Wanderers Cricket - Round 10 Wrap

Jan 31st / Feb 1st, 2026.

Yes... welcome back... welcome back to LWCC's summer of cricket!

It's great to have club cricket back and it seems as though it wouldn't be a summer weekend in Sydney without the combination of sunshine, sweltering heat and humidity, followed by a torrential rainstorm to finish off!

Our first match reports of 2026 are below, with plenty of exciting cricket being played. We welcome some new players to the club in the new year and some new team formations - we hope you enjoyed your first weekend at LWCC and wish you all the best of luck for the remainder of the season.

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Reminder of our Summer BBQ at the Blackmore Clubhouse on Friday afternoon. This also coincides with our first week of the new Pop-Up Blast skills program commencing at 4:30pm. Stick around for a sausage sandwich and a cold drink!

We hope to see many new and familiar faces!

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Child Safety Officer

This season, the club Child Safety Officer is Jill Rawson.

The Child Safety Officer plays a vital role in ensuring our club is a safe, supportive, and inclusive environment for every young player. Their responsibility is to help implement and promote the Cricket Australia and Cricket NSW Child Safe Framework, making sure all volunteers, coaches, and parents understand their duty to protect children’s wellbeing.

Our Child Safety Documents can be found in the Cricket Hub section of the club website.

The officer is also the first point of contact if anyone has concerns about a child’s safety or welfare and can provide guidance on reporting or resolving issues appropriately. By working closely with our committee and families, the Child Safety Officer helps create a culture where children feel respected, heard, and protected - both on and off the field.

To contact, email: lwccchildsafety@gmail.com (Note, only our Child Safety Officer has access to this email address).

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Around The Grounds: Highlights & Match Reports

Performance of the Round

Austen Flay (U8 White) - Austen scored a whopping 43 runs off his four-over batting pair in U8 Blast, including 4x sixes! Austen and his teammate Arjun together blitzed a 65-run partnership, a season record for the team!

Highlights

• Cate Timpany (S3 Girls) - 20 (off 21), 2x fours

• Karthika Polepalli (U13 Girls) - 37 (off 33), 6x fours, 1x six

• Adelaide Done (U13 Girls) - 16* (off 37), 3x fours; 1 for 17 (off 2); 1x catch

• Jack Thornborough (U10 Red) - 3 for 2 (off 2); 18* (off 15), 4x fours

• Sam Kelliher (U11 Red) - 2x run-outs, 1x catch Honour Roll

• Adam Schurr (U11 White) - 3 for 8 (off 3)

• Finn Gadsby (U11 White) - 3 for 5 (off 3)

• Owen Sharkey (U12 White) - 31 (off 71), 3x fours

• Oscar Rawson (U12 Red) - 3 for 30 (off 4.4); 1x catch

• Jacob Watson (U12 Red) - 41 (off 41), 6x fours

• John O'Connell (U12 Red) - 40 (off 36), 7x fours

• Oscar Green (U13 Gold) - 33 (off 28), 5x fours, 1x six

• Arshdeep Sidhu (U13 Black) - 44* (off 22), 5x fours, 3x sixes

• Eamon Russell (U13 White) - 3 for 13 (off 5); 28* (off 30), 2x fours, 1x six

• Sam Spiller (U15 Black) - 40* (off 31), 9x fours

• Xavier Rohanek (U15 Black) - 35 (off 23), 8x fours

• Oliver Lista (U17 Black) - 100* (off 42), 8x fours, 8x sixes Honour Roll

• Adam Blasi (U17 Black) - 39* (off 25), 3x fours, 2x sixes

• Vincent Gardener (U17 Black) - 39* (off 28), 3x fours, 2x sixes

• Joseph Neely (Senior B Grade) - 3 for 31 (off 5.2)

• Liam Schurr (Senior B Grade) - 3 for 7 (off 3)

• Dave Anstice (Senior B Grade) - 64* (off 42), 7x fours, 4x sixes Honour Roll

• Nik Warmerdam (Senior D Grade) - 3x catches Honour Roll

Match Reports

U11 Girls Black – LWCC (5-93) def. by Easts Dolphins (1-99)

Round 1 of the new Summer comp saw a new look U11 Girls Black team returning to the pitch after a rather long summer sabbatical away from the great game. Albeit weeks since many had picked up a bat and ball, you wouldn't know it. Our uber parents took us to Lough Playing Fields in Double Bay for the second time in the 25/26 season. We all remembered Sydney's narrowest synthetic pitch well, and faced with the prospect of Sydney's longest grass to boot, the girls knew they'd have to be on their game. And they were!

After welcoming our new friends Annabelle and Zinnia to the side, we fielded a full line up for the match. Elsie won the toss and elected to field. It was a good move as our bowling was straight and accurate and we restricted the Easts batters to single figures individually and a team score of 99. All girls put in a fine performance with less extras on this narrow pitch than the last time we played. Lucia taking a spectacular caught and bowled wicket was a highlight as was Audrey and Alexia bowling their best this season. Annie looked to pick up an extra yard of pace during the break!

Batting next, Ella and Bonnie opened and got us off to a fine start with three fours in their partnership and good positive running. Clean hitting followed from Zinnia, Evelina and Alexia, seeing us keep the runs ticking over throughout the innings. Annabelle, our new recruit faced the fastest bowler in the comp and was valiant in her resolve. She didn't back away which was impressive for a debut performance. The scoring was shared this week among five batters. It was great to see everyone contributing with both bat and ball.

A few wickets fell towards the end, which saw the Black team go down narrowly by 6 runs off the bat! It was a great reintroduction to cricket after the holidays, and plenty to look forward to in the coming weeks.

U11 Girls Red – LWCC (0-119) def. Marrickville Flaherty (5-62)

The U11 Red kicked off the season with just five players with some late holiday clashes. Despite that, and losing the toss, the team put in the best performance of the season in a comprehensive victory over Marrickville. Electing to bat, Marrickville made steady progress but were pegged back by 7 wickets from the Reds, with two excellent run-outs complimenting a wicket each for all five girls, with Imi’s 1-8 off 4 a particular highlight.

Chasing 62, the girls batted well with an excellent platform set by Alice and Lexi and everyone getting in the runs. Most impressively, the girls lost no wickets at all through their innings for the first time all season, to run out comfortable winners.

U13 Girls – LWCC (5-129) def. Marrickville Hudson (6-113)

Our U13 girls travelled to Marrickville on very hot Saturday afternoon. Emily won the toss and batted. Karthika was the star, making 37 not out. But Adelaide, Mihrimah, Emilie and Hannah all made solid contributions and we made a strong score of 129.

Our bowling started brilliantly with Sofia (breaking the bail) and Emily both taking an early wicket. Emily was very unlucky not to have 2 or 3. Once again, all the girls contributed with Emilie, Karthika and Adelaide also getting a wicket.

Juno bowled a clutch final over and our score proved to be too much and Marrickville fell 16 runs short.

In her first game of U13, Adelaide made a huge contribution: 16 not out with the bat, a wicket and a very sharp catch at point.

I also want to mention Hannah who made her highest score of 14 not out.

And finally, welcome back to Emilie Benn after missing some cricket with a broken finger.

S3 Girls – LWCC (8-56) def. by Summer Hill (4-95)

The team made a cracking start to the summer season winning the bat flip and a high pressure first 10 overs. At one stage Summer Hill were 3-10.

Opening bowlers Moo and Sofia sending down thunderbolts and the dreaded “extras” kept to a bare minimum. The bowlers were ably supported in the field with two slick run-outs by Harper and Charlotte.

The bowling remained strong, with Connie striking the stumps late. The Wanderers limited Summer Hill to 4-95, an achievable target.

Unfortunately, the batting didn’t match the bowling and fielding.

There’s some work to be done at training on the forward defence. The highlight was Cate’s innings of 20, smacking them to all parts of the ground and aggressive running between wickets.

Team spirit remained strong and after some inspirational words from Captain Bella, the team kicked on at the Five Dock Bowling Club for a debrief, refreshments and plot our tactics for the game ahead over pink lemonades and table tennis.

U8 White - LWCC (117) def. Ryde Hunters Hill Pirates Black Beards (78)

The U8 White didn't let the long summer break impact their energy levels as they were back to take on the RHH Black Beards at Boronia Park. The weekend's captain Arjun won the toss and elected to bat, with opening pair Liam and Oliver starting off in a blaze, notching up 22 runs in their first over before some sharper bowling beat their bats and slowed the run-rate. The second partnership of Austen and Arjun got their eyes in immediately and took to the Black Beards' bowling attack with great enthusiasm, adding a season-record 65-run partnership, with Austen scoring 43 runs, including 4x sixes. Alfie combined with Oliver and Liam for an additional 24 run partnership to take the Wanderers total to 1-117.

The boys took to the field in the mid-morning heat, knowing that they needed to keep the bowling tight and fielding sharp with three fewer players on the field than their opposition. They rose to the challenge, keeping the first batting pair to 9 runs and the second to 16, with a very handy stumping by Liam off Arjun's bowling. Arjun finished the day with 1-10 and Alfie kept the run rate low with 0-10 off his overs. The fielding was truly impressive, with some sharp diving grabs to stop boundaries, and clean catches taken off some well-struck free hits. The Black Beards were contained to 1-78. The red frogs and jelly snakes were well earned, well done to the boys on the strong start to 2026! Let's go Wanderers!

U9 Red - LWCC (92) def. Concord Briars Green (71)

The Leichhardt Wanderers U9 Red started the new calendar year as they finished 2025, with a solid away win to the Concord Briars U9 Green.

After losing the toss and being asked to bat U9 Red sent in Bodhi and Drew to kick off the innings. With 8 players today this amounted to 9 balls each only, and with a very thick outfield hitting boundaries was difficult. Bodhi contributed a solid 8 runs and Drew also chimed in well with 5. Mateo and Ollie were in next with Mateo scoring 5 and Ollie scoring 7. Next in was Frankie and Hudson with Frankie scoring a solid 5 but Hudson took the game to a whole new level scoring 21 including a huge six and 3 fours. Ted and Sam did a fantastic job to anchor the innings at the end as well with a number of shots almost reaching the boundary.

It was then Concord’s turn to bat. Ollie came in steaming as usual, and took a wicket on the very first ball of the innings, ending up with fantastic figures of 2 for 10 of his two overs. Drew once again had a fantastic bowling spell and did well to curtail any chance of a comeback by bowling a maiden over to finish the innings and ended with figures of 1-1 of his two overs. Mateo also bowled well for 1-7 of his two overs and also did well to run out the batter following a difficult caught and bowled chance. Man of the match Ted took an impressive catch at point, and bowled well to concede only 7 runs. His encouragement of his team members throughout the game was inspirational to all, and deservedly won the player of the match award. Hudson also took two wickets in his spell to end with figures of 2-11 of his two overs. Bodhi bowled a miserly spell of two overs conceding only 4 runs off his two overs.

Overall this was a great team effort being the first game back after a 6 weeks off and pleasing to get the win to go to a 9-1 win record for the season.

U9 White - LWCC (107) def. Concord Briars Gold (88)

Morrison Bay Park

After a summer spent watching the Ashes and plenty of Big Bash, the kids from Blackmore were pumped to kick off the second half of the season at Morrison Bay Park where they hosted Briars Gold. Despite several requests, the coaching staff’s ban on the ramp shot and reverse sweep remained firmly in place - and was adhered to by (almost) all players!

Wanderers batted first, with brothers Benji and Asher opening the innings. After a maiden in the first over, they exploded into two overs of "Beetson magic." Both boys found the boundary regularly while keeping the scoreboard ticking over with some sharp running between the wickets. Wanderers were 0-21 after the first pair… what a great start!

Freddy and Tilly played bravely in the middle overs, fending off several quality deliveries. A special shout-out to Tilly, who once again went through her entire innings without losing her wicket. Rauiri and Eoghan then combined for a superb partnership. After a steady start, Eoghan "put the foot down," finding the boundary four times in brilliant style (including two Powerplay 8s) to add 25 runs in his final six balls!

Archie and Conor came out firing to close the innings, with both batters belting powerful shots including a Powerplay 8 and a boundary each. Wanderers finished their innings at 5-77. It was a competitive total…but it would take some defending and a few wickets to get the job done. Could they do it?

Archie opened the bowling well, followed by Benji and Rauiri, who all bowled sensational, tight lines to keep the scoring to a minimum. Asher finally secured the first breakthrough in the fourth over with a peach of a delivery that clipped the stumps. The very next over, our youngest player, Freddy, was rewarded for all his off-season practice when he clean-bowled a Briars batter to get Wanderers right into the contest. What a moment!

Conor attacked the stumps brilliantly in his over before Eoghan struck again with an unplayable ball that rattled the timber. Things then went from good to great as Tilly joined her brother in the wicket-taking column, snaring a scalp with a brilliant delivery of her own.

Our closing bowlers of Archie, Benji, Rauiri and Asher kept things tight, finishing the game with multiple dot balls and without conceding a single wide (that I can remember) in the final overs.

The fielding was sensational all day, with multiple boundaries saved… the team also secured two crucial run-outs that proved the difference in the final result. Special mention to Benji, Conor, and Eoghan, who were all outstanding in the field.

In the end, Briars finished on 6-63, falling just short of the Wanderers' total. The win was nice for the team but the highlight was simply seeing how much these kids loved being out there playing cricket again. It was a fun morning for everyone - thanks to Briars for a great game and well done, Wanderers!

U10 Red – LWCC (3-160) def. Iron Cove (8-99)

Skipper Lucy won the toss and chose to bowl first in warm, muggy conditions against Iron Cove in our first game back after the summer break. Wickets were hard to come by early, but tidy line-and-length bowling from Henry, Jack E, and Will meant the opposition was never able to get away from us. Spencer provided our only wicket before the drinks break to keep things under control.

Whatever was in the water at drinks clearly worked, because the whole team lifted after the break. Jack T’s move from wicketkeeper to the field had an immediate impact, striking early and going on to finish with outstanding figures of 3-2, the best of the day. Lucy followed up with two wickets of her own, while Luca and Jude each chipped in with one. Backed up by sharp fielding, it was a strong team effort that restricted Iron Cove to a very gettable target.

Our batting reply started in style, with Jack T finding the boundary early and Lucy holding things together at the other end. Luca and Will then put the accelerator down, peppering the boundary, with Will smashing five fours on his way to the day’s top score of 23. Henry and Jude continued their steady improvement with the bat, picking up singles all around the wicket, before Jack E made the most of some sideline coaching to strike four boundaries of his own. With the result safely in hand, Spencer had time at the end to swing for the rafters.

It was an excellent match played in great spirit by both teams in very hot conditions. Player-of-the-Mach went to Jack T, who not only took three wickets and scored valuable runs at the top of the order, but also lifted the whole team with his energy and movement in the field.

Well played, everyone!

U10 White – LWCC (4-181) def. Concord Briars White (5-104)

A hot morning meant it was a good toss for Louis to win and choose to field first. The choice proved correct with the first 10 overs yielding 8 wickets including 5 run outs. Most pleasing was how accurate the bowling was after a break of games. The 2nd 10 overs were less prolific but with the accurate bowling continuing and restricting the scoring opportunities for their big hitters. Special shout out to Zane and Reuben for just 2 runs in the last 2 overs! A true team effort putting pressure on the batsmen keeping a decent briars batting line up to just 88 runs.

Batting first Fred gave us stellar start smashing 22 to get the ball rolling. Everyone contributed including 17 a piece from Reuben and Huxley. The team are learning to put pressure on the fielders with quick singles. Just like the bowling, it was once again a true team effort, only losing 4 wickets (3 to their best bowler) and for the first time all season, no run outs!

A great start to the 2nd part of the seasons. Well done boys!

U11 Gold – LWCC (7-113) def. by Ryde Hunters Hill Pirates Jack Sparrows (5-140)

It was nice to welcome the boys back for the second half of the season to a warm and surprisingly humid Westminster Oval, to take on the Pirates and get our cricket going again. A special welcome to Jonah P for first ever game of cricket. We hoped you enjoyed it as much as we enjoy having you in the side.

Dorian A was our Captain for this match and won the toss, electing to send the opposition into bat.

We started the game with some tidy opening overs from Dorian A, Joe G, Harvey B, Reef R and Rory P – this tight bowling had the Pirates struggling for runs.

However, it wasn’t until the 6th over when Gus CN took our first wicket with a peach of a delivery knocking over off stump and send the bails flying. Jonah P settled into stride to deliver his first over, and after a nervous few balls, managed to tighten up his line and length. Captain Dorian A – then delivered a sweet middle stump delivery to send the bails flying and get our second wicket for the match! Jack B chimed in with a tidy over, but it was Reef R that delivered a real pearler, in his second over to rattle out the batsman’s leg stump. Ben T’s turn to get in on the action, producing a troublesome delivery that had the batsman spooning it back to Ben’s waiting hands – great caught n bowled! Joe G was never one to stay out of the action and he two smashed a delivery into the batsman’s stumps to leave the Pirates 5 for 104 at the changeover.

We could have taken a few more wickets, but a few catchable balls went to ground, better luck next time! Overall, a very tidy bowling effort and the hard work we have done on our fielding showed, restricting the oppositions overall runs.

The humidity and temperature were rising fast, and this started to impact the boys’ as they struggled to ‘cool down’ and ‘rehydrate’ after their efforts in the field, Jack B and Ben T were both unable to bat, as Jack had injured his thumb and Ben T went home sick.

Captain Dorian A and Joe G strode out to the pitch to set about getting the Gold’s run chase up and going. Unfortunately, Joe G got cleaned bowled off his first delivery but made amends by notching up a couple of nice boundaries. Dorian A also got bowled but he too made amends with some nice powerful hits to the boundary. Rory P and Gus CN’s turn at the crease, and both contributed nicely with the bat – however it was obvious that Gus CN was feeling the humidity and began to struggle with concentration and to finish his allotted deliveries.

Gus CN needs to be commended for his resilience in finishing out his allotted deliveries and did so despite being clearly impacted by the heat. Harvey B came to the crease with his usual enthusiasm and added nicely to our total, his speed between the wickets really frustrated the opposition fieldsmen. It was now Jonah P’s turn to have his first ever bat in competition and was joined at the crease with Reef R. Both boys were stoic at the crease and turned the strike over nicely, but it became clear that both boys were struggling with the humidity and a decision was made to bring Jack B onto the field to replace Reef R as Jonah’s running partner for the last few overs.

We fell short on runs and our concentration dropped off as the temperature rose, gifting the opposition more wickets than we should have. It was a closer game than the scoreboard showed and the improvement and effort by all the Gold’s boys is something they should be very proud of.

Captain Dorian A awarded our ‘player of the match’ to Jonah P which was well deserved, as he not only handled the nervousness of his first ever game but demonstrated fantastic resilience in stifling conditions – he earned himself a ‘liquefied chocolate bar’ for his efforts!

This week we will be working on ‘taking catches under the high ball’ and implementing a ‘pre/during/post hydration and cooling strategy’ so the boys are better prepared for the impacts of high humidity playing conditions. Overall, the boys continue to impress not only in their improved play but their individual resilience under tough playing conditions, well done lads, keep it up!

U11 Red – LWCC (5-163) def. Ryde Hunters Hill Pirates Treasurers (6-118)

Unlike the England Cricket Team, LWCC were not going to be let down by a lack of preparation….

After the summer break players returned keener than ever to get stuck into a real game. It was clear that beach, backyard and net cricket had been high on the agenda during the school holidays!

LWCC opened the batting and for the first time this season all players reached double figures, with the spread also being the tightest we have ever seen, from 11 to 18 runs – showing just how everyone is improving over the season and truly what a team effort this win was! Sam top scored with 18 and special mention to Spencer (13) with some big drives back down the wicket finding the boundary!

With a total of 127, LWCC set about limiting the Pirates run rate and adding to their score with penalty runs. Again, a team effort saw 9 wickets fall in total, with Sam taking MVP with 2 wickets, a catch and 2 run-outs! Archie added a few more KMs to his speed over the summer, getting a maiden with his first over a wicket in his second. Rohan got a hat-rick across the field metrics with a wicket, a catch and a run out! Further wickets went to the ever-reliable Jeremy and Spencer.

With the game won and one more ball to go the Pirates continued to give it everything, hitting the last short towards the boundary, only for it to be picked up and shot back for a direct hit and wicket from Archie to crown a great win for LWCC!

Lastly, we wish Patrick well, missing from the Team today with an MCL knee injury.

Onto the next match..…

U12 Black – LWCC (84) def. by Concord Briars Yellow (6-177)

The team came back from the Christmas break full of enthusiasm and chose to field first against (yet another) strong Briars team. The pitch had been freshly resurfaced and there were questions over what it would do - the answer was a lot!

The new ball was nipping and darting around everywhere with Rufus and Dilhan in particular getting some wild spin. The wickets were shared across Rufus (1-5), Angus (1-25), Toby (2-21) and Noah L (1-13), with Caleb also affecting a runout with a direct hit from a great throw.

As the morning got hotter fatigue entered the game with run ups shortening and the question "how many more overs are there?" increasing in frequency. But the effort in the field remained with Noah and Toby setting the energy level standards with lots of off the ball movement, helping to restrict the total to 177.

With the total set, the chase began, but it was a torrid start to our innings. The Briars opening bowlers took 3 wickets and inflicted multiple bruises in the first 2 overs to have us battling at 3-3.

Angus (17) and Felix (20) steadied the ship and started to win back the initiative with straight bats and selective stroke play. Angus was rewarded with his highest cricket score ever! Dilhan had a return to form with a top score of 22* and was ably supported by Noah S who, in his first game of cricket ever, faced 32 balls and bowled well too. A welcome addition to the team.

Overall it was an excellent effort against a very strong team and again the game was played in an excellent spirit this week. The boys should be very proud of themselves and are getting closer to another win each week.

U12 Red – LWCC (6-146) def. by Iron Cove Balmain Tigers White (8-188)

Its great to be playing club cricket again. Lost the toss and put it into bowl. We toiled hard but could not get our first wicket until the 7th over and then 15th. 3 wickets to Oscar R was the pick of the bowlers, followed by Leo L, great economical bowling 4 overs 1 for 9 runs.

With 188 runs on the board, it was going to be a tough chase. We lost our first wicket at 41 and our second at 117 runs, the team had belief. Could we pull this off? Our tail did not wag this week, and we fell short by 17 runs in a magnificent run chase. Very talented batting from Jacob W 41, John O 40, and Emmett H retired not out on 28. The boys will be better next week as we could not get a net session at training and the boys needed to blow out some cobwebs. Although we lost it was great fun with many of the boys known to each other and playful banter made it a great morning.

U13 Derby – LWCC Red (7-125) def. by LWCC White (3-128)

Red

The day the music died...?

(Reds v Whites at Campbell)

New year and the start of the second leg of season 25-26 saw an excited Reds take on big bros Whites and, acting in the national interest, batting first. Ted took the reins as captain and insisted on a Shakespearean top four, with mismatched twin (Jo and Charles) after twin (Mo and Ashton) drinking their batting potion and piling into the Whites. Young ‘Tedbeth’ then joined the fray, Charlie played a few signature late cuts and by the end of 30 overs against the army of talented white bowlers the boys had notched up a plucky 125 runs.

Upfront the bowling packed some punch as well, the highlight being an absolute god ball from Charlie to take out Kurtis’s off stump... this thing hovered and then dipped and swung and deserved a place in a YouTube top 5 reel. The Whites middle order had a clinical feel though and the grind started, defying even the leg spin chaos theory expertly practiced by Noah (who bowled very well). The fielding was actually good overall (shout out to Ollie B) it’s just that the chances didn’t quite come to hand.

Tune in next week to see us take on the Shelbyvillians at Arthur Walker. Bat first? Yes! Keep the fun alive and bat first. See you all Tuesday at training if you can make it, but with leave pass granted if it’s your mum’s birthday. C’arn the Reds :)

White

In a club derby the Reds won the toss and elected to bat. They were impressive, accumulating runs like mature batters, with four retirees, to see out the 30 overs. The Whites best were James L (1-21, 5 overs), Oliver (1-12, 5 overs) and Eamon (3-13, 5 overs). There was a fast thinking run out from Oscar, a finger-touch run out to a straight drive from Oliver and a neat catch from James L.

The White’s batters were up against high quality bowling at the top of the innings. Kurtis and Oliver faced 26 balls between them which was not easy as they had to deal with the new ball and two stump-widths of swing. Jacob and Eamon then came to the crease and steadied the ship. Each scored 28 to retire at 30 balls. Archer, James L and James A then gathered the remaining runs at the 20.4 over mark.

It was a good win against a very competitive Red team. There is still plenty to work on, however, especially keeping the ‘cricket-brain’ active all game while the ball is live, catching and reducing the number of wides and no balls.

U15 Derby – LWCC White (4-97) def. by LWCC Black (3-98)

White

Another hot afternoon at Callan Park as the LWCC Black-White derby got underway.

Whites won the toss and elected to bat.

Max F and Jack F got us off to a great start putting on 37 for the first wicket and seeing off two rounds of bowling attack - our best opening partnership of the season. Max nearly made it to his retirement but fell to a sharp caught-and-bowled by Xavier. Darcy looked solid but also fell to an excellent low catch in the gully. Then, another Whites record 49-run partnership between Hartley and Anton saw some patient batting and good shot selection - with a few lives in there as they battled away.

Hartley retired 24 not out and when Anton fell LBW for 18 just short of his retirement it was left to Yoris and Bowie to face the rest under a tight spell of bowling. An excellent batting performance against a strong fielding side - but 97 was never going to be enough…

With the ball, the Whites created many slim chances with balls flying through gaps in the slips off Hartley’s bowling and the clattering sound of all three stumps being knocked over to remove Ronav. Sam and Xavier rode their chances and batted strongly finding the boundary on enough occasions to race towards the total. Darcy found a way through Xavier's defenses with some excellent swing and seam balls and Bowie trapped Barnabas LBW but by the time Conor arrived at the crease it was all but over.

The Whites are to be commended - as always - for their energy in the field, catch and runout attempts and positive banter. They remained in high spirits until the last ball, surrounding the bat in the hopes of another wicket, but Sam (40*) and Conor (1*) brought it home and the Blacks won the derby.

Great to see hand shakes and congratulations all round and genuine camaraderie between the teams… well done Blacks!

Black

Here we go again, the famous U15s thrash it out at the home of non-plastic, real grass cricket - Callan Park, against our old favourites, the Whites.

Following on from our status quo we lost the toss and bowled first. Whites ended up with 4-97. Chasing 98 to win.

Our bowling for the most part was quite good. Minimal extras from most bowlers, made the batters play. The runs were kept down, but the Whites were able to hold their ground in terms of wickets. All of our bowlers made excellent efforts with the ball. Wickets to Sam Spiller, 2 for 7 off 4 with some excellent swing bowling. Xavier 1-12 off 4 took a blinder of a catch to dismiss his old mate Max Foale for 19(36). Ronav 1-2 off 2 overs trapped Anton LBW for 18. Catches to Xavier, and Linus who dismissed Darcy Cruikshank 0 (6) from Sam’s bowling. A couple of dropped chances allowed the Whites to only lose 4 wickets for their total of 97.

Some very tidy overs from Naveen 0-1 (3), Austin 0-1 (3) with 2 maidens. Some excellent ground fielding, throwing and run out opportunities - some of them within 1-10 of a second, so close.

Our batting was proudly a clinical effort, albeit a few wickets. Special mention to Sam (n/o) opening the batting 40* (31), and Xavier 35 (23), Ronavi was unlucky 1 (2), Barnabas 2 (8). Conor got to come in for 1 ball, to keep his 100% strike rate to score 1 run.

Great effort boys, good win. A few more catches, and some innings long focus will see 10 wickets next match!

U13 Black – LWCC (5-137) def. Easts Leopards (7-135)

We started the new year with a new team with lots of fresh faces joining us for the start of the Summer Comp. With many of the boys meeting for the first time on the day of the game, it was uncertain how we would all come together but any doubts were put to rest in the first over when the boys taking two wickets – a catch by Will off Bradley’s bowling and a run out from Keeper Harry as they scuttled through for a bye. This saw a rarity in cricket – a diamond duck, matched only by another rarity when we were batting with the ball hitting a helmet sitting on the ground behind the keeper, gifting us 5 runs.

Our goal for the game was for everyone to contribute in some way or another and we certainly did that with bat, ball and in the field. We had two run-outs, wickets shared around by Bradley, Joe, Will, Angus, Harry, Tanish and Angus and every player at least scoring a couple of runs. After restricting Easts to 7-135, our chase built nicely leaving us chasing about 60 off the last 12 overs. That’s when new recruit Arshdeep strolled to the crease, and after getting his eye in, hit the bowlers to all parts of the field in a match winning knock of 44* off 22 balls with 3 sixes and 5 fours. Amazing batting that bought a big cheer from the crowd.

Shout out to all our new players: Angus, 9 runs, a wicket and a run-out, Tanish, 16 runs and a wicket, Joe, a wicket with a peach of a ball, and Arshdeep, with his player-of-the-match knock.

Look forward to the team building on this first up win as we play more together in the weeks ahead.

U13 Sabres – LWCC (7-122) def. by Marrickville Toshack (7-123)

Our first match of the Summer Sunday U13 league had our Sabres take on Marrickville Toshack at Callan Park, with an early 8:30am start. Drawing on the core of our Saturday side, we welcomed Arjun, Nevaan, Ronav and Alfie into the team.

Facing some tight and disciplined bowling, our boys batted with great determination throughout the innings. Nevaan was batting confidently and looked in control before being run out in unlucky fashion for 13. There were some excellent contributions from our not-out batters, with Ronav top-scoring on 26, Kurtis adding a solid 21, and Archer finishing strongly with 14. James A also chipped in with a handy 16, helping the team reach a competitive total of 122.

While we were confident the score could be defended, it was clear it would require tight bowling and sharp fielding. The match went right down to the wire, and despite a spirited effort in the field, Marrickville managed to sneak a single off the final ball to claim the win.

In the bowling department, Alfie led the way with two wickets, while Kurtis and Archer picked up one each. Arjun was great in the field, taking a catch and being involved in two run-outs, with James L contributing with another run-out.

In the end, too many extras and missed run-out chances proved costly, but on another day the result could easily have gone our way. A strong team effort and plenty of positives to take into the next game.

U17 Black – LWCC (7-263) def. Easts Strikers (5-150)

A strong all round performance delivered a deserved win against Easts at Snape Oval.

Batting first, the team posted an imposing total of 263 in 25 overs. The number reduced by a slow over rate. It was built on an outstanding innings from Oli, whose 42 ball unbeaten century anchored the innings and set the platform. He was well supported throughout the order, with valuable contributions from Kabir, Gus, Vinny and Adam, ensuring momentum was maintained and pressure kept firmly on the opposition. The total always looked competitive and ultimately proved beyond reach.

In reply, the young Easts side faced an uphill task from the outset. The bowling unit applied consistent pressure, with Abir and Kabir each picking up key wickets, while sharp awareness in the field resulted in three run-outs. Behind the stumps, Frazer was exemplary, providing safe hands and strong leadership.

While the catching will be an area to improve, the overall performance reflected a committed, cohesive team effort built on strong intent, energy, and execution. It was a convincing win and a positive step forward as the group kicked off the summer competition and will look to develop.

Other match results:

U11 White – LWCC (109) def. by Ryde Hunters Hill Pirates Black Beards (9-132)

U12 White – LWCC (6-55) def. by Ryde Hunters Hill Pirates Royals (4-150)

U12 Gold – LWCC (8-64) def. by Ryde Hunters Hill Pirates Black Beards (6-215)

U13 Gold – LWCC (8-87) def. by Ryde Hunters Hill Pirates Black Beards (5-280)

U17 White – LWCC (7-31) def. by Easts Devils (0-32)

Senior B Grade – LWCC (3-132) def. Western Jaguars Blue (128)

Senior D Grade – LWCC (8-125) def. by St. Matthews (8-204)

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