2016 STCC Cricket report

1st XI Captain’s report by Thomas Hoskin

For the time that I have been the 1st XI captain, it has been a massive challenge and a big learning curve. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as captain of the team because I have seen players improve and enhance their skills and also their confidence in their abilities. I have formed many new and strong friendships through cricket at the college. I have also developed my cricket skills and knowledge of the game and how to be successful. I still remember starting my 1st XI career as a very young year 9, batting at the bottom of the order and running from fine leg to fine leg every game for a season. Now that I think back, it was worth going through all of that because I quickly learned my spot in the team, earned the respect of the senior players and formed friendships with them. It's crazy to think how far I've come and how many seasons I have played for the team and to top off my career by being captain was the best way to leave my legacy and finish at the college.

1St XI Player Pen Portraits

Anton Smail – Anton may be one of the smallest players in size within the team, but his ability to hit the ball hard and pierce gaps makes him an intimidating force for opening bowlers to come up against. Opening the batting for the team Anton takes a lot of the heat at the start of an innings and really blunts the attacking bowlers hitting them around the park. Handling the pace and swing of the new ball, Anton is invaluable to have at the top of the order and is constantly growing in confidence and skill. He is also one of our two wicket keepers and when he hasn’t got the gloves on he’s an absolute gun in the field, taking screamers and chasing every ball with a running style Usain Bolt would be proud of.

Connor Fitzgerald – Fitzy is the team’s other opening batsmen and has one of the best techniques in the team. His ability to smash the ball through cover or dab it down to third man is second to none. Being a left handed batsman, the left/right hand combination at the top of the order with Anton means Fitzy can take full of advantage of the field having to chop and change. He times the ball well and pushes the fielders round wherever he pleases. Not only is he useful with his top order batting, but he is also a weapon with the ball with his Shane Warne-like right arm leg-spin. Getting unreal T&B (turn and bounce) on pitches that would be considered a pace bowlers dream is one of the reasons Fitzy is so deadly with his leggies and his wrongun is a frightening sight for batsmen.

Joe Henderson – Coming in at number 3 with the bat, Joe walks out to the middle cool calm and collected with some swagger about himself. Being an ex-representative cricket player, Joe brings a lot of experience to the team and isn't afraid to share his knowledge. When the King of T&B is bowling, you don't have a clue which way the ball is going to spin. Joes forte is bowling off spin with a deadly change up ball (GOT EM WITH THE LEGGY!!!) When Joe goes out to bat, it's like watching a batting master class. Joe is gifted with impeccable timing, even his best defence shot is a possibility of 4 runs through cover leaving the grass scorched by the balls trail. Last but not least, Joe is an animal in the field, he loves to throw himself round and get his colours dirty. He backs up some outstanding fielding with a massive rainbow throwback to the keeper. Joe has definitely improved over his years in the 1st XI and is leaving his legacy as a player who can change a whole game in a matter of a few overs and as someone who is looked up to by the younger boys coming through the ranks at STC

Lachie Stove – Lachie is a very talented cricketer and contributes to the team whether it be batting or bowling. Batting at number 4 and opening the bowling, he has the ability to turn a game on its head, smashing a quick fire 60 in the middle order or taking early wickets and he has done this on numerous occasions. His quick, aggressive, swing bowling is dangerous for opening batsmen to come out to the middle and face first up. Lachie is able to take wickets at the beginning of an innings and is always eager to come and sweep up the tail. His batting has certainly improved over his years in the team and would be considered the team’s best all-rounder. When he’s not on the pitch he’s usually spinning decks or doing skids in the young Familia.

Thomas Hoskin – Being captain this year, Tom has lead the team to a pretty successful season. Tom has a cricketing brain and can change the field to stop batsmen scoring and bring on new bowlers that bring quick wickets. Not only does make the right calls at the right time in the field, when at batting crease he is a real threat to opposition. Being able to squat at least 150kg means Tom hits the ball harder than most. His main strength is picking bowlers apart and hitting all around the ground. Not only can he hit the ball the hard, he can bowl the ball fast too. In the nets Tom slings his right-arm in swingers down in the late 150 km/h. His fluent action means he produces some beautiful natural inswing and can hoop the ball from outside off to down leg. Unfortunately, we don’t get to see a lot of his bowling in games due to it just being unfair on other teams and also our bowlers as Tom would only need to bowl 10 balls and the innings would be over.

Mark Woolford – Being the funny man of the team Mark takes it upon himself to lead from the front with a positive and humorous attitude. Providing entertainment for everyone out on the field, Mark really knows how to lift spirits when we go through a slow patch. Whether he’s cracking sarcastic jokes or telling us about his antics the night before a game, Mark never fails to make the team crack a laugh. Along with his comedic ways, Mark also knows how to swing a bat. Having the selection of 3 pieces of willow after an apparent sponsorship by Kookaburra, he chops and changes his bats and still connects with the middle every time. Not only is he funny and good with a bat, he’s also dangerous with the red cherry in his hand.

Fraser Buckley - One of the younger members of team, Fraser definitely performs like one of the senior members in the team. Some of his innings in the middle order have definitely saved the team and put us into better positions in the game. Fraser also takes the gloves for us and keeps with enthusiasm and fiery chat. Fraser is able to catch speckies down the leg side when he’s keeping and smash balls back passed the bowlers head when he’s batting. Having so much time left to play in the first XI, Fraser will definitely be one of the players to watch out for in the coming years of STC cricket.

Harry Mayo – Harry ‘sheep’ mayo has really come into his own this season and has been handed the ball plenty of times to pick up needed wickets. He is very useful with his deceptive speeds that at his fastest would clock around the late 120’s and his slower balls daze and confuse batsmen at around 60. Being able to have such control in his bowling is why Tom is confident in calling upon Harry to come in and make a break through. Harry is best known in the team for his LBW appeals when fielding at fine leg. From a position where you have the least visual to give an LBW Harry always goes up with an intense appeal which almost frightens the umpires and forces them to give it out.

Will Andrews – Another young member of the team Will, came into the team and kicked off his first XI career with a bang taking 5 wickets on debut. He left everyone thinking ‘where have you been and why haven’t you been in the team before this’. Will is always a reliable man when it comes to swinging the ball and is also one of the most positive guys in the team. Will has also been very handy at picking up quick runs at the end of an innings and can easily score a quick fire 30 for the team that can get us out of sticky situations. In the future years Will will be an even more deadly bowler for the team.

Tane Knowler - Tane is a very accurate out swing bowler and often causes the opening batsmen to play and miss as the ball ducks away from them. His skill to move the ball in the air has been very useful for us and he manages to take early wickets and give us a good start to an innings. Tane is also another player who can score quickly at the end of our order and has the power clear the boundary against any type of bowler. Tane also has some of the best chat that is consistent throughout the day and has some popular chants like “Niiiiice Gary’. Tane is another player who will grow into a better player as he continues through the code.

Josh Charlton - Josh ‘Ranga’ Charlton is the silent assassin in the team. Not speaking a lot of words he definitely uses the ball to do the talking and has the tendency to pick up wickets the very first ball of his spell. His in swinging bowling is deceptively quick but can also be deceptively slow as he uses his different variations to fool the batsmen. Josh has grown in confidence this year and has really out in the hard yards. Not only is he good at the bowling crease, he has taken a few catches that deserve to be on KFC’s classic catches.

Thomas Hoskin