never really got going with our batting being all out in the 43rd over for 142. Runs were scored by Maurice “The Postman” Ford, Mitch “Man-Bag” Sturt with Darsh and Tommy capping good all-round games with some late order runs.
Day 2 saw another reduced format to 40 overs against Far North Coast. We lost the toss and were asked to bat and never got going. Glenn Stanley was the standout of the innings with 25*, but we were all out for 71 in the 35th over. The positive was there were plenty of opportunities to award the little black duck for the day, with Craig “Bomber” McKenzie a very worthy recipient. Far North Coast passed our total 1 wicket down giving us something to think about over craft beer. Lance Soles, Ravi “Silk” Raveendran and Dan Zatz were the pick of the bowlers.
Overall, Armidale and touring with Port Jackson Vets was such a rewarding experience. The magic of PJ Grey coming together from 7 or 8 different clubs with varied backgrounds to enjoy each other's company and encourage each other was special. Disappointing to go 0-3 but I think we're all better off for the experience and fired up to go again next time! Thanks to Daniel Zatz who did a fabulous job as team our PJ Grey team manager.
Division 3 - PJ Orange (5th XI)
PJ Orange, like all smaller brothers, was pummelled around a bit and due to injuries in other sides, lost players further along the Port Jackson chain of sides and this hurt us a little. PJ Orange lost their matches on Day 1 and Day 2 very narrowly. On Day 3, we played effectively in the playoff for last place and second last and won this easily. With a bit more luck early on, we could have knocked those cocky PJ White off their supposed throne. On days 1 and 2, one man returned to form magnificently. Yes, our very own Port Jackos President “Fabio” Berenger was sublime with the stick and set up good totals, without much support. The selectors’ agony has finally been eased...
The team camaraderie was great and the social side incredibly enjoyable and brutal at the same time! A strict protocol of fines was adopted and enforced by the Emu Plains lads right across the tournament. It led to a healthy kitty for the pub on the last night and a happy winner of the grand prize aka “keg-ball”. As usual one of the great things about these tournaments is catching up with friends from other regional sides or who you may have played for NSW with. Armidale has great pubs, excellent food and simply beautiful cricket grounds. It was a real privilege to take part for Port Jackson. Our PJ Orange Manager for this trip was Ange Barbaro and he was fantastic. Prior to the tour, Ange was also central to arranging training at the beautiful new Cricket NSW complex at Silverwater and this was a real treat for all concerned. Thank you, Ange!
Ange actually penned a brief ode to the 50’s tournament and tour, and it might resonate with us all...
“How good is Port Jackson Veterans cricket? Is there any better way to get over a local semi-final loss, than to start a 7-hour drive to a commence an NSW Veterans tournament? Meeting new and old teammates, playing at great grounds, including the highest turf pitch in Australia at Guyra. Catching up with other squads after the games, spending all of our hard-earned “fines” money, and finishing off with a great meal with the team at Tattersalls. Then another 7-hour tourist drive with two nut cases through unsurfaced roads that Google Maps is yet to be informed about. While we didn’t win, it was a memorable trip and something to look forward to next year.”
Warm Regards in cricket,
Nick Garling
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