Season ‘24/25. Vet’s go down on home turf!
OXCC Vets vs West Ivanhoe,
Sunday, 10th November,
Jackson (Motel) Oval, Xavier College
by Richard “Boothy” Booth as told to Scotty Palmer.
Regular readers of sports reports, whether they be cricket, football or any other sport, will often see the overused, overblown and often over exaggerated claim that the game was a game of two halves. And I am not going to use that same tired old cliché here…. Rather I am going to adapt it to suit what was a pitch of two halves. I’ll explain later... but first the details.
On a clear and sunny Sunday in November, the REALLY good guys (OXCC Vets) played the guys (West Ivanhoe) at Xavier. This was a truly momentous game as neither team had lost (a tie is not a loss!!) and West Ivanhoe sat proudly atop the table. Buoyed by a promising start to the season the REALLY good guys felt they had a crack at the title and were pumped for the contest. Couple that with the impending milestone for our beloved (?) skipper and the motivation was surely high amongst the REALLY good guys.
Perhaps, no one had mentioned that to the WI guys as arriving at the ground at 12 (early), I was greeted with our skipper mid-prep of the ground. Stumps, scoreboard, boundary markers, chairs and all manner of other paraphernalia scattered about his person and the ground. I was team member number two to arrive, and we were already significantly outnumbered by our opposition. Perhaps this level of professionalism is why they are top of the table? However, that was as far as their professionalism went as bowling on the pitch pre-match in Birkenstocks is “simply not cricket!!” (and this scribe would suggest somewhat outside the very etiquette of the game!). Perhaps it was the lure of the green strip of grass know as a turf pitch that had the WI guys excited. As the only team with a turf deck in our comp, the prospect of playing OXCC on turf is a drool inducing incentive.
The pitch was a typical Xavier pitch - green but hard. Clearly played on this week (intra school game during the week apparently) it looked a treat. We weren’t fooled by the green tinge as we had seen far greener pitches last year and they had played true with no menace. What weren’t expecting was the lack of bounce at the Barkers Rd end. More on that late and how it affected the game.
As the rest of the good guys arrived in various states of (dis)repair – it was cup week after all- the tally of injuries and afflictions grew and grew. Jerome and Bernie- dusty. Jerome sporting the “usual Sunday morning V” to compensate for the dustiness. New boy, Ed Burnes, full of painkillers to numb the pain from dental surgery only a few days earlier. Thommo with…. What doesn’t Thommo have? - Knee? Shoulder? Hammy? Well Thommo had promised in the chat during the week to bring “a bat, 40 and 3 for…” we all hoped he would make good on the promise. Sammy, brought in as a designated hitter, still carried a nagging quad/groin/hip injury. Safety first with the great Sammy, let’s get him qualified for finals any way we can without risking a major injury. Harden had something as well…. anyway, the team assembled.
Despite the early arrivals it turned out West Ivanhoe were one short to start the game. Pressure was on our skipper to let them bat first. The killer instinct of some within the team pushed for relentless attitude and make the bastards field. In the end they had the numbers (just it would seem based on the number of players in shorts – and did I mention etiquette?), and we had a toss (of the coin). The skipper’s birthday wish must have been to win the toss, because for the first time this season and the first time in God knows how long he won the toss!! And at the pleading of his team did the right thing and batted!! I’m not sure who was more in shock- Dave or the team!!
Our now customary opening pair of Harden and McIsaac, D. sauntered to the crease. Umpires Booth and Nunan issued a word of advice- don’t make life difficult for us. Translation: Don’t get hit on the pads in front and no stupid runs. May as well have shouted that in the middle of Barkers Rd. because clearly the batters didn’t hear it. Several loud and raucous appeals for LBW fell on deaf (Sammy’s) ears and a couple on Boothy’s as well. Some close but all turned down – benefit to the batter. Clearly, we had set the “tone” and knew we wouldn’t get any LBs either… or so we thought.
Skipper’s birthday wish must have extended to his performance as he and John piled on an unbroken 70 run opening partnership before the Skipper had to walk off with his bat raised after retiring on 40. Unfortunately, his partner couldn’t quite reach the same milestone and was out caught for 35.
Michael Meehan continued his amazing form this season with yet another brilliant batting display- another 40 no. I know his son is also piling on runs every week and I’m wondering if there is a family competition going on….
Jerome made a patient 25 before getting one that got through his defences. West Ivanhoe bowling was tight, but the pitch was keeping slow and low …. what could have been?? Thommo did bring his bat and almost 3 for…. 3 balls. He only faced two before being back in the sheds for 1. A credit to Ed Burnes for making 7 off 9 with a swollen face and a head full of drugs. Designated hitter Sammy lasted 6 balls and only 1 run. Rob’s new bat was put to reasonable use in his 8 off 10 and Mick O’Dea got to face 1 ball for 1no. At the end of the 36 overs the REALLY good guys were 6-169.
We pride ourselves on our hospitality and as usual the afternoon tea spread was impressive. Three different types of sandwiches (one was a little frosty….), brownies, cupcakes, lemon slice, the finest and freshest mangoes of the season (too early for big black cherries) … and the treats go on and on… only thing missing was the birthday cake (sorry Skip!!). So much fine, tasty food that there was enough leftover to have with beers after the game.
Full stomachs and a reasonable score to defend and the REALLY good guys took to the field.
New opening bowling pair of Heaphy and Burnes ran in from the Barkers Rd end trying to get the most out of the pitch. And it worked with Ed getting an early wicket- a duck for one of the openers. Noice. Off to a great start.
Number 3 didn’t last long and was gone for 12 in the most bizarre circumstances. The tone for LBW shouts was set earlier in the day (they weren’t being given) and it was expected to continue in the West Ivanhoe innings and so it was until…. Mick O’Dea rapped the pads and “informed” the umpire that the batter was out. “That’s out – he’s plumb” he called, and the umpire agreed, finger raised. An instant protest from the non-striker - “He didn’t appeal!”. McIsaac, R. looking toward his former English classroom high on the Xavier hill, disagreed and suggested that the “That’s out” was in fact a question based on the inflection. Semantics, grammar and enunciation debate over and the batter was gone. And the umpire is looking for a new club……
Here we go…. Their skipper comes in to a round of applause, and some BIG hitting from their opener and he was on his way (retired) for 40 pretty quickly.
With the retirement came a bit of a collapse, with the next two not troubling the scorers and yet somehow, The Vets never felt in control. A sharp catch to Michael (another one) a dropped one to Boothy (one hand Boothy, one hand!!) and some good fielding and we were right in it, until we weren’t.
Michael took another catch – in front of first slip - but the batter stayed as the umpire (he previously given out LBW earlier in the innings) must have been listening to the roar of the traffic on Barkers Rd (or something?) as there is no other excuse for not hearing the snick that was heard around the world. Disappointing!
Another 40 retired by their skipper and a 28 not out from the said “snicker” and the game was done in 31 overs. Three ducks, three 40 no – I guess that’s what they call balance. Wickets to Burnes, O’Dea, McIsaac D. and Martin. Solid Victory to the WI guys by 6 wickets. OUCH!
The game finished so early, that we had time to have a beer with the opposition, pack up, eat a lot of the leftovers and talk absolute crap for 30 minutes and still be at the greatest pub in Kew, the Skinny Dog (sponsors plug!!) before 6pm to celebrate the Skipper’s birthday.
Did I mention the pitch of two halves? It became clear early on that there was NO bounce at the Barker’s Rd. end, and I mean NO bounce. Good length balls went through at ankle height. Rarely did it get above the knee. There was swearing and frustration from batters, exclamations of annoyance from keeper’s as they tried stop daisy cutters and worm burners. And what impact did this have? In our innings we scored 99 runs at the Roche end and only 70 at the Barkers Rd end. Did that make the biggest difference to the end result?
So, what did we learn?
o Being early isn’t always a sign of good preparation and a full team.
o Ed Burnes performs even when in pain and painkillers.
o Melbourne Cup Carnival takes its toll.
o Turf pitch equals variability!
o The Skipper should have more birthdays: 40 no., 1 wicket and won the toss (only thing missing was the victory)
o It’s only round 3 and we have some niggles.
The Rudy Webster Medal Votes:
Who will be taking Rudy home this year??
Round 3 (MAX of 5 players, voted from 5 – 1)
5- D. McIsaac
4- M. Meehan
3- E. Burnes
2- J. Harden
1-J. Whelan
