FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT
The Ongoing Tale of a Unicorn
1981-2006
By
Harry Gibbons
CONTENTS
1. Dedication
2. Forewords
- Mike Curtis (Former President and Chairman)
- David Bain (Current President and Former Chairman)
- Author
PART 1: REFLECTIONS
3. Back to the Future -An Overview of Karori Cricket 1981-2006
4. Simply the Best (Karori’s Best Team 1981-2006)
5. Best of the Best (Five Influential Players 1981-2006)
6. Coincidence Or What?
7. Rise and Fall- Women’s Cricket in Karori: 1981-2000
8. Ensuring the Game’s Future- The Karori Cricket Foundation
PART 2: DECADES IN REVIEW
Fortunes of the Unicorn in Detail 1981-2006
9. Years of Gold 1981-1990
10. Ups and Downs 1991-2000
11. New Millennium, New Promise, New Home 2001- 2006.
PART 3: APPENDICES
12. Gems of Cricket Humour
13. The Four Ages of Cricket Players
1
DEDICATION
This publication is the second volume consolidating the ongoing history of the Karori Cricket Club. It spans the 25 years of the club’s history from 1981-82 to 2006-07. As such, and in supporting the celebrations of the Club’s 125 years, I would like to dedicate this publication to the following:
1. First, and foremost to John Stribling. His book on the first 100 years of the Karori Cricket Club is a superb work forming an important part of the wider history of Karori. As such, its value will never diminish and will achieve true fulfilment at the Club’s bi-centennary 75 years hence. It would be a tragedy should it ever be completely lost.
2. All those who contributed to this volume, in particular, Mike Curtis, David Bain, Evan Gray, Richard Petrie, Derek Stirling, Ervin McSweeney and John Stribling.
3. Those who provided access to annual reports, newsletters and scorebooks covering the period under review.
4. Those Karori players who, over the last 25 years, have gone on to Wellington and New Zealand honours at various levels: Evan Gray, Richard Petrie, Derek Stirling, Ervin McSweeney, Phil Chandler, Mark Jefferson, Matthew Goodson Tim Ritchie, Wayne Holmes, Lee Edwards, Chris Lee, Stephen Murdoch, Simon Allen, Josh Stuart, Maia Lewis, Celia Cavanagh, Linden Eagles, Donna Archer, Kristina Martinelli, Erika MacKay and Margaret Presland. Whether your loyalties remained with Karori or not over all the last 25 years we remain proud of you all.
5. To the players over the last 25 years, who while not necessarily playing at premier level (or if so they were journeymen rather than high flyers), who, weekend in and weekend out were there for the enjoyment of the game. I refer particularly to the Phil Benfields, Graeme Stacey’s, Brett Grays, Phil Pigous, David Bains, Geoff Lees, John Striblings, Dave Nortons’, David Hopkins’, Ted Tylers, Simon Kents, Andrew Walklins, Peter Rutherfords, Peter McLarens, Fraser Lyons’ Colin Walters’, the Rosa McDonalds and the scores of others like them. They are why the club still lives.
6. Those who manage the nursery of the game in Karori. The convenors Jim Glynan, Laurence Jujnovich, Colleen Daly, John Cunningham, Mike Suggate, David Templeton, administrators, parents and coaches who have fostered the skills, participation and enjoyment of the game among the youngest of all club members. Thank you all. You are why the game itself still lives.
7. Those whose enjoyment and love of the game of cricket kept them involved in lower grades after their years at the top. In this group are the Geoff Pearces, Ross Crottys, Phil Benfields, Keith Atkinsons, and Toivo Vaikvees. It is also the Evan Grays, Richard Petries and Fraser Lyons’ who at times remained active that extra year or two or who emerged from semi or full retirement to answer the call for help when it went out.
8. Those who gave additionally of their time and themselves to support the club in some capacity on the Management Committee, Karori Park Sports Club's Committee (in particular Graeme Tall and Ted Tyler), behind the bar or in the kitchen. Some were, and still are, players. Some were not. The club is indebted to you.
9. Those keen supporters who have fronted the clubroom’s upstairs lounge all those Saturdays (or sprawled outside in the sunshine on the rare occasions there was any) following the fortunes of the team playing on Karori’s the No 1 wicket or away venues. In particular the regular presence over the last 25 years of Brian and Barbara Holmes, Toivo Vaikvee, Doug Catley (possibly the greatest supporter of all), Mike Curtis, Bob Murdoch, Alan Graham, Rob and Ngaire Ambridge, Paul Cudby, Roy Atkin, Bob and Sharman Buckle, Mick Wiffin, Neville Drake, Keith Mansill, Dave Hooley, Graham Stephen, Ken Brown, the Priors and the Stuarts.
Harry Gibbons
2
FOREWORDS
1
At our 1980 centennary celebrations and due to the vision of our president at the time, the late Ian Nimmo, The Karori Cricket Foundation was formed. Designed to promote cricket in the Karori area at both junior and senior level, the Foundation has had a major impact on the development of the Karori Cricket Club over the last 25 years. It has fostered cricket in the arena and provided financial assistance to both clubs in times of need.
Over the last 25 years the Karori Cricket Club has had the benefit of some excellent administration. Peter Baird 1986-87, David Bain 1992-95, Brett and Dianne Gray, Colin Walters, Harry Gibbons, Fraser Lyons, Ted Tyler, Barbara Holmes, Peter Rutherford, Norm Ridgeway and Phil Benfield to mention a few. We now have Dave Hooley who is continuing the high standard set before him. I believe that their contribution has had an extremely important influence in the club’s financial success and strength.
In 1995-96 we saw the establishment of the inter-city competition between Hutt Valley and Wellington cricket clubs culminating in 1999 with the merger of the Wellington and Hutt Valley Cricket Associations to form Cricket Wellington Inc. The subsequent Pearce Cup and Hazlett Trophy competitions, with automatic promotion and relegation, added a lot of pressure to all clubs to perform well. This in turn saw overseas professionals being sought and used to lift club performances and in order to recruit better players, payments were offered to local players to change clubs. As a consequence, Wellington Cricket established a salary cap for professional payments.
With the development of Karori Park now in progress and plans for the upgrade of the clubrooms, I am confident that the Karori Cricket Club will continue to grow and be strong for the next 25 years.
Mike Curtis
A year or so ago when first thinking about our Club’s 125th anniversary celebrations, I looked through the excellent book “ One Hundred Years” written by Club member John Stribling for our centenary, held in 1980. It really is a great read. Towards the end, there is a page entitled “The Future”. Prophetically, and to quote, it says: “ In the short term the future looks bright for the Club. It now has excellent social facilities…..On the cricket field the Club is able to enter strong teams through the grades…..In the long-term the future of the Karori Cricket Club is closely tied to that of cricket generally. The game enjoys wide popularity and has demonstrated an ability to adapt over the years.”
Twenty five years on, we would have to agree with these words, relative to the quarter century we have completed, and importantly, the next twenty five years ahead.
Technology-wise, we are very mindful of the progress made since 1980. While Harry Gibbons, to whom we owe grateful thanks for writing the Club history, will say how challenging compiling all the statistics has been, we now have an excellent web-site on which to record all sorts of Club data for now and into the future. Out on the cricket field, these past months, we have had technology digging it up, draining it, levelling it, creating new wicket blocks, with special clay, and beautifying the surrounds. Once completed, Karori Park will be the best sports and recreation facility in the Wellington and Hutt Valley region, and that will create lots of opportunities for cricket.
Technology will soon be the fore enabling the modernization of the Karori Park pavilion, and the Karori Park Sports Club rooms, that had been built shortly before the Club’s centenary.
The Sports Club rooms project is a cooperative effort by the soccer and cricket clubs, and the generosity of major community charitable trusts, and the Wellington City Council. When completed early in 2007, the Sports Club rooms sited beside the pavilion, on the edge of the Park will be the benchmark that other sports grounds in the region and beyond will aim for.
So the next twenty five years look to be full of prospect. Growth in playing members, and supporters will surely follow. Young aspiring cricketers will want to be part of Karori Cricket Club. Within five years, the Club is going to need new and vigorous leaders, on and off the field. And so the Club goes on.
Let us celebrate our 125th anniversary, thinking about all those who have made up the years, and the opportunities in prospect ahead.
David Bain
President
The term “labour of love” is used often enough these days to be a cliche. Nevertheless, that is exactly what the task of putting together a review of the last 25 years of Karori cricket has been for me. The enjoyment I have got over the previous nine months or so in collating relevant data and then writing up and editing this review has been immeasurable. It has also been an amazing learning experience. The period over which I have worked is also co-incidental to the fulfilment of an adult pregnancy. I now appreciate some of what women experience in dealing with at time moments of sheer joy and moments of utter agony and frustration but knowing that at the end it is all worth it.
From interviews with past and current club members and the meticulous sorting through 25 years of annual reports and scorebooks I came to know, and appreciate, the real extent of those very many other “labours of love” that hundreds of people have given to ensure the success, and at times the survival, of the Karori Cricket Club in that time.
It proved an eye opener to realise just how far back some players’ involvement with (and service to) the club. Quite number of these can still be seen around Wellington’s environs. The impact of discovering the remarkable playing performances of many individuals and the regularity of their achievement was just as great. More than a few of these were put together over long periods of time including by players who remained content to remain competing in the lower two day and the one day grades.
Following the progress of players moving in both directions through the various grades over the years was yet another satisfying outcome of researching this review. As such, I believe I have come to know my club and its members much better.
The task was not without its frustrations. The principal one among these were some significant gaps in core data required to accurately trace performances and events over the last 25 years. My key sources involved annual reports and particularly the descriptions and statistics provided by team captains in these; and senior men’s and women’s scorebooks. The club’s own files were surprisingly deficient in both these. As such I am most thankful to the generosity of Mike Curtis, David Bain, Dave Hooley and John Stribling especially and also others in allowing me access to their own collections of annual reports. Sadly, while many of these gaps were filled yet others could not. Clubroom files surrendered some team scorebooks but a number, particularly for the 1980s, remained missing. Records and scorebooks from many other grade teams covering the last 25 years have also apparently vanished.
That the club no longer appears to retain one complete set of all records and scorebooks for each decade means a substantial and important source of club history is gone. I believe that it would be worth the while trying to recover as many of these “missing links as possible.”
After all the collators of the club’s history for the 150th anniversary and bi-centennial celebrations will also need to source these for information. Publications celebrating the club’s centenary and 125 years do not, on their own, provide a sufficient base for reviewing a bi-centennary.
Yet another frustration was a decreasing trend in the detail available in annual reports and the standard of booking keeping in the scorebooks. Team accounts and statistics became more and more general and less specific and detailed in the club’s official records over the 25 years.
In some scorebooks even match dates had been omitted. The absence of much of club related information sources has meant that a full data base of players over the 25 years between 1981 and 2006 together with their statistics was, in the end impossible to obtain and publish. To publish some but not all would have been grossly unfair. As such, no statistical data has been included in the published document. This particular issue is being left for a further 25 years.
Readers of this review will find that I have not shirked controversy. It is just that- a review and largely a subjective one at that and not an apology for the last 25 years of Karori cricket. However, I also asked the current Club president, David Bain, and a previous long serving President and Chairman, Mike Curtis to also provide forewords or reviews of the last 25 years from their perspective. This will go some way, at least, to addressing any imbalance of my own. I have also sought additional editorial comment and suggestions at various stages. A number of other club personalities were also asked to contribute to items.
“Father Time” will ensure that I am unlikely to be around to help with the next review or celebrations in 2031. I am disappointed I won’t be. Therefore, I would like to thank now all those who helped me in my “labour of love” and hope all enjoy the 125 anniversary celebrations on which this publication is focused.
To those who will still be around over the next 25 years I just say to you: “Cetare bonum certamen”
Harry Gibbons
PART 1
3
REFLECTIONS
BACK TO THE FUTURE
AN OVERVIEW OF KARORI CRICKET 1981-2006
The subjective reminiscences of a past player, administrator, life member and current sideline observer
In the myths of ancient times the unicorn was a beast of legend whose failing struggle against the elements and natural enemies saw it vanish from the Earth. The unicorn that is today’s symbol of the Karori Cricket Club too has faced battles of survival over the last 25 years. Not unlike its mythical counterpart. However, unlike the unicorn of myth, Karori’s unicorn fights on.
Part of John Stribling’s fine volume on the first 100 years of the Karori Cricket Club, “One Hundred Years” featured the club’s struggle towards attaining senior status between 1920 and 1935. His publication went on to conclude that while the short term future for the club was bright, its long term future was very much dependent on the fortunes of cricket in general.
The bright short term future predicted by John certainly proved to be the case. At least over the first 12-15 years post 1980. Over much of that time the senior and junior sections of the club’s playing fortunes continued on an unabated high. As well, the women’s sides gradually increased their playing numbers and skill level to reach for, and eventually, take out the senior title in the mid 1990s.
The club’s senior side went into its centenary celebrations after the 1980-81 season with the championship trophy locked away- the result of a last over win over Johnsonville on the last day of the season. Evan Gray earlier that same season became only the third Wellington club cricketer to hit unbeaten centuries in both innings of a match (verses University) while also taking 12 wickets in the two dayer with Tawa (4-34 and 8-39). Gray had also conspired with his wicketkeeper, Ervin McSweeney to snaffle the last Johnsonville wicket on the last ball in the last over of the season to ensure the premier competition was Karori’s. As well, Toivo Vaikvee and Phil Benfield took 32 and 31 wickets respectively between them to lead the Karori bowling charge towards the premier championship.
Gray continued to bestride the club scene like a colossus through the 1980s and 1990s. He consistently applied a chokehold over opposition club batting line ups and his bowling returns were phenomenal. This even when considering his limited availability due to New Zealand, Wellington, Wellington selector commitments and stints with the Johnsonville and Collegians Clubs as their club professional. Age too, while the leveller of most, never seemed to dim his particular skills whenever he responded, in later years, to a call for help. Periods in the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons were two examples when the veteran left the comforts of retirement to respond to Karori’s needs. Age being no object it was no surprise that he remained able to literally spin his web over a number of opposition line ups that year. His 2003-04 returns included a match total of 8-30 off 29 overs against Petone Riverside (4-15 in each innings) and 1-8 off 10 overs in a one day clash with North City. Who said life was over after 40 and no wonder Gray was always reluctant to formally retire.
If Gray’s domination of the club scene over the last 25 years was testament to his sublime skills then not far behind was the year in and year out precision like swing bowling of Phil Benfield and Richard Petrie. A shade just over medium pace, Benfield snared his 500th club wicket in 1986 at the ripe old age of 38. Seemingly tireless, he used his supreme fitness, aggression and late swing to good effect with best figures of 8-31 and 7-88.
He was also a handy lower order and hard hitting bat while his fast, accurate and stinging returns from the boundary as they smacked into the gloves of the keeper was an oft heard sound around various Wellington grounds. Benfield was probably ahead of his time to win a representative cap when at his peak. He would probably be a real boon to today’s Wellington selectors.
Yet another dominant force in premier grade club cricket from the mid 1990s and into the new millennium was Richard Petrie. A tough, determined and skilful competitor, his performances with bat and ball were feared by opposition bowlers and batting line ups alike. He reached or exceeded the seven wicket mark at least six times for Karori. Often these successes were defiant performances to stave off defeat or, more than once, to turn a likely defeat into a charge for victory.
In a notable 2002 match against Naenae the both Petrie and a returning Evan Gray combined their immense talents to tie down a big victory. Petrie took 7-65 in Naenae’s first innings of 129 while Evan Gray as the ‘elder statesman” of the side snatched 5-19 in the opposition’s second innings score of 151 to give Karori a comfortable victory. Other seven wicket or more hauls between 1993 and 2002 included: 8-55 verses Petone Riverside (to wrap up his last full season), 7-38 and 7-43 on two separate occasions against Hutt Districts; 6-76 against Kilbirnie (now Eastern Suburbs); and a 7-96 verses Naenae.
Equal in influence was Derek Stirling, who like Gray and Petrie had enjoyed moments wearing the silver fern. Also, like the other two was a dominant figure on the club scene wearing the unicorn. A powerful striker of the ball and medium pace bowler, Stirling’s real strength lay in his application of sublime leadership, tactical and motivational skills. One outcome was a spread of his positive influence which motivated the entire club membership.
The pace bowling mantle of Benfield and Petrie these days has fallen to current skipper and all rounder, Lee Edwards. A product of the Karori junior club, Edwards, season in and season out continues to reap a harvest of wickets. In 2004-05 and 2005-06 he was the premier grade’s leading wicket taker. Over the season just ended (2005-06) he shouldered the bulk of the workload in a limited attack, bowling a massive 248 overs for his 49 wickets. The season before he bowled less overs but snared three more wickets ending the season with 51 victims. Edwards’ current heavy workload restricts his pace. However, he can, nevertheless, still look most sharp when the mood and the situation calls. A handy bat, but lacking the consistency his ability demands, Edwards has also emerged as an astute skipper who leads from the front, and instils a strong team spirit and will to win. This did not come easily as he probably took up the premier grade leadership a little early in life. But he has worked his way nicely into an effective captaincy role.
At one time in the mid 1990s Karori took the field with all three of its triumvirate (Gray, Stirling and Petrie) along with two others who were to make their mark on the representative scene, Mark Jefferson and Phil Chandler. At one time both were also were given long consideration by the national selectors. Other New Zealand, Wellington and/or other major provincial representatives who wore the three unicorn jersey at one time or another in the 25 year period under review included Ervin McSweeney, Andy Roberts, Wayne Aberhart and Lee Edwards.
Additional successes in the mid-1980s saw premier men’s championship trophies gracing the clubroom cabinet again in 1985-86 and 1986-87. The latter two achievements were realised under the astute captaincy of Colin Jackson. The first of these being yet another decided on the last ball of the last over on the last day of the last game in the tightest of tight finishes. With one ball to go to finish the season the competition title could have gone any of three ways. Johnsonville required three runs from the season’s last ball. Karori, their opponent required one wicket while a draw would have given the competition to Wellington Collegians. A clever piece of strategy between Gray and McSweeney gave the latter a stumping and Karori the premier title. The following season’s title was fittingly shared with Johnsonville.
The women’s development continued to progress until attaining senior status under the captaincy of New Zealand women’s captain, Maia Lewis in the mid 1990s. There were also some outstanding performances by prolific run getter, Celia Cavanagh (over 2,000 runs in three successive seasons between 1992 and 1995 including one total of 1,048 in the 1992-03 season).
If Evan Gray was the men’s colossus of the club then Celia Cavanagh was certainly the dominant women’s player. Her reign followed a period of dominance by Rosa McDonald who had led a fledging but an increasingly competitive women’s reserve grade team through the latter part of the 1980s.
Over the early part of the last 25 years other superlative team and individual performances across all grades abounded. Playing numbers and talent continued to push for places in all grades. As well, competition for places in two day grade teams remained strong.
Part of the reason for cricket’s popularity and local vitality lay with its increased fortunes and popularity in general. The early 1980s gave rise to the “pyjama” one day game. It was also the era of the “Excalibur” bat and its exploits in the hands of Lance Cairns drove hundreds of not thousands of all ages to attempt to emulate his feats. As well, the period through to the 1990s was built around a national side of outstanding international quality and depth. It was led by Jeremy Coney who was aided by the batting talent of (at one time or another) Bruce Edgar, John Wright, Andrew Jones, John Reid, Martin and Jeff Crowe, Coney himself, Ken Rutherford, Ian Smith, Lance Cairns, Richard Hadlee and John Bracewell (who once scored a century opening the batting for Auckland against a powerful visiting West Indian line-up). The team “took it to” and on many occasion beat every other team in the world at that time. Wins were recorded over Australia, England and the West Indies. The advent, and growing popularity of the international one day version of the game ensured queues of “wanna be cricketers” of all ages lining up to play. In 1983 some 300 juniors signed on to play for Karori.
This was over 130 more than two years previous. Such was the demand for places in teams that at times the club had problems trying to find positions to meet the demand in both two day and one day sides.
Prior to the 1995-96 and 1996-97 seasons the Wellington and Hutt Valley Associations came to the view that the time had come to merge the two competitions. The result was a two season inter-city competition played between the premier sides of both associations to determine places in a new inter-city Pearce Cup and Hazlett Trophy grades. The move provided a further injection of enthusiasm together with an extension and additional edge to games between rival clubs. New rivalries also developed with the merger.
Karori’s bid for the first ever inter-city premier title was developed by the side’s former skipper and now “senior player” and tactician, Derek “Billy” Stirling. He had been working hard to reverse a perception in the region of Karori as a “them and us” club which was seeing local talent passing by to play their cricket elsewhere. He had also been developing a pool of new and younger talent to back up the bigger names. The arrival of the aggressive and competitive Richard Petrie from Canterbury, the tall Central Districts leg spinner, Matthew Goodson and the Northamptonshire all rounder, Kevin Innes provided additional firepower going into the inaugural inter-city competition over the 1995-96 and 1996-97 seasons.
Missing the championship by a mere point 36 of a point with the final day rained out was described by “Billy” Stirling as gut wrenching and something he has still not yet forgotten. Nevertheless, when he hung up his boots at the end of that season he left behind a powerful and competitive premier men’s team and a buoyant club.
Between 1981 and the mid 1990s club administration and finances had remained robust. In the case of the “junior” section of the club this has continued unabated. The result is a nursery of talent which, in many instances, returned to fill the senior ranks after players left secondary school.
During the 1980s and early 1990s, practice nets were at choking point most evenings Monday to Thursday inclusive. One two grade side even practiced Saturday mornings before game time and as well, club spirit was at a peak.
The club’s bar and restaurant facilities, complemented with food provided by a willing team of players’ spouses and girlfriends, were well patronised and end of season function venues were packed. Finally, there appeared to be not too much initial difficulty in securing major sponsors when this was sought to meet increased costs of administering the game at club level.
From around the mid to late 1990s a paradigm shift occurred. It was not the result of gradual creep. Nor was it sudden. But there were warning signs in an increasingly stormy looking sky looming over the game at club level.
Teams began having to resort to more and more players over successive seasons (up to 40 or more by some two day sides and many of them part timers and/or retired players). This trend tended to undermine stability and focus and subsequently results.
In 1994-95 one side finished bottom of their grade (after winning it the previous year), five others were second to bottom and three managed mid-table finishes. It was described by Club President of the time, Mike Curtis, as one of the worst, if not the worst, in terms of team playing performances in the history of the club.
The decline in the fortunes of cricket generally around this time forced the “senior” part of the club to put its focus on survival- both in playing and financial terms. The struggle to gain premier status in the region between 1920 and 1935 became, over the last 10 years, a fight to retain it.
That the club’s premier “flagship” team managed to remain in the middle of the table or better at the end of most seasons after the mid 1990s should not disguise that fact. The premiers’ continued existence in that competition was never assured in those years let alone guaranteed. In some seasons it wasn’t even expected in the view of some observers. The club’s continued existence in Pearce Cup was sometimes the result of an occasional win. But more often than not retention of premier status was through the influence of Evan Gray, Richard Petrie, Derek Stirling, and Lee Edwards. Cameo performances from its overseas professionals, Andrew Mercer and Azhar Abbas, of who more is to be told were also vital.
Since winning its place in the Pearce Cup the club’s hold on one of the top eight premier competition places has been maintained, albeit precariously on occasion. The loss of experienced “clubmen” one by one through retirement, premature departure from the region for work or overseas travel, family commitments; and/or age and weariness after already many years in the game (often accompanied by increased demands of additional practice and travelling) had their impact. That was exacerbated by increased weekend work requirements and an expansion of other recreational choices. These choices include golf which has become a major competitor for players’ time.
2004-05 proved a particular struggle. The premiers finished in seventh place, just one spot away from relegation. Had a tied one day match with Hutt Districts not been achieved or a tight two day encounter with Naenae gone the other way, Karori may not have been celebrating its 125th anniversary in Pearce Cup.
The tie involved a long battle to achieve a 255 target posed by Hutt Districts and was attained on the last ball of the game with a bye. In the Naenae fixture, Karori had been set a modest 147 for the outright after giving away a small 32 run first innings lead. Drama too there had been in the first innings. Karori’s last wicket partnership commenced at 89-9 after Naenae had been dismissed for 163. The last pair then added a further 48 runs. In the final chase for victory Karori again suffered a collapse and at 120-9 the game appeared Naenae’s for the taking. Regular number 10 batsman, Simon Kent got together with skipper Lee Edwards and, bit by bit, clawed Karori back into the match. The win was achieved but only after the last pair had endured through 25 agonising overs gradually chipping off the required runs.
There were some clubs which were fortunate enough to perform around teams which continued to possess the ongoing services of long serving stalwarts. These, while not necessarily of representative quality, were sufficiently experienced and skilled to provide the playing edge and leadership on which consistency and results were built.
Petone Riverside’s Leigh Kelly, University’s Ross Bond, Taita’s Dave Little, and Eastern Suburbs’ Lance Dry are some who come to mind in this category. Karori did field some who filled the capacity of “senior mentors'’ from time to time.
Included in this category at one time or another were Derek Stirling, Fraser Lyons, Richard Petrie and Evan Gray who all responded willingly to additional calls on their time. It was also no co-incidence that while these roles were filled the premier side made its presence felt more strongly. One can only dwell on the fortunes of the club’s premier side had players such as Tim Ritchie, Matthew Goodson, Jarad O’Hara, Chris Lee, Wayne Holmes, Hamish Soper, Mathew Drake, Chris and Graeme Taylor, Marcus Hill, Mark Jefferson, Phil Chandler, Neil Martin and Simon Allen, to name but a few, had not succumbed to age or the call of the wild and remained either in the region, at the club and/or in the game for a few further years. Many of the above players departed as relatively young men whose loss of skill and leadership potential was sorely felt.
It is not a comfortable thought should Karori lose the services of current skipper and all-rounder, Lee Edwards despite the pool of emerging talent around him. Another factor in Karori’s battle is a recent need to get younger players up to being able to perform consistently to Pearce Cup requirements. These days more and more talented school leavers tend to go straight into premier grade cricket. Yet, even Wellington age grade Wellington and national age grade players can find it a different proposition having to bat against the Andrew Penns, Richard Petries, Carl Bulfins, Stephen Hotters, James Franklins, Mark Jefferson’s and Jetan Patel’s or trying to effect quick dismissals of the Matthew Bells, Scott Golders, Tim Boyers, Michael and Neal Parlanes, Richard Jones’, Grant Donaldson’s and the Chris Nevins of the club scene. There is a step up from college and even from international under 19 level and it does take some adjustment. This adjustment cannot always be achieved by talent, enthusiasm and youth alone. It has also proved discouraging to some and a mountain to others. Success takes time and can involve technique adjustments and hard work.
Young Hamish Templeton is an example of one who had to steer himself through that particular barrier. Templeton came to the club in 2003-04 with an exemplary secondary school batting record. After a first pre season warm up of 95 with his new club his first two premier seasons proved relative lean ones in respect to total runs accumulated and consistency of results. The first signs the step up came in the latter part of the 2004-05 season. A tight match against Taita at the end of 2004-05 involved a final innings knife edge run chase by Karori. With wickets starting to tumble the situation required one player to knuckle down, hold up one end and accumulate. Hamish did so. He was there at the end with 51 not out to his credit and the satisfaction that without the grit he displayed the game would have been lost. As it was there were no wickets to spare. Even better, the signs of his improvement continued through the following season which netted him over 300 runs.
These included a good season’s start with scores of 29 not out, 29 and 38. A mid season slump was recovered with valuable contributions of 26, 28, 34, 86 and 50.
As we proceed into the next 25 year period of club history, it appears that more of the latest crop of young talent are making the adjustment to a higher standard of play relatively quickly.
Stephen Murdoch and Simon Allen (for the two seasons he played for Karori) are exceptional talents and adjusted to the demands of premier club cricket quickly. As well, the early returns from the likes of Chris Spring and Jarad Sewell also auger well for the future of the club’s premier side. Against that promise, there have always been two or three players perhaps whose inconsistency of performance and comfort in the premier grade hinted that a more gradual progression may have been better achieved at Hazlett Trophy or even senior 1 (reserve) grade level. The needs of survival, a lack of a Hazlett Trophy side and a growing quality gap between premier and reserve grades, have, however worked against this approach.
The struggle to maintain Pearce Cup status has also seen the necessity, on occasion, to coax former players out of full or semi retirement to provide the necessary platform of experience and steel on which the youth could lean. Fraser Lyons is one example of this. Another, was the return of Evan (I have never retired I just became more unavailable) Gray to premier cricket in the early years of the new millennium. The quality of Evan’s assistance together with those he inspired in 2003-04 had Karori’s Pearce Cup side, prior to Christmas, threatening to run away with the top prize over more highly fancied contenders.
To help in the struggle to retain premier status, club finances had to be directed to hiring playing strength from overseas on a season to season basis. As well, difficulties in putting eleven players onto the field saw, on thankfully rare occasions, “fill in” players being literally plucked off the street, once for the premier side at the end of one season. While this approach is a rare occurrence, it, nevertheless, reflects a malaise in the game in the region over recent times. This “street sweeping” is still not an uncommon practice at lower two day grade level.
Sad too has been the gradual diminishing of away affiliations which facilitated Easter, pre-season and Christmas holiday matches. The active relationships with Cornwall (Auckland) and Lancaster Park (Christchurch) Clubs have gone as have previous pre-season visits to Wanganui and Rotorua. Even a more recent relationship with an annual fixture against a Wairarapa side appears to have fallen by the wayside.
The Lancaster Park fixture usually involved two teams from each club. The stories of these annual southern excursions always made good reading in the club’s “Unicorn” newsletter afterwards.
In other two day grades, playing numbers and the quality of playing standards too have tended to decline slowly over the last six to eight years. Again this is a regional phenomenon afflicting Wellington as a whole. Defaults were also recorded and there have been instances of teams too often trying to compete with 8-9 players or less at times. At one point in the 2000-01 season, the 2As were down to 5-6 regulars.
Even the reserve grade level did not escape as this side too took the paddock with less than the required number on more than one occasion around the same time.
As feeders to higher honours, the lower grades have become less and less the source of ongoing strength at higher level let alone wrest competition trophies in their own grades.
Over the first 12-15 years after 1980 the situation had been vastly different. The senior reserve grade then was the pool which nurtured higher success. From this team there were a number who were destined to make the step up including Hamish Soper, Jarad O’Hara, Lee Edwards, Simon Baker (all future premier captains), Chana Jayasinha, Chris Pile, James Ward, Morgan Prior, Dan Ryan, Mark Jurgeleit, Andrew Wellings and Simon Kent to name but some.
Other good performers such as Jeremy Philpott, Dan Martin and Richard Prebble were also in contention and undoubtedly would have won promotion had they remained in the game. There were also some very good cricketers who floated between both grades. These included players such Fraser Lyons, Hamish Johnson, Peter Johnson, Keith Atkinson, Brett Gray among others.
As the playing and financial pressures on the club mounted in the latter 1990s, a formal approach was made to the Wellington Collegians Club for a whole, or part, amalgamation. This was in order to ensure a longer term viable future as a premier grade club and provide a better “fit” for the range of abilities of the senior players. The move, received the agreement of the “older heads.” But Karori’s approach to Collegians was not universally supported by that club and in the end, did not take place. Whether it should have or not is still debated as is the “what might have been outcomes.”
At the time, Cricket Wellington itself was promoting amalgamations to strengthen the quality of senior cricket while also assuring its representative selections were able to play at premier club level. Till now this trend has only seen the emergence of Petone Riverside, Upper Valley (Stokes Valley and Upper Hutt) and Norths (Tawa and Mana at premier and reserve, or Senior 1, level only) as a result of amalgamation activity.
In tandem with the decline of the club’s playing strength its support base also faltered. From the middle 1990s the Club struggled to attract committee members in sufficient numbers. Sources of ongoing club sponsorship were proving increasingly harder to tap. The senior club’s finances plummeted and the long boney fingers of insolvency beckoned. It may not be widely known, or even believed, at the time, but in the years either side of the millennium the coffers were bare. As well, there were numbers in a growing queue awaiting owed payment let alone being able to meet spiralling costs to put teams onto the paddock.
The precariousness of “senior club” finances proved to be a wedge that forced the senior and junior sections apart to some extent. The schism between both arms of the club opened up when the Junior Club, whose finances, support base and numbers remained vigorous and sound, became uncertain (and not without good grounds) as to the financial stability of the club’s senior division. As such, separate annual financial reporting was sought from that point. Work has commenced to bring the two together again to pursue mutually supporting objectives, as they once did. But, at the time of writing, this remains unfinished business. It is something requiring dedicated commitment by the parties over the next decade.
Yet another rent in club strength was the loss of the women’s teams around the time of the millenium.
For a while through to the mid to late 1990s the women’s team (and subsequently teams) were synonymous with the vitality and success of the club overall. The women matched, and often exceeded, men’s results in terms of competition points, individual performances and trophies. The arrival of Maia Lewis from Canterbury and a number of talented players drawn from other clubs at that time saw entry into the senior women’s grade with a championship win in 1994-95. Lewis provided the core around which a number of other talented players including Celia Cavanagh, Donna Archer, Kristina Martnelli, Linden Eagles, Erika MacKay, Margaret Presland, Laura Mansill and the Lewis twins (Penny and Sammy) launched some outstanding performances to achieve for a brief time, at least, a dominance over Wellington’s women cricket scene. At the time the women exuded a very strong spirit de corps and were often the first to front up in support of club events and initiatives. A too small a playing base, retirements, injuries and difficulties in transporting younger second team players to matches proved insurmountable and, in the end, incurable.
It was a shame that both Maia Lewis and Presland were forced to continue their prolific careers with other clubs. Lewis indeed was for the three successive seasons counting down to her retirement Wellington’s Women’s Cricket of the Year. She finished her final playing season with an 80.33 club batting average and led the New Zealand women’s World Cup bid and achieved the team’s highest aggregate in doing so.
From time to time over the last 25 years, the actions of some teams, and individuals, earned the judicial eye of the regions over riding administrative body. These were occasions which, in hindsight, the club could have done without.
Examples include a rather bizarre game in 1995-96 between Karori and Upper Hutt which saw a huge partnership between Northamptonshire import Kevin Innes and Matthew Goodson. This was put together largely on the backs of some gentle bowling in order to force a declaration. Another included a refusal of Karori players to go back onto the field at the end of day one against Naenae after the day’s end had been signalled by the umpires. A protest by Naenae officials saw a reversal of that decision to allow another over or two. By that time the light was fading and some Karori players had already changed. The playing of two overseas professionals in the 1999-00 season also captured the attention of Cricket Wellington. This, when added to complaints, from time to time, of uncomplimentary verbal abuse aimed at opposition players (sometimes in retaliation) and even altercations between players and opposition supporters was not a good look. It was not a trend in the game which was Karori’s alone however.
That the last 25 years has involved struggle on several fronts cannot be denied. As such, any celebration of the last 25 years should not be an excuse to bury the difficulties in euphoria of self praise. That does not mean that the last 25 years has been all cloud, shadow and no sunshine. It hasn’t.
Reference has already been made to the strength of on and off field performances over the first 12-15 years following the centenary celebrations. As the sixth 25 years of club history ends there is the hint of a new era on the playing field supported by a strong and eager administration. These are all testament to the struggle for survival being vigorously fought and being won.
The junior section of the club has gone from strength to strength. As well, the legacy commenced by former playing stalwart and club president, the late Ian Nimmo, in setting up the Karori Cricket Foundation goes on. The Foundation, a concept to support the development of Karori cricket and cricketers, was launched in 1980. It was, and is, funded largely through subscription and grants while it has also benefited from a number of bequests over the years.
The Foundation is managed completely separately from either the Junior or Senior Clubs and has funded player scholarships; gear and equipment; and coaching. Doug Catley, one of the club’s greatest ever supporters and benefactors, was the Foundation’s chairman over much of its history prior to handing over responsibility to Brett Gray. While not being set up as a source of general financing, the Foundation, did come to the club’s rescue in the early millenium with a timely $30,000 loan when it was in deep financial crisis. The loan has now been paid back in full achieved largely through the efforts of current treasurer, Dave Hooley.
In returning to the playing front and the struggle to maintain Pearce Cup status, the coaxing out of retirement of players and obtaining “hired guns” for the premiers were two approaches which have proved fruitful in bid to survive in the grade. The phenomenon of the overseas and more latterly local paid club professionals have been two of the key features to emerge across the Wellington club scene over the last 25 years.
At one point the region’s governing body, Cricket Wellington, had to step in to cap what was being commonly referred to as “chequebook cricket” by which some clubs were actively offering financial inducements to players to switch allegiances. It was feared, probably with justification, that the practice could eventually lead to an imbalance of playing strength across the premier competition.
The hiring of overseas (and at times local based) “professionals” over the past 25 years has not been without its success. At times doing so has proved vital in retaining Pearce Cup status. Mike Clinning was one of the earlier of the “hired guns, Northants all rounder Kevin Innes was another. His first appearance in the unicorn jersey was part of a deal with his county to provide him with extra experience. His first year at the club (1995-96) resulted in over 700 runs and 49 wickets. Yet another overseas player success story was Neil Martin.
Martin arrived as a quick bowler for the start of the 1998-99 season and a previous selection in the England under 19 squad behind him. He liked Wellington and returned the following year for good. This time it was as a sound and consistent middle order bat scoring over 400 runs in 1999-2000 and giving further stability to the middle order in 2000-01. This was no better shown over the former season than scores of 50 (seven fours) and 34 (seven fours) against Upper Valley; 60 (five sixes and five fours) against Hutt Districts; and 59 (11 fours) against Naenae.
There was considerable hope, and expectation, Martin would become one of those long serving “senior players” around whom success would be built. However, while remaining a New Zealand resident, he has played only spasmodically since, “victim” of a new family and a growing interest in golf.
The two biggest success stories of hired talent over the last 25 years have probably been Andrew Mercer (2002-03 and 2003-04) and Azhar Abbas (2004-05).
Without their wicket taking skills as back up to Lee Edwards, the premiers may have been celebrating the fifth 25 years of their history minus the status their forebears had fought so hard for.
Mercer’s first season netted him 62 wickets. It was a performance repeated in his second season and again exceeding a 50 wicket aggregate. He had come to the Club to first support and then supplement Richard Petrie and thus had big shoes to fill. Petrie was one of those players who at all times made his presence felt whether making sides struggle to reach small targets with figures of 7-38, 7-43 and 7-65 as just three examples to proclaim his abilities in doing so. He also had the capability to smash his way quickly to big scores.
Abbas, who came after Mercer’s two seasons with Karori, collected 46 wickets in his sole season in the Capital city. Backed again by skipper Lee Edwards (51 wickets), the pairs’ wicket taking ability kept at bay, just, the spectre of relegation. If the efforts of the two bowlers had been matched by the team’s batting then it would not have had to battle in last place over the weeks preceding the final round. It was, still, however, somewhat of a relief to end the season in seventh place out of the eight participating teams. It was also a disappointment that Abbas, keen to make his permanent home in New Zealand, returned to settle in the end in Auckland.
Despite not having Abbas, the season leading into these particular celebrations did see the premiers back in the top two of the Pearce Cup. This was achieved with increased consistency with bat to back up the wicket taking capacity and mature leadership of Lee Edwards (48 wickets following his 51 the season before plus 267 runs). Stephen Murdoch was on fire with scores of 64, 53, 102, 46, 109 and 31 being among the player’s best in a season in which he compiled 552 runs and throwing his hat into the senior representative mix for 2006-07.
Hamish Templeton’s run of 29, 29, 38, 26, 28, 34, 86 and 50; Craig Tennant’s knocks of 29,64,58,26,21,48, and 48; a 67 in one classic encounter from Matthew Aiken in a game Karori surrendered only in the last over needing two runs to win; scores of 47, 73, 45, and a 31 from James Hill building on his previous season’s contributions; and a 52 and an 85 from Chris Spring were examples of the new batting solidity which almost netted Karori another premier trophy.
Spring, Templeton and Hill later joined Murdoch in a successful tour to India with the Wellington Development squad.
Wellington’s uncertain weather (after a splendid summer) prevented a scheduled three day play off for the Pearce Cup thus ruining the opportunity for a genuine tilt at the championship title. Even so, over the last five to six years there were times when results from the last or last two to three rounds needed to go the premier’s way in order to avoid relegation to Hazlett Trophy. One of these being in 2002-03 when Karori had to beat Taita in the penultimate game to be safe. The result of another game was also an important factor and yet another reason the win was needed. The game ended in semi-darkness and thick swirling mist.
Chasing 239, Karori got there with Simon Allen scoring his maiden 100 for the club (123 of which 80 came in boundaries with 14 fours and four sixes). During his innings Taita players had to duck for cover in the gloom every time there was the sound of bat on ball, unable to pick up its flight.
Yet in other recent years the Club’s top side ended in the middle of the table and on occasion better. In 2001-02 the premiers despatched Eastern Suburbs, University (twice), Hutt Districts and Taita. The side then was skippered by a hard hitting and aggressive Simon Baker who had made his way through the grades over a number of seasons. A 71 not out with five fours and three sixes to steer Karori home against Taita after being after 48-5 chasing 135 was a typical reflection of the beligerent way Baker played the game. Yet another example was against Naenae in an away fixture in the same season. Karori were all out for 66 after the home side’s 246 and had to follow on. The reply was 310 with Baker’s contribution a hard hitting 99 with 80 runs of that coming in shots to and over the boundary. It would also be fair to say that Baker’s approach on the playing field contributed significantly to the club’s survival in the Pearce Cup.
With Baker’s subsequent move overseas the leadership of the club’s premier grade fortunes over the last three seasons have rested with Lee Edwards. Together with the overseas support of Mercer and Abbas, Edwards has provided the premier’s bowling strike power. He has also proved a useful lower middle order batsman.
But it has been the growing quality of his leadership which is taking the eye and proving, possibly, to be his greatest contribution. A season where work commitments kept him out of Wellington mid-week was not the best start to his new role. But he has since grown into it and as the period under review concluded it was a role he was giving considerable commitment to. It is probably no co-incidence that under Edwards the Pearce Cup team ended in second place overall at the end of 2005-06, was third in the one day competition and won the first ever regional club 20/20 tournament. Edwards too took out the region’s club bowling trophy for most wickets.
Before then, good results had also been achieved at other levels. In 2003-04 the 2As had won their way through to senior 3 status with Adam Cording starring three times with scores of 100 plus. Sadly the benefits of this achievement failed to accrue. The team partly disbanded with others returning to their former clubs.
Across other grades there were mixed fortunes. From the late 1990s and for a time, the reserve grade (senior 1) side was another which experienced a significant decline in quality. In the 1980s and on into the 1990s it was one of the better teams in its competition. The team’s slippage was gradual to at one point anyone prepared to turn up could play. It has now taken a turn for the better ending the 2005-06 season pushing hard for promotion to Hazlett Trophy. It ended its effort not far away in second position on the points table. Much of the credit for this belongs to Eastern Suburbs convert, Nick Hearn. A former premier regular for both clubs (and perhaps not managed as effectively as he could have been when wearing the three unicorns) Nick has been the glue of experience, skill, performance and drive around which his senior 2 reserve grade team mates have responded remarkably well.
The team’s push to make Hazlett Trophy status for the 2006-07 season came oh so very close to fruition. The competition title in the grade was hard fought and Karori went to the Christmas break in the lead. A draw in the final match being played between the other two top contenders would have allowed Karori through.
However, it was not to be and the players were left to rue a weakness in nailing one day wins. But the strong comeback by the team over the season was a joy to all.
Rising playing standards and attitudes in keeping with the quality required for higher grades allowed one or two players additional opportunities with the Pearce Cup team.
As the first 25 years of its second 100 years comes to a close, club finances and administration are now on a sounder footing. Mike Curtis’ return to the Management Committee as its chairman in 1999-2000 was the start of the turn around. As President he had to report a $15,000 deficit at the end of that season1999-2000 and it got worse. Twelve months later he reported that the club was $34,000 in the red. Mike came to the rescue armed with a forceful and blunt nature and a hard nosed dedication to a cricket club he played for and served since 1951-52 that is unparalleled. There was just no way “his club” was going to go under. His first objective was on field Pearce Cup survival and the second a gradual claw back to respect and a sound financial footing. In the latter he was supported by a committed Management Committee and particularly new treasurer, Dave Hooley. The work of the latter was to deservedly and eventually lead to a “Club Person of the Year” award.
Negotiation for longer repayment periods to the Bank and a loan from the Karori Cricket Foundation was the start of the road back on the financial front. The support and good will of Liz Curtis over this period requires much deserved acknowledgement. Thank you Liz for letting us have Mike back when he was most needed.
Going into the next 25 years, the immediate future is far from bleak. The premiers second place result in 2005-06 was 10 points clear of third placed North City and provides a sound base for further development and success. Limitations in the premier team’s strike bowling remained an issue going into the 2006-07 season. The batting is, however, now showing more consistency. Most important, the fighting spirit is strong throughout as is the team’s confidence in their ability to be up there at the finish.
There is still work to do going towards the club’s 150th celebrations. There remain one or two key skill gaps for the top graded team to be consistently at the throat of leading teams for top honours. Feeder teams in the lower grades require further increases in quality while firmer ongoing relationships with Wellington College (and other secondary schools) into which are fed waves of our junior players need to be stronger. No longer is Wellington College the sole source of talent for the Karori and Wellington Collegians clubs. Others too are now targeting that particular nursery for their replacements. Karori needs to ensure that at the very least, the local talent nurtured in primary school is encouraged to return to the club.
Along with the struggle to remain, and succeed, in the Pearce Cup and as a club, is a need to realise the long needed upgrade of the clubrooms.
The next 25 years of club fortunes are to be played out on a completely upgraded venue. Karori Park will look a different to past players and administrators returning for these and subsequent celebrations, reunions, jubilees and eventually the bi-centenary. Already, some of the funding necessary to upgrade the clubrooms have been obtained. As such it is to be hoped that the job is completed within the next two years. The Wellington City Council have done their bit with the ground and the pavilion. It is now the club’s turn with its headquarters building. It would also be a wonderful thing if, at the 150 year celebrations in 2030, that those attending could again celebrate successes of the club’s women’s teams.
The Karori Cricket Club has survived the last 25 years. We remain in the ring and are strongly fighting the good fight. As for the future. Again the words of John Stribling summarise it best.
“The immediate future looks bright. But the longer term future of the Karori Cricket Club depends very much on the fortunes of cricket generally.”
Unfortunately, it gets no better than that.
Harry Gibbons
4
SIMPLY THE BEST
It is not every cricket club in the country that could field an XI made up of New Zealand international players. Karori, however, is one such club. Granted they could not take the field today as their careers stretch well back into the club’s history and which fall outside the period under review. As well, a number have passed on. However, the Karori Cricket Club has had 13 such players and significantly covering most positions and roles including two wicket keepers and three New Zealand captains (Reid, Congdon and Lewis). Evan Gray, Ervin McSweeney, Derek Stirling, Andy Roberts and Richard Petrie had earned their national honours during the period in question as a result of consistent and eye catching performances for Wellington while acknowledging that Roberts and Stirling first earned their New Zealand caps with Northern and Central Districts respectively.
In addition we have asked former player, Committee Chairman, President and Life Member, Mike Curtis to select another team, regardless of honours earned, who he thought would represent the best of Karori Cricket between 1981-82 to 2005-06.
The two teams are:
The Mike Curtis X1 (1981-2006) The Karori International X1 (from):
Colin Jackson Peter Truscott
Phil Chandler Laurie Miller
Kevin Innes Bevan Congdon
Tim Ritchie John Reid
Andy Roberts John Beck
Ervin McSweeney Andy Roberts
Evan Gray C. Gordon Rowe
Richard Petrie Ervin McSweeney
Derek Stirling Evan Gray
Matthew Goodson Richard Petrie
Lee Edwards George Dickenson
Stephen Murdoch Bruce Morrison
Maia Lewis
Commentary on the Mike Curtis X1:
The best of the last 25 years as selected by Mike Curtis contains eight players who have played first class cricket for Wellington and five who have been Black Caps. One other won selection in a national development side and one overseas professional has also been selected.
It may be argued that in the quality of seam bowlers, Andrew Mercer and Azhar Abbas there might well have been yet more. To do so, however, would have meant passing over the qualifications of Phil Benfield and Lee Edwards. The former built up a cache of over 500 wickets over a period of 30 years. Lee Edwards, who gets the selector’s nod for the team, is still a relatively young man. He still plays, captains the premier team and is consistently one of the region’s more prolific new ball wicket takers.
In successive seasons (2004-05 and 2005-06) he was the leading premier grade bowler in terms of total wickets taken (51 and 48 wickets respectively).
The most recent of those season’s rewards came from a massive 257 overs. Even in a lean season, of which there have been few, he usually accumulates over 30 wickets. In the end there was little between Edwards and Benfield. They matched ach other in bowling and fielding skills with Edwards probably the better batsman. Either one of the pair would serve a selected team well.
While the selector felt that most of the side self picked itself, the top of the batting order caused some soul searching. It has been a position that Karori has not been overly endowed with in terms of consistent success over the last 25 years. At the time of writing, Stephen Murdoch was on the verge of commencing what could be a long and successful career in the Wellington representative side as a top order batsman. Whether this is in the number 1 or 2 spot, or in some other top order position, has yet to emerge. For Karori, Murdoch has scored over 1,300 runs in three successive seasons between 2003-04 and 2005-06. His latest return of 552 runs with two centuries has marked him as a batsman with extraordinary talent who is delivering consistently. However, while he is increasingly making the number one slot his own he has yet to settle on this permanently.
Another quality opening batsman post the millennium was Nishan Gonsalkorale. His speciality was behind the stumps but he was also a fluent, and successful, strokemaker at number one or two in the batting order. Simon Allen might well have been a certain selection in the position had he remained longer with Karori to cement the undoubted capabilities that he showed.
In the end the selector settled for a Colin Jackson/Phil Chandler combination. Both had limited time at the club. Jackson was the skipper of successive competition winning premier sides in the mid 1980s with two centuries and a run of other useful scores before departing for Auckland. Chandler shifted to Karori from Upper Hutt in the mid 1990s and stormed his way into the representative side with his swashbuckling batting approach.
Some club armchair critics may have preferred a selection of a best team of the last 25 years to be based solely around those who served their apprenticeships at the club over longer periods of time than some who were chosen. But the concept was to select the best from those who wore the three unicorns between 1981 and 2006 regardless of their origins or time at Karori. Mike Curtis believes his picks are the best and reflect actual achievement and class.
The batting order is long on achieved performance while the bowling attack, albeit based on all round rather than specialist abilities, is well balanced. The selector also wavered in appointing a captain. Among the 12 names in the list five were previous skippers of the premier team and one (Lee Edwards) is the current captain. The most successful is probably Colin Jackson who captained the premiers in the two successive years that the competition title was captured. However, Mike Curtis is of the opinion that either one of the six could do the job ably.
Commentary on the International X1:
For the International XI the strength of the batting right down the order speaks for itself. Pace bowling would be in the hands of Petrie, Dickenson, Stirling and Morrison with Evan Gray wheeling down his left arm spin from one end.
McSweeney and Rowe could share the gloves. Petrie, Stirling and Dickenson can all be classed as all rounders while Gray too was no slouch with the bat. Reid and Congdon of course were also successful with the ball at international level and could also be classed as all rounders.
Dickenson probably had one of the best ever all round performances by a Karori Club cricketer with 498 runs and 56 wickets in the 1940-41 season. Overall, he hit 1,042 runs and captured 178 wickets with what has been described at the time as genuinely quick deliveries. Morrison was one of those medium fast bowlers who could hit the spot ball after ball. As such, a picture of him working in tandem with Evan Gray over long spells is worth contemplating. However, it would probably make for a somewhat tedious spectacle for today’s spectators, fed as they are by over 300 plus runs a day. Gray’s and Morrison’s opposition would be hard pressed to get anywhere near a 200 a day target.
All selected players were legends in their time both at club and national level. The international feats of Congdon and Reid in particular could each fill a book on their own. The sight of Reid and Beck performing in a New Zealand one day batting side today too is worth speculating on.
The Karori International XI looks well balanced for both the short and longer versions of the game with many options for batting order adjustments and changes of bowler.
Truscott and Rowe shared the distinction of playing just one test. Rowe got the dreadful “pair” but Truscott, who earned his cap with several seasons of consistent and dashing run scoring for Wellington, failed in a first innings knock against Pakistan in 1965 at Auckland.
Before he went to the crease for his second turn at bat, the New Zealand touring team was announced but Truscott had been overlooked. In his second innings Truscott proceeded to 26 and was starting to look settled when he again got out. The selectors might have been a bit red faced had he gone on to post a much bigger score, something he was more than quite capable of doing. Indeed it was something that the Chairman of selectors at the time, Murray Chapple, admitted when questioned by the author at a subsequent fund raising dinner. Alas instead Truscott he became just another name in a growing list of opening bat discards over that period of New Zealand cricket. Bruce Bolton (Canterbury), Roger Harris (Auckland), Wyn Bradburn (Northern Districts) and Wellington’s own Grahame Bilby being others as the national selectors continued to seek some stability and consistency at the top of the innings.
Of a later group who earned their national honours, the career of Stirling in particular stands out. A Manawatu tearaway fast bowler in his youth he was seen as the ideal foil to Richard Hadlee. Brendan Bracewell (brother of John Bracewell) had been tried but after some initial promise his form slipped.
Tours to Zimbabwe, Pakistan and the West Indies confirmed Stirling as an aggressive, quick and accurate fast bowler whose initial successes foretold a bright and long international future. The player then developed issues of accuracy and consistency and was then further burdened by lower body injuries becoming a subject of “what might have been.” A move to Wellington provided him and his new province with a number of further highlights as a valuable lower middle order bat and medium pace bowler. He was involved in one stand out batting performance with Ervin McSweeney when the pair added 139 for the eighth wicket in a New Zealand President’s first innings against a strong West Indies line up in Hamilton in that side’s 1987 tour of New Zealand. Stirling’s contribution was 75 and his batting partner’s 76.
One great tragedy was the sad and un-expected death of Andy Roberts. He was a Northern District representative when he earned New Zealand honours and was with Karori only a short time after his appointment as Wellington provincial coach. His passing was a great loss to both the region and the club.
5
BEST OF THE BEST
Of the players who exemplified and personified the Karori Cricket Club’s performances over the past 25 years, five stand above the others. Their identification and payment of particular tribute to them here may seem a little arbitrary and even unfair to the many others across all grades who also performed outstandingly well. But the contributions of the five selected were of a particular high quality and in the case of at least four were also accumulated over a long period of service. Their nominations for the tribute of “Best of the Best” may generate some disagreement and even controversy. But that, in itself is probably no bad thing.
The five players to whom special tribute is being paid are: Evan Gray, Ervin McSweeney, Derek Stirling, Richard Petrie and Phil Benfield.
Four earned national honours at one time or another. The same four earned provincial representative blazers for much of their playing days with the club. All possessed and brought to the game a particular commitment to their fellow players and a hard edge to supplement their array of talents and which underpinned their success. One, Phil Benfield, was selected neither for national honours nor first class play. None the less, he displayed the same attributes as the others and was instrumental in many fine performances at whatever level he played in Karori colours over an extended club career. As such, recognition of his achievements in these pages is justly deserved.
In respect of the players featured here and using the words made famous by Tina Turner were they some of simply the best? Yes. Definitely. Were they the best of the best?. Again yes. Certainly they must be considered among the best of the best. Were they better than all the rest? Probably yes. But it is acceded that particular label being applied to the five selected players is debatable. This is especially so given players like Lee Edwards, Stephen Murdoch, Andrew Mercer, Zaheer Abbas, Kevin Innes and Toivo Vaikvee among others also all knocking on that particular door.
Evan Gray:
Evan Gray’s on and off the field contribution overlapped each of the other four players selected for this article. This is not surprising given that player’s particular commitment to the club and his team mates over more than 30 years between 1972 and 2004. While a stature of just over six feet tall hardly falls under the description of a colossus, nevertheless that was just what Gray became through his achievements.
By the commencement of the period under review (1981-2006), Gray had already accumulated 2,873 runs from 95 innings with a highest score at the time of 104 not out, a total of four centuries and an average of 38.82. Of greater value, however, was his haul (by the end of the 1979-80 season) of 199 wickets from a total of 1,078 overs at an average of 16.77 per wicket.
It included three seven wickets or more returns in an innings including: 8-54 from nine overs verses Onslow in 1976-77; 7-11 from 13 overs against Tawa in 1977-78; and 7-48 from 17 overs in yet another a 1977-78 fixture this time against against Midland St Pats. These are outstanding achievements.
But they are made even more creditable given that his club appearances were increasingly limited by representative duties with the Wellington side.
Watching him at work with the ball was like watching a predatory spider snaring, and then wrapping, batsmen in an ever tightening web against which their struggles grow increasingly feeble.
Gray was a special and unique player, with special and unique abilities, a special determination to succeed and a special loyalty to Karori, his province and the game. He still strongly maintains that he has never retired from the game, just become more unavailable. Now and then he casts aside his cloak of unavailability to don his whites once more and head for the fray. No better example of this last attribute is needed than when, in 2003-04 he became once again “available” to help a group of much younger players in their efforts to retain the club’s premier status it had fought so hard in its first 100 years to attain.
By the time his regular club appearances had seemingly ceased (at this point in time anyway) Gray’s spinning of his magic webs had accumulated for him 762 club wickets at an average of just 14.05 runs each. To that can be added a further 444 first class wickets at 28.2 and 70 representative one day wickets giving him a combined club and first class career total of 1,206 scalps. He bettered six first class wickets in an innings six times: 8-37 against Canterbury in 1985-86 with a further 6-114 against the same side also that year; 8-78 against Auckland in 1989-90; 7-24 against Northern Districts in 1986-87; 6- 53 against Otago in 1977-78 and a 6-89 again verses the same side in 1984-85. He was also the first Wellington player to achieve 3,000 first class runs and 300 wickets and ended with 5,472 first class runs at an average of 28.8.
Along the way he was awarded the Ron Murray Cup for the senior club bowler of the year four times between 1985 and 2002-in 1985-86, 1990-91, 1992-93, 1997-98 and 2000-01. He was also the highest senior club wicket taker five times: 1985-86 (when Karori won the championship) with 43 wickets; 1990-91 with 45 wickets; 1992-93 with 47 wickets; 1997-98 with 54 wickets; and 2000-01 with 69 wickets. The last two occasions were not as a Karori player. They were as the club professional for Johnsonville and Wellington Collegians Clubs both of whom were attempting to win their way back to the Pearce Cup from the second tier Hazlett Trophy grade. Both were seasons Karori could have well done with his skills but Johnsonville and Collegians certainly got their money’s worth.
After his senior club debut Gray did not wait until long to have his talents duly recognised at regional level. In two successive seasons between 1973 and 1975 he took out the Wellington Cricket Association’s “Outstanding Cricketer Under 20 Years” award.
Gray was more than a left arm slow bowler, albeit a superb one. He was a genuine all-rounder scoring 7,191 senior club runs from 283 innings with a best of 116 not out and an average of 34.9. While possessing the complete array of shorts he was an accumulator of runs rather than a bludgeoner or fluent attacker. He hit nine centuries for Karori and in 1980-81 hit not out centuries in each innings against University (110 not out and 102 not out). For Wellington Gray struck 4,228 runs from 181 innings with five centuries at an average of 29.56. The 1985-86 season was a particularly good one for him with two centuries against Otago (128 not out) and Central Districts (109) adding to his best first class bowling return. As such it was not surprising that Gray held his New Zealand place that season.
Gray also had the skills and the mental aptitude to succeed on the international stage. His lot, however, (and despite the national selector’s preference to arm their test ranks with a left arm spinner post the Jack Alabaster/Alex Moir era) was to be at his best when the national side was being well served by a world class right arm off spin bowler in John Bracewell who himself was also a better than useful bat. Gray was also in competition with Canterbury and Otago left arm spinner, Stephen Boock for his place in the national side. As it was he can look back with pride on his achievements when called upon by the national selectors. Two occasions in particular stand out. Both were on tours to England in 1983 and again three years later. The first occasion was in the third test at Lords where in England’s second turn at bat for 211 his reward from 30 overs was 3-73. His scalps then were the very formidable batting trio of David Gower (34), Allan Lamb (4) and Mike Gatting (15). It was a most worthy but in the end fruitless effort with New Zealand crumbling to 219 all out needing 347. On the 1986 tour it was a much different story. Then, and again in the third test, this time at Trent Bridge in Nottingham, it was his batting which made a major contribution to what was to prove a momentous first ever series win over England on English soil. With New Zealand’s second innings foundering after a John Wright half century Gray knuckled down to bat one minute short of five hours in scoring 50. He buttoned up one end while first Richard Hadlee hammered away at the other for 68. He was also at the wicket to see John Bracewell start out on what was to be that player’s first test century. In the end New Zealand put together enough runs to make England’s own victory prospect a forlorn one. While not a heavy wicket taker this time round Gray again snared the dangerous Mike Gatting as the weather threatened to intervene on the side of the hosts.
For Karori, Gray’s returns are unmatched by any of his peers or yet among those who have succeeded him in the premier side. Even when answering the call of the club from the comforts of “unavailability” and at an age when 40 would not be experienced again, Gray’s skills remained undiminished. A total of 8-29 from 30 overs bowled in two innings (4-15 and 4-14) in a 2003-04 season fixture against Petone Riverside was the clearest example of the stranglehold that Gray seemed to able to continue to exert over opposition batsmen.
Gray, however, had learned and applied his skills at a much earlier age taking 12 wickets in a 1998-81 match against Tawa (4-34 and 8-39); 8-16 in a 1982-83 match with Johnsonville and again recording an 8-39 playing Tawa two seasons later.
It is not always the big returns that spell a cricketer’s worth to his team at any level. It is the ongoing consistency and reliability of applied skill over time that really matters. As well, it can often be a lesser return from a day’s outing at the batting or bowling crease which can provide the greater value.
Certainly there were plenty of these. The above example with his 2003-04 bowling spells against Petone Riverside was one case in point. Another was a miserly 1-8 from 10 overs in a one day fixture with North City that same season. Yet another was a 1996-97 one day clash with University. In that match Karori scored 171 after being 98-7 at one point. The turn around was led by school leaver Lee Edwards with a quick fire 42. He also led the Karori wicket taking efforts with 4-43 in his first premier game for the club. While all out eventually for 143, University had recovered from the initial Edwards onslaught and was proceeding steadily towards the required target. What held them back from achieving greater momentum, and potential victory, was yet another tightly woven spell from Gray.
His return again was only one wicket. But it was at the cost of just 13 reluctantly conceded runs off 10 successive overs. It was a performance which strangled the life out of the University batting comeback.
Nor as it the first or the last time either. In a 1992-93 match with Midland St Pats (MSP) Gray wheeled down 22 overs including 11 maidens taking 3-14 to restrict MSP’s chase for a gettable 190 to win. MSP finished the day well short at 112-9 thanks to Gray and a Derek Stirling 4-41.
Later that same season, Gray’s 5-67 from 24 successive overs pinned down a Tawa batting effort trying to overhaul a Karori first innings of 259-7. The above are just three such examples of Gray’s value. The records are filled with yet others.
After hanging up his boots, or rather in his words “just making myself more unavailable”(albeit temporarily as it turned out), Gray served on the provincial selection panel for a number of years. Still not yet done with the game he has now turned to umpiring. The club, in the hearts of which he has a very special place, wish him well in his new role. If his umpiring skills come anywhere near his previous abilities with bat and ball he will be a very good umpire indeed. Like his former club mate, Derek Stirling, Gray’s voice can be often heard over Radio NZ Sports in summer months proving valuable expert comments.
Ervin McSweeney:
While not developing as long an involvement with the club, as did a number of his contemporaries, Ervin McSweeney’s contributions to the game at both club and representative level cannot be denied. A slim and athletic figure, with bat in hand he could look as fluent and as accomplished a top order batsman as any in the region and the country.
McSweeney, like long time team mate Evan Gray, possessed two arrows to string to his bow. His second was a smooth and accomplished wicket keeping ability behind the stumps much of in support of Gray in club and first class games. He had been described as a “class act” behind the stumps. It was tribute which fitted well. It was his dual all round capability with bat and gloves that earned him deserved national honours at one level or another between 1985 and 1987 and also many in Wellington colours. At the latter level, commencing in 1982, he excelled with 102 appearances and collected 328 dismissals of which 39 were stumpings. A 341 run partnership with Gavin Larsen against Central Districts at Levin in the 1987-88 season (in which McSweeney’s contribution was 205) was his best return with the bat. It was a season which returned 676 runs with five other scores in excess of 50 and an average of 52. Subsequent seasons may not have produced quite the same run flow but he got close in 1990-91 with 532 runs and 573 runs the following season. Over his first class career he also struck hundreds against: Auckland (130) in his inaugural season for Wellington; Canterbury (119) and Otago (107) in 1991-92; and against Canterbury again (111) in 1993-94.
His 205 has him still in 11th place in the Wellington first class record books for the highest single innings. In total he hit 4,296 first class runs at an average of 33.04 and many others for Karori. His efforts over the 1986-87 season earned him his association’s “Cricketer of the Year Award.”
Ervin McSweeney’s involvement in Wellington’s provincial and club cricketing scene arose from a transfer to the capital in order to push his claims for regular first class play and higher honours. A chat to one of the then Wellington cricket selectors, Mike Curtis, about his prospects for the representative wicket keeping job if he settled in Wellington resulted in his being told, “you take your chances with everyone else.” McSweeney stayed and took those chances. Mike Curtis, a long time Karori affiliate, suggested he might like to also consider joining his old club. Doing so gave Mike the opportunity to cast his eye over his protégé’s form. Impressed with what he saw, he was able to give McSweeney the nod when the selectors sat down to select their 1982-83 representative squad. This was at the expense of Collegian’s “gloveman” Robert Vance. But it also allowed the latter to focus on his opening batting role which was to eventually take him into the New Zealand side.
McSweeney, too had the class to succeed on the international stage with both bat and gloves. But just as Evan Gray had to contend with John Bracewell and Stephen Book for a place in the New Zealand side so McSweeney’s time at his peak coincided with those of Ian Smith, Warren Lees and Tony Blain.
Nevertheless he had done enough to impress the national selectors in appearances for a New Zealand Presidents XI against West Indies in Hamilton to win full national honours with the team to tour Sri Lanka.
He had put on an eighth wicket stand of 139 with clubmate Derek Stirling of which McSweeney’s own contribution was a gritty 76. In Sri Lanka he impressed with a promising 44 against the local President’s XI.
The unstable political situation in the country then further deteriorated to such and extent that, following a “terrorist” initiated bomb blast the players returned home leaving the tour uncompleted. It was a tragedy for McSweeney who had a real chance to use the tour work his way into consideration for future test honours. McSweeney again performed well for a New Zealand President’s side in 1989. This time the opponents were Pakistan and McSweeney stroked his way to 44 and took three catches in the visitors’ first innings.
Despite his representative commitments, McSweeney was in demand to lead the club premiers from 1987-88. It was a role he was well suited to and in which he brought both astute thinking and aggressiveness to. Such was his leadership qualities he earned the region’s “Most Enterprising Captain” award after the 1988-89 season’s close.
While his presence on the club scene was restricted, his efforts were of real value and much appreciated. In the 1983-84 season McSweeney batted just eight times and scored 500 runs with one century. The following year he struck three superb hundreds in just six appearances collecting an average of 59.83 along the way.
Over 1986-87 McSweeney posted 355 runs in his limited number of appearances. Again in his last year wearing the unicorn (1991-92) McSweeney was still able to compile 202 runs from seven turns at the crease at an average of 28.8. His best scores that year were 70 verses University and 65 against Kilbirnie (prior to it becoming Eastern Suburbs after a merger with Midland St Pats).
When a reasonable to high score was posted, a check against his name would usually reveal between 50% to 75% of his runs scored in boundaries. They were the sort of statistics more akin to a power hitter than the fluent strokemaker McSweeney was.
Either at the batting crease or supporting his bowlers behind the stumps, McSweeney was irrepressible. He was also a superb foil for the wiles of Gray and other club slow bowlers and added to their potency with his skills. The wicket keeper bastman’s tactical nous was well displayed in the final fixture of the 1985-86 season. Karori needed one wicket off the last ball of the last over of the season to defeat Johnsonville and take the championship title. Johnsonville needed just three runs while a draw would see the title go to Wellington Collegians. It was McSweeney who suggested to bowler Evan Gray to float one up to the man facing but pitch it just a little shorter to draw the player past the ball. Gray did just that and McSweeney did the rest. The stumping was affected and the championship was Karori’s.
When he surrendered his bat and gloves, Mc Sweeney did not surrender his involvement in cricket. With a background in law, he sought a high level management role in the game and for some 10 years has been Cricket Wellington’s Chief Executive Officer.
Derek Stirling:
Derek “Billy” Stirling’s 6 foot three inch tall, broad frame would not have been out of place in an All Black photo session. But it was his leadership and his achievements with bat and ball when on the playing field with the Karori premiers which was to give his stature within the club its bigger than life presence.
By the time Billy Stirling took up residence in the capital in 1988 at the still young age of 27 years he had already been a well travelled international. He had toured Zimbabwe with the Young New Zealand side and gone with the full national team to Sri Lanka twice including being a key member of the XI which won the second test for a 1-0 series win. He also toured England, Pakistan and the West Indies during the mid 1980s. In those years he carried less bulk on his frame but had plenty of fire in his belly. Indeed it was the fiery nature of his quick deliveries which had given him his international opportunities and the selectors initially harboured real hope he would develop into the real and lethal fast bowler New Zealand was searching for.
His “finishing school” in his development was in Scotland’s East League in 1983 and 1984 and North Yorkshire in 1985 and 1986. “My experiences there in those years taught me the value of making a personal contribution in every match whether it be bat or ball,” he maintains. The need for all players with whom he played to also do likewise was something he took into the dressing room throughout the remainder of his playing years.
For a time the national selector’s faith in their choice was returned. He was a determined and hard working tourist in the 1984 tour of Zimbabwe and he responded well to tutelage and the opportunities provided. His best figures included returns of 4-10, 4-66 and 3-46 in a series of “test”: and one day matches against the hosts. Progress was continued in Pakistan later that same year. In the absence of Richard Hadlee Billy Stirling was given the responsibility for spearheading the new Zealand bowling attack. It was a big ask with big shoes to fill. Stirling did not let his country down. He played in all three test matches and all four one day internationals. He bowled with fire and enthusiasm taking 4-88 in the Third Test from 29 strength sapping overs. It was a performance of which Stirling remains justly proud of.
The tall and still eager Stirling found the 1985 tour of the West Indies more demanding where the home side’s battery of outstanding fast bowlers gave him few opportunities to bat long periods (a problem which was not his alone on that particular tour). The young Stirling impressed with the ball in a number of three day fixtures with 4-68 against the local under 23 national side and 4-66 against a West Indies Presidents XI. Again he made the final third test selection but then proved expensive with a 2-82 return from 14 overs.
In England in 1986 Stirling stepped out at the Lords Cricket Ground for the first time against Middlesex and took 5-90 from 30 overs. It was a performance which was of particular pride and earned him a 12th man spot for the First Test. He did take the field for his country in the momentous third test and with grey clouds gathering to come to England’s aid he picked up one of the last two Engliand wickets to play his part in New Zealand’s first ever series win in that country.
February 1987 saw him in Hamilton with the New Zealand President’s side, again facing a powerful West Indies line up. With him on that occasion was his soon to be clubmate, Ervin McSweeney. The pair certainly had time to get to know in the middle when as they put on 139 for the eighth wicket after the Presidents were 93-7. Stirling belted 75 including four massive clubs for six while McSweeney’s gritty 76 was less spectacular but an innings nevertheless filled with character. Stirling also batted well in his second turn at bat with 25. His bowling return of 3-99 in that game from 18 overs had a bigger question mark against it but he went into the subsequent 1987-88 Shell series season in good form with 3-58 against Otago.
It was from about this time that occasional previous issues with consistency of line, length and rhythmn again raised their ugly heads. However, Stirling remained a key member of the Central Districts bowling attack, opening up in all first class matches barring one. In the one dayers he was used as a tactical option in the middle overs taking nine wickets to end the season 11th place in the national averages.
Job promotion loomed at the end of the season which was to bring him to the capital. Central Districts, however, was not about to lose their star quick bowler without putting up a fight. His association tried to persuade him to play for Paraparaumu to ensure his continued availability for Central Districts selection. But Wellington was not willing to let such a prospect as Stirling slip from their fingers. A number of clubs made contact prior to my transfer,” Stirling affirms, “on one winter Sunday, when out in the backyard of my Palmerston North home, chopping wood I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to be introduced to George Verry of Johnsonville complete with an invitation to sign up. I was flattered that he had driven up all that way to seek me out.”
Stirling said that some of the offers he received included some financial inducements but were rejected out of hand. “I did not really consider those as at that time I did not believe it was right for clubs to be paying players at that level,” he claims.” I also believed the practice would lead to a lack of loyalty by some players who would move on if their demands were not met.”
Stirling is very proud that he has ever only played for two clubs in New Zealand, Old Boys of Palmerston North and Karori.
Stirling was never in any doubt that he would play for Karori. Much of his decision to do so hinged on his previous national connections with Evan Gray and Ervin McSweeney. He was a little peturbed, however, on first sighting his home wicket on Karori Park. “I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at the short end to end boundaries,” he remembers.
Stirling’s introduction to Wellington’s club cricket scene in 1988 heralded modest beginnings and belied the influence he was eventually to exert. His first outing was a one day fixture against Plimmerton and while Evan Gray was spinning his magic, with 12 runs from his 10 overs, Stirling took 2-43 and did not overly trouble the scorers with the bat. His performance against Plimmerton, was followed up with 2-33 against Johnsonville, a 2-28 verses Midland St Pats and a more likely 3-23 in Petone-Riverside’s second turn at the crease.
It was in the fixture with University that gave the clearest indication that Karori had something special in the “big fella.” In that game Billy sent down 21 overs and snared 6-84.
The 1988-89 season was his first for the Wellington Representative side with 394 runs from 14 first class matches, an average of 24.62 runs, three scores of over 50 runs and a best of 70. He also took 27 wickets with a 5-36 against Canterbury and a 4-66 against Otago his best. His performances were sufficient to indicate real value in his selection. That season too Stirling fielded 18 times in Wellington one day teams with 15 times at the batting crease for a more modest 15.60 average but taking 22 wickets with a best of 3-18 and finishing third in the national table of one day bowling averages. The season, however, started to reveal the wear and tear being placed on the player’s lower body with groin and ankle injuries which did impact on his bowling.
However, “Billy” Stirling had arrived and he had made the Wellington cricketing fraternity sit up and take notice.
Stirling made himself unavailable for representative play at all levels the following season but did turn out for his new club while also committing more time to his employer, DB Breweries. “They had been bloody good to me for a number of years and I was more than happy at being able to repay some of their good faith in me, “he said.
On the club scene that season, Stirling’s bowling form began well with a 6-73 from 25 overs against Midland St Pats. He then displayed the full power of his hitting with a heavy handed demolition of the Collegians bowling line up with a century. This included six sixes and five fours to all parts of the ground. Including 50% or more runs in boundaries in his innings over the next 10 years became synonymous with his exciting batting style. Towards the end of the 1988-89 season he unleashed his power again. This time the bowlers to suffer were from Johnsonville as he thrashed 96 in a team total of 294-7. Some 72 runs (or 75%) resulted from shots into or over the boundary rope. Other returns with the bat were more modest as were his bowling figures although they did include a useful 4-66 off 18 overs in a clash with University.
“Billy” Stirling returned to the Wellington one day colours on four occasions in 1991-92 and impressed with a 56 against Canterbury and a 50 in the Northern District fixture. It was to prove one of his most successful seasons in the black and gold colours. In doing so he helped take Wellington to the Shell Cup final with Canterbury. This was subsequently dubbed as the best ever domestic one day match ever televised in New Zealand up to that time. A high scoring thriller was lost by just a couple of runs. Tempted to retire, Stirling opted to give the game one more first class season in order to be part of his second winning one day national competition side. That year he played six Shell Cup one day matches, collecting 44 runs and seeing his team falter in the semi finals.
From the first days in the capital, Glenn Jonas, Jonathan Millmow, Heath Davis, Steve Maguiness and Lincoln Doull had, at one time or another, given “Billy” plenty of competition for his first class bowling spot. His injuries too meant his place remained under pressure. The reduction in representative availability was, however, to prove a boon for Karori.
By the end of what was a relatively short first class career, Stirling had accumulated a batting average of over 20 and more than 200 wickets.
In the representative one day game he was at one point the second highest wicket taker in the Shell Cup with a strike rate of a wicket every 31 balls at a cost of 22 runs per wicket and a run economy rate of 4.2. Stirling has said that he has always found his one day statistics intriguing. “Quite a few people did not regard me much as a one day player when I played,” he said.
For his club and with old injuries restricting both his time and potency at the bowling crease, “Billy’s” value was becoming increasingly centred on a middle order batting and leadership role. 1990-91 saw Stirling, as skipper, slam 367 runs with an average of 40 and a top score of 70. After that season, and disappointed with the attitude and approach of some of his team mates, he laid down the requirements of a successful premier team and club. His strongly espoused view was that success was possible only with a sufficient balance of skill, mental agility, pride, dedication to the task ahead, application and a commitment to hard practice.
This was the grounding he had had in Scotland and Yorkshire coming to the fore once again. As well, the new Karori skipper, never one to ask others to go where he would not himself lead included himself in his post season lamentation of a general lack of these qualities. He called for his team and the club to look hard at themselves and to deliver on the attributes he believed were required to go forward. He was always a great believer in fostering a team spirit based on loyalty to both the club and to your team mates. “I continually asked before each game who was going to stand up today to win the game for us,” he said.
“What I had seen at Karori was a premier team with three or four “stars” with the rest being “bit players” or journeymen. If the stars did not perform on any one day then a loss was guaranteed. As well, I believed that there were young players in the area by passing the club and going elsewhere to play their cricket. This was because of a perception that the Karori Cricket Club had a ‘them and us’ attitude which we needed to dispel.”
“We then recruited actively and attracted a number of young players with potential into the premier side. Players such as Jarad O’hara, Wayne Holmes, Richard Webb, Sam Buckle and Lee Edwards to name just a few. The arrival of Richard Petrie from Canterbury and Matthew Goodson from Central Districts was also a boon. The bowling unit of Petrie, Holmes, Gray and Goodson and later Edwards was usually too much for most opposition batting line ups.”
The new team with a new approach and attitude stepped up to the mark and performed. For the next 7-8 years neither the premiers nor the club looked back. “Billy” Stirling became the hub around which the club’s progress and success revolved over that period. His approach enthused not just his premier team mates but the whole club. While his leadership skills and his influence on the playing arena remained unquestionable, it was probably his broader organisational and tactical skills together with his ability to inspire all whom he came into contact which were to prove his greatest and most lasting contribution. Not that his on field performances were unimportant. They were. 1991-92 saw him increase his run getting to 418 with one century and typical hard hit innings of 57 against Kilbirnie with three sixes and seven fours; and a 54 against Tawa with two sixes and five fours.
1992-93 started strongly with a 70 against Johnsonville including five massive sixes and six fours; 94 and 64 in a match with Tawa of which 72 comprised sixes and fours in his first turn at the batting crease and 48 in his second; and a 69 not out against Collegians with four sixes and five fours. With the ball his best figures were a 4-41 verses Midland St Pats and 3-41 against Collegians.
1993-94 was Stirling’s benefit season and he responded with 526 runs with a best of 105 against Mana. This time seven sixes and eight fours kept spectators busy outside the boundary. Other scores of 56, 67, 65, 50 and 61 ensured a successful season. The team also gained added middle order aggression with Richard Petrie’s arrival from Canterbury. That season also saw him reduce his bowling workload to only 54 overs. It was a role he surrendered entirely in subsequent seasons.
1994-95 saw a further 491 runs and was also the year he decided the time had come for new leadership for the future. The club now had a premier team which believed in itself and had the sufficient level of confidence and team spirit within the premiers to win games that they may have easily lost in previous seasons. Not enough can be said in praise of Stirling’s contribution to getting his team and the club to this point.
Despite stepping down from the captaincy, retirement was to remain still two seasons away. As well, there was one new challenge on the horizon. That was the need to mentor and guide his team mates through to a first ever inter-city competition win. The Wellington and Hutt Valley Cricket Associations had come to the conclusion that the time was right to merge the two competitions. The outcome was to be a two season contest among existing premier sides of both associations to determine a two layered senior competition from 1997-98. After the 1996-97 season the top eight teams would then compete for the Pearce Cup and the remainder for the Hazlett Trophy with an automatic promotion and relegation to apply.
Over his last two seasons at Karori, “Billy” Stirling assumed an off and on the field tactician role to assist his replacement at the helm and his team achieve what would be an historical first up competition win.
At the end of the first of the two season play-offs, Karori finished in third place and then missed out on the inaugural inter city title by just point 36 of a bonus point. Not surprisingly, Billy Stirling’s contribution to the Karori effort was huge. At the end of the first of the two seasons, Stirling had struck 625 runs with an average of 48.07 and a top score of 93. The following season returned just 259 runs but on many occasions he shed his natural attacking instincts to dig in and serve his team with longer, albeit less productive stays at the crease in terms of his personal scores (only two sixes struck throughout the season). But, as always, he put his team first which was Derek “Billy” Stirling all over and which makes him one of simply the best.
“The advent of the inter-city competition was a significant step forward in club cricket in Wellington,” Stirling, says. It was also significant for Karori.”
“Promotion relegation was going to become a big factor in the game and the club needed to perform or face banishment from the top tier of club cricket in the region. The fear of failure had its upside in that it became a huge motivational tool,” he maintains.
Prior to the two season play-off for positions in both new competitions Stirling believed that the younger players had come good, the attitudes were right and the depth was starting to develop to the point where the premiers could go all the way.
“The whole club was buoyant,” he said. “We had a strong women’s team, the premier and reserve grade sides were close and practiced together and the President’s grade side was chock full of stars of the past. As well, the administration of the club had been taken to another level by the likes of Brett Gray, Mike Curtis, David Bain and others. In addition, success on the field resulted in bigger gatherings of the club faithful on the clubroom’s balcony each week.”
“Billy” also recalls one of the club’s greatest supporters, Doug Catley. “He was a true winner. Players soon learned that a beam on Doug’s face after a win was much preferred to his scowl at a loss.”
“Billy” Stirling's biggest regret was the failure to win the inaugural inter-city championship. “It was gut wrenching, “ he remembers. “To have the final day rained out was most disappointing.” Karori was set for end its competition bid with a one day fixture against Marist St Pats then in decline prior to its amalgamation with Kilbirnie to form Eastern Suburbs. “We were very much favoured to win while the eventual championship winners,” he recalls. “University had an away game against Stokes Valley who were lying in third position in the competition and would have made the eventual winners work hard. “
The season was to prove “Billy” Stirling’s last for the Unicorn. The golf course and overseas beckoned safe in the knowledge that his job, started years earlier was now done. Although not quite. Derek “Billy” Stirling, now enjoying a Hawkes Bay lifestyle, applies his deep knowledge of the game on Radio Sport cricket commentaries throughout the summer from McLean Park in Napier.
He says that he retains the fondest of memories of his time at Karori and will always do so. So too does Karori recall Derek “Billy” Stirling with fondness and again always will.
Richard Petrie:
Richard Petrie’s cricketing attributes were described on his arrival in the capital part way through the 1993-94 season (already capped for New Zealand when with Canterbury) as tough, uncompromising, arrogant and the ultimate competitor. They were all true. Teaming up with Karori Petrie went on to leave his mark on the Wellington club and representative scene and when finally giving the game away after the 2001-02 season he left a very deep hole in the quality of the club’s premier playing ranks.
From his initial performances, Petrie became very quickly regarded by Karori as being a very important cog in the club’s future success. He initially slotted in neatly as part of a relatively new but potent middle order batting combination with Derek Stirling and Jarad O’Hara. Additionally, and possibly of even greater importance, his skills at the bowling crease and his particular approach to the game was seen as the precursor to eventually taking over Stirling’s inspirational and tactical mantle once that player left the game.
The combination of his toughness and skills soon took him not only into the Wellington side but also to being selected to captain it. He began his first class career for the Firebirds with just one first class match in the 1993-94 season with a 3-43 against Auckland before appearing in three one day fixtures scoring 48 runs and returning a best with the ball of 2-28. It was in inauspicious start. But it was not to stay that way. Throughout the next 4-5 first class calendars he continued to display an ability to turn a game on its head with the bat and give his side an edge when in the field. A 64 against Otago in 1997-98, a useful 48 in Wellington’s game with India in 1998-99 and an innings of 65 in Martin Crowe’s new 20 overs a side (10 in an innings) “Cricket Max” version of the game that same year stood out. While perhaps his skill in being able to turn a cricket ball into a grenade when bowling was possibly his greatest asset his willingness to put bat top ball with superbly timed power was always worth a gate fee. In one day matches for Wellington that year he batted consistently well for 39 (verses Otago); 33 verses Northern Districts; 31 verses Central Districts; 39 not out verses Canterbury (plus 2-47 with the ball); 34 verses Northern Districts in the second round and 4-42; and 40 against Otago (again in the return fixture) giving him 332 runs and a one day average of 36.8.
His returns in the four day version of the game were less spectacular that year but his one day form returned the following season with a violent assault of 78 against Northern Districts in the one day rounds and 72 not out against Central Districts out of a total of 203 when the four day competition was launched. He concluded his first class career with Wellington having played 34 matches, batted 54 times, hit a highest score of 80 with five 50s; and 67 wickets with a best return of 5-53. His one day representative record with the capital was 76 matches, 73 innings, nine 50s with a best of 85; and 82 wickets with a best return of 4-13.
While he might not have set the first class scene consistently on fire in the latter years of the decade, Petrie’s impact on the club scene was immense. Often his most valuable contributions came when Karori was at times struggling to retain its status in the premier Pearce Cup division. That the club survives today in the grade is in no small way due to Petrie’s skill with either bat or ball in the hand.
While not captain in name, Petrie remained a huge source of invaluable knowledge, experience and inspiration to his younger team mates. These often responded willingly to lift their performances to try to match their mentor’s own high standards.
In many ways, at least to the side line critic, Petrie proved somewhat of an enigma as a bowler. At times he could prove expensive. At yet others he was simply unplayable. Often these occasions were when Karori had its back to the wall, staring certain defeat in the face. Adversity seemed to inspire and rejuvenate Petrie and bring that uncompromising toughness and competitive arrogance to the surface. When it did –look out. It was at these moments he could make the smallest outright target appear light years from being achieved tearing up the confidence of opposing batting line ups in the process. In these situations he usually operated as a dual medium paced demolition duo with the slightly quicker paced Lee Edwards. The latter always seemed to respond best when Petrie was at his most lethal and added a kph or two more to his speed.
No better example of just how big a step back from the brink of defeat Petrie could achieve was during the 1999-00 season when left defending just 111 in a one day match with Naenae, Petrie took the first four Naenae wickets to fall finishing with 4-27 from his 10 overs making Naenae struggle hard . Again a year later he held the Karori reply together with 54 in the win over Hutt Districts’ chasing 173.
Petrie began his Karori experience with a 41 against Johnsonville after missing the early games. That innings, with five fours gave opposition bowlers a clear message that, it they wavered in line and length then they would suffer. A 35 against Collegians with 30 runs in boundaries (including four fours from his first four scoring shots) and a 40 in the fixture with Mana continued his good run before he again lined up in the two day match with Collegians. This time he slammed 12 boundaries in an innings of 69 in a team total of 198. All in all that first season, Petrie hit 310 runs with an average of 31.
The following season it was Petrie’s bowling which took the eye with 34 wickets, bowling with controlled aggression and producing all the extensive armoury at his command. 1995-96, the first of the two season inter city play-off competition saw Petrie hitting 354 runs with a best of 78. This year he had to take a back seat to Kevin Innes with over 700 runs and 27 wickets. However, the season saw him captain Wellington returning the selectors’ faith with a hugely successful season.
1996-97 started well for Petrie with a 93 against Wainuiomata, 58 runs of which came from three sixes and 10 fours. A quickfire 22 in the next match (against Petone-Riverside) with five boundaries was a sign that Petrie was brooking no nonsense. He followed that up with 4-47 against Collegians; and a 56 against Hutt Districts; together with a 4-16 from 18 overs. It was a superb spell for which the opposing batsmen had little to offer. The fixture with Naenae, however, was to prove the pinnacle of Petrie’s season. Naenae was rolled for 105 with Petrie’s contribution a modest 2-34. He followed this, however, with a magnificent and hard hit 81 with 1 six and 11 fours to get Karori to 201-8. Not yet done he sliced through the Naenae batting line up taking 7-96 to have the opposition all out for 156. Not yet finished and with time getting short, Petrie opened the batting and struck eight fours in getting 42 and Karori home for the loss of one wicket.
His match return! nine wickets and 123 runs. Another batting assault against Johnsonville followed in the next round. This time he smashed a 65 with nine fours and two sixes and then snatched a match haul of eight wickets against Taita (4-58 and 4-53) to round off a superb season. By then no-one was in do as to the real level of his all round quality. Neither Karori nor opposition teams alike.
The 1997-98 season was largely a continuation of the previous one. He set back Upper Valley with six wickets for 15 runs from 16 overs. He followed that up with 3-6 in the opposition’s second innings to have Upper Valley teetering at 41-4 when play ended with the batting side still nine runs shy of forcing Karori to bat again. A further seven wicket haul (7-76) resulted in the next game up with Eastern Suburbs. This game also included a first innings Petrie batting cameo of 29 with six fours. Petrie’s ability to fire in adversity was well shown in the next fixture with University. Karori disappointed in its first innings with 115 all out but fought back to dismiss University for 173. Karori was again in dire trouble at 37-7 and then 43-8 in its second turn at bat before Petrie struck 10 fours in making 69 and steering Karori to 125. While this meagre total was still well short of making University bat again, Petrie had set the University bowlers on their heels for the first time in the match. It was virtually a lone hand but made magnificent viewing.
Now involved less in first class play, Richard Petrie’s contributions to Karori successes and fight backs (when needed) noticeably increased. A 7-38 from 20 overs in dismissing Hutt Districts for 138 in its first innings in a 1999-2000 fixture was a case in point. His bowling in that innings set Karori up nicely for a big win. Karori built up a 163 first innings lead in scoring 301 in reply and then bundled out the opposition for 110 the following week when Petrie himself was absent.
.Another occasion was during the 2000-01 season when he struck a typical aggressive knock of 52 against Naenae in a one day game to help Karori to 204. While it was not enough Petrie made the Hutt Valley side battle hard for its win with just 21 runs from his 10 overs. Better success with the bat rather than with the ball were, however, the more a feature of that year. His better scores included 54 (with seven fours) against Hutt Districts; 44 verses University; 55 against Taita with 10 fours; 63 in the return fixture with University (three sixes and six fours after his first 11 scoring shots were all singles); 69 with seven fours against Eastern Suburbs; 50 with 10 fours against Petone Riverside; and 46 again against Taita.
Petrie had signalled that the 2002-03 season was to be his last. As such the now veteran declared he was also not going to be available for every playing day. Even so, his contribution, nevertheless proved, at times, crucial.
In one of his absences for day one of the second match of the season with Eastern Suburbs, the opposition hit out strongly to get to 268-9 before setting Karori back on its heels at 184-9. Petrie’s return for day two saw Easts struggle to 159 all out with the veteran taking 3-32. While Karori again faltered and were eventually all out for 163, yet another Petrie batting cameo shouted its defiance with 26 runs in fours and sixes out of a rapid 27.
It was a relieved Karori which saw Petrie’s return after further absences to face Naenae just prior to the Christmas break.
Karori’s 212 looked very good indeed when Petrie carved Naenae’s batting line up apart taking yet another seven wicket haul in the process (7-65).
With a lead of 83 Karori then left Naenae 256 to win outright on the last day. This time it was the comeback appearance of Evan Gray that determined the outcome with 5-19 from 13 overs as Naenae slipped to 151 all out.
Further Petrie absences followed until the second day of the penultimate round against Hutt Districts. It was a day which drove home to all the size of the gap Petrie was going to leave in the premier team and the club. Day two started with Hutt previously dismissed for 171 to which Karori had replied with 209.
Stirred sufficiently to go out of the game in real style, Petrie got his magic working once more sending seven Hutt Districts batsmen back to the pavilion for a mere 43 runs. The significance of Petrie’s part that day cannot be underestimated. All out for 80 runs the Hutt Valley side left Karori just 42 for the win. It got there but lost seven wickets doing so.
Two seasons were to pass before the club saw much again of Richard Petrie. In 2005-06 Petrie donned his “whites” twice more for his old club. The first occasion was a 1-40 return from 10 overs in a one day win over Onslow. The second, a two day fixture with Eastern Suburbs, testified to a potency with the ball that had not yet diminished. Appearing on the first day of two, Petrie sent down 17 overs capturing 4-48. It was his swansong but a notable one.
Just as with his skills, Karori’s memories too are unlikely to diminish.
Phil Benfield:
No national honours. No years wearing Wellington colours on the first class scene. But Phil Benfield’s contribution to his club and the game remained significant. Indeed being available for club play throughout his long playing career enabled him to achieve a number of highly regarded milestones. Top of the list was taking his 500th club wicket in the 1987-88 season.
In all, Benfield went on to take 530 wickets at an average of 16.85 finally retiring from premier (but not all) cricket in 1988 at age 39. His was a superb return for a medium pace bowler who day in and day out was consistently in the face of opposing batsmen making them sweat hard for every run taken from him. A best return of 8-31 was recorded in 1984-85 against Tawa in a season in which he took 49 wickets-the third time he posted 40 plus in a season to that point. He previously had totals of 46 in 1975-76 and 42 in 1982-83. Significant contributions also came in the years in which Karori’s name was engraved on the premier championship trophy (1980-81, 1985-86 and 1986-87).
No slouch with the bat, Benfield once struck 123 in a pre season fixture against the Lancaster Park Club of Christchurch. On another occasion he shared a last wicket stand of 90 odd with team mate Rod Coleman to tie a match with Midland St Pats. Benfield’s contribution on that occasion was 55 not out. He was also a superb outfielder with a rocket like, and deadly accurate return to the stumps. It was an added ability which had more than one opponent caught napping. A former skipper, Jeff Schofer, once claimed that Benfield had the strongest arm in Wellington club cricket. This was illustrated in a President’s grade fixture following Benfield’s retirement from premier play. On that occasion one unsuspecting club newcomer guarding the wicket at the bowler’ end while Benfield pursued a crisply hit shot towards the mid-wicket boundary was cautioned not take their eyes off the chaser and have their hands near the stumps for the return. The player was also warned that the return would probably sting when the return came back. It did. But the run out was effected.
It was always a point of conjecture that it was a Benfield return which sent clubmate and Wellington opening bat, Bruce Smith, off to Upper Hutt club after being struck on the head and carried from the field. The recipient of the Benfield rocket had inadvertently taken his eye off the fielder and his return to pass a comment or two with his keeper. In doing so he had moved between the thrower and intended receiver. Smith was carried off the park and never played for Karori again.
Schofer too paid tribute to Benfield’s competitive edge and an intense dislike of losing. His was an approach mirrored by the club’s other big success stories over the last 25 years: Evan Gray, Ervin McSweeney, Derek Stirling and Richard Petrie.
Phil Benfield joined Karori in the 1960s when still a schoolboy but unable to break into Wellington College’s 1st or 2nd XIs. As a youngster he bowled off a long run up and sought to knock over the opposition (sometimes litrerally) with sheer pace. Benfield himself, aided by the tutelage of Karori stalwart Mike Curtis, soon saw that medium pace and greater accuracy was the better choice.
He also found considerable rewards accruing from his ability to achieve genuine late swing from a four piece ball-something his wicket keeper of the day, Ervin McSweeney could attest to.
The opening bowler also developed a lethal leg cutter which he described as getting him as many wickets as any other delivery, at least on some of the region’s wetter pitches.
Benefield had to wait a little before becoming a regular user of the new ball for the Karori premiers. His first appearance in the club’s top side was a purely fielding role. But it wasn’t too long before his promise and hard work was recognised and his path towards 500 premier grade wickets was launched. An admirable foil for the spinning wiles of Evan Gray, Benfield often had to shoulder much bigger workloads when Gray was absent on representative duty. Benfield himself described his willingness to train hard and maintain full fitness as a real asset to his being able to keep opposing batting line ups so much on then defensive in long spells at the bowling crease. He joined his team at the practice nets twice a week and ran three times a week to ensure his body remained in ideal shape.
Benfield’s attitude, dedication, ongoing consistency and great skill with the ball in hand would have been a boon to the rep side today one would imagine. However, he was an all-round sportsman and while denied a representative cricket blazer for his province he did represent Wellington at hockey on many occasions between 1969 and 1982. He also got close to national selection, twice, with final trials for both the 1972 and 1976 Olympic squads. Disappointment at these setbacks appeared to galvanise his efforts in the cricket arena to even greater efforts and the 500 wicket milestone eventually loomed and was then passed before his retirement.
A former club captain and senior selector, Benfield’s contributions to club fortunes did not stop on the cricket field. Nor did his playing days end with his retirement from premier grade play. He continued to turn out periodically for the Presidents grade side to very good effect for a number of years.
6
CO-INCIDENCE OR WHAT??
A remarkable and almost unprecedented mathematical co-incidence underpinned two of the three Karori premier men’s cricket competition wins during the 1980s.
Competition victories in 1980-81 and 1985-86 were both won with the last ball in the last over of the last day of the last match of the season. As well, the opponent both times was Johnsonville whom Karori, fittingly, shared the championship trophy at the end of the 1986-87 season.
Such was the extent of what appeared to be a most unique co-incidence the author of this article initially believed a mistake had been made in dating the club records. However, additional research and discussions with players verified the outcome in both matches.
1980-81:
The 1980-81 season finale with Johnsonville was played over 14 and 21 March 1981. With a scheduled one dayer a week later fated to be rained out the fixture proved to be the last match of the season.
The pressure was all on when Johnsonville was given just over two and a half hours scheduled play remaining to score 200. The chase resulted from an opportunity for Karori to button down the championship title following events over the previous one and a half day’s play. Karori second innings declaration came after scoring 136-7 built on a handy 63 first innings lead. Johnsonville had initially been bundled out for 142 in its first innings following Karori’s 205 -8 including an Evan Gray 72. This player’s true class had been revealed throughout one of his most successful seasons. His 72 followed two undefeated centuries in each innings of the previous defeat of University.
Johnsonville’s first innings reply had been blunted by medium pacer Geoff Pearce’s 4-49 and leg spinner Toivo Vaikvee’s 3-17.
Johnsonville’s chase for outright proceeded with a steady accumulation of runs accompanied by a steady fall of wickets. The eighth wicket went with the Johnsonville total standing at 184. Nine more runs were added before the ninth wicket fell with one over remaining and seven runs required. The atmosphere could have been cut with the proverbial knife while more than one spectator’s eyes closed themselves against the events in the middle unable to face the finish.
The responsibility for bowling the last over went to Geoff Pearce. The medium pacer had already taken 4-28 to go with his first innings four wicket bag and had been supported again by Vaikvee with 3-48. Pearce responded with five “dot” balls each one met with either a sigh of relief or a groan of anguish depending where one’s loyalties lay at the time. The last delivery saw bat put to ball and the last pair ran one. Hoping to apply sufficient pressure on the field for four overthrows they turned for a second. By then the ball was in Gray’s reliable throwing hand and he made sure of the run out giving Karori its three run win and the championship.
1985-86:
The 1985-86 final over last ball win was achieved on the back of a season marked by the astute captaincy of Colin Jackson. Leading from the front the reliable and consistent opening bat had put together respective totals of 44, 81, 25,57,32,29 and 34 prior to the cliff hanger two day finale. Till then Karori’s path to the 1980-81 championship trophy was built on two day outright wins against Kilbirnie and Tawa; and one day victories over Onslow, Midland St Pats and Johnsonville.
Gray again remained a force to be reckoned with in club play, when his representative commitments allowed, with scores of 72 not out, 43, 21, and 41 and some outstanding bowling returns including 4-19 and 4-22 in a two day outright win over Kilbirnie; 5-32 against Onslow; 4-37 in a drawn two day fixture with Midland St Pats; 3-19 and 3-47 verses Collegians; 3-19 ain the one dayer against Johnsonville; and in the match preceding the finale a 12 wicket haul in an innings defeat of Tawa with 4-34 and 8-39.
Four years after facing Johnsonville in a two day match to decide the championship the two Western Suburbs sides took the field met in much the same same circumstances has had prevailed previously. If anything the competition faced an even tighter contest. A participant in both matches, Evan Gray, recalls that going into the last over any one of three sides could take out the competition that year. A draw would have given the title to Wellington Collegians. Johnsonville only needed three of the last ball to win the match and the competition. Karori needed a wicket.
Again, as in the earlier fixture, Karori batted first declaring at 105 -3. Johnsonville in turn also declared its first innings after pushing to a small 22 run lead for the loss of four wickets. Karori in reply were all out for 168 with Gray’s 41 and a Colin Jackson 38 providing the major substance. Johnsonville faced 55 less runs to ensure victory than it had at the end of the 1980-81 season. Nevertheless, its batsmen again struggled, particularly against the nagging length and guile of Evan Gray and the sharper pace of Mark Bracewell.
Came the final over, Johnsonville required just three for the title and Karori one wicket. “I was bowling,” Evan recalls, “and Nigel Blair (Johnsonville) was facing. Wicketkeeper, Ervin McSweeney was behind the stumps and signalled a delivery to be floated temptingly up but a shade short to lure the batsman to run past the delivery.”
Gray was delighted when the tactic worked to perfection giving McSweeney the stumping chance he needed. The dismissal was successfully completed and the title was Karori’s in the freakiest of freaky finishes.
7
RISE AND FALL
WOMEN’S CRICKET IN KARORI 1981-2000
The story of women’s cricket in Karori is akin to a Greek tragedy. Sadly, women’s cricket under the unicorn banner, after a spectacular rise to a premier championship in 1994-95, then met its demise prior to 2000.
Women’s cricket at Karori had encouraging beginnings. Growing interest in the game by women saw two teams representing the club in the early 1980s. One of these was a women’s hockey side determined to maintain team bonding over the summer months. While playing results were not spectacular the players were, nevertheless, enthusiastic and matched the men for numbers at the practice nets.
Development continued and at the start of the 1984-85 season the club fielded a team in the senior reserve grade for the first time. Its record was eight wins and seven losses. Its performance was also largely focused around the considerable all round abilities of Rosa McDonald. This player was to emerge as the dominant individual women’s player over the decade just as Celia Cavanagh and Maia Lewis were to become in the 1990s.
That first season in senior reserve, Rosa McDonald hit one century (103) and took 31 wickets from a mere 118 overs. The next season (with the team back in 1A grade) she struck 371 runs with 30 wickets. She was well supported by the increasing quality and consistency provided particularly by Carol Leay (222 runs in 1985-86), Joy Saker (still a 2nd XI player at that time) and Hellen Buck over the following seasons. 1985-86 saw the 1st XI finish a creditable fourth position on its competition table and a return to the senior reserve grade inevitable.
While the top women’s side grew increasingly competitive, the 2nd XI remained focused on the social side and enjoyment of the game. The team won only one fixture in its nine 1B grade games that season but did return some fine individual performances. Not the least of these were Sera Webb’s six wickets for just five runs from 10 overs in one fixture and a Joy Saker triumph of 5-14 off 10 overs in yet another.
1986-87 saw the first X1 back in senior reserve grade with the step up unable to dim the team’s growing power as a force to be reckoned with in women’s cricket. McDonald’s return that year was 397 runs and 34 wickets from a total of 94 overs bowled. Both she, Carol Leay and Hellen Buck deservedly won their way into the Wellington senior reserve representative squad.
Again the 1B side won only one match but featured a fine 91 not out from Frankie Taylor who also snared 5-54 in the team’s only win of the season.
The now rapid progress being made by the club’s women’s teams were to be rewarded the following season with a second competition placing for the senior reserves. Rosa MacDonald was again the fore with 553 runs with 110 not out being her best. She also captured 28 wickets from just 24 overs bowled. This at a rate of more than one wicket per over.
The 1Bs too played out of their skins to increase their win rate by 300%.
The end of the decade signalled a considerable changing of the guard with a number of previous key players now gone. One of the newer players to hove into sight was Celia Cavanagh who, in the women’s form of the game, was to become a club legend. As the 1980s rolled over into the new decade, Karori found itself in desperate need for another Rosa MacDonald. Cavanagh’s arrival more than filled the shoes the talented and highly performed MacDonald had left.
In 1990-91 and with a number of new signings aboard, the senior reserves just hung on to their place in the grade. Three centuries from Cavanagh were the difference between survival and drowning. Her scores of 135, 131 and 100 not out were beacons in a season in which there was more dark than light. On the other side of the coin, however, the 1B’s continued their progress to take out their particular grade title.
Disaster averted, the senior reserves then commenced a phenomenal growth in spirit, enthusiasm and notably in quality to first achieve full premier status and then to the premier title. Through all this, Celia Cavanagh continued to provide the foundation of that success. A prolific bat, over three successive seasons between 1992 and 1995 she scored over 2,000 runs. These were respectively 1,048, 573 (the team’s first premier grade season) and 699 runs. The last of these provided one of the foundation stones in the team’s irrepressible march to the competition victory dias. Along the way she was joined by another special player in New Zealand representative, Maia Lewis. Formerly part of the successful and powerful Canterbury women’s line up, Lewis’s arrival in the capital was good news all round. It was especially so for the Karori Cricket Club and its newly promoted premier women’s team in particular.
Lewis’s arrival was the catalyst which launched a concerted and genuine bid to not only compete in the higher grade but attain the premier title and recognition as the most powerful premier women’s side in the Wellington region. Lewis’ presence attracted the likes of Donna Archer, Kristina Martin Elli, Linden Eagles and Erika MacKay, and the rising youngster Margaret Presland. Together, with Cavanagh and previous well performed players in Fiona Fraser, Phillipa Gordon and Sally Morrison they formed a powerful nucleus of a team which in 1994-95 went all the way to the premier title.
Later Anna Lukey from Canterbury and Lara Mansill added to the team’s talents while Penny and Sammy Lewis reflected the growing strength of the quality of players now emerging from the region’s school system.
After her first season with Karori, Lewis had the highest praise for the support she and her team mates were receiving from the club. She said it was the best she had ever experienced at any time in her cricketing career to date. The team also trained hard with big turn outs. Some of the more senior players in the squad even spent time bowling at the men in the practice nets.
In 1994-95, as well as the team taking out the premier title, Lewis also took out the region’s Women’s Cricketer of the Year award with two representative centuries, one for the North island verses the South (102) and a 155 against her former Canterbury team mates adding to her 500 plus for Karori with one century (126).
Even so Lewis had to surrender the highest aggregate total to Cavanagh with 699. This time round Cavanagh failed to make three figures in any one innings. However, scores of 75, 79, and 97 proved significant contributions in her team’s victory march. As well, Cavanagh’s efforts won her sufficient credit with the selectors to join Lewis, and Eagles in the representative squad.
Archer, Martinelli and MacKay had representative experience at various levels and went on to represent the region in the provincial “B” tournament.
Over the winter, the prolific Cavanaugh departed for overseas. Despite Lewis’s ongoing presence and influence, Cavanagh’s departure left a gaping hole in the team’s batting strength. The effect saw the premiers struggle over 1995-96. An influx of new and younger players found them struggling initially to step up to the needs of playing at top level. However, after Christmas the side never dropped a game. Over the season there appeared to be somewhat of a malaise across all women’s cricket in 1995-96 based on a general shortage of playing numbers. There were a number of occasions when even opposing premier grade teams took the field short of full complements.
In one pre Christmas fixture Karori faced an opposition of just five players which it dismissed for 61. On another occasion it again faced a team six players short of a full side and dismissed them for just 16. Karori itself was not immune from the malaise once having to chase 170 with eight players finally achieving it with just one wicket to spare.
The season saw the advent of the talented Margaret Presland who joined Lewis and eagles in the representative “A” squad. Other arrivals were the Lewis twins, Penny and Sammy who were products of the growing strength of the game at secondary school level. By now interest in the game by girls and young women had also spread to the ranks of the Junior Club. From one or two promising girl cricketers spread over some of the boy’s teams most junior clubs were, by now, fielding full teams of girls in their own competitions.
The Lewis twins showed early promise with 2-14 and 2-31 against Onslow and then teamed up to take seven wickets between them in a win over Taita. On this occasion Penny’s haul was 4-11 from 10 over and Sammy’s 3-13.
Some general restructuring by the clubs resulted in improved turn outs over 1996-97 with a stronger competition the result. Karori’s premiers secured a second place finish but there were some dark clouds looming. A new Cricket Wellington requirement for every club fielding a premier side to also have at least one other grade team in action in 1997-98 was to pose both personnel and logistical problems.
From 1997-98 the club as a whole entered a phase in which it gradually turned inward on itself. Its focus was on managing a worsening financial situation and maintaining its premier men’s presence in the Pearce Cup competition. As such, the previous high level of support for women’s cricket at Karori also foundered.
The women’s second team tended to comprise mainly secondary school players. Being an inter-city competition these players did not always have access to ready transport. Nor were the club’s finances able to help out at this stage.
Often the second team fielded different players from week to week and getting them to various venues and home after their matches was proving a huge logistical problem which the club’s financial base could not assist in solving. Shortage of numbers began to lead to default fixtures and even the premier team began to be adversely impacted through injuries and a lack of suitable replacements.
Maia Lewis turned in another good season with 600 runs and an average of 65. Linden Eagles accumulated 439 runs with a top score of 83, Kristina Martin Elli hit two centuries and Penny Lewis displayed ability to bat as well as bowl with 365 runs and a top score of 64.
But the good run was ending. The club’s financial woes worsened and with a mixture of retirements and injuries Karori found itself unable to field even one women’s team the following year. The women’s teams had traditionally proved among the strongest and most enthusiastic of club supporters and the gap they left remains keenly felt across the whole club.
One of the tragedies was to see the continuing great form of Maia Lewis and Margaret Presland but now on behalf of other clubs. In the three successive seasons preceding her retirement at the end of 2004-05 Lewis had three times taken out the Wellington Women’s Cricketer of the year accolade. In her last season and playing for Onslow, she scored 482 runs at the very high average of 80.33 including her highest personal score of 188 not out. That same year she also led New Zealand’s bid for the World Cup topping the New Zealand aggregates at 184 with an average of 31 in the unaccustomed position as opening bat.
In her last playing season Lewis also took out the titles of: Club Cricketer of the Year, Women’s Cricketer of the Year; the leading women’s club aggregate and average; and leading run getter for the Wellington Blaze representative side.
Margaret Presland, who also having gone all the way in the game also announced her retirement at the end of the 2004-05 season.
8
ENSURING THE GAME’S FUTURE
THE KARORI CRICKET FOUNDATION 1980-2006
The Karori Cricket Foundation has been one of the real success stories over the period from 1980 to 2006.
The Foundation was the brainchild of former club president, the late Ian Nimmo. The concept was to establish a separate identity from ether the junior or senior clubs and charged with actively promoting the game in the area at all levels.
Specifically the Foundation’s objectives focus on: providing coaching opportunities for schoolboy and club cricketers; funding the development of permanent cricketing facilities; purchasing junior and schoolboy playing gear and equipment; providing additional opportunities for players to further their cricketing experience; and fostering the interests of the club in promoting and developing the game in Karori.
Over the last 25 years funds have been allocated to all the above including player scholarships for tertiary tuition fees, playing overseas and/or playing gear; funding coaching seminars and payments for coaches; playing gear for junior and schoolboy teams; and facilities to help in the player development. Contributions towards the cost of practice facilities and bowling machines are examples of facility provision.
Around the time of the millenium, the Foundation also provided a loan of $30,000 to the senior club to assist it in maintaining financial viability. The loan was crucial to enabling the club to continue operating as a distinct and legal identity. and has been repaid in full.
Foundation assets with which to meet its objectives, which have grown from around $3,000 to currently around $90,000, were built up over the years from membership subscriptions, community grant applications and bequests. One initial source of funds, junior player subscriptions have since been waived.
For much of the last 25 years, the Foundation’s management was led by Doug Catley, probably one the game’s (and the club’s) strongest supporters assisted by a secretary/treasurer and a small team of trustees. The chairmanship of the Foundation is currently in the hands of Brett Gray, a long serving Karori Cricket Club player, administrator, member and supporter
PART 2
DECADES IN REVIEW
THE FORTUNES OF THE UNICORN IN DETAIL 1981-2006
9
YEARS OF GOLD
1981-1990
The Karori Cricket Club’s second century began with promise which was largely fulfilled, at least over the first 10 years from 1981 to 1991).
The decade started on the highest possible note with the first centenary celebrations boosted around the senior’s 1980-81 championship win. The senior men locked away the championship trophy twice more in successive seasons (1985-86 and 1986-87). To secure the trophy on the first of these two occasions it took a last ball delivery in the last over on the last day of the season to do so just as the 1980-81 premier championship was also won. The chances of this happening twice in a decade and to secure a championship win to boot must be one in a billion. The following year’s triumph was tempered with having to share the championship with Johnsonville. As well, the team pushed the opposition hard to consistently finish in the top three more than once.
The decade was also stable in terms of both playing numbers and strength. In 1983-84 the Wellington Cricket Association turned down applications for additional teams through a lack of grounds and wickets. A number of names emerged which were to continue to be found in annual performance reports and statistics through the next 20 years and beyond including: Evan Gray, Peter Rutherford, Peter McLaren, Phil Benfield, John Rowe, Dave Norton, Brett Gray, Keith Atkinson, Fraser Lyons, Colin Walters, Dave Bain, John Stribling, Graham Stacey, Geoff Lee, Ted Tyler, David Hopkins, and Ross Crotty. One or two might still be found in lower grade team lists. But that is no more than is to be anticipated. For after all cricket is the greatest of games even if in Karori, at least, it can be played in “jolly rugger weather” more often than preferred.
The Evan Gray machine which had commenced its momentum in 1972 continued its march. The successes of the previous decade were to be repeated over the next two as well. Even the advent of the new millennium did little to halt Gray’s success rate. Nor did a couple of periods of “increased unavailability” and two seasons as a professional for Johnsonville and Wellington Collegians. By the time he finally folded his three unicorn cricket jersey away in his drawer he had built for himself a record of willing service and results with both bat and ball (but particularly the latter), without par in the club and probably without par in the country.
When looking back over the years between 1981 and 2006 Gray was one of two players who dominated Karori premier performances over that time. Others were Richard Petrie and Derek Stirling. Lee Edwards by the end of the period under review was also right up there while Stephen Murdoch’s top order batting potential was also starting to become evident.
Gray’s record is the more remarkable given his limited availability for club play over the 1980s and much of the 1990s through representative commitments.
The decade also came with a need to scrutinise spending very carefully against income.
The standard of Karori Park’s grass practice wickets too were becoming an issue. The growing volume of complaints inevitably to an investigation and development of artificial wicket facilities across the region. Pitch standards around the city environs too started to come in for their share of criticism, at least below senior and reserve grade level.
1980-81:
1980-81 had seen the centenary celebrations launched on the highest pinnacle with the championship secured with a last game, last day, last over outright win from an Evan Gray run out. Gray had earlier in the season also starred with the bat securing two successive, and unbeaten centuries in both innings of the same match (verses University). At the time he became only the third batsman in the history of Wellington cricket to do so. Gray’s 583 runs that year earned him a 72.88 average. A Toivo Vaikvee 5-52 from 20 overs of leg spin in University’s first innings was also a feature of that match. Vaikvee and Phil Benfield led the wicket taking with 32 and 31 wickets apiece from their 174 and 253 overs. Both bowlers’ performances were remarkable given their opposing types. The leanly built Benfield was an in your face medium fast exponent who complemented nicely the teasing leg spinners of the more rounder proportions of Vaikvee. Both had impressive records leading into the club’s second century. By the end of the 1980-81 season, Benfield had collected 296 wickets over the previous 10 seasons from 1,863 overs with a best of 7-88. His total was 80 more that Evan Gray’s 216 wickets from 3,669 overs for the same 10 year period. In comparison, Vaikvee had collected 195 wickets from his 3,043 overs with a best of 7-43.
Benfield was to continue to successfully spearhead Karori’s senior bowling attack up to the 1988 season. His continuing haul of wickets included his 500th victim in the year he turned 38 years old. His best return was 49 wickets in 1984-85 including a career best at the time of 8-31 against Tawa. Gray’s influence with the ball in 1980-81 also remained a constant even given his limited appearances due to responsibilities in meeting provincial commitments. A 12 wicket haul (4-34 and 8-39) in the two day outright victory over Tawa in the penultimate game of the season being the pinnacle. After this season, Vaikvee removed himself from the game for a time to travel overseas. On his return the craftsman alternated between the Reserve and 2A grade teams for a number of seasons before teaming up again with former senior team mates Benfield and Geoff Pearce with the club’s President’s grade team.
The jubilation of a centenary season also buoyed the performances of other grade sides particularly by the senior reserve, 2A and 1B B sides. By the season’s end both the reserves and 2As finished in third place in their respective competitions, the 2Cs sixth, the 1A A’s fourth, the 1A B’s 10th, the 1B B’s first equal and the 1B A’s 6th..
1981-82:
As at the time of publication there were no sources of material with which to summarise this season.
1982-83:
Toivo Vaikvee had taken the reigns of the premiers in what was a frustrating season for the team. There is often a fine dividing line between success and failure and so it was proving.
Early losses to Tawa and University had been hard felt especially when the latter might well have been won. A dampish start to the season had also negated promising positions against Onslow and Johnsonville with Karori well placed in the driving seat in both games.
The reliable workhorse, Phil Benfield had to miss the early weeks with injury leaving Evan Gray having to shoulder much of the bowling workload. As expected, the left arm spinner thrived on the responsibility returning a best of 8-16 against Johnsonville (all out for 79). He also scoring heavily with the bat on occasion and he combined well with Ritchie to go to the Christmas break with a magnificent winning partnership against Wellington Collegians (Gray 77 and Ritchie 59).
Murray Creighton too started the season with a real flourish with an 82 and a 41 in the rain affected match with Midland St Pats in the opening fixture. Gray with 55 and Ritchie 40 supported Creighton in Karori’s second innings of 170-6. Creighton continued his good batting form in the next game with a 48 in Karori’s second innings verses Onslow. Gray again was to the fore with 73 and a nine wicket haul for the match (5-43 and 4-20). Tim Ritchie’s consistent run scoring earned him a place in the Wellington representative side and the selection of Evan Gray and Ervin McSweeney to tour Australia wearing the silver fern put some gloss back on the premier’s season.
Despite its experience, the reserves failed to live up to expectations. Poor batting let them down twice before Christmas with outright wins looming despite modest totals barring the way to victory. As well, rain dampened good chances in yet two other matches. Vern Williams spearheaded the bowling attack with best returns of 4-20 verses Midland St Pats, and 5-15 against University. Keith Atkinson also bowled well and his left arm slow deliveries deserved a better return than what eventuated.
The reserve’s season also might have seen a higher finish had the batting skills of Jeff Gibson, Simon Ward and Callum McCaw been available to the side more often before Christmas. As it was they provided a much needed edge to the batting when they were involved. Gibson posted one pre Christmas 46 and a 33 while Colin Walters hit a nicely compiled 89 against University.
Injuries affecting the premiers and reserve grades impacted on the 2As who struggled after losing their better performers to fill the gaps in higher graded teams. Grant Fraser with two scores over 40 and Chris Lander provided some batting reliability and the latter started to deliver on earlier promises with scores of 48 and 37 against Onslow. John Stribling’s 76 in the loss to Tawa was that player’s most significant pre Christmas contribution. Chris Taylor signified his promise with the ball in hand and an eventual premier promotion with a 3-7 against Kilbirnie early in the season.
The wet start to the season impacted on the 2C’s start with what was to become a regular foursome of Rick Julian, John Davidson, David Bain and Paul Currie providing the star turns. Davidson commenced with a 32 and a 52 not out, Currie snared a pre Christmas 4-43 and Julian returned scored an early 30 and a 33 to make their presence felt, at least in the early matches.
In the one day grades the 1A A’s launched its season with three wins in first six games. Terry Malden impressed early with a 6-6 against University. The 1A B team provided much of the season’s highlights for the club and continued its previous season’s form. Robbie Mansfield and John Glover were to the fore with the bat and Graham Glover and Dave Mole with the ball. This included one return of 8-22 from Glover and a 6-25 from Moles.
The 1B A’s had to wait until its scheduled fixture with the 1B A side to record its first win. Held together by the performances of Warwick Meyer, the team was unable to post a victory until facing the 1A A’s when the team upset the apple cart somewhat with a thrilling one run win. This was largely down to a 6-19 from Wayne Robertson. The side then went on to down Brooklyn with contributions from David Bain 65 (prior to his promotion) and a Ted Tyler 4-7 with the ball.
Karori fielded two women’s entries with the second X1 (a hockey side) showing a good example to the men’s teams in respect to numbers at practice each week.
Despite the wet early season weather the Junior club experienced a unprecedented 330 enrolments. This was just on double the 1981-82 total.
1983-84:
The third season of the decade did not begin well. The 1981 annual general meeting of the club had to report the passing of Club President Ian Nimmo. He had built up some 40 years playing service and had worked hard in the rocky road to ensuring senior status for the club. A friend to all, Ian had also been the driver behind the establishment of the Karori Cricket Foundation which was to provide a source of support to the development of the game in Karori which it still does today. He was also involved over the 1950s and 1960s in getting the President’s grade up and running. 1927 was Ian’s first year in the administrative side of club activities and in all aspects of cricket Ian was one who had certainly given his full heart to the game
Yet another wet summer saw most competitions forced into stuttering rather than marching towards championship trophies. Indeed, such was the intermittent nature of matches that many grade winners were not determined until the final round. Despite that there were a number of notable successes.
The premiers, under the captaincy of Evan Gray, ended the season one point behind eventual winners, Onslow. Performances were built around Ervin McSweeney’s 500 runs. The 2As also finished second and a second women’s side entered the scene.
The premiers still retained the services of veterans Toivo Vaikvee, Geoff Pearce, Phil Benfield and, for one game, its former skipper Jeff Schofer to give the side its needed core of experience. Not unexpectedly, Evan Gray took the bulk of the wickets with 32 with Benfield providing his main support with 26. After McSweeney’s 501 runs with one century from eight innings the best of the rest with the bat were again Gray with 295, Callum McCaw (205 ) and Tim Ritchie (200).
The reserves ended the season in sixth position but just 7 points behind second placing. Its strength, as it had been in recent seasons, was in its bowling attack. Keith Atkinson earned his 34 wickets from 206 overs with only Peter Baird of the others bowling more than 100 for his 27 wickets. Alas, batsmen struggled to total much over 200 with only Brett Gray just managing to do so.
The 2As finished second in the grade with only one batsman, Craig Love, breaching the 200 run barrier for the season. The side began well in the wicket taking department with Paul Currie claiming 25 wickets before Christmas before promotion to the reserves. There he took a further seven from 31 overs at a small cost of 80 runs. The intervention of wet weather over the season blunted bigger accumulations of runs and wickets. However it was the same for all other clubs in the grade and the Karori XI was in contention right to the end.
The 2C side started strongly but faded. In doing so it dropped to near the bottom of the grade before a mini recovery left the team in sixth position overall at season’s end. The highlight was John Davidson’s 379 runs with one century (112). This was closely followed by Jon Glynan’s 235 runs and Peter Rutherford’s 215.
Davidson, as he has been also before, was “Mr Consistency” throughout but was sadly the exception.
The 1As only won four of their games with two of these being by default. Eight were lost and the side finished just two away from a bottom place. Nevertheless, the irrepressible Peter McLaren still scored over 300 runs with a highest score of 83 while Kevin Upham with 23 wickets and a best return of 6-65 was the leading wicket taker.
Karori’s 1B (A) team was a ‘winter hockey group. An aggressive batting approach once saw the side amass 329-5 against Midland St Pats with a Jim Nesbitt 123 run innings anchoring the run charge. In the field the highlight was dismissing a University XI for 32 on the back of a Richard McDonald spell of 7-5 (all clean bowled). Nesbitt collected 471 runs to be the team’s leading run scorer (no other player got to 200). Not unexpectedly, McDonald was the leading wicket taker with 30.
The B team in the 1A grade involved a group of players from an opposing winter code to the A side. A string of memorable victories ensued. These included a two time hat trick by Graham Glover and three centuries. One of these was from John Glover who came to Karori’s rescue in one fixture when it was 35-5 at one point. Graham Glover topped the bowling statistics with 42 wickets from 150 overs bowled. This was a remarkable feat when compared to the next biggest bowling total of Marc Green’s 60 overs.
Karori’s 1C team too was specific in its complement being a police side from Wellington Central Police Station (who was on duty on Saturdays then?). Their efforts netted them a seventh placing out of 13 teams in the grade.
Karori’s women’s XI used a large squad of enthusiastic players including a number of newcomers. But that summer’s fickle weather prevented the newer players from gaining vital experience with only four games possible before Christmas and five afterwards. Robyn Wells, Sandra Francis and Felia Ward were the top run getters in a season of limited opportunities with totals of 149, 169 and 104 runs respectively.
The volume of rain over the season was insufficient to dampen the enthusiasm of the 350 junior club players who registered for the 1983-84 season. This was quite a boost and stretched the administration of this section of the club. Sam Buckle attained Wellington representative honours and was one name among the nine rep selections to re-emerge in later seasons in the club’s premier team. The Karori Cricket Foundation financed additional coaching resources through the auspices of Ervin McSweeney and Evan Gray and were most appreciated.
1984-85:
An increase in playing numbers saw the club entering five two day men’s sides; four men’s one day teams and two women’s teams (interestingly still called “ladies teams” then). However, the additional entries across the grades put pressure on the numbers available and some teams struggled to put 11 players on the paddock. Alternatively other teams resorted to coaxing former players out of retirement to help out.
Previous issues with the standard of practice facilities saw three artificial wickets laid. These proved popular and attracted back those who had ceased serious practice because of the nature of earlier facilities.
On the playing side the premiers slipped to third from the previous season’s second placing with just three wins (Tawa twice and Onslow). As before, the appearances of representative players Evan Gray, Ervin McSweeney and Tim Ritchie were limited. McSweeney’s absence was particularly felt as he had been in great form with the bat that season scoring three centuries in his six appearances with an average of 59.83. Tim Ritchie managed three more club appearances than did McSweeney and too topped the 300 run mark. Even more evident was his progress in fulfilling his earlier promise. The step up to representative play was also contributing to his development and growing stature.
McSweeney and Ritchie apart, Karori’s batting in the top grade was brittle and the club can be thankful for its third place position at season’s end. The dependable Fraser Lyons provided the grit required when long innings were the order of the day, as indeed they were far too often in order to keep Karori in the game. There were some good bowling performances headed by Phil Benfield with 49 wickets. He, in turn got good support from Brian Hopkins’ with 20.
Like Gray, Geoff Pearce’s absences with the ball (through business commitments) too were missed. Having to call on a total of 23 players over the season also tended to undermine team stability.
The reserves lost only one of its one day fixtures. But the players failed to score sufficient runs to dominate the two dayers.
Like the premiers, the team was forced to call upon a large number of players, some 28 in all, before the season ended. Grant Fraser was the leading run scorer reaching 332 with a top score of 72. While struggling at little at premier level, Derek Lander appeared more comfortable in the grade below scoring one century (103) in his seven turns at bat for the reserves. Despite some fine individual bowling performances from leg spinners Toivo Vaikvee and Peter Johnson; and also from Phil Goulin and David Pope no bowler breached the 25 wicket barrier.
Angus McLeod headed the run totals for the 2As with 484 and a top score of 99 not out. Next best was 195 runs in total from Graham Powell as the side notched up five one wins from seven games and six wins in all from the 13 matches played.
The team appeared to have a mental block when involved in two day fixtures although the bowling department with Peter Baird (32 wickets from 119 overs), Tim Lander (26 from 138 overs) and Dave McConnell (22 from 122 overs) being the most successful.
The previous season’s batting successes, John Davidson and Geoff Rickard, could not repeat their performances in 1984-85. It was then left to Dave Norton, Graham Stacey (still active in 2006), Jim Glynan, David Hopkins, Peter Rutherford and Russell Keast to build competitive team totals. At least this time round the run getting was shared. Rutherford and Glynan topped the aggregates with 267 and 238 runs each. Mark Allingham was by far and away the best of the bowling attack with his 22 wickets from 116 overs. Only David Hopkins bowled anything like that many overs over the season and Allingham it was who the team leaned on in most fixtures.
A new 2F grade entry turned up trumps with a second placing in the grade, just one point behind the eventual winners. Mike Herd gave the team one century although his 267 run aggregate was short of the 362 from the bat of Roy Krebs and Ted Tyler’s 286 with a top score of 80. Tyler also sent down 125 overs for his 29 wickets. This was not far short of Alan Tilley’s 130 overs and 36 wickets (with a best of 6-20 against Kilbirnie) and Dave Hadfield’s 123 runs for 31 wickets. These three bore the brunt of the bowling requirements and revelled in their workloads.
The numbers game impacted on the 1A’s considerably whose make-up depended on its core of experienced players. A signal went out at the end of the season to the club for either an injection of youth or perhaps a switch to a President’s type grade.
The team’s batting fortunes were based around the capabilities of Ross Stephen with 316 runs. David Sherlock (95 overs for 25 wickets including figures of 8-59 and 6-68), Peter McLaren (116 overs for likewise 25 wickets with a best of 6-47) and Kevin Upham (a massive 164 overs for 21 wickets) provided the sharp end of the bowling attack. The latter player bowled with great heart but was unable to consistently knock over opposition teams’ top of the order line ups.
The 1A (B)s season was a mixed one. Despite M Green’s 416 runs with a highest score of 80 the rest of the batting only once saw out their 40 overs and pushed their total past the 200 mark also only once. Considerable edge was displayed by the bowling attack, however, with Dave Mole spearheading a rout of one of the pacific teams with a 7-7 of 5.4 overs and Graham Glover demolished Plimmerton on another occasion with a 7-28 haul and finished the season with 42 wickets under his belt.
Of the two 1B teams, the IB(A)’s recovered from a stuttering pre Christmas start to notch up seven wins out of the 10 games played after the January 1985 resumption. Former reserve player, Paul Currie was one bonus arrival to replace some key pre season losses together with English import Laurie Wilson. The two, along with Ricky McDonald and Warwick Meyer, comprised a reliable bowling line up. Currie rolled down 126 overs and Wilson 116 to take on most of the work load accumulating a total of 61 wickets between them. Meyer and McDonald also headed the batting aggregates with 369 and 253 runs apiece.
One memorable match was that against a Plimmerton based Pacific side. The opposition were bowled out for 136 but achieved this in just 16.4 overs with 94 boundaries included. Karori players thought they were facing a whole team of Lance Cairns. As it was they reached the target but took 38 overs to do so relying on a Meyer 70 not out to get the team home. At the other end of the scale and against another Plimmerton team, Karori got to 22-1 before then losing nine wickets for the addition of just one further run.
Grade partners (Karori 1B (B)’s) did not win a match. The key factor in this outcome being an inability to hold onto vital catches. Nor were there sufficient long batting partnerships in evidence to secure winning positions. Graeme Tall had a busy season, however, sending down 92 overs for 13 wickets. This was the top equal wicket haul with Grant Stephen.
The women’s 1st XI ended their season just ahead of the ledger with eight wins and seven losses playing in the senior reserve grade. Rosa McDonald provided the side with one century (103) and 31 wickets from 118 overs while Robyn Wells also continued to perform well at the bowling crease with 25 wickets from 103 overs.
22 teams took the field Saturday mornings under the auspices of the Junior Club. The one element of concern over the years reported was the willingness of a small core of parent managers and mentors for each side. This was not a new phenomenon in 1984-85 and would continue. As such the club was continually grateful for the interest and efforts of those few who took on the manager or mentor role. The senior two day boy’s side was unbeaten at season’s end and thus took out the championship.
The ongoing coaching of Ervin McSweeney was obviously starting to pay dividends with six Karori boys going on to Wellington representative honours.
1985-86:
1985-86 provided the pinnacle for the decade in terms of the club’s “flagship” premier men’s side.
In the tightest of tight finishes for the championship it took the last ball of the last match on the last day of the season against Johnsonville for Karori to confirm the title. This was a result almost repeated by the victorious 2C’s which also won its competition in the last over of the season. The premier’s victory required a piece of Evan Gray-Ervin McSweeney craft to give the stumping chance that sealed the victory. Johnsonville required just three runs from the last delivery while a drawn match would have given the title to Wellington Collegians.
The premiers were led by the inspired leadership of Colin Jackson. His leadership capabilities were complemented with one century (102 verses Johnsonville) and a top aggregate of 470 runs. This included another near century of 81. In only seven matches played, through representative commitments, Evan Gray still claimed 43 wickets including an 8-39 against Tawa and scored 294 runs with the bat. Channa Jayasinha also breached the 200 run mark to realise considerable promise. Phil Benfield again proved “Mr Dependable” with the ball capturing 37 wickets to go with the 49 the year before.
The championship was founded on the bowling attack which left not too many runs to chase for many of the wins that were notched up. Only once did an opposition side get past the 200 mark against Gray, Benfield, the “quickish” Peter Quin and Mark Bracewell. The result was even better knowing it was earned in spite of the limited availability of Gray, Ervin McSweeney and Tim Ritchie through ongoing representative commitments.
A third placing capped off a successful season for the reserves as well with both Mark Harris (104) and Paul Gealish (113) scoring centuries along the way. The latter’s innings on Karori Park was believed to one of the most savage seen on the park for a number years including as it did some 90 runs in boundaries. Simon Ward accumulated the biggest aggregate with 337 to provide the cement for the side’s run getting.
Tim Launder twice collected seven wickets in an innings with 7-40 and 7-48 to give the bowling attack considerable edge earning himself 47 wickets from his 101 overs. This was just seven overs short of Geoff Pearce who, while not claiming many wickets, gave away only three runs an over on average. Launder had been bowling only for the past 3-4 years. But his hard work prior to the season’s start proved well worth the effort. While the team was forced to call upon 26 players throughout the season it lost neither impetus nor a loss in playing standard.
Problems in being able to field the same players or even similar looking sides each week was the undoing of the 2A side. After a relatively successful season the year before the team struggled with consistency and, overall, performed below expectations. Its inconsistency was shown best in the final match against competition leaders, Onslow. The opposition required only 109 for the win but was reduced to 87-5 at one point as the attack got “on song” and had the competition leaders decidedly rattled. It was somewhat of a shame that more efforts such this particular one could not be repeated.
There were some success stories in the 2A’s season. Angus McLeod was one who carried over his previous season’s form with 258 runs and a highest score of 78. He and Geoff Lee (256 runs) held the batting together while Mark Allingham 154 overs with 18 wickets) and Dave McConnell (128 overs and 30 wickets) shouldered most of the bowling.
Like their premier counterparts, the 2C’s championship win also required confirmation only in the last over on the last day of the season. Going into the final fixture the 2Cs had managed outright wins over Tawa, University (twice), Onslow, Wellington Collegians and Kilbirnie. The team was a tightly knit, and highly talented, one based around the consistent availability of a regular core of players.
As such, its triumph was a team one rather than one built on a few individual performers. Any side that targets a championship season requires the regular and ongoing availability of its best players. If other grades were to achieve what the premiers and 2C’s did then they need to follow a similar path. John Davidson re-captured his previous lost form and headed the run aggregates with 399 and one century (108) to go with other scores of 63, 41 and 38 not out. Other century makers included David Hopkins (103) and Graham Stacey (105) in their respective aggregates of 218 and 317. Stacey eventually won promotion to the struggling 2As. Runs also flowed from the reliable bats of Peter Rutherford (246) and Dave Norton (242). The latter scored his from just nine innings as he was not available before the holiday break. Norton also took 14 wickets from 65 overs with best returns of 4-24 and 3-27 both ironically in the side’s only two losses against Tawa and Johnsonville. The bulk of the bowling, however, largely fell on the shoulders of to the efforts of Lindsay Allpress 11 overs for 31 wickets and a creditable average of 10.94) and Phil Apperley (177 overs for 36 wickets at an average of 13.97).
A topsy turvey sort of season was the lot of the 2E side with a great start and finish but some lost opportunities in the middle. Like the 2A’s having to use a large number of players (32 in all) was not conducive to consistency. There were some successes both at the team and individual level, however. John Patterson topped the batting averages with 48.4 and struck one century (111 not out). At the time Karori was chasing Collegians’ 234 to win outright and anchored by Patterson got there in just 37 overs for the loss of five wickets. Rick Julian achieved the highest run aggregate for his team with 351 and a top score of 87. The previous season’s batting success, Roy Krebs, was restricted in his availability. Yet another, Mike Herd, found runs harder to come by than the year before.
The best of the bowling attack was Graeme Tall with 26 wickets from a massive 123 overs although Wayne Lyon returned a superb single figure average (6.5) with 10 wickets from his 21 overs costing a total of 65 runs. All 21 overs bowled and all 10 wickets were obtained in the one match, that against Onslow. His haul included 6-38 in the second innings.
The 1As did well to finish their season in third place. The team’s record included a number of losses which only missed being victories by just a few runs to underpin a most successful summer. Better form with the bat from Peter McLaren saw that player amass 430 runs with Chris Lee not far behind (378 and one century verses University).
The other century maker was Barry Sutton with a 105 against Collegians.
However, the player was only able to take the field on four occasions in the 15 matches played. Former premier player and Wellington B representative Ross Crotty did best with the ball with 22 wickets from his slopw deliveries topping averages at 13.95. Lee and Mclaren it was who took on most of the bowling burden sending down a total of 226 overs between them with 14 and 18 wickets respectively.
A middle of the table finish was where the 1C side ended their season, finishing with a winning flourish on the last day. The team was fortunate to draw a couple of fixtures on the Basin Reserve. It was an opportunity appreciated by all.
The all round skills of Ricky McDonald with bat and ball was the lynchpin of the side’s fortunes with 275 runs and 25 wickets. Warwick Meyer topped the aggregates with 284 with a best innings of 88 and also chimed in with 21 wickets. Paul Currie’s abilities in achieving the most wickets (29) was much appreciated by his team mates.
Ted Tyler had now re-invented himself as a one day grade player and led the 1D’s to six wins. One was a memorable one against Thorndon who at 72-2 chasing just 94 succumbed to Andy Cameron (5-9) and Tony Parker (2-4). A number of batsmen aggregated over 100 runs with Tyler, leading by example, doing the best with 230 runs.
A number of cancelled games through a groundsmen’s strike in the Hutt Valley interrupted the women’s 1st X1 season. Nevertheless, they finished a creditable fourth place. The position was largely built on the performances of Rosa McDonald and Carol Leay with the bat (371 and 222 runs respectively); and McDonald again with ball in hand capturing 30 wickets from 121 overs.
The team had been together for eight years and its sole remaining founder member, Felia Ward, confirmed she was leaving the area which meant a search for a new wicket keeper.
The women’s 2nd X1 recorded only 2 wins from its nine games. The strength of the side was in its bowling with Sandra Pahau sending down 85 overs for 13 wickets including one haul of 4-21. The most remarkable return with the ball was that from Sera Webb with a haul 6-5 off 10 overs with Joy Saker’s 5-14 from 10 overs not far behind. All three were also renown for their big hitting approach with the bat.
Some 19 Junior Club teams registered were three down on the season before. Of note the names of Sam Buckle and Wayne Holmes (who were to return tio the men’s senior side after their secondary school years) earned honorary mentions when they won best batsman and best bowler. As well, three players (Glen Kirker, Guy Uttley and not for the first time Robbie Sarfati) again represented Wellington on behalf of the Club.
Other good news was the increase in parent support available to manage and mentor the youngsters. The increased turn our and support of the parents was much appreciated by the Junior Committee.
1986-87:
A season which saw nine men’s and two women’s teams competing from the opening day for various grade championships had three Karori teams heading the charge for the winner’s rostrum when the halt for holiday break was called. As well, the Women’s A side had earned a well deserved promotion from the 1A grade to Senior Reserve after a faultless record up to Christmas.
Continuing the good news, Evan Gray and Derek Stirling (still with Central Districts at that stage) won selection to New Zealand’s winter tour to the home of cricket. Ervin McSweeney also wore the black cap against the West Indies line up and with Gray earned selection for a tour of Sri Lanka. Unfortunately that tour was subsequently aborted due to the unstable political situation in that country.
A newly promoted 2B team also performed well ending their season in second place. A further sign of the game in continued good health saw practice facilities stretched with up to and sometimes more than, 40 players on some nights.
A slight decline in Junior Club numbers in preceding years was also reversed with an increase in playing numbers.
The wily Chris Jackson again led the premiers to a shared championship victory. And again it was a tight race in doing so again with Johnsonville involved. Jackson led from the front with two centuries to double his 100 club account from the season before. These were post Christmas knocks of 112 not out against Wellington Collegians and a 114 not out against Kilbirnie to give the Karori charge further momentum.
A premier outright championship loomed at the holiday break with Karori 10 points clear of their nearest rival. Some inconsistencies crept in on the resumption including a difficulty in putting away bottom placed teams. Jackson led the batting aggregates with 449 runs to underpin his value to the team. Despite limited appearances Tim Ritchie and Ervin McSweeney still amassed 363 and 355 runs respectively with three other batsman topping 200 runs. One of these was newcomer, Ian Hogg, who displayed considerable promise. Commencing his season in the Reserves he quickly found his feet and after four innings and a total of 155 runs with a best score of 71 he earned promotion.
Bowlers found wickets were harder to come by this season on pitches that were better prepared. Not unexpectedly, Evan Gray topped the aggregates with 27 wickets from his just nine games. The reliable Phil Benfield provided maximum back up taking 27 and moving his total for the club past 500.
A repeat of third place was the lot of the reserves beating eventual winners University outright along the way. While the batting lacked a bit of weight and consistency, Colin Walters with 289 runs and Steve Zepke with 362 could look back with satisfaction on the season. Walters too took on much of the bowling workload with 24 wickets from 158 overs. He was one of four bowlers who took over 20 wickets (Toivo Vaikvee 29 wickets from 145 overs; Chris Taylor 28 wickets from 146 overs; and Graeme Taylor 28 wickets from 122 overs).
The bowling attack proved a potent one. It was also pleasing to see Vaikvee ‘s leg spinners again mesmorise opposition batting line ups after a couple of relatively “quiet” seasons.
A third placing was also the achievement of the 2As. Its successes included wins over eventual first and second place getters. One of these was the last match 140 run one day victory over Midland St Pats. Steve Zepke was not with the team long earning promotion to the reserves along with a heavy run scorers from previous seasons Angus Mcleod, John Stribling and Brandon Rickard.
Stribling was already no stranger to success in the higher grades and as such, his promotion after just seven innings and 295 runs with the 2As was no surprise. Richard Gibson and Peter Baird spearheaded a consistent bowling line up with 38 and 34 wickets respectively from 352 overs in total between them.
The 2A’s season ended on a fitting high note with a last game 128 partnership in a successful chase for victory in just 12 overs by Chris Lander and Craig Love in their only appearance together.
After five pre Christmas wins from as many matches the 2Bs then dropped three successive games after the resumption. This virtually put paid to their championship chances. Nevertheless, Dave Norton with 7-32 against Indian Sports and Doug Robinson’s 7-28 against Johnsonville provided some season highlights. So too did Craig Love’s 116 verses Brooklyn.
The 2E side reversed the trend among other two grade sides by performing better after the holiday break than prior to it. After Christmas only two losses were recorded winning all remaining fixtures. The season’s outcome was good one given that of the batsmen, only Rick Julian with 383 runs and a best of 58 not out provided stability with the bat. Otherwise the run getting was on the brittle side. The team’s strength was undoubtedly in the bowling department with Wayne Lyon snaring 49 wickets from his 186 overs at the low average of 10.0. More than 50% of his victims were clean bowled in his farewell season for the club. A sole appearance from David Hopkins saw that player net an 8-47 return from a long spell at the bowling crease.
Among the one day grades the 1A (A)s finished in third spot with the side’s nemesis being University with three losses in as many fixtures against the students. However, Ross Crotty’s hat trick against the Pacific Islanders was a genuine joy for celebration. So too was a further 4-12 against Onslow A, when, together with David Sherlock’s 3-19, an apparent hopeless position ended in a seven run win.
Four batsmen (Peter McLaren 437, Chris Lee 352, Ross Stephen 326 and Ross Crotty 313) topped the 300 mark. Former premier regular, Geoff Pearce too joined the run chasing with 284 and earning the best average at 49.6. The side usually made good starts when batting and this contributed greatly to the team’s successful season.
Two places behind on the table at season’s end were the 1A (B’s). The lack of consistency which affected other higher graded Karori sides was again a feature of this team. Mike Treadwell, however, proved an exception with an average of over 50. The impact of his absence through illness over the middle stages of the competition could not be over-emphasised. An early season 8-18 from Simon Bygate was the outstanding feat from the team’s bowling line up.
Promotion from 1A to senior reserve was the big success story for Karori’s top women’s team. This occurred after a 100% success rate over the first round. The step up took some adjusting to but after some early mixed results the necessary adjustment was negotiated. Hellen Buck and Carol Leay won selection for the Wellington Senior reserve representatives to show the team was not out of its depth in the grade.
Top batting aggregate went to Rosa McDonald with 397 runs. Her all round skills also earned her a top wicket taking aggregate of 34 wickets from 98 overs.
The Women’s B team won only one of its matches. This involved an enlightened innings of 91 not out from Frankie Taylor. Other good performances included a 65 not out from Nicky Williams in an innings totalling 77; a 6-64 from Carolyn Thompson and a 5-54 from again Frankie Taylor who was providing the side with some good all round skills.
The season’s positive return was that of increased experience in a team in which only two or three had played cricket before.
1987-88:
The pre season departure of Colin Jackson for Auckland proved a blow. Even the subsequent establishment of annual matches with his new club, Cornwall, barely dimmed the impact of his loss. He had previously captained Karori to two successive premier championship titles. As well, he had struck three centuries and topped the batting aggregates in both seasons. Despite Jackson’s loss Karori finished second in the grade and won the one day knock-out competition with a resounding victory in the final of that contest. The other grade winners being the 1As with the result well earned by a team which had determinedly sought such an outcome over previous seasons.
Increasing concerns by most clubs with the quality of pitches saw a commitment to the provision of more artificial tracks in order to address the twin issues of pitch quality and Wellington City Council costs.
The captaincy of the premiers was assumed by Ervin McSweeney despite ongoing representative commitments. The team leaned once more on the efforts of Evan Gray and Phil Benfield who returned the confidence of the club with 30 and 19 wickets respectively.
Gray was made to work hard in his seven appearances at the crease with 117 overs while Benfield sent down some 126 overs for his wickets. After returns of 7-56,6-39 and 5-37 including a hat trick, Gray went on to record his 93rd game for the Wellington representative side taking a total of 290 wickets from 7,572 overs in his representative career to date.
He was joined in the representative squad by Ervin McSweeney and Tim Ritchie. The latter hit one fine century (101 against Northern Districts) but otherwise struggled for consistency and big runs at the higher level.
Back on the club scene with the premiers, Chris Taylor provided Benfield with good back up in Gray’s absence with Wellington with 135 overs. His return for that workload, however, was only 13 wickets but which under estimated his real value. Six batsmen exceeded 200 runs with the promising Ian Hogg continuing to display his growing promise with 284 runs from his 12 innings.’ This was just five runs behind the leading aggregate posted by Peter McSweeney.
The senior reserves dropped one place to fourth. A need to resort to 27 players in all over the season impacted on the side’s overall performance. Graeme Taylor proved, not unsurprisingly, to be the best of the bowling attack with 18 wickets. The three pronged opening attack was completed with the back up of Richard Gibson (17 wickets) and Lindsay Allpress (11 wickets). All attacked the stumps consistently through the season and kept opposing batsmen on their mettle.
The added experience of Chris Lander (303 runs), and Fraser Lyons (254) was invaluable when the team batted. As well, Steve Zepke’s 266 runs in a season in which he struggled to adjust to the demands of the grade still augered well for the future.
Facing relegation in the second half of the season, the 2As found hidden reserves of determination and strength to remain in the grade with a fifth placed finish. There was an indication that a number of the team may be required to play up the grades in 1988-89 to ensure Karori’s participation in the higher levels continued.
Of the batsmen, only John Stribling and Andrew Wood scored over 200 runs while Lyndsay Allpress, before his elevation to the reserves, took 22 wickets from just 65 overs to still end up as the leading wicket taker by the season’s closure.
Five wins, five draws and two losses was the record of the 2Bs by the time the season closed in March 1988. Some 38 players in all were called on. However, despite difficulties there were always 11 on the paddock. The improving, and soon to be promoted, Andrew Wellings was top scorer with 269 runs with skipper David Stevens not far behind with 245. Dave Norton, Dave McConnell and Andy Robinson were again the team’s bowling mainstays over the season, each getting over 20 wickets.
Ending the season a mere 10 points behind the grade winners, the 2Es performed with the belief that man for man it was the best team in the grade. Rick Julian’s 241 runs from 11 innings was again the rock for the side’s batting efforts. Any early dismissal by that player tended to result in the rest of the batsmen going out quickly in sympathy. With the emphasis on “out.” David Bain, however, displayed some of his talent and experience with one innings of 110. The guile and willingness of Ted Tyler, Phil Apperley and Ted Sheehan saw the trio shoulder most of the bowling workload. They bowled a total of 368 overs between them for a return of 72 wickets shared. Graeme Tall also pitched in with 18 wickets from his 84 overs to give the team a decidedly impressive look in the field.
The 1A grade title had eluded Karori for 15 years. Its taking out this time round was celebrated long and hard by all responsible in the club’s 1A (As). The complete record was 15 games played for 13 wins and just two losses. The outcome was based on consistent all round efforts from an experienced and well balanced team captained again by Peter McLaren. Four batsmen topped 300 with Ross Crotty’s previous season hat trick being followed up with a top batting aggregate of 439. His efforts were followed not far behind by Geoff Pearce (344) McLaren himself with 328 and Peter Allsop’s 325.
12 appearances by Colin Walters added to the team’s balance and experience while Peter Rutherford also joined the after a number of years in 2C.
Pearce and Crotty with 206 overs in total between them and 45 wickets ensured opposition batting lineups were continually on the back foot. While only playing 5 games, Dave Gray’s contribution too could also not be discounted with valuable 4-10 and 3-19 returns against the Sri Lankan Cricket Club. While just of medium pace, Gray’s line and length were consistently immaculate as was his ability to get the ball to move off line off the track.
Having four of the team awarded places in the club’s top 10 players for the season was an additional, and deserved bonus.
Four wins from the 15 games played in the same grade was the 1a(Bs) return for their efforts. The team lacked some experience which told with some narrow losses in the final overs of several matches. Mike Treadwell again was the team’s anchor with one century (121) along with a Steven McJorrow 97 not out to provide some consolation.
A second placing for the 1Cs was built on the back of considerable pre-Christmas successes. With only three losses in total, players went into the off season happy with the outcome. Centuries from Chris Rutherford (102 verses Brooklyn on debut) and another (130) against Johnsonville were additional moments to savour when put beside a 118 and a 99 from the irrepressible Ricky McDonald.
Two defeats over the eventual 1D grade winners provided the Karori players in that grade with immense satisfaction. This tempered their own overall fifth placing based on a tight core of five regulars but requiring an additional call of 35 others. P. Patelsio’s 6-23 and Mike Davis’ 6-49 provided two bowling highlights.
Experience built in the previous season stood the women’s senior reserve players in good stead. The team earned a second placing in the competition with some good all round performances with the competition turning into a tight slug fest between Naenae (the eventual winners) and Tawa., The regulars of previous years all fronted again with Rosa McDonald outstanding. She totalled 553 runs with a best of 110 not out. She also took 28 wickets from 104 overs becoming the deserved recipient of the club’s Most Outstanding Overall Club Performer title at the 1988 prize giving. Hellen Buck chipped in with 305 runs and 18 wickets. She, together with Carol Leay, Mary Welsh and Joy Saker formed the basis of a consistently strong all round performing side.
The 1B women achieved a 400% success rate on the 1986-87 season with four wins. All players went on to the paddock with a determined spirit which even the introduction of a considerable number of new players could not dampen.
A selection of the club’s top 10 players at season’s end included Rosa McDonald at the head joined by women’s 1B captain Ella Kahu.
1988-89:
Most Karori sides finished an overall successful season in the top half of their competitions. The 2Ds went even further to take out the championship title after winning the 2E title in 1987-88. The senior reserves also did well for their third placing and 10 centuries were recorded across all grades.
On the down side, the premiers and previous season’s 1A winners could not maintain their momentum and slipped back to mid-table. Also, the post Christmas resumption realised a shortage of player numbers across most grades. This underpinned the value of the work put in to achieve the number top half competition positions gained.
The use of artificial pitches for the premiers and senior reserves when necessary was a new feature and resulted in only one Saturday lost in these two grades.
A number of key Management Committee resignations over the year with yet others indicated to come created some issues. The club also received a qualified audit opinion when the 1988-89 accounts were reviewed. Committee vacancies posed difficult to fill thus highlighting a trend which was to sadly become increasingly prevalent over coming seasons. Hiring a salaried administrator was one solution being promoted by the time 1988-89 had run its course. Another and wider social trend which was to impact on both playing and administrative availability was the extension of weekend retail trading hours. The 2A and 2B sides were teams particularly affected in this way.
The premier side slipped to fourth place by the season’s end. Even two outright wins at the close including one over the eventual winners were only of limited consolation when looking back on a season of “might have beens.” This was especially so given the investment in a professional player coach (Wayne Aberhart) prior to the season’s start. Pre season confidence was also boosted with Wellington College senior players attending Karori practices. The move was an astute one. It provided an opportunity to familiarise and integrate potential future stars with one of their choices for club play when leaving their college days behind. Trying to resurrect this innovative concept in more recent seasons has proved less than fruitful.
On the playing side, the premier season was notable for no batsman getting near 300 runs. The top wicket aggregate was that achieved by Keith Atkinson with 27. 1988-89 remained memorable in that not only did it see the advent of Wayne Aberhart as club coach but also marked the arrival of former New Zealand and Central Districts opening bowler and middle order batsman, Derek Stirling, and new Wellington district coach, Andy Roberts from Northern Districts.
Like Evan Gray, Stirling (nick named “Billy”) was to have a marked influence on team performances over this and subsequent seasons. With Gray he was one of the club’s two century makers (115) while also returning one six wicket haul (6-84). Roberts’ availability was limited through his coaching commitments but he too displayed the class which took him to national selection with one score of 110. Tim Ritchie was available a little more often for his club and took over the wicket keeping duties with some success when Ervin McSweeney was required for the representative side.
Ian Hogg continued his improvement with a top team run aggregate of 296. Gray in his seven limited appearances totalled 281 with a top score of 116 not out. Brett Gray collected 269 runs and Aberhart 257 runs with a best of 115.
Gray, McSweeney and Ritchie all featured in the representative calendar with the former going on to post his 100th first class game for Wellington and taking 24 wickets in the process from 312 overs. This gave him a first class career return of 300 wickets and 3,000 runs. He was the first Wellington player to achieve the milestone. Ritchie posted another century (106 verses Canterbury) and a total of 391 runs at an average of 30 to record an overall improved season wearing the black and gold cap.
Disappointment, despite a credible third place, was recorded by reserve team members who again believed they had the team to go all the way. Roberts, also a New Zealand national selection showed his class with an average of 76 from his four appearances in the grade. However it was it was Fraser Lyons who kept Karori in with a chance game in and game out with 582 runs (his season’s total amounted to 660 when taking into account his occasional appearances wearing the three unicorns. He hit one century (101 verses University) for the reserves after starting the season off with a cracking 89. Pre season optimism was also boosted by the return of Colin Walters after a season with the 1As and the deserved promotion of Andrew Wellings who had previously starred in the lower grades. Six other batsmen scored over 200 runs to provide the run getting support for Lyons. However, only one bowler, Peter Baird, breached the 20 wicket barrier indicating the team’s difficulty in dismissing opposition teams cheaply.
There were seven occasions when the 2As took the field with less than the required X1. This made it difficult if not impossible to push for a more credible final competition placing. Indeed, the team deemed itself fortunate to end the season where it did (sixth). This was built largely on a 10 wicket outright over University and two one day victories over Tawa and another again over University. Consistency was provided by the reliable John Stribling with four scores over 50 in his 404 runs. Jim Centre’s 96 against Onslow, Nick Edwards’ 60 verses Kilbirnie and John McArdle’s 87 against Tawa provided cameo support. Both Centre and McArdle hit up season totals in excess of 200 runs. The Robinson brothers, Andy and Wilf, between them bowled 332 overs and took 29 and 25 wickets respectively. In doing so they demonstrated an ability to knock most opposition batting line ups off their perch, an ability which was not strange to either bowler. The attack was blunted a little with the limited availability of Lyndsay Allpress and more may have been achieved had the player been in his “whites” more often than was the case. David Stevens with an average of 62 from just five appearances displayed his class. His efforts also signalled that the team’s final end of season position would have been undoubtedly higher if he had batted more than the five innings he did. Stevens was shortly to move to, and eventually lead a new President’s grade side in a new competition to be established by the district administrators.
Dave Norton again pitched in with some valuable returns with 256 runs and 29 wickets. However, a limited bowling attack saw five of the seven bowlers used sending down more than100 overs each. Geoff Lee had the most work to do with 149 overs (24 wickets to go with his 211 runs) with Norton just behind on 136. The promising schoolboy, Jeremy Nelson, and James Kenney both collected 23 wickets each from their respective workloads of 122 and 120 overs. Nelson once taking 6-30 including a hat trick
The triumphant march of the 2Es (now the 2Ds) continued unabated with a second successive competition title. Two batsmen amassed over 400 runs (Sanjay Bhika and Bill Pahau). Three others also went past 300 mark providing the team with the solid batting platform required to ensure the championship. This was no better illustrated than the team’s first innings against Plimmerton. In a team total of 364 in 46 overs, Sanjay Bhika and Mark Allingham both hit centuries with Allingham’s coming up in a 34 ball onslaught. Again, against University, David Bain and Graham Stacey put together a 158 run opening partnership at a rate of seven an over. The wicket count was more evenly spread with Allingham earning a top all rounder mantle with a top aggregate of 128 wickets.
Like other sides in the two day competitions, the 1A (A’s) hit the Christmas break after a run of four wins. Falling away after the holidays saw the team end with a middle of the table final placing. This was a disappointment after the previous year’s golden streak. The post Christmas struggle to get 11 players onto the field was a malaise which had obviously spread down from some of the two day grades and affected the final placing. Even so four players got past 200 runs for the season (Ross Crotty 278, Peter McLaren 242, Geoff Pearce 236 and Phil Benfield 211).
But with a highest individual score of 64 it was obvious that runs were insufficient to force victories. Given that only two bowlers pushed over the 20 wicket haul (Crotty and Benfield again) the bowling was also unable to make up the difference and the impetus of the previous year was not sustained. Crotty and Benfield attained genuine all rounder status with their feats. Crotty, in moving up to take over one of the opening batting slots was particularLy successful hitting the team’s best individual scores (a 64 and a 63). At least, if the team was a little downcast at the club’s end of season’s celebrations, Crotty and Benfield would have been able to toast the success of their own individual efforts.
The 1A (B’s) enjoyed a more successful season than previous ones and ended in fifth equal placing with the 1A (A’s). It actually went into the holiday break in second place. With a team that a much stronger look about it (at least on paper), two players scored centuries (Paul Gunnion 103, and Mike Treadwell 100 not out). Both also topped the run getting aggregates at 626 and 406 respectively. Their platform provided the pair ensured the side remained competitive throughout. Had the wicket taking capabilities matched the batting a championship trophy would have certainly been in the reckoning.
Warwick Meyer was welcomed back from overseas to swell the strength of the 1C’s joining the consistent Paul Currie to give the side a decidedly likely look. The emphasis on the social side of the game as against chasing a championship win provided an end of season fifth placing. But it still left the players happy as the autumn approached particularly with P. Gosvenor’s 6-21 and 6-59 to celebrate during the season.
Relegation was the outcome for the 1D A side which won only four of its games. Four players managed to exceed the 50 run mark on at least one occasion. But their efforts were insufficient to avoid the inevitable. John Rampton with a best score of 62 also achieved the best bowling figures of 5-29 from nine overs in one fixture. However, in the end his, and a number of other, fair returns proved insufficient.
The 1D B’s ended the same competition in third spot. This was a good return given the side had to appoint two captains over the season and resorted to fielding a total of 36 players. John Stubbe was the flag bearer with one century while Grant Stephen and Tony Parker often gave the side good starts when batting. However, it was in its bowling that the real strength of the 1DB’s lay being built round a number of effective options. Of these Greg Duncan with 20 wickets returned the highest aggregate from his 116 overs.
A wetter than normal season provided the biggest frustration for the Karori senior reserve women’s aside. Some 10 playing days in all were lost either side of Christmas. Even then a number of games were played in less than ideal weather conditions. Five wins verses six losses and a draw was the outcome of all this. The side did end the season by posting its two biggest ever scores of 212-4 and 200-7.
Only one player was available for all matches and the team was hard hit with university exam commitments early on and then losing one or two players overseas. The season was memorable for the opportunity to play on Karori Park for the first time in over 10 years. Indeed it was at home twice in the season the second seeing the side defend an 89 total against Hutt Districts by dismissing the opposition for just 33. Two players (Rosa McDonald and Joy Saker) passed the 300 mark for the season with 342 and 338 runs respectively. McDonald continued her impressive dominance in the grade as a genuine all rounder with 19 wickets.
Ella Kahu led the 1B women’s run getting with one score of 100 with G. Brown hitting up a 122 not out. Kahu’s one season’s absence in 1989-90 would be hard to make up. The side also benefited from Wayne Aberhart’s coaching sessions which was reflected in its six win and nine loss record.
10
UPS AND DOWNS
1990-2000
The early 1990s gave little hint of the storm clouds which were to cast their shadow over the club by the time the new millennium loomed. However, with some very good team and individual performances, Wellington representative selections and a reasonable level of depth in playing strength, overall club vitality remained at reasonable, and for a time at high levels. This was particularly evident in the middle of the decade over the first two season long inter-city play-offs for Pearce Cup and Hazlett Trophy positions. Karori went into the second of the two season play-offs in second placed dipping out on the first inter-city title to University by less than one percentage point. At the time, the Evan Gray web spinning machine continued its triumphant march and together with all rounder, Richard Petrie, Derek Stirling, right arm leg spinner Matthew Goodson, Poverty Bay and left arm spinner Mark Jefferson, former Upper Hutt and current Wellington opening bat Phil Chandler, Northamptonshire all rounder, Kevin Innes and some younger team injections formed a powerful line up.
Just prior to the first year of the second decade under review, Club President, Mike Curtis, announced he could not previously recall having in the club such a nucleus of talented young cricketers. He described the potential to go on to achieve great things on the playing field as enormous. But, after the mid-decade inaugural inter-city high, that talent and with it club strength began to gradually evaporate. Evan Gray began to wind down his involvement while, Innes’ second season with the club did not match the returns of his first. Subsequent club transfers of Jefferson and Chandler, the departure to New York of Goodson and to Scotland of skipper Jarad O’Hara, the retirement of Stirling and the limited availability due to representative commitments of Petrie pointed to some tougher times ahead. And so it proved. From the late 1990s and particularly through to the first four seasons of the new millennium Karori struggled at Pearce Cup level.
As the latter part of the decade and the early seasons post 2000 went by, outstanding individual performers and particularly those of Richard Petrie, Lee Edwards and English based professionals, Andrew Mercer and Azhar Abbas could not hide that Karori was not “rated” a title contender in the Pearce Cup. Indeed all Karori teams were being forced into rebuilding their strength. As well, captains found themselves having to call on more and more players in order to get the required numbers onto the paddock. Playing results, focus, stability (including financial stability) began to gently erode. One cure involved Mike Curtis having to add a managing director role to those of Club president, in an effort to maintain solvency both on and off the playing field.
1990-91:
President Mike Curtis’ enthusiasm at the start of the decade had dissipated by the end of the 1990-91 season. His report back to the club at the AGM in September 1991 painted a grimmer picture. Apart from some of the one day sides, others bar the reserve graders, had finished in the bottom three in their grades. As well , two teams were relegated. Mike regretted in particular a lack of dedication and application over the season just ended.
His sentiments were echoed by premier team captain, Derek Stirling. He reported that pride in oneself, in the team and in the club were sadly missing through much of the side’s 1990-91 season. He had found the intermittent commitment to practice and lack of preparation by some individuals disappointing and at times embarrassing. The absence for much of the season of the club’s “big three,”Evan Gray, Ervin McSweeney and Tim Ritchie through Wellington representative commitments was not offered as an excuse despite the great form displayed when they were available (Gray 46 wickets from 239 overs with a best of 8-33 against Onslow from 16 overs; 5-61 from 13 overs against Johnsonville; and a 5-71 haul against Collegians. McSweeney compiled 249 runs from just seven innings including one century). The rest of the major contributions came from Stirling himself with one century in 418 runs scored from 20 innings’ and James Ward’s 466 runs from 21 turns at bat.
Stirling scored a hard hitting 96 against Johnsonville with 13 fours and six big sixes and a 56 with five fours and six sixes against Wellington Collegians. But these knocks apart, together with a 100 from Fraser Lyons also against Collegians were among the few batting highlights. Lyons’ innings came from number eight in the batting order to achieve a remarkable fight back when Karori was crumbling at 78-7.
The absence of Gray and McSweeney was particularly felt. McSweeney, as well as his sole century for Karori was also in good batting touch for Wellington scoring 532 runs with a best of 84 and an average of 28. Ritchie’s rep season was more qualified. He showed his class with one stylish 70 but in a total of four other innings totalled just 77.
The wake-up call was heard at the post season review. As such, real effort went into building the team into the strong and committed unit which pushed hard for the inaugural inter-city title played over 1995-96 and 1996-97.
The senior reserves, in contrast to their higher graded peers, finished second and led for much of the season. Leading the way was former premier stalwart, Colin Walters with 49 wickets from 291 overs with a best return of 7-69. Brett Gray (504 runs) and Ian Hogg (454 runs) provided the backbone of the batting effort.
Among the other sides, the 2As finished last in a tight competition while the 2Bs had to face up to the loss of a number of the previous season’s complement. As such they resorted to fielding 37 players in all over the season. This was a trend which was to later affect other teams as well in later years right up to reserve grade level. Even with well performed stalwart Dave Norton and rising quick bowling star, Simon Kent, the team could only produce two five wicket hauls and overall lacked penetration when in the field.
While finishing in the middle of its grade, future premier skipper, Simon Baker scored 431 runs for the 2Ds. This total was boosted with one innings of 151. Phil Apperley gave good support with 449 runs and David Bain 417. TVNZ news reader and commentator at the time, Ted Sheehan, was the biggest wicket taker with 32 from 171 overs. He was one of four bowlers who sent down over 560 overs between them.
A midway competition position was also where the President’s graders finished. It found its squad of 22 insufficient in number to maintain required strength. This trend was repeated across the whole of the grade which was to see clubs drop out one by one in successive seasons.
The side did post two entries onto the Wellington Cricket Association’s honours board with centuries from Ross Crotty and Peter Rutherford.
The reserve grade women, like the 2Bs, found a loss of players hard to overcome and slipped from second equal the season before to just hanging on to its position in the grade. This was despite Celia Cavanagh’s fine touch with the bat including scores of 135, 131 not out and 100 not out.
Among the one day sides, the women won the minor 1B competition with the 1C men finishing second. This team’s performance was based around a core of regular players and considerable talent shown best with 6-8 and a 7-39 returns respectively in matches from the team’s leading bowlers, Jimmy Carruthers and Ricky McDonald. The 1Ds ended the season in third spot. Unusually for a one day side this team practiced regularly and developed a great team spirit built around a group of very keen young cricketers. K. Stockbridge highlighted the team’s efforts with returns of 7-7 and 7-18 among his wickets while yet another, Chris O’Grady had a best of 6-35.
Junior enrolments were around the 240 mark at the start of the season with 22 teams in all. The numbers belied what was to prove a steady growth over the years which would eventually peak at around 400 enrolments each year. The junior premier side remained unbeaten in all games with future senior club high performers, Richard Prebble and Dan Ryan starring. Senior Club players, Chris Lee and Wayne Holmes had provided additional, and valued, coaching support.
1991-92:
Despite four teams finishing their seasons in second position in their respective grades the 1991-92 season was described as an average one. The premiers went into a re-building phase which affected its end of season 7th position. Again representative commitments restricted the appearances of Evan Gray, Ervin McSweeney and Derek Stirling while Tim Ritchie was unavailable. Even so, by Christmas, the premiers were in second place helped by an early season and a typically tight fisted bag of five wickets for seven runs from Gray against Johnsonville from seven overs. However, post Christmas, the side failed to maintain the momentum.
No batsman reached the 400m mark and there were no centuries recorded. The biggest bag of wickets were the 33 acquired by right arm leg-spinner Matthew Goodson from 196 overs. This included a seven wicket haul for 100 runs from 16 overs against Tawa. The leg spinner then followed this up with 5-19 against Wellington Collegians from 13 tight fisted overs. This former Central Districts player was in his first Karori season having been lured to the capital from Palmerston North, skipper Derek Stirling’s former hunting ground.
Goodson’s 7-100 verses Tawa was timely given that University was chasing 239 to win and ended at 216-9, one wicket away from what would have been a momentous one wicket victory. But without Goodson’s contribution a loss might have been lamented rather than a victory celebrated. As a game of changing fortunes and tenseness it was one of the highlights of the season.
Other new blood in the premiers included quickie Chris Lee and Wayne Holmes. They bowled 165 and 125 overs respectively with returns of 19 and 18 wickets. Both indicated high promise for the coming seasons. Holmes earned his first five wicket haul for the seniors with a 5-35 in a one day fixture against University.
Wellington had awarded Ervin McSweeney a benefit year and the player responded with 573 runs for the rep side. This included a 119 against Central Districts and a 107 against Otago bringing the player into contention for national honours. Stirling too returned a successful representative season with 220 runs and a best of 70.
A mixture of outstanding and mediocre performances and ending the season as the bridesmaid was the senior reserve’s lot. An inability to finish off created advantages with wins put paid to any chance of a championship trophy. This despite the involvement of strongly performing regulars Fraser Lyons, Brett Gray, Laurence Powell, Keith Atkinson, Chris Taylor, Colin Walters, Ian Hogg, Channa Jayashina, Nick Edwards, Peter Quinn and Andy Robinson.
On paper the team probably should have gone all the way. However, previous season’s main wicket taker, Colin Walters, was giving his growing family more of his weekend time and his absence was missed. An R. Blathwayt 120 was the team’s best individual batting performance.
A struggling women’s reserve grade side came together well to perform more to expectations in the two day portion of the competition after some lack lustre one day results.
The 2B men, stung by their previous season’s relegation, struggled hard to win their way back to 2A but came up just short as did the 2Cs in their contest for promotion. The side was always competitive but failed to grab points at vital times. The grade saw the introduction of Jarad O’Hara whose talent and a season’s average of 49 was not to keep him from promotion for much longer. The consistent John Stribling top scored for the team with 411 runs.
Among the other two day men’s sides the 2Cs second placing saw, after the first two rounds, the benefit of a fixed core of regulars with two players, Graeme Stacey and Dave Norton (who else) contributing over 500 runs each with Staecy hitting one century. The 2Ds, after a good pre Christmas flourish, lost its way on the resumption. One shining light was Simon Baker with 660 runs who was well supported by Rick Julian (418). Baker, like O’Hara was to do before him, moved through the grades in successive years and eventually took up the premier captaincy by the end of the decade.
Regular availability and a tighter core of players assisted the Karori Presidents to finish third in their competition. Some 12 players played in 10 matches which no doubt contributed to the team taking out the Harold Osborn Trophy.
This was a challenge based contest with the trophy on the line each weekend. Former premier players, Phil Benfield, Ross Crotty, Geoff Pearce and Toivo Vaikvee gave the side considerable “bite” and experience when they were available while the consistent Geoff Hunt anchored the batting with 424 runs from 13 innings.
A second placing was recorded by the IC (a)s who were just ahead of the 1C (b)s while the IDs again enjoyed a successful summer.
The momentum of increasing junior enrolments continued with an additional six sides fielded over 1991-92. A new innovation was the establishment of a nursery grade for 5-7 year olds. Current Senior Club, premier grade skipper, Lee Edwards, shone for the junior’s senior side that season taking out the best all round and best batman awards.
1992-93:
There were some outstanding team and individual performances with the highlight being Celia Cavanagh’s 1,048 run haul in the senior reserve women’s grade. A consistently prolific run getter, Celia’s contribution was still unable to win the team through to a competition championship. However, it was obvious that this milestone would not be too much further off. Celia’s outstanding form with the bat was closely followed by premier men’s players Derek Stirling (just under 500 runs) and Evan Gray. His 47 wickets from 242 overs and three returns of six wickets or more (6-59, 6-75 and 6-88) earned him the Wellington Cricket Association’s Ross Murray Cup for the moist wickets in club cricket. Even with these performances, the premiers could finish no higher than fifth. This was some 22 points astray of winning the championship.
A consolation for the club’s premier side was the winning of the inaugural inter-city day/night competition. The day/night battle for the Trust Bank Cup was an initial foray into an inter-city concept and was something which was to eventually evolve into a full inter-city competition across three grades. The contest was decided in a very tight finish with University with Karori battling to overhaul a modest 148 from a position of 77-77 and then 108-8 before Evan Gray and Chris Lee steered the team home.
With Tim Ritchie and Ervin McSweeney gone (although the latter still fronted for the Wellington side with a further 317 runs with a best of 84) there was a decidedly new look about the Karori premiers at the start of the season. Promotions saw Jarad O’Hara, ex-Wellington College, given his first full senior season together with Nick Edwards, Sam Buckle, Richard Webb, Mark Barrett and Hamish Johnson. All brought with them enthusiasm, talent and promise. The experience and cement through the season were provided Channa Jayasinha, Derek Stirling and Evan Gray. They were admirably backed up by pace man, Chris Lee, and leg spinner, Matthew Goodson, with 22 and 29 wickets respectively. Goodson too made his initial foray into the first class scene with one wicket at the cost of 31 runs from his one innings at the bowling crease.
Karori’s premier season almost became a Gray-Goodson-Stirling benefit as the two slow bowlers and the hard hitting Stirling complemented each other admirably to the despair of a number of opposition sides. Gray started off with a 6-75 from a long 29 over spell against Johnsonville (this team must have been heartily sick of having to face Gray by this time) while Chris Lee provided the back up on this occasion with 4-64 to demonstrate more of the promise shown the season before.
A hard hit 70 from Derek Stirling (six fours and five sixes) reminded Johnsonville that he was still around and capable still of demolishing most club attacks. In all the aggressive hitter compiled 448 runs and a best of 94 to end up eighth on the run table for all clubs?
After the opening fixture Gray and Goodson teamed up with respective returns of 6-88 from 24 overs and 3-60 from 24 overs against Kilbirnie (before it became Eastern Subsurbs); and the pair again performed in tandem against Tawa with Gray grabbing 5-67 from again 24 overs and Goodson 4-60 from 23 overs. Goodson went on to get another four scalps in the second innings to ram home Karori’s advantage to earn an eight for the match wicket haul. Stirling too starred in this game blazing 94 runs with 15 fours but just two sixes this time.
Gray returned a 5-10 off eight overs against Kilbirnie again in the one day return fixture. Goodson then grabbed 4-18 from 10 overs against Wellington Collegians before the pair teamed up again against University. This time they took nine wickets between them in the opposition’s second turn at bat. Gray captured 6-59 from 18 overs and Goodson 3-50 from 16 to roll the opposition for 152 in its second innings
Despite the great individual returns from “Karori’s big three” and the promising Chris Lee, the team was afflicted by a not so good early start. It did come back after the Christmas break with wins against Wellington Collegians (twice), University (twice), Tawa and Kilbirnie.
The season was also the first played under new requirements for grass pitches to be covered following their mid-week preparation.
By making effective use of its 28 player resource, the senior reserves were able to manage promotions to the seniors when required and still remain competitive. As such it finished a credible sixth in the grade. Skipper, Brett Gray, and Nick Edwards provided the run foundation with 311 and 239 respectively. The key wicket takers were Keith Atkinson who wheeled down 183 overs of his left arm spin for 26 wickets and Lawrence Powell, an enthusiastic “quickie” who bowled 161 overs for a return of 23 scalps. Colin Walters and Simon Kent also provided admirable back up when needed with respective best returns of 7-63 and 6-32. The aggressive Kent’s debut in the grade was impressive. He was to go on to dominate the grade with his “quicks” eventually attaining a well earned and permanent spot in the seniors.
The triumph of the season was the 2B side who pushed past all comers to win promotion to 2A in 1993-94. The team’s margin was a massive 20 points clear of their nearest rival. The outcome was achieved on the back of John Stribling’s 489 runs at 44.4 and Jeremy Nelson’s 34 wickets. There was also considerable stability and consistency in the team make up from Saturday to Saturday.
A. Withington’s 6-25 on one occasion also served to remind that Nelson’s was not the only bowling talent in the side.
The 2C’s fourth placing was based on the 432 runs from Dave Norton, including three times past the 50 mark, while Rick Julian proved one of the 2C’s more consistent performers with 363 runs.
Karori struggled off the bottom of the 2D competition ladder and steer clear of relegation as the side eventually finished seventh.
A trend towards a lack of stability in playing numbers afflicted some teams and emerged as one of the more disturbing feature of the season. The senior reserves were forced to use 28 players over the season and the 2Cs 32 players. The latter, while not impacting so greatly on the reserves, in fact proved unable to keep the same playing XI for any two day fixture. The Presidents too used some 21 players to win its competition but maintained a hard core of regulars in doing so. The few well performed former senior players remained to provide the edge and experience including Geoff Pearce, Phil Benfield, Toivo Vaikvee and Ross Crotty. All added considerable spice to a core of other sound performers such as skipper, David Stevens, Peter McLaren, John Myers, Peter Rutherford, Geoff Hunt and Andrew Shackleton. All these players were of an ability that would have ensured them success at a higher level had they chosen that course.
The Juniors maintained their 400 player base with some 130 attending the summer cricket camp in Hastings over the Christmas holidays and with Nick Kirkcaldie earning Wellington under 14s representation.
Of note was the decision of the Club to award Derek Stirling a benefit season over the 1993-94 in recognition of his on filed contribution and for the guidance he provides the younger members.
1993-94:
The confidence that better things were on the way proved the case over 1993-94. The seniors moved one place up to fourth while the 2A, 2C and 1C teams won their grades. In addition, Wayne Holmes won selection to the New Zealand Youth side which toured Pakistan and leg spinner Matthew Goodson was selected for both a New Zealand XI and a New Zealand Academy XI. Goodson also earned a full Wellington representative season along with a newcomer from Canterbury, Richard Petrie. Holmes and Goodson went on to receive Wellington Cricket Association prizes at the end of the season respectively for the Most Improved All Rounder and Most Improved Bowler.
Evan Gray also won appointment to the Wellington senior selector panel.
After being second in their grade at the end of the previous season, the senior reserve women were asked to field a team in the senior grade. Despite a sluggish adjustment they came to the fore with some good performances towards the season’s end. Again Celia Cavanagh showed the way with 573 runs and a place in the Wellington representative side.
The 2As won the grade in their first year by a single competition point from Eastern Suburbs. It was a most commendable effort. Along with the 2Cs and 1Cs (who also recorded competition wins) they provided the playing highlight of the season.
The seniors finished their 1993-94 campaign in fourth place, one better than previously.
Derek Stirling with over 526 runs, including one century (105 not out against Mana), led the way by example in his benefit year. Fraser Lyons provided good support with 396 and a best of 62. There were also notable bowling performances from Evan Gray (8-44) and Matthew Goodson (7-64) against Mana. Hamish Johnson then started to deliver on his initial promise with 334 runs. Gray and Petrie also made the Wellington Cricket Association’s club honours list with bests of 8-44 and 6-67 respectively.
By now Gray had built up some 120 matches with 181 innings for a total of 4,228 runs with three centuries (two in the one fixture) and 26 scores in excess of 50. His return with the ball over the years stood at 357 wickets and a best of 8-37. Up to that point Gray had taken the Association’s club wicket taking honours three times in 1985-86, 1990-91, and 1992-93. It wasn’t to be the last either .Although in the season in which he was to take out both the Association’s top wicket taking prize and the Cricketer of the Year trophy was to be as Johnsonville’s club professional.
McSweeney too had built up an impressive club record s with the bat despite his limited appearances for his club with 4,296 runs from 153 innings with five centuries and 20 scores of 50 plus. While McSweeney’s finesse behind the stumps was without peer among Wellington clubs it remained too easy to overlook his batting prowess. At club level he remained as good a number three or four in the region, just as did Gavin Larsen when batting up in the order for Onslow. More appearances under the unicorn banner and he would have undoubtedly built a batting and dismissal record par none.
Goodson’s first full representative season in the Wellington colours was a resounding success with 23 wickets from his 209.4 overs. His best was a 6-48 from 22 overs against his old team mates, Central Districts. Further, a nine wicket return in his third appearance in the gold and black (4-65 from 34 overs and 5-40 from 20 overs) marked him as a player of the future. Inexplicably, albeit after more modest returns in the following season, he was to lose his representative spot to the more fancied and possibly less expensive left arm deliveries of Mark Jefferson who also debuted for Karori. Undaunted, Goodson continued to impress in the club scene and eventually had thrown his name in the ring for the club’s captaincy when work took him to New York.
McSweeney too continued to provide Wellington with good value in his final of 12 successive seasons for the rep side with 253 runs and a best of 111 scored against Canterbury.
This season also saw the start of what would become “the Petrie years.” This player steadily grew to dominate Karori’s flag ship team’s on field performances just as had Evan Gray prior.
However, with representative commitments taking precedence, Petrie’s contribution in this particular season, anyway, had a relatively quiet beginning. A 1-64 off nine overs verses Johnsonville in early January 1994 was a somewhat inauspicious start giving no hint of the successes to come. However, he did end his first club season in the capital with a 6-67 return against Tawa. His batting was a little more productive with a 40 against Mana, a 49 not out against Petone Riverside and a 61 not out with seven fours and two sixes verses Tawa in the same fixture in which he snatched his first five plus wicket bag for his new club.
Of the remaining premier team members, Richard Webb continued moving between the premier and senior reserve grades. He certainly displayed an ability to succeed in the latter but found successful returns from the step up harder to achieve. Evan Gray, while no longer playing representative cricket was not available for every game (he was now a rep selector) and his absences were felt. However, he still returned 28 wickets and the gap continued to be more than adequately filled by Matthew Goodson’s 30 wickets. Goodson’s started the season with a 4-68 from 22 overs against Onslow and was again able to work effectively in tandem with Gray on some occasions.
The pair first came together to work their magic against Mana with Gray demolishing that team’s first innings with 8-44 from 26 overs and Goodson their second with 7-64 also from 26. Gray chipped in with a further three wickets to give him 11 for the match. No evidence yet of decline in the Master.
Mana was again made to suffer in the return match some months later when Gray and Goodson combined to clinically demolish the Mana line up for 71. On that occasion, Gray’s share was 5-9 from eight overs and Goodson’s 3-16 from six.
The barrier to higher success was a post Christmas bad run. It had now become obvious that, in order to achieve another championship win, more consistency was required. The senior reserves too showed inconsistency with a defeat of the eventual championship winners but ended with a second to bottom placing by season’s end. There was frustration at the lack of commitment by some who came back down from senior ranks. The side had 17 regulars but all told used 27 players. With 46 players called on over the season, the 2Cs season too was somewhat disrupted. James Ward (later destined to also shine at premier level) and Richard Webb notched up centuries for the senior reserves. As well, Brett Gray, Peter Broad, and Chana Jayasinha provided some solid foundations with the bat (281, 265 and 209 runs respectively). Graeme Taylor and Colin Walters were the best with the ball getting 53 wickets between them.
Rob McKay led the 2As to a competition win the first season they were up. The side had no centuries to its credit and only one batsman (Rob McKay) got beyond 300. Nor did any bowler get 20 wickets or more. Consistency and team work got them through providing the ideal example to other teams. Consistency of the wrong sort afflicted the 2Ds who ended the season bottom of their grade despite Phillip Tinetti twice taking five or more wickets (7-57 against Collegians and 5-23 against Tawa B including a hat trick).
Geoff Hunt led the way for the President’s grade side with 472 runs. This included one innings of 138. The ageless Peter Rutherford also chimed in with 332 runs including passing the 50 mark on two occasions.
Alan Sherlock sent down 118 overs and day in and day out provided the main substance with the ball. He also scored a century against Tawa. Getting the best team on the paddock consistently proved a problem and, in the end, meant surrendering their 1992-93 championship trophy.
Four junior grade sides travelled to Hastings selected from among the 430 enrolments.
The junior club also began to feel the pressure of requirement more parent assistance than was currently available to maintain the support base necessary for their young charges’ nurturing.
1994-95:
The call for more consistency at the end of 1993-94 must have been forgotten over the intervening winter. Of the nine men’s sides fielded in 1994-95, one (2A) was bottom of its grade, five teams second to bottom and three could do no better than the middle of the pack.
The outcome was described by President, Mike Curtis, as the worst he could recall in his 45 years association with the Club. Not even Derek Stirling’s 491 runs and centuries from Jarad O’Hara (121), Andrew Burnett (116 for the 2D’s) or S. Kelly’s (126 for the 1B’s) were sufficient to brighten the season’s results. Nor was the women’s victory championship march which ended with Maia Lewis claiming the Association’s Women’s Cricketer of the year award. Lewis’ comments at the end of the season that Karori’s support for women’s cricket was the best by a club that she had experienced to date only begged the question- “what went wrong and why?”
One exacerbating factor in the disappointing men’s performances was the number of 2 day teams having to call on large numbers of players to get XI players onto the paddock. One team only fielded a full side six times out of the 14 Saturdays available for two day fixtures. This trend, which had emerged over the previous season, was to continue to one extent or another throughout the remaining seasons under review.
Again it was a trend which was not Karori’s alone but which reflected the sliding fortunes of cricket in general throughout the region. Even so the men’s results could not detract from the achievement of the senior women who took out the premier championship title. The momentum for victory was created and continued by Canterbury and New Zealand representative import Mia Lewis with over 500 runs and Celia Cavanagh who notched up one run short of 700. In three successive seasons this fine player broke the 1,000 run mark once and exceeded 500 in yet two others. Her performance surely placed her as a real contender for the “Karori Player of the Decade" irrespective of what others might have achieved over the remaining seasons.
Cavanagh, along with Maia Lewis and Linden Eagles earned Wellington senior representative honours. Donna Archer, Celia Cavanagh (again) and Kristina Martinelli were selected for the Wellington Bs. Eagles had arrived at the start of the season from the Hutt Districts Club to team up with Lewis as did Archer and Martinelli (Taita) and Erika MacKay (Johnsonville).
All had represented Wellington at either First or Second X1 level. It was a strong line up on paper and proved its worth on the field in achieving the pinnacle goal of women’s cricket. Lewis also scored heavily for the Wellington and North island representative sides with centuries against the South island for the North (102) and 155 against Canterbury for the Black and Golds.
The side started the season with a comprehensive demolition of Easts reaching the 131 target without loss, Celia Cavanagh scoring 79 of them. A third round hiccup against Wellington Collegians did little to halt the team’s momentum. Collegians’ Penny Kinsella, a class act and almost a team in herself, scored 132 not out in a total of 220-2 in Collegians’ second turn at bat to clinch victory. Even so Karori were not disgraced with Maia Lewis starring with 126 not out in Karori’s first innings with the irrepressible Celia Cavanagh hitting 75 in support. Both scored heavily again in Karori’s second knock but the Collegians charge was not to be denied. No further loses were recorded from this point with Collegians’ Penny Kinsella’s 59 in a one day total of 177 not sufficient to deny the Karori revenge. Cavanagh again (who else) made sure of the victory with 11 fours in an innings of 97 not out.
One of the team’s most comprehensive wins was a near innings defeat of Hutt Districts after the Christmas resumption. The Hutt Valley side was dismissed for 69 and 168 after Karori hammered 217-8 in its first innings. However, Karori did make hard work of the 20 or so required for victory losing three cheap wickets in the process. Donna Archer and Kristina Martinelli provided Lewis and Cavanagh with good batting support while the wickets tended to be shared evenly across the season. Sammy Lewis snared a 6-28 against Collegians after the Christmas break, Linden Eagles took a 4-25 and 5-12 (from 20 overs) against Easts pre Christmas and Fiona Fraser started the season in good form with 3-16 from 10 overs against Easts.
Despite overall disappointing team outcomes among the men’s sides there were still a number outstanding individual performances. Apart from Stirling’s batting, Richard Petrie and Matthew Goodson again won representative call ups. Additionally, Sam Buckle, Ryan De Joux, Wayne Holmes, Hamish Johnson and Toby Robson did enough to earn places in the Wellington Emerging Players side. Richard Webb also made the representative Under 20 team. With such an extensive list of players earning representative honours it is hard to accept the overall disappointing men’s results.
The premier men’s season was marked without a single one-day victory. To help out Evan Gray was coaxed from his self imposed unavailability. Stirling again threatened the 500 run mark and Petrie with 41 wickets was the best of the bowlers. The inexplicable and inconsistent treatment of Goodson by the representative selectors removed some of that player’s confidence and his returns with the ball were not as successful as his previous season.
The large number of players used over the season (32) again impacted on the reserve grade side’s results. Three captains were appointed before the Christmas break with the last, Brett Gray, again proving the best with the bat over the season with 298 runs. Giles Chapman was not far behind with 265. No player reached the 20 wicket mark. The promising and hard working Andrew Wellings did return a 7-67 against Eastern Suburbs and looked destined for promotion.
Having to call on 29 players did not help the 2A cause with the side slipping from number one spot at the end of 1993-94 to bottom of the table. This was despite Geoff Glynan’s 473 run haul and 49 wickets shared between Phillip Tinetti and S. Thawley with the latter’s 8-43 in one match the highlight. The efforts of the last named player included an eight wicket bag against Onslow.
Lack of availability of a fixed squad of players was a hallmark of too many men’s grade teams with the malaise of the reserves and 2As being repeated by the 2Bs. This side had to call on some 37 players over the season. Worse, the side fielded a full XI only six out of the 14 matches played. The retirement of long serving club stalwart, Dave Norton, impacted on the results best illustrated from returns of 3-4 and 5-20 with the ball on the two occasions he was called back to help out.
Once again the robustness of the game at junior level continued unabated. The season saw 450 enrolments. Girls were also taking up the game and their integration into it was assisted by some of the senior women players. Contributions saw Karori well represented in four club and four zone (with the Wellington Collegians Club) teams at the annual Hastings holiday tournament. A need for coaching assistance occurred through the season and the support of the “senior club” in providing this resource was ear marked for exploration.
1995-96:
The storm clouds which hovered over the club’s previous season thankfully dissipated for the premier men’s and reserve grade sides at least. The former finished the season in third position while the reserves did even better with an overall second in their competition.
The premier’s season was the first in a two season combined Wellington and Hutt Valley Association competition. At the end of the following season there was to be a 8/6 split into two grades for the Pearce Cup and Hazlett Trophy respectively. An automatic promotion relegation was also to apply.
Boosted by Northamptonshire (Northants) professional Kevin Innes to augment the keynote skills of Derek Stirling and Richard Petrie, the team at last stopped promising and delivered. Innes scored 704 runs with a best of 216 at an average of 41. Stirling smashed 625 runs with a best of 93 and an average of 48 while Petrie scored 353 with a 55 being his best. Innes also took 27 wickets and was well supported Wayne Holmes also with 27 wickets from his 148 overs and off spinner Hamish Soper (23 wickets with a best of 6-67).
Petrie was now making his presence felt with both bat and ball among the other clubs seeking Pearce Cup status including an 8-26 return. Petrie seemed able to turn a game on its head with a huge wicket bag at least once a season. It was a trend which Petrie was destined to continue over subsequent years much to Karori’s grateful thanks. Petrie’s season in Wellington rep colours earned his an overall first class return of 227 runs with a best of 65 and 18 wickets. In the one day Shell Cup series Petrie did better with 386 runs, a best of 66 and an average of 32.6.
For his part Innes came to Wellington, as a highly rated genuine all rounder which his English County was eager to see develop further in the antipodes. He proceeded to justify that rating. With genuine pace with the ball he was also threatening the 1,000 run barrier near season’s end. The season’s outcome was all the more meritorious as it was achieved under a new, enthusiastic and young captain, Jarad O’Hara.
Despite the limited availability of Evan Gray (2 innings and 23 overs) there was depth aplenty ensuring strong competition for places. Wins included every one day fixture and three out of the seven two dayers. The one blot on the team’s performance was an amazing partnership against Upper Hutt (Innes (216) and emerging batsman, Matthew Goodson (158 not out). The partnership was largely the result of being fed some easy runs by the opposition in order to push Karori into a declaration. The incident earned an investigation from higher authorities but Karori was cleared of bringing the game into dispute. The two individual totals were entered onto the club’s Honours Board but not the partnership. This was the result of considerable scrutiny and heart searching. Hutt’s cause was not helped after collapsing in less than 30 overs to give Karori one of its more momentous victories that season.
The reserves, stung from less than satisfactory 1994-95 performances, got stuck in to challenge for a competition win. Opening bowler, Simon Kent proved superior to any other “quickie” in the grade while Mike Clinning showed his worth with 29 wickets and a batting average of 48 including one century and one bowling return of 6-90. Nick Edwards also delivered the goods with the bat with one century. These performances, good as they were were exceeded by Hamish Johnson with a batting average of 68. This perhaps showed he was possibly playing at his best level. The results turned in by Dan Ryan, and Graeme and Chris Taylor also earmarked them for eventual promotion.
While the premiers and reserves completed their season with renewed confidence, the women’s senior side struggled. It took the field at the season’s start without the prolific run getting capability of Celia Cavanagh (departed on her overseas experience). A number of younger secondary school players were brought in but the adjustment required and variance in ability between these and the more experienced members of the side resulted in an inconsistent output. Against this, the side never dropped a game after the Christmas break.
Maia Lewis retained her New Zealand representation and was promoted to vice-captain while Margaret Presland and Linden Eagles also joined Maia Lewis in the Wellington representative side.
A disturbing phenomenon across all women’s club sides was the number of times teams took the field far short of the required numbers. In one pre-Christmas match Karori mopped up the opposition’s second innings for 61 who fielded only five players. Again after the resumption and needing 128 to win in its second innings, an opposition side was dismissed for 16. But again they were six players short. Karori too was not exempt from the malaise once having to chase 170 with eight players finally getting there in a close finish at 172-6. Margaret Presland hung on stubbornly to score 26 and hold the latter part of the innings together. Presland was a promising all round youngster who had joined a consistent batting core comprising Lewis, Archer and Eagles.
The latter two featured strongly in an innings of 258-4 against Taita immediately on the resumption after the holiday break. Eagles hit 96 not out and Martinelli 76.
The younger Lewis twins, Penny and Sammy (no relation to Maia) also started to provide valuable dividends after their initiation into senior women’s cricket the season before. Launching the 1995-96 season, Penny took 2-14 and Sammy 2-31 against Onslow. The pair then teamed up again to snare seven wickets between them to put Taita back in the pavilion for 80 with Penny taking 4-11 from 10 overs and Sammy 3-13.
Great individual performances abounded among the men’s lower grades. A. Withington three times exceed six wickets for the 2B As with returns of 8-19, 7-53 and 7-57. A. Glen had one return of 6-13 for the 1C’s and veteran Toivo Vaikvee returned one spell of 6-36 for the Presidents grade team. Centuries were posted by Phil Apperly (121 for the 2Ds), Keith Atkinson (144 not out for the (Presidents), and J. Higgins (104 for the 1As).
The 2B (A) side finished third and the 2Ds fourth in their respective competitions. Andrew Burnett (308) Phil Apperly (287) and Rick Julian (264 runs) provided most of the run getting. Blair Tinetti’s 122 overs and 19 wickets formed the back bone of the bowling attack.
The impact of a reduced number of teams in the President’s grade with only four sides entering the 1995-96 competition was being felt. Karori had lost the services of Peter Rutherford to Nelson from the grade which affected top order stability. The side did gain former senior and reserves player, Keith Atkinson together with David Hopkins and John Stribling from mid two-day grades. The two had previously performed with considerable merit over many years and Atkinson had been a regular premier player. This experience came through with one century and a total of 444 runs to hold the batting together while Alan Sherlock game in and game out provided the edge with the ball. The result was second place out of four teams.
With the reduction of teams and declining interest among players in a reduced competition, the Wellington Cricket Association (soon to become Cricket Wellington arising from the merger with Hutt Valley) had undertaken to investigate the possibility of combining the Presidents grade with Hutt Valley’s equivalent for 1996-97. The decision to proceed with the merger, while expanding the number of competing teams, was, however, fated to add rather than ease the pressure on the grade as events were to prove.
Under pressure too were the club’s financial situation at season’s end. Deliberate approval for additional spending to support the teams in the field meant a 1995-96 budget deficit of $15,665. This out turn was made all the worse by poor weather throughout the season and a higher than normal cancellation of fixtures. The downstream result of these cancellations was a much reduced income flow through the bar and fewer subscriptions collected than usual. The need to meet expenditure requirements involved the club going into overdraft and financial stability loomed as the next season’s major priority.
Under no pressure, however, was the junior Section of club activities. Again there were over 400 registrations with the senior club providing a source of coaching expertise in the form of Mike Clinning.
1996-97:
The club’s flagship premier side improved on their previous season’s performance by one place. The second placing after two seasons of hard competition to determine the top eight Pearce Cup teams for 1997-98 ended with just 0.36 points behind University whom Karori beat in the penultimate round. Wellington’s fickle weather prevented the last game being played leaving a premier side feeling the gods were well and truly against them.
Sadly, the season also proved to Derek Stirling’s last for the club. Whatever accolades were heaped on this fine player every one would have been deserved.
Getting so close to the inaugural inter city championship saw some outstanding performances built around a team with high profile players Richard Petrie, Phil Chandler (from Upper Hutt) and Mark Jefferson from Gisborne to the fore. This last named player’s arrival was timely to supplement the left arm spinning skills of Evan Gray whose on field activities were now limited. Towards the latter part of the season Lee Edwards joined the Karori premier ranks from Wellington College. His arrival continued the promising all rounder’s association with the club which dated back to his primary school days
Kevin Innes had also returned to boost the side’s playing strength but failed to re-ignite his previous promise. He bowled superbly at times for his 20 wicket haul at an average of 13 from his 127 overs. However, he struggled to repeat his previous season’s performances with the bat scoring just 189 runs from 14 innings. The young English professional had appeared somewhat distracted on his return to the Southern hemisphere. This tended to blunt the team’s hoped for killer punch.
Top wicket taker was Richard Petrie with 29 wickets. He also topped the batting aggregate with 424 runs with a highest score of 32 indicating considerable consistency. Petrie’s contribution was proving vital on the field and was to be even more so in coming years. His seasons were being dotted with outstanding performances with both bat and ball. One memorable effort was a 93 against Wainuiomata with nine fours and three sixes. Jefferson provided support with a 28 not out in a total of 208. This effort underlined that the Poverty Bay newcomer was no slouch with the bat either. Petrie, Jefferson and Innes then combined to bundle Wellington Collegians out for 97 not long after. Gray’s return for this match and an inevitable five wicket second innings haul ensured Karori took maximum points.
Next game up it was Innes with 5-23 which had Hutt Districts on the ropes for 70. Petrie dominated Hutt’s next turn at bat with 4-16 in a total just two better than its first time up. Petrie and Jarad O’Hara had earlier ensured Karori would only need to bat once with 56 and 72 respectively in a score of 249-9.
Petrie and Innes continued to dominate opposition batting line ups replacing the former Gray/Goodson spin twins with an attack now based on pace. January 25, 1997 could be said to be Petrie’s match. After putting Naenae back in the pavilion for 105 (Innes 4-27 and Jefferson 3-21), Petrie hammered a magnificent 81 in reply out of a total of 208-8 declared. His knock comprised 50 in boundaries as Karori proceeded merrily along what was to be its winning way.
Naenae then surrendered to Petrie’s pace and guile for 156 with Petrie gaining his first seven wicket bag (7-96) for the club. Not content with that Petrie then produced a rapid and hard hit 48 not out with eight fours as Karori quickly knocked off the 60 odd runs required for the outright.
Taita at Karori Park was next up on the chopping block. In a very tight game Petrie chimed in with returns of 4-58 off 19 overs and 4-33 to take eight for the match. Chasing a not very big score Karori had lost six wickets for less than 50 before Goodson (having a quieter season with the ball) and James Ward (37 not out) got their side home at 114-7. Taita has traditionally proved difficult to beat and tends to play “hardball” cricket. On this occasion, however, Karori had sufficient hard men of its own to seal the win.
Karori’s pace bowling (and batting resources) were expanded late in the season with the promotion of school leaver, Lee Edwards. Currently the Karori premier skipper, he made his presence felt in the last match of the season against University in a one dayer. He first hit 42 not out in a total of 171 after Karori was at one point 7-98. In reply, University looked dangerous at one stage until Edwards came to the fore with 4-33 and a sharp run out to have the students all out for 143.
Phil Chandler joined Petrie in the representative ranks while other current or soon to be Karori players Wayne Holmes, Jarad O’Hara, Morgan Prior, Dan Ryan, Mathew Drake and Simon Kent won selection in Wellington’s Emerging Players squad. Chandler’s representative career really took off with 432 runs at a 36.0 average and a best of 177. This was struck against Auckland in the first Shell Trophy match of the season. He did even better in the Shell Cup with 496 runs at an average of 49.6 and a best of 106 in the final match. His other Cup scores were 24,45,9,67,36,84 not out, 29,49 and 47. It was no wonder the national selectors noted his potential.
Petrie notched up 347 first class runs with an 80 against his old province, Canterbury being his best. He also snared 17 wickets from 180.5 overs with 4.32 his best return.
Fraser Lyons, Mark Ritchie, Chris and Graeme Taylor, James Ward (when not turning out for the premiers) and Chris Pile provided the glue of experience for the grade now labelled senior 1 (formerly the reserves). The side led the competition going into the Christmas break. It continued to compete hard after the resumption but had slipped a little to third placing by the time the season closed.
If the more experienced players provided the glue it was young pace man, Simon Kent who ignited the spark with an outstanding season and a best of 9-43. Chris Taylor also chimed in with a 7-32 to record his best for the season.
With over 50 wickets, Kent was a force to be reckoned with against all comers and earned himself an inevitable promotion in 1997-98. Pile was a great help to the opening bowler taking a good portion of his 30 catches off his bowling. He also showed the value of his experience with 450 runs. Andrew Wellings provided the up wind effort with the ball to support Kent’s pace. In doing so he bowled with great heart and deserved many more wickets than he ended the season with. The season also heralded the arrival of the hard hitting Simon Baker on promotion from the third grade (2B) and he soon made his position in the grade a permanent one.
He had hit 232 runs from just seven innings prior to his promotion with one century and continued in like vein once he made the step up.
It was pleasing to see that the Senior Women’s sides for all participating clubs fielded full or close to full teams over the season. Karori started the season without Fiona Fraser and Phillipa Gordon who had shown considerable promise over the preceding years. Christchurch replacement, Anna Lukey, however filled the ability gap nicely. Maia Lewis opted to relinquish the captaincy role in order to lead the national side which she did to a series win over Pakistan.
A second competition placing, while meritorious on the surface, was a disappointment to the players. This side had targeted a championship trophy as their due reward. One memorable encounter was against Eastern Suburbs to end up the season. Karori was set a target of 187 following a declaration with darkness already falling. Continuing in the gloom Karori secured the win in the 34th over with the street lights providing some relief from the gathering dark. Karori had given away a first innings lead of 27 but Maia Lewis again showed her class with a 92 not out with 10 fours and a six.
Lewis continued her national career with selection in the national side. She was joined in the national ranks with the selection in the NZ under 23s of the talented Margaret Presland. The youngster also joined Maia in the Wellington women’s rep side along with Linden Eagles. The younger Lewis sisters (Penny and Sammy) and Sarah Hill earned Wellington Secondary Schoolgirl rep honours and Lara Mansill (with a season’s club total of 234 runs), was selected for the Wellington under 23s.
One issue looming was the Association’s decision to require clubs to have at least one additional grade side to qualify for Senior status in 1997-98. This was sadly to prove an increasing problem and was a key contribution to the eventual demise of women sides in the Karori colours.
Attitude, or a lack of it soured a great start to the third grade A’ (formerly 2B) season. Some demoted players appeared listless and training attendances were sporadic. The out and inflow of players over the season did not help cement stability and team results suffered accordingly. Simon Baker apart, Conrad Kelling with 298 runs led the run scoring while Richard Pebble’s 100 from just three innings underpinned this youngster’s talent. Mark Jurgeleit shouldered much of the bowling (95 overs bowled for a 17 wicket return with a best of 7-50) with Philip Tinetti (23 wickets from 97 overs and a best of 5-24).
Karori fielded two sides in this grade. For the B team, the returns were disappointing with losses and draws outweighing victories. The team’s top order was on the lighter and inexperienced side.
Nevertheless, Dave Wilkinson did put together a fine century and with Graham Stacey ( a top score of 82 not out) and David Murdoch (a best of 55) scored over 300 runs. These were not enough, however, and bowlers struggled to take more than a three wicket haul at any one time. With the ball, the team relied largely on David Murdoch (345 overs for 17 wickets) and Hamish Kirkaldie (121 overs and also 17 wickets). Only one other bowler got a total season double digit haul of wickets. Like the batting, these efforts too were not enough to prevent relegation in 1997-98.
Phil Pigou captured the eye for the fifth graders (2Ds) with the bat (402 runs and a top score of 70) while Matt Cave provided great support with 327. Alas, only two other batsmen scored past 200. As well, too often the side faced follow-on positions to challenge for a top position in the grade. The result was disappointing given that the bowlers did restrict opposition totals to give the batting line a vestige of chances. Heading the bowling effort was Dave Ellingham who sent down 207 overs and took 34 wickets. This was not far short of a 100 more overs than the next in line, Greg Duncan with 133 overs and 22 wickets and Shayne Dye with 120 overs and also 22 wickets.
The second half of the season featured the first year of an inter-city Presidents grade. Karori’s Presidents ended the local competition in fourth place out of four teams but went on to finish a creditable third in the inter-city round. A better result may have ensued had the team’s regular core turned out more often. Thirty-five players were used over the season with 24 playing only once or twice. Alan Sherlock, Keith Atkinson, Phil Benfield, David Hopkins, John Myers, John Stribling and the Hunt brothers, Dennis and Tony gave the team a strong look on paper. This was even more so with grade debuts from Colin Walters and Channa Jayasinha also thrown in.
Highlights included a recovery from 53-5 in one match to a winning 178 run partnership between Denis Hunt and Phil Benfield. Another was a Phil Benfield run out from a boundary throw on the last ball of the game to beat Petone. As well, Keith Atkinson and John Stribling each hit centuries (117 and 101 respectively) to show their class with the bat.
The flagship bearer in the other one day grades was the 1As. In this team at least batting performances were a plus. Skipper Toby Robson scored two centuries (169 not out and 128). The second of these innings included 52 runs from two overs faced at one point. With good depth in batting the side scored heavily throughout and was able to stage several good recoveries. One instance was a massive 285-8 after being 35-5 including a Ria Chapman 106 and Mark Frost 51. A 160 run win resulted with the opposition being unable to match Karori’s batting firepower.
A mixed season of highs and lows was the story in the 1B grade. The team went into the Christmas break equal first on the back of four century makers (Jarred Higgins 108, Carson Higgins 100 not out, Greg Strang 106 and Lee Hayes 150 not out and 103). Some player losses after the resumption saw performances slip to a final fourth placing. This was despite a deserved win over competition leaders University.
Ricky McDonald continued to be a force in the region’s one day competitions with 574 runs (at an average of 57.4) and 35 wickets to top both the batting and bowling aggregates for the Karori 1Cs. John Stubbe (362 runs) and Stu Cousins (318) runs also contributed with the bat Difficulties in fielding 11 players cost the team a victory against Wellington Collegians. With only nine fit players Karori conceded 248 runs and failed only by one run to nail what would have been a win against all odds.
Some 28 teams registered in the Junior grade which continued to reflect both the enthusiasm of the game for youngsters and the standing of the club’s support for them.
1997-98:
The talent in the premier ranks had thinned out a little over the winter. This made the premier team’s task more daunting and the returns provided by Petrie even more vital. Jefferson, the aggressive Phil Chandler, and Edwards were still there to provide additional substance although the first two of this trio were required to shoulder a considerable representative load restricting their value somewhat for the Unicorn.
It was Petrie, however, upon whom the premiers leaned and he didn’t let them down. After a 37 against Stokes Valley in an early season fixture to complement Chandler’s 58 in a small total of 110, Petrie then claimed 6-15 off 16 overs to leave the Hutt Valley based side completely stunned. If that wasn’t sufficient evidence of Petrie’s class, he later claimed 7 wickets (7-76 with a hat trick) in Eastern Suburb’s first innings of 236 and 4-49 against Hutt Districts; a 69 with 10 fours against University; and 152 not out with 110 runs in boundaries (20 fours and five sixes) verses Hutt Districts before the season’s end. In all he hit 504 runs at an average of 50.4 and captured 30 wickets.
In his turn, Edward’s biggest triumph came just before the Christmas break. Wellington Collegians was chasing just 186 for outright victory but fell 13 runs short with Edwards displaying his own class with 6-79. He had also earlier hit 54 (44 runs in boundaries) in Karori’s second innings to help the total through to 232. Again Karori had been foundering at 79-7 before Edwards took command with amazing maturity in one so young. If it could be said that 1997-98 was Petrie’s season then this was certainly Edwards’ match.
Edwards continued (and continues) to be a potent force in the premier side with bat and ball. With the bat he can demolish some attacks even in tight situations but rarely hits up big season tallies. He has certainly responded magnificently to the increased bowling (and currently captaincy) workload required of him, however. As such he was greatly missed in one season after the millennium when an indoor netball injury took an early season toll. His current trade mark is a clever variance in pace but with a continuing ability to push the sharper one through to beat the bat or to earn an outside edge.
Of the other premier performances, Hamish Soper chimed in with 29 wickets from his 260 overs with best returns of 7-65 and 4-59. Evan Gray returned to a full club season but regrettably it wasn’t to be wearing the Karori jersey.
He had joined Johnsonville’s ranks as its paid club professional as Karori’s neighbour sought to win back its place in Pearce Cup. The bid failed but it was not through a lack of success from the former Karori left arm spinner . Gray sent down 260 overs taking 54 wickets in the process. He also scored 446 runs for his new club at an average of 40.54 and a top score of 61. His efforts, if not getting Johnsonville back into Pearce Cup earned the player Cricket Wellington’s Cricketer of the Year award and the trophy for the top wicket taker in club cricket.
Chandler’s triumphs in Wellington representative colours did not match his previous ones with just 56 runs in five first class innings with a top score of 53. His Shell Cup returns were also modest by previous season’s standards with 206 runs and a top score of 54. Petrie fared somewhat better in the Cup series with 288 runs with a best of 64 and 13 wickets from 93 overs and a best of 4-45.
The death knell for women’s participation in the game in Karori colours was sounded at the end of the season. The club had found the hurdle of maintaining a second women’s team in the 1B grade in order to retain senior division representation too great. Transporting young, largely secondary school players to and from games in the Hutt valley became an issue. In the end the side finished sixth out of the eight teams in the grade but also took the field with fewer than the XI players required for better success. As well, key retirements and injuries among the senior ranks plagued Karori’s ability to consistently field full senior women’s XIs Saturday to Saturday. With the club increasingly turning inwards to focus on more limited goals, Maia Lewis’ commendation for the club’s support for women’s cricket two seasons before could not be repeated.
Lewis herself turned in another great season with 600 runs at an average of 65. She was supported by Linden Eagles’ 439 runs with a top score of 83 while Sammy Lewis’ development continued with 365 runs, a best of 64 and an average of 21.47. Kristina Martinelli chipped in with two centuries (107 and 105). That these talents were to be no longer available to the club was the real tragedy of the 25 years under review. Lewis in particular continued to dominate women’s club and national performances. In doing so she earned the Wellington Women’s Cricketer of the Year award in her last three successive playing seasons prior to her retirement.
Among the other grades the senior firsts (reserves) ended the season in fifth place, the third graders (2Bs) seventh, the fifth grade team (2D) sixth and the President’s 3rd out the four participating local teams. Simon Baker starred with the bat for the senior thirds twice posting in excess of 100 runs (119 and 110) and thus signalling the time for further promotion was at hand. There were a number of individual highlights among the senior fourth side players with a 164 from Keith Atkinson, a 152 from Matt Cave, a 119 from A. Burnett and one 7-54 return with the ball, this from Dave Ellingham.
With no 1A or 1B grade team the one day flag was carried by the Presidents and the 1Cs. Geoff Hunt hit one century for the Presidents and the irrepressible Dave Norton, now in President’s garb returned one game winning spell of 6-17. Centuries from Ricky McDonald and A. Glen featured in the 1C’s season.
1998-99:
A season which started in high spirits and with great hopes for both on and off-field fortunes evaporated by season’s end. The season began with a new Chairman who led a strong sponsorship drive to put the club onto a better financial footing. On the playing field there was a great start to the premier’s season with the holiday break arriving with the team unbeaten and in second place. This was achieved without the full services of Richard Petrie while Mark Jefferson had been lost to Hutt Districts. As well, there had been an injection of new playing talent in the grades below premier which saw the senior 3 (2B) side winning its grade under Mark Jurgeleit. This included the team posting nine centuries.
However, on the resumption in January the premiers were unable to win one further game showing its lack of experience which enthusiasm alone was unable to overcome. Sixth out of eight was the premiers lot by the end of March 1999.
As well, the club was unable to field one women’s team. For many years the women’s input into the club’s fortunes have been immense and were always recognised and appreciated.
On the financial side the club again spent more than it had, or could afford. This was despite ongoing sponsorship. The nadir of the club’s fortunes (literally) had been reached. President Mike Curtis strongly warned the 1999 annual general meeting (AGM) that unless there was a stronger exercising of more appropriate financial controls then bankruptcy awaited just the other side of the door. Just like the playing fortunes of the premiers, the club started the season with sufficient sponsorship to clear the previous season’s debt load and finance a much needed upgrade to the practice nets. Not one but two major sponsors were obtained together with a number of minor ones
This achievement was largely the work of an enthusiastic Simon Baker who took over the Chairman’s reigns on the Management Committee. Over the season all the pre-season work to fund 1998-99 commitments, however, proved not enough. Reserves used to fund the overseas professional including purchasing a vehicle together with a number of other unavoidable expenditure items ate into a dwindling pool of funds. Even a vastly improved rate of player subscriptions did not alleviate the end of season financial position. The situation was not helped with an inability to appoint a treasurer to the Management Committee until after Christmas. Additionally the initial level of sponsorship previously negotiated did not come through. An overdraft facility while keeping the wolves at bay was not a long term solution and in itself posed a problem further down the track.
On the playing front, the premiers began their season in fine touch with wins against upper Valley, and Hutt Districts and then against Petone Riverside and Onslow to go into the Christmas break sitting right behind the competition leaders. Despite some again individual outstanding performances from Richard Petrie, when available, the momentum could not be sustained. The solidity, experience and most of all the bite was missing. One typical Petrie contribution was a 7-47 wicket haul. This was not the first time he had taken seven wickets in an innings and thankfully it was not to be the last either.
At season’s end, no batsman had breached the 300 mark while the club’s English professional, Neil Martin was the best with the ball talking 20 wickets from 405 overs bowled. Lee Edwards and Hamish Soper snared 21 wickets each but again it was not enough.
Petrie’s contribution to the Wellington Firebirds was significant with a hard hit 71 against Auckland and 2-42, a 4-13 when Wellington fronted Northern Districts in the first round followed by 31 and 4-42 when the two teams met again in round two. He also included a 40 in his Shell Cup campaign of 332 runs. Petrie’s overall first class return was a little more modest with 160 runs and a best of 45. Edwards announced his foray onto the representative scene with an impressive 5-67 and a 25 playing for the Wellington Districts XI.
The senior firsts (reserves) had almost a reverse situation to the premiers. The side came close to three outright wins prior to Christmas needing just the last two wickets on two occasions and one in the third. However, it was after the holiday break that the team’s star rose in the sky.
All one dayers were won together with a two day outright to earn a fourth place competition slot. The team’s fortunes were built around Cam Morrison, Richard Mills, Richard Webb (all of whom also had appearances in the premier side), Konrad Kelling, Morgan Prior with the bat with 186, 235, 230, 223 and 203 runs respectively. Morrison scored the only century, this an impressive 172. Like a number of players, Morrison always looked really good in the grade with bat in hand but struggled with the step up. A more than useful bowler as well his time would undoubtedly come. With 22 wickets from 384 overs and a best performance of 5-32, Richard Prebble was the star of the team with ball in hand. No other bowler even approached 200 overs. The post Christmas period performance was also boosted by the arrival of “quickie” Tim Pickering and promising all-rounder Sasheal Winspear from Wellington College to link up with Matthew Atkin who had, like Lee Edwards, Sam Buckle and many others, learned the game in Karori’s junior schoolboy ranks..
The third graders (formerly 2B) started the season abysmally fielding only nine players in its first outing and being bowled out for 73. The second innings saw a complete turn around with a 230 run partnership between Richard Mills (119 not) out and Andy Walklin (82 not out). The result was sewn up from Mike Harvey with the first of what was to be a number of five wicket bags which netted him 42 wickets by season’s end and a best of 6-40. By the end of March 1999, other centuries had also been posted by Dave Ellingham (122) and Justin Breedon (109).
The team’s self belief was what was attributed to its continued roll toward championship honours. Even the occasional defeat was unable to dampen the team’s determination to do well. The players’ self belief often turned the tables in games which looked to be heading for disaster.
Veteran Graeme Stacey with 292 runs from 14 innings was one of the few fourth grade (2C) success stories with the bat. With the ball, only two players reached double figures in terms of wickets taken.
The President’s grade side again struggled despite two centuries from skipper and former premier and senior 1 (reserve) grader, Keith Atkinson.
Battling to field 11 players each week the club had merged with Wellington Collegians which was itself facing a similar problem. However, the merger provided only three players from Karori’s neighbours. As such, the skipper often had up to 20 refusals to play each week and four defaults were recorded. Even the new inter-city competition with Hutt Valley clubs failed to keep the spark of interest in the grade alive. Some former players found the longer days through the additional travel burdensome while the equivalent Hutt Valley grade was not well aligned to the Presidents’ concept. Most equivalent Hutt clubs fielded younger players and were also very competitive. In the end the season tolled the death knell of what was originally a great concept with only Onslow likely left to carry the President’s torch into 1999-2000.
While the Junior Club’s own playing and financial fortunes continued unabound, its officials had become, rightly, concerned at the administrative and financial side of its senior partner. As such, its management wanted its own accounts reported separately at future AGMs. Unfortunately, and following a slow decrease in the level of active involvement and support from the Senior Club this simply served to feed a growing breach between the two.
1999-2000:
Strict and prudent financial controls backed by a revised management structure, were applied prior to and also over the 1999-2000 playing season. As a result, the club had made great strides towards trading its way out of its deficit by the season’s end. It was no coincidence either that President Mike Curtis’ return to the Committee Chairman’s role played a big part in the turn around.
On the playing field the premiers started the season facing media predictions that Karori would be the team to be relegated. The side started off as if indeed, that was what it too believed. After the initial rounds Karori’s inter city X1 went into the Christmas break at number eight and not threatening a higher place. Despite 368 runs with one century from new skipper, Simon Baker, the team desperately needed more appearances from its star player, Richard Petrie, to stay clear of the bottom rung. The millennium did bring some joy with innings wins over both Petone Riverside and Hutt Districts turning the tide. By the end of March 2000 Karori held a middle place table position and faced the future with more confidence.
The turn around was boosted by the somewhat late arrival of the side’s English professional Chris Howell. The club’s investment proved wise with some good returns from this player who hit one century (103). The previous season’s import, Neil Martin, remained in the country as a resident and, therefore, a local player and provided some of the season’s biggest surprises. An aggressive opening bowler the season before, Neil’s batting had failed to impress. A pre-season injury necessitated a change of approach and he turned himself into an off spin bowler and middle order batsman. Going on previous year’s batting returns not too much was anticipated from him in the club’s millennium year. However, in the innings defeat of Hutt Districts Martin came to light with a 60 in Karori’s one turn at bat of 301. His innings included five fours and five sixes or 50 runs out of his 60 in boundaries.
His team mates were delighted even if the opposition were not. But that was not to be all. A 50 with seven fours against Upper Valley; a 59 with 11 fours in a team innings of 177 against Naenae; and a 67 with four fours and five sixes against Wellington Collegians underpinned just what aggressiveness and flamboyance could achieve.
The return of the experienced Chris Pile behind the stumps provided the senior mentor support to skipper Simon Baker while Jae Lemin provided some stability at the top of the innings with three scores of 50 plus.
In the field neither Richard Petrie nor Lee Edwards achieved pre season expectations. Petrie’s indication that this may be his last season for the representative side was good news for the club. As well, he returned one seven wicket haul with a 7-38 in the demolition of Hutt Districts. Lee Edwards came back strongly after the holiday break to pick up a further 29 wickets ending the season with 35 overall including 6-36 off 10 overs against Petone Riverside in a somewhat bizarre match.
Despite Edwards 6 wicket haul, Petone–Riverside still accumulated 307 runs. The other bowlers had a much tougher day and Karori could only manage 269 in reply. However, a typically aggressive knock from skipper Simon Baker with 106 provided some consolation in Karori’s second innings after the side was 19-4 at one point.
The millennium year also had its share of controversy. Chris Howell’s fellow English companion, Huw Jones, here on holiday with his good mate turned out for the senior firsts (reserves) and was used as a replacement for Howell in the premiers’ one day fixtures. A complaint that the club was illegally employing two overseas professionals brought down the ire of Cricket Wellington. But Karori’s Management Committee was able to show that dispensation had been previously provided by the regional administrators and the argument was settled.
On other playing fronts the season was the first for an inter city competition at senior one (reserve) grade level. Like its premier partner, this too was to be played over two seasons before splitting the competition into two separate grades. The early loss of the appointed captain, Glen Pocknall, through injury and bad early season weather blunted the team’s momentum somewhat in the months up to the Christmas break. The dawn of the millennium saw a rejuvenated team take the paddock. Mark Jurgeleit provided the edge with bat and ball and the return of Keith Atkinson from the defunct President’s grade team provided some experience and the hard steel with both bat and ball (6-29 verses Brooklyn in his only one day appearance). Additionally, Welshman Huw Jones linked up with the side and came to the fore with some big runs with one century (147) and 284 runs from just three innings. In the first five games on resuming after new year saw wins in all one day fixtures. When Jones was promoted to the premiers for the one dayers he was replaced by his English travelling companion Chris Howell. That player was obviously a class above the grade scoring two centuries (147 and 114). Both of those games were won by an innings. Matt Aitken also spent some time in the first grade to recapture some lost batting form. This he did with a 158 against Johnsonville.
Another premier team mate who also turned out in senior first (reserve) grade colours was left arm spin bowler, Mathew Drake.
His move was rewarded with 14 wickets in three games. This begged the question as to how well he was being handled in the higher level of the game. This was especially so as the premiers required a good slow bowler to supplement Edwards and Petrie. Such bowlers require long spells but a look through the scorebook for that season showed that Drake was not being provided with that opportunity. At times he had certainly looked the part but at others less so. The workload required to establish consistency and menace for opposition batting line ups was missing. Despite his class and some progress, Drake, another who had served the club from his primary school days, was to soon walk away from the game. The other wicket taking impetus came from replacement skipper, Geoff Glynan with 26 wickets from 327 overs.
The second grade team (formerly 2A) remained to fight again in the same grade in 2000-01. But only just. Some good individual performances were posted by some remarkably talented players, former Wellington age grade player Chris Wilson among them. However, the batting lacked consistency while the team also struggled to get full teams onto the paddock.
On occasion previous President’s grade players took the field to help out but John Stribling and Geoff Lee apart their input was limited to providing the numbers.
A game on Karori’s No 1 wicket proved to be the fourth graders (2Cs) season’s highlight. This was a team with a remarkable range of ages from the veteran David Bain to the youthful enthusiasm and energy of Jamie Wall. Performance wise the side was led by Duncan Leuchars with four hauls of five wickets to give him a final season total of 29 in all. While results did not always go the way of the team ,its playing members were well satisfied with their season.
In the one day grades the 1As provided some great results once defending a target of 37 by skittling the opposition for 23. At the other end of the scale after scoring 270 on another occasion the team went down in defeat when the foot was taken off the opposition’s throat late in the match. Robbie Anderson led a well organised and enthusiastic side to sixth place overall with 439 runs with a highest score of 99 not out. All rounder Gareth Dixon was not far behind with 417 who, with 19 wickets off 64 overs, was also the main wicket taker.
Rhys Nimmo, a former Canterbury B representative, led the way for the 1Bs with 501 runs including two centuries, captain Joseph Romanos 398 runs and Sean Murray 333 runs. While finishing mid-grade, a number of its games went to the wire before surrendering the win. Off spin bowler, Nick Hurst returned two hauls of six wickets or more.
The 1C side was purely a social event with some cricket played in between. Not without talent, it was the warm aroma of the team’s barbecue which grabbed the attention most Saturdays-that and the raw enjoyment obvious at all their games. The side even possessed an always present manager, mother of team captain Liam Bingham, Mary. In the end, enjoyment had its reward with a first place at competition’s end.
11
NEW MILLENIUM, NEW PROMISE, NEW HOME
2000-01 To 2005-06
Overview:
The arrival of the new millennium heralded an era of promise. At Pearce Cup level Karori’s performances were being increasingly built around youth and the future. This was supplemented by the lethal bowling, massive batting assault skills, experience and mental toughness, of Richard Petrie. Ideal support was provided by the consistently performed strike bowling of Lee Edwards and two overseas professionals (Andrew Mercer (62 wickets in his first year) and Azhar Abbas).
The last five seasons of Karori’s first post centenary 25 years also saw the re-appearance, in the post Christmas stages of 2002-03 and through much of 2003-04, of Evan Gray in premier colours. Gray had been persuaded out of his self imposed increased unavailability (he has always maintained he never retired) to add some further, and much needed additional experience, in order to keep the side in the top division.
The fortunes of Karori’s “flagship” side fluctuated. In 2002-03 (even with Gray, Richard Petrie and Lee Edwards spearheading the bowling attack) and 2004-05 it faced relegation just pushing up from the bottom of the heap in the last stages of both seasons. Yet in 2003-04 the side was second at the Christmas break and threatening to take over the top spot before finishing a creditable third. The last season in the period under review ended on the highest possible note with a second placed Pearce Cup finish. This earned the team a three day play-off against Eastern Suburbs. After one of the best of summers, weather wise, Wellington’s usually great autumn then turned fickle and the opportunity to put the Pearce Cup in the trophy cabinet had to wait another year. Even so, Eastern Suburbs’ (East’s) powerful line up have tended to prove Karori’s nemesis in recent years and a win was by no means certain. Nevertheless, 2005-06 had provided Karori its best outcome in just under a decade.
Elsewhere on the playing field the performances of the club meandered somewhat. In 2002-03, and while the premiers struggled to avoid relegation, the senior 1 (reserve) side was going through a crisis of even greater magnitude. A lack of quality of leadership required saw, for a time, a massive slump in morale and an unwillingness, at least prior to a number of Christmas breaks, of players willing to turn out. Some overseas returns saw a mini-revival and further restructuring saw Karori pushing hard for top billing in the grade by the end of 2005-06.
On the debit side the new millennium began with the club $34,000 in debt. By the end of the 2003-04 season this had been reduced to just $8,000 and with $7,500 in the bank. By the end of the 25 years under review the club was back in the “black.” This outcome was achieved largely through the efforts of a small Management Committee and the individual endeavours of its Chairman/Treasurer, Dave Hooley.
Along with the two women’s teams which fell by the wayside in the previous decade, the new millennium was without President’s grade representation. The regenerated inter-city competition in this grade failed to fire.
The aging of a number of players also contributed to the grade’s demise with the remaining going to their various club 1A teams (from whence many had originally come).
2000-01:
The new millennium for Karori cricket had a mixed start. The premiers finished a creditable fourth place at the end of 2000-01. It could have been a better return but for injuries to key players and in particular to Lee Edwards. As well, the reserve team was not well endowed that season with either playing depth or numbers. Exceptions were Jeremy Philpott (nearly 500 runs with a top score of 89), and the steady hands of Richard Prebble and Dan Martin. As such the side struggled while there was a downstream impact on the 2As.
The premiers’ target at the start of the season was not the winning of the grade but avoidance of relegation while building for 2001-02. It was a restricted aim forced by departures of some key players and the retirement of others. Nor was the side able, as could top graded sides in past, draw upon the emerging talent of its reserve team. It was felt, the level of capability required to succeed in Pearce Cup was not in sufficient evidence. Some of the gaps were filled, more than adequately, by “quickie, Josh Stuart (ex St PatsTown College) who was enticed to the club with a Karori Cricket Foundation Scholarship. Nick Hearn (Eastern Suburbs), a previous century maker and regular wicket taker for that club, also arrived to link up with good mate Lee Edwards. Yet another addition was the return from Collegians of wicket-keeper batsman, Nishan Gonsalkorale.
A bad start with a loss to Eastern Suburbs was made up for with a two day win against a confident University, winners of the grade the season before. Karori posted 321 with Gonsalkorale making an attractive 87. After hitting up 273-3 in reply, University then took a back seat as Karori rattled up 257 for eight. A bemused University was then back in the pavilion for 85 with new pace bowler, Josh Stuart taking his first 5 wicket bag in senior club cricket. Hutt Districts was also despatched in a one dayer with Karori losing only two wickets in chasing 173. In the Karori reply, Richard Petrie struck 57 with seven boundaries and Simon Baker was 46 not out at the end of which 38 was made up of fours or sixes.
Karori again earned maximum points in a pre-Christmas clash with Taita. Needing 135 for the win Karori got there, just, with two wickets to spare. At one point Karori had collapsed to 48-5 before staging a much needed recovery. Karori’s first innings of 187 was dominated by Petrie with 55 (10 fours) while Baker lead the second innings run chase with 71 not out. This innings included five fours and three sixes in a typical rollicking knock.
The one dayer against University first up after the break was another close game. It again finished in Karori’s favour following a stirring run chase to get 302. This Karori did but lost eight wickets along the way. Gonsalokorale again showed his worth with 70 and Petrie smashed 63 with six fours and three sixes. Losses both on the paddock and in player strength through injury then began to take affect. Vital catches were also put down and the four week loss through injury of Lee Edwards and ongoing injuries to Simon Kent reduced the depth of the bowling reserves needed to dismiss opposition batting line ups.
An innings defeat over Hutt Districts was, however, a personal triumph for Ollie Adamson who scored 112 with 16 boundaries to post his first century for the club.
The team stuck to its guns and recorded a two day morale booster against Easts to end the season. This followed a thrilling finish in a two day fixture with Naenae. Karori was forced to follow on after it scored just 66 in reply to Naenae’s first innings knock of 246. Opting for all out attack, Karori posted 310 with Baker falling just one run short of a century. He hit a powerful 99 including 80 from boundaries. Adamson also continued his good batting form with a 54. Naenae required a mere 131 runs for the win but were rocked on their heels by the precision and hostility of Petrie and Lee Edwards. Between them the pair took seven wickets and had driven their opposition to the precipice at 54-8 before the umpires called an end to proceedings.
At times Petrie could prove expensive with the ball. At others, as it was on this occasion, he could be unplayable. Usually this side of the veteran came to the fore when the chips were well and truly down. Few other players had this knack to turn a probable defeat into wins or near victories. Edwards too, when his dander was up, could rattle cages and he too did so in this innings. In this mood both bowlers were more than the match of any club batting order.
The value of Richard Petrie to the side was highlighted with 580 runs and 34 wickets. Lee Edwards chimed in with 36 wickets (despite his four week lay off). Nishan Gonsalkorale, Neil Martin and Matt Atkin all posted 400 runs or more. But even with all that a middle of the table result was the best that could be achieved.
The nadir of the season was the pulling of the 2As from their competition after Christmas. The team did contain some above average talent. Chris Wilson, a former age grade Wellington representative at school being one in particular with real premier potential. However, the team struggled to field XI players consistently each Saturday. After the holiday break things got worse with a playing base down to 5-6 and several defaults. In the end the side had to be withdrawn. As well, the 2Cs finished their 2000-01 season last in their grade. But they were saved from relegation after a protest concerning the tactics of their opponents in the last game.
There were some stand out performances in other grades to offset the disappointments. Among the one day grades the 3A(a) team won its grade for the third successive year and there were nine centuries scored. These included two each by Ollie Adamson for the reserves and premiers, Willie Sommerville(4A) and Dan Pringle (one of these comprising 135 in 20 overs with 14 sixes) respectively. Centuries, were also recorded for the 4As by Damon Trenberth and Dave O’Connell. This side was particularly strong being a “social” mix but made up of players who had played at relatively high grades in their secondary school teams. Three others, Glen Pocknall (7-17), Nick Kirkaldie (6-47) and David Finlayson (6-47) performed some amazing feats with the ball as well. Sommerville was a previous Wellington College 1s XI opening bat in the same side as James Franklin and our own Matt Atkin.
Pocknall was a former Wellington College 1st Xi captain who, in an earlier season, had been appointed to skipper the Karori reserve graders before injury took an early toll. Robert Anderson (3B[b]), and Kent Goldfinch (3B[a]) also each passed the three figure mark with the bat. Anderson going on to hit up a total of 583 runs.
As reports of the lower grade performances came through over the season “expert eyes” were cast towards those achieving success with the view of promoting a number to 2A and reserve level the following year. However, Willie Sommerville apart, a preference to stick to playing with one’s mates in the lower grades or to play socially together with a drift away from the club of yet others put paid to that.
Playing strength and performance among the top three grades proved not to be the only concern at the start of the new millennium. President Mike Curtis had to inform the 2001 annual general meeting of a need for more members to assume Management Committee responsibilities. He reported that the lack of a quorum on too many occasions over the 2000-01 season led to resolutions being held over for confirmation at subsequent meetings. As well, despite strong hands at the financial helm over recent seasons, the club was in deficit at season’s end to the tune of some $2,500. Careful building of the club’s premier and reserve teams was required to be accompanied by ongoing careful husbanding of the club’s financial resources. Such was the position going into 2001-02.
2001-02:
The season began with a new injection on the Management Committee in response to the President’s call of the previous year. Indeed there was now sufficient new blood to be able to structure the Committee into sub-committees with specific responsibilities to determine appropriate strategies and implement approved actions.
The hard nosed and dedicated approach of Treasurer, Dave Hooley also proved an effective catalyst to a debt reduction of a further $3,500 and a season end financial balance once again in credit.
Prior to the season’s launch the issue of player payments had been forced onto Cricket Wellington’s administrative agenda. The increase of player payments for club players was proving a difficult issue to resolve or police. Regulating would have proved hard to enforce as clubs had a number of covert tactics available to them had they wished to thwart any new rules. The issue revolved around one of affordability. Some clubs had considerable resources at their disposal and were applying these to entice targeted players. Others could just not compete in this way.
On the playing field results were again mixed. Outcomes were affected by one of the wettest seasons on record with very little play possible before Christmas. The Pearce Cup side began the season without Mark Jurgeleit (promoted up from the reserves in 2000-01), Morgan Prior, Jae Lemin, Nishan Gonsalkorale, and Ollie Adamson. The last two were particularly severe blows.
Gonsalkorale had only just returned to Karori after a stint with neighbouring, Wellington Collegians and had celebrated his return in 2000-01 with over 400 runs and provided considerable stability at the top of the batting order.
Adamson had come through his promotion to the top team with a century against Hutt Districts after an earlier three figure score in the first grade. Josh Stuart’s season was a short one following a pre season back injury when at the Canterbury Cricket Academy. The loss of further development and “bite” with the ball that he could have given, particularly after his promising debut the year before, was keenly felt. The team record was won four and lost four. The remainder were drawn or were rained out to leave the team in a precariously placed seventh position. One of the losses was an early season two run loss to Taita. It was a game restricted to one day but which saw Karori forfeit its first innings in order to strive for a result.
On the positive side, Simon Allen and Blake Horsley were welcome newcomers to Pearce Cup. Both were former Karori juniors, Wellington College and Wellington representative age graders. As well, Richard Petrie while not available for every game showed his worth once again on the last day with a nine wicket haul including an 8-55. The return was a fitting testimonial to Richard’s ability and was something few in the game could currently match. He also averaged 45 with the bat over the season.
The senior firsts (reserves) again faced a tough start to the season with more new players after losing a number of previous regulars. These included some of their previous best in Richard Prebble and Jeremy Philpott. With a “newish” team, performances swung from brilliant to woeful leaving the team in seventh place out of the eight in the grade. On at least two occasions the team took the field one short and reaped the whirlwind for doing so. On the credit side there were some fine individual performances with Dan Martin (a consistent regular for a number of seasons) and Mike Nansett notching up centuries.
Karori’s participation in 2A was maintained with a completely new team. This was a top graded Mercantile League side which was seeking a higher standard of competition. They found it and finished in the middle of the pack.
It could have been even higher but in defeating most of the stronger competition in the grade, the side invariable went to sleep too often against lower ranked teams.
In the lower grades the senior fifths (2Ds) finished third and a sixth place out of 10 was the lot of the newly promoted senior third team. This was the previous 3A side managed by Mary Bingham who deservedly took out the Club Supporter of the Year award. Again the 4As provided many of the playing highlights. Nick O’Connell and Damon Trenberth scored hundreds. Trenberth doing so three times in the season ending with 900 runs and an average of 90. Once again the season showed that this team was playing well below its capability. Tremberth at least would have proved a boon to the senior firsts.
2002-03:
Karori’s 2A side marched to a deserved competition win to head the club’s performances across all grades. Adam Cording hit three centuries to lead the team’s and the club’s run getting.
Most other sides finished around mid table in the respective grades a feature being the premier’s shift upward in the standings to fifth by the end of the season. The senior firsts were seventh, the senior thirds seventh, the senior fourths eighth, senior fifths fifth and the 4As 10th in a table of 11 teams.
The year also saw considerable momentum, in getting the Wellington City Council on side with a much needed Karori Park upgrade. By the time of the club’s 2003 annual general meeting, playground alterations were completed and additional car parks approved. As well, a landscape architect had been commissioned to report on further upgrading of park facilities. A lot of the impetus for the work had been through the auspices of the Karori Rotary Club and a completely revamped park appeared to be in the offing.
On the downside, the deaths of former long serving Club President and Secretary, George Wilde, together with that of loyal supporter, Brian Holmes, brought a touch of sadness to the season. Father of former premier star, Wayne Holmes, Brian and his wife Barbara, had provided considerable support and interest in the club’s fortunes even after their son had departed for Auckland several seasons earlier.
The season for both the club’s top graded two day teams were fraught with difficulties throughout. Morale in the senior firsts (reserves) fell to an all time low. This, in turn, impacted on getting 11 willing players onto the paddock each week. The premier’s season also stuttered along and at one point relegation was a real possibility. A big plus, however, was the outstanding performance of the club’s professional, Andrew Mercer, in taking 62 wickets. The opening medium pace bowler’s performances week in and week out were a major contributor to the team remaining competitive. Indeed, many older heads agreed that without Mercer, relegation may have loomed even closer than it did.
Mercer’s ball skills and control were such that his weekly haul of wickets reminded many of Richard Petrie’s ability to mesmerise opposition batting line ups seemingly at will. There was also much to admire in the medium pacer’s ability to bowl long spells and keep batsmen on the back foot throughout his bowling stints.
Four times the professional exceeded six wickets in an innings beginning with a 12 wicket haul against Easts with 6-69 and 6-41. Mercer’s efforts were to no avail, however, as New Zealand Black Cap, Paul Hitchcock’s 7-37 had put Karori on the back foot from the opening day of this fixture. Mercer’s other triumphs included a first innings 7-57 from 22 overs and 4-51 against North City to give him his second 10 wicket plus match bag; a 6-70 verses Onslow; and a 6-60 off 20 overs against Hutt Districts were to follow to underpin the player’s quality.
Another early season player to dominate was newcomer, Marcus Hill. His aggressive batting against one and all was a delight including despatching a number of Wellington representative bowlers to the boundary without qualm. He hit 42 with five fours and one six against upper Valley, 49 with 10 boundaries against Easts; 73 with 14 fours and one six against Onslow; and 57 against Naenae.
Despite the performances of Mercer and Hill, first time up premier skipper, Lee Edwards, experienced a real baptism of fire as Karori’s “flagship” side struggled throughout.
Such was the level of concern at the Christmas break that Evan Gray was approached to make himself available once again to provide the “older head” and experience lacking. In the two day fixture against Naenae, Gray returned a fine 5-19 from 13 overs to help restrict the opposition to 151 in its second turn at bat. This was after Richard Petrie had demolished Naenae’s first innings with a 7-65 return from 23 overs. The defeat of the Hutt Valley based team was a rare one for Karori and was well celebrated. Celebrations became despondency at one which got away not long after. Needing to bowl Onslow out for under 249 to take the outright the final day closed with the opposition tottering at 176-9.
The battle to avoid relegation remained a close run thing. With one two day match and two one dayers remaining, Karori was in bottom place, a point or two behind Hutt Districts. As it was the final two day fixture involved the Hutt Valley side. So it was “all on.” Richard Petrie’s 7-47 to end Hutt Districts second innings at 80 (after Mercer’s first innings bowling blitz of 6-70) left Karori a mere 43 runs from 40 overs on the last day. Karori got there but not by much losing seven wickets in reaching the target. Top scorer was extras with 16.
Having almost snatched defeat from the jaws of victory Karori then faced two further matches with the season’s penultimate fixture played in fading light and lowering Karori mist against Taita. Needing 240, the premiers got there with some heavy handed hitting from Simon Allen and Lee Edwards with an unbroken partnership of 143. Allen scored 123 with 14 fours and five sixes (80 in boundaries in all). The latter stages of the game proceeded, in bizarre fashion, in thick mist and gathering dark. The Taita team wanted an early exit because of the prevailing conditions. When their attempt for an early finish failed, fielding players were forced to duck at the sound of bat on ball due to their difficulty in trying to pick up the flight of the ball in the gloom.
Allen and fellow relative newcomer, Stephen Murdoch, both national under 19 caps were given opportunities in the Wellington A representative side. Each earned two innings with Allen scoring 67 and Murdoch 64 with 54 his best. Their presence augered well for increased potency at the top of the batting order in forth coming seasons.
A mixed return was the outcome of the senior first graders (senior reserves). The team experienced mixed results, mixed feelings and mixed direction at times throughout. Morale slumped significantly at one point and it was becoming difficult to find players willing to turn out. After Christmas, the return of Nick Hearn and Ryan Wilson from overseas boosted the side’s skill base. So too did cameo appearances from former premier players Cam Morrison and Tim Green. Even so it took a management decision to replace both captain and vice captain to resurrect the Reserve’s season. Under new leadership the team’s fortunes turned with a 399 total against Brooklyn in its next match.
This was followed up with a one day win over Taita as the team at last began to function as a unit. A fourth placing at the end of the season was a due reward for the turn around. Long serving Dan Martin held the team’s batting together with 350 runs and also showed some good touches with gloves behind the stumps after taking up that particular role.
Jonathan Bennett chimed in with 400 runs (a very good return considering the early season difficulties experienced by the team) while in only seven appearances, Nick Hearn returned 323 runs with one century and two half centuries.
Winning eight from 13 matches with four draws and one loss ensured the 2A side’s competition trophy for 2002-03. Adam Cording was the team’s nominated “player of the year” with his three centuries scored in successive turns at bat against some of the grade’s “tougher” opposition. Cording had also performed well at Wellington College some seasons before and together with a number of other team members was on track for a higher promotion. Others were brother Paul who broke open many opposition top batting orders and Michael Wiig who hit a top total of 141 in one match in which the team was struggling. However, the team split up after the season’ end with some giving the game away, others taking up overseas travel opportunities while a number then returned to a former club.
A mid table placing for the fifth grade 2D side was a little disappointing given the side lost only two of its matches over the season. Performances were also impacted through the loss of two players for a time to the reserves. Unbeaten up to Christmas the team lost some way on the resumption. But once it reclaimed its promoted players it went back to its unbeaten trot. The long serving Graeme Stacey returned an average of 50 to head the batting performances. The bowling too could be lethal which was well illustrated when going out to defend a first innings total of 165 against Brooklyn. After closing the innings the opposition was twice dismissed for a total of 60 runs to give Karori an innings and 105 run victory. Daryl Pearson was the principal demolition agent with 9-29.
In the one day grades the 4As were competitive after accepting a voluntary demotion from 2C after Christmas.
2003-04:
Despite a late turn around in the fortunes of the senior 1 (reserve) side in the latter part of the previous season, a crisis in playing numbers and strength still plagued the team throughout 2003-04.
The Pearce Cup squad, however, had a great year finishing in third place winning the region’s “Best and Fairest” team award along the way.
The performance was dimmed a little at the loss of Colin Walters who had succumbed to cancer after a determined battle. Walters had given much to the club and the game over the years and still had much to give. Indeed he was doing so as mentor to his sons’ cricketing progress at Tawa College. A product of Dannevirke High School, he had provided the premiers, senior firsts, and Presidents grades with plenty of runs and wickets over many years. Colin had also seen long and valued service as club captain and, at the time of his passing, was currently the Karori Cricket Foundation’s Secretary-Treasurer.
On a brighter note, was news that the Wellington City Council budget had made allowance for progressing work on a major re-development of Karori Park.
The premiers’ season, now under the leadership of Lee Edwards, and minus Richard Petrie, did not start well losing to Taita in a lead off one day fixture. A Stephen Murdoch 89 in an innings of 152 was not enough to achieve the 193 target required. A two day outright (and rare) win over Eastern Suburbs in the following game made other contenders sit up and take more notice of the young Karori upstarts. The win was a solid performance by all team members and injected them with a huge dose of self belief and confidence.
The game was a relatively low scoring one with an Easts first innings tally of 103 only just surpassed by Karori’s 121. Lee Edwards backed up his 2-16 from his 10 overs in East’s first turn at the batting crease with a top score of 35.
Andrew Mercer, back wearing the unicorn for his second season, had also displayed his enormous talents in East’s first innings taking 4-18 with the ball. Easts did better with 169 in its second turn at bat with Mercer again to the fore with 3-52 from 27 overs. Karori got home with three wickets to spare in what proved to be a tight encounter.
The team’s new found confidence was displayed in the following match against Petone-Riverside. This was the match which saw the return to the arena of Evan (I have never retired just become more unavailable) Gray. It was not a match that the Hutt Valley side would remember with fondness. Gray bowled a total of 29 overs in both Petone-Riverside’s innings and took 8-30 with a tightly spun web no opposition batsman could tear clear of. In the end Petone-Riverside fell well short of its second innings 171 target. The pinnacle of another championship beckoned. However, skipper, Lee Edwards, soon after a strong 66 in a winning one day total of 289 against North City and a 43 and 3-36 in the two day triumph over Naenae, broke an ankle. This sidelined him for much of the rest of the season. The injury also stunted the bowling firepower of the side despite Mercer’s skills, Gray’s presence and some strong returns from the Karori batsmen. To the fore in this department were the relative newcomers Stephen Murdoch (472 runs) Simon Allen (364 runs) and Edwards himself (352 runs). Indeed, for the first time in some years Karori had a top order which, while young in years, abounded in talent. Allen, who had posted his maiden century for the club at the end of the previous season, was also a classy wicket keeper.
Had Allen remained in Wellington the club would have at its call two of the best young performers in the region. However, their partnership was doomed to be halved with Allen’s opting for Canterbury environs the following season.
After Edwards’ premature departure the team ran hot and cold. There were some pluses. Mercer again bagged a good haul of wickets (46 this time round). Gray continued to weave his magic (1-8 from 10 overs verses North City and 2-43 from 21 overs against Naenae). Again the return of the steady Andrew Wellings (3-35 verses Taita and 5-18 against Onslow) provided some much needed bowling backup to Mercer and Gray. Marcus Hill too provided more edge with the ball than the bat this time round netting some 26 wickets.
While Mercer did not reap the rewards of his earlier season in the antipodes, he continued to shoulder the responsibility nobly. A 4-28 from 24 overs in the return, and uncompleted, fixture with North City and a 2-28 from 19 overs in the season finale with Onslow being a testament to both his skills and his work rate.
Rebuilding and remaining in the grade were the key objectives for the senior 1 (reserve) team when it opened the new season. A hard fought draw against the newly promoted Wellington College 1st XI indicated a tough season ahead. So it was to prove. Numbers remained a problem. So did player quality.
Some time spent in the grade by regular premier players, Matt Atkin and Simon Kent, provided some of the quality required for a couple of games at least and the presence of their experience enabled some sounder mid season performances to eventuate. However, going into the last game the team needed an outright win to avoid relegation.
With the team bonding together in true grit style the win was achieved and relegation kept at bay. A Tim Grace 6-31 showed there were players in the grade who could perform. Grace indeed earned promotion into the premier side at one point which proved the premier’s gain at the expense of its senior 1 peers who desperately needed his talents.
The senior fifths, having disappointed themselves the previous season made no bones about 2003-04. They proceeded to do this time round what they were unable to do the previous year and win the grade outright.
The senior 3s finished in fourth place overall with a Michael Wiig 164 being the highlight. The senior fourths were fifth, the 4A side fourth and in the 4B grade Karori B ended the season in third spot and the A team 10th out of 12 teams.
Among the one day grades the 4B B’s struggled and went to the Christmas break with only two wins of which one was a default. After the holidays the team performed better once successfully defending a meagre total of 106 and again almost defending an even smaller tally of just 66 before going on to win three of its last four matches. Ben Fawkes, Malcolm McAlister and Stormy McLeod all exceeded 20 wicket totals for the season. (McLeod also turned out for the 4A’s taking 7-17 against a demoralised Easts team). Richard Kong returned a batting average in the mid 30s for the 4B B’s including one century. Derek Blank also posted one three figure score (112 not out) in the grade.
On the non playing side, the club’s financial deficit had been reduced to $8,000 (down from $34,000 in 2000). For his own work in putting the club’s financial base back on track, Dave Hooley, the club’s Chairman/Treasurer deservedly took out the Jack Standidge Memorial Cup at the end of the season for “Best Club Person.”
2004-05:
A change at the top had new President (and former Committee Chairman) David Bain reporting on the continuing fluctuations in the fortunes of the club’s premier and senior 1 grade teams. Both finished near the bottom of their competitions (seventh and sixth respectively). This left the spectre of relegation for both comfortably ensconced and waiting for yet another winter.
Pearce Cup efforts were not entirely unrewarded with new overseas professional Azhar Abbas winning a Firebirds cap near the end of the season. As well, Stephen Murdoch, together with newcomer James Hill who had moved across from the neighbouring Wellington Collegians Club, were both selected for Wellington B. Three other players made the Wellington under 19 side and four the province’s Development Squad to South Africa.
The performances of Abbas (43 wickets) and Lee Edwards (51 wickets with a best of 8-22) apart, playing results for the premiers were disappointing. Despite Stephen Murdoch’s 394 runs, the team struggled at the batting crease and relegation loomed once again. Admittedly the loss of Marcus Hill and Simon Allen caused big gaps in playing strength.
The season started with a tied one dayer against a not overly strong Hutt Districts and was achieved with a bye off the last ball of the match in a tense finish. It was exciting stuff. Karori, needing 255 for the win, were struggling at 5-115 and then 6-179. It took a hard hitting 56 from Chris Cakebread (4 sixes) to get Karori home and safe. Nevertheless, there was a general feeling that the game was one that had perhaps “got away.”
The drama of the Hutt Districts match proved not to be a one-off. There were several others which left Karori’s future in Pearce Cup hanging in the balance. One such example was the two day fixture against joint bottom placed Naenae. After dismissing Naenae for 163 Karori slumped to 83-9 before a 10th wicket partnership between Abbas and regular number XI, Simon Kent added a further 48 runs. Naenae was then put on the back foot by being bowled out for 120 leaving Karori with a 147 run chase for the outright win. At 9-120 it was again Simon Kent with, on this occasion, skipper Lee Edwards who had to battle on to score the remaining 27 runs. The win was achieved but it took a nail biting 25 further overs to do it. Kent, no longer the tear away quickie he was when he first entered premier ranks, worked hard on his medium pacers and was proving an ideal battler with the bat at number 11.
Similar grit was required on plenty of other occasions as well to stay clear of relegation. Without the combined wicket taking ability of Abbas and Edwards it could not have been achieved. Murdoch flourished successfully with the bat and James Hill also looked accomplished. As well, young Hamish Templeton finally found the stickability with the bat required to succeed at top club grade level to match his undoubted talent. He had previously put together a gritty 55 in the 97 run one day loss against Easts and a 48 in yet another one day loss, this time against North City. His most valuable contribution, and the sign of increased maturity, however, was in the penultimate fixture-a must win situation against Taita to ensure Pearce Cup status the following year. Chasing a modest 130 for an outright win, Karori crumbled from a promising position to go to the wire with nine wickets down. Through all this, seemingly unflustered, Templeton got his head down and fought. He put away the bad balls and chipped his ones and twos to drag the total ever closer towards victory. One of the specialist batsmen had to do the job and this day Templeton stepped up and delivered. Although it was a couple of audacious boundaries from Jarad Sewell, fresh from Wellington College which sealed the victory.
While there was some promise from within the batting line-up there were also some occasions when the grit failed. One such instance was in the two day fixture with Hutt Districts towards the end of the season. Karori had responded to Hutt Districts’ 216 first innings with 222. Edwards had earlier grabbed 4-47 in what was to provide a significant milestone match for the skipper. Murdoch with 12 boundaries in a well put together 80 edged Karori just past the opposition total before Edwards again bowled superbly for 8-22 as the Hutt Valley side crumbled to 83 all out in its second turn at the wicket. Needing just 78 for 12 valuable competition points, Karori had no answer to Ash Turner and succumbed for just 66 on what proved to be not an ideal second day wicket.
Turner’s 6-33 did not quite match Edwards’ bowling returns but he was all the more happy given he had almost single handedly secured the outright for his team.
The senior 1(reserve) team had recruited strongly over the winter and approached 2004-05 with greater confidence. It was led by experienced premier grade player, Nick Hearn. Injuries, loss of players to the premiers and a constant change in personnel in the end served to blunt the team’s initial hopes. Relegation or not was to be determined in the last fixture for the season. In yet another must win situation an outright was achieved over second placed Wellington Collegians to expose just what potential had been wasted over the previous months.
For this match, the Karori side had been boosted with the inclusion of premier batsman, Simon Murdoch and Jared Sewell. The latter was a promising lower order batsman and darting off spinner. He had already appeared in premier colours with some modest success. Murdoch found the step down rather easy with 123 not out in Karori’s first innings. Sewell then took six wickets to have Collegians back in the pavilion cheaply and a handy 80 run lead. Nick Hearn slammed 117 to open the second day’s proceedings before declaring at 199-6 after only 30 overs. With Collegians needing 254 to win, the Karori bowling attack chipped away at the opposition batting line up to have them all out for 114.
More performances like that and the reserves would have been challenging for the victor’s crown not trying to avoid the wooden spoon.
Other two day grade results had the fourth grade A team finishing fifth with three wins and the B side in the same grade seventh also with three wins.
In the one day grades the 4B A’s struggled to both put together successive consistent performances and the same team onto the paddock on any two successive Saturdays. Two memorable wins saw the team successfully defend 97 against Tawa and a three run win over University. Armed with a powerful bowling line up the side struggled to post competitive totals and suffered accordingly on the results table. Ben Fawkes topped the wicket total for the season with 33. He was well supported by Andy Vautier with 20 wickets. In a team which struggled when batting, Stormy McLeod three times got over the 80 mark without ever going on to three figures. Opener, Andre Lahood, twice carried his bat to set up important victories.
While the 4B A’s struggled to put runs on the board, the 4B B team posted better results to take out second placing overall in the grade.
2005-06:
2005-06 saw a huge turn around in the premier side’s fortunes. It was, it was true, a team bereft of big name players of the past such as Stirling, Petrie and Gray. It also had, at least on paper “youngish” and inexperienced look about it. There was also no Azhar Abbas to support Lee Edwards with the new ball. Abbas had returned to the country from overseas but had gone to try his luck in Auckland. He impressed enough there to make the Auckland squad but was hampered by an injury from making any playing appearances. There were rumours of a possible return to Wellington in 2006-07.
Even without the presence of Abbas, the Karori premiers proved a more than capable unit. Lee Edwards shouldered most of the bowling workload bowling 287 overs for 48 wickets. Stephen Murdoch continued his good previous seasons’ batting form (343 runs in 2004-05 and 459 runs in 2003-04) with a further 552 including two centuries. Support was provided by Hamish Templeton (380 runs), Craig Tennant (297 runs) and Lee Edwards (267 runs). James Hill, and Chris Spring also chipped in with vital contributions at the right times.
Templeton’s continuing batting maturity was noticeable with a strong start and finish to the season and a greater number of boundaries in his innings. One knock of 26 included six hits to the boundary rope while an impressive 86 against North City included 12 fours and one six.
In a revamped Pearce Cup competition all one day games were to be completed before the two day fixtures with each section ending with a top two team play off.
After a close but frustrating loss to Petone Riverside (Karori falling one wicket shy of the win) the premiers went on to win the next three one dayers in a row (Upper Valley, North City and Onslow). The team then stumbled against Taita and Easts but ended the round back in winning form against Hutt Districts.
A slow beginning was also the case at the start of the two day round with yet another loss to Petone Riverside. Karori gave away a first innings deficit of 30 runs with a Lee Edwards 4-49 and a James Hill 5-9 hauling back what appeared might be a considerable first innings deficit. Karori then piled up 237 with Stephen Murdoch scoring the first of his two centuries. This proved not enough with Petone Riverside getting home with three wickets to spare. A two wicket win over neighbours, Onslow was followed before a real thriller against Taita. Chasing 232 for the win, Karori went into the last over needing two runs and Taita one wicket. A quick run to tie the match seemed on but the appeal with the breaking of the stumps on the return saw the umpire’s finger raised.
The game provided the best of everything and was closely fought all the way (not for the first time either between the two clubs). Taita’s first innings total of 158 (Edwards 4-49) was matched by Karori’s 159 (James Hill 45). Sam McGavin then hit 126 in Taita’s second innings of 235 leaving a handy 230 for Karori to challenge Eastern Suburbs at the top of the competition ladder.
Progress was steady but so too was the fall of wickets. Matt Atkin steered the ship with a 67 not out and the total crawled its way ever closer to the target. Then came the last over and pandemonium. But is that not what makes the game of cricket so great?.
Karori’s nemesis of recent seasons, Eastern Suburbs, again proved a stumbling block. Easts put up totals of 209 and 216-7 to Karori’s 165 and 132. The match did see a great helping hand from Richard Petrie with a 4-48 return in East’s first innings knock. Edwards joined in with a 4-41 and Karori walked off confident of a further success. But it was not to be.
Play was not completed in the two following fixtures against Hutt Districts and North City. However, second place on the ladder and a place in the final was achieved with a tight outright win over bottom placed Upper Valley. Karori gave away a 16 run first innings lead, then had the opposition back in the pavilion for 164 (Edwards 5-63) and went through to the outright with just three wickets to spare with Tennant, Murdoch, Spring and Hill all among the runs.
A great summer, weatherwise then turned into a gloomy autumn. This caused the three day play off to be abandoned with the trophy going to the top of the grade place getters, Easts.
The team always competed hard (with the Eastern Suburbs fixture being the lone exception) with wins over Hutt Districts, the one dayer against Taita, Onslow (twice) and both the one and two dayers against Upper Valley. The two day loss in that contestable finish against Taita meant Karori had to go to the final game to edge North City out of the play off. As it was North’s had to face the rampant East’s in its final round robin fixture and was soundly beaten to enable Karori to retain second position.
The team had one of its most successful seasons winning the inaugural twenty-twenty competition with Stephen Murdoch scoring a century and Tama Walker's outstanding bowling against Eastern Suburbs. We were second in the one day competitation and made the final of the two day competition, unfortunately for Karori the game was abandoned without a ball being bowled because of bad weather and awarded to Eastern Suburbs.
The team featured in the Cricket Wellington awards including winning the cup for the best and fairest team in the Pearce Cup competition, the trophy for winning the twenty - twenty competition, Lee Edwards won the award for the leading wicket taker in the Pearce Cup competition for the second season in a row and Stephen Murdoch won the award for the leading run scorer in the Pearce Cup competition.
The senior seconds set out from day one to storm their way to a Hazlett Trophy promotion success. To its credit the team remained in sight of this goal throughout the season. It went to the Christmas break leading the pack and at the end required the other two major title contenders to draw their season finale. One of these, North City, won outright and took out the title. After struggling for parts of 2004-05, the players had “found themselves” and armed with a new belief in their own capabilities went out onto the field with a “Berlin or bust” attitude
Team direction was provided by Nick Hearn, a player with masses of premier grade experience and more than a little all round ability. He amassed over 500 runs with a best of 148 to put alongside his 25 wickets. Even then he had to accede to a higher average batting return to Ben Cameron with a mammoth batting average of 72.29.
The performances of both the top sides were made even more remarkable given that they were achieved without the benefit of a home ground or ideal practice facilities. Karori Park was dug up at the start of the season to commence its make over. Over the following summer and winter months, the ground was reduced to five from seven wicket blocks but all with increased boundary dimensions. These were facilitated by the piping and covering of the drain which had previously dissected the park into two; and the levelling of the entire sporting arena.
As well, the new wicket blocks were of much higher quality in order to support Wellington Cricket’s applications for future national tournaments. These, with the upgrades completed, can now be accommodated at the one single venue.
The lack of a home ground was not universally popular with Karori players. But with the upgrade on the City Council works programme already for a year or two, having to play away every Saturday for a season was inevitable at some time or another. The impetus for the changes were pushed by the Karori Rotary Club. This was done in tandem with, and with the full support of, the wishes of the sporting users, the Karori Cricket Club included, and local city councillors Andy Foster, Stephanie Cook and John Morrison.
Among the other teams, the 2As, without a win at the holiday break fought back harder in the second half of the season. The effort was rewarded with a 200 run win over the eventual third place getter in the final fixture to stay up in the grade.
A credible seventh placing was the lot of the 2A team’s efforts over the season.
The 2C’s season was a reverse of the 2As. The side performed well up to Christmas with a second placing its reward. After the resumption a changed line up had an adverse impact and the side had to be satisfied with a fifth placing. The stand out player was Hayden Warren who accumulated 650 runs with three centuries.
A stable core of players gave the 2D side a sound footing going into 2005-06. The outcome saw only two one day losses balanced by four two day wins. The season ended on a high with a 326-6 in 45 overs after dismissing Brooklyn B for 164. Leading the Karori fielding effort in Brooklyn’s first occupation of the crease was Dave Murray with 3-10 from 10 overs. Against this total, James McDonald struck 116 and Dan Comber 77 in Karori’s first innings. Brooklyn failed again and when all out for 134 Karori were more than happy with its innings victory.
Five wins in five games gave the 1B As a flying start to the season. It could not quite maintain the momentum but its third competition placing included a win over the eventual grade winners, the only team to do so. A win in an hour over Onslow was yet another highlight. The 1B B side was fifth in the same grade.
Conclusion:
The topsy turvey fortunes of the last 25 years started and ended on a high. The quality of the current nucleus of the club’s flagship Pearce Cup team is currently sound. The side has some good individual and team performances already behind it as it starts along the road to the club’s 150 celebrations. Team leadership is provided from the front by example. There are some skills gaps. A class slow bowler, a second strike bowler and a medium pacer who can tie up one end for long spells are the key ones. As well, Stephen Murdoch’s progress cannot deny him regular first class play for too much longer. This would mean his reduced club availability and, as such, steps to ensure additional top and middle order batting consistency would also not go amiss. Elsewhere club playing, administrative and financial strengths appear sufficiently sound enough to accompany the promise of the senior players into the future.
Playing standards across the region in all but the top grade may not be what they were in 1981 but the enthusiasm to participate remains.
The game, and the Karori Cricket Club, will live on.
Certare bonum certamen.
PART 3
APPENDICES
12. GEMS OF CRICKET TRIVIA
13. THE FOUR AGES OF A CRICKET PLAYER
12
GEMS OF CRICKET TRIVIA
From J. L. Carr’s Dictionary of Extraordinary Cricketers
Arthur Abraham (Dr) so resembled his twin brother that opponents often complained to the umpire that he had already batted.
Charles Absolom at age 73 twice performed the hat trick.
E.B. Alleston in 1911 for Nottinghamshire once made 189 runs in 90 minutes out of a partnership of 227 in that time. He scored 47 in his first 50 minutes then added 142 between 2.15 pm and 2.55 pm including 56 off two overs from one bowler.
W.E. Astill of Leicestershire between 1906 and 1939 took 2,500 wickets and made 23,000 runs. He also played the ukulele
The Reverend Lord Frederick Beauclerk, was a great grandson of Charles II who when taking stance at the wicket would hang his gold watch on the middle stump.
J. Briggs (Lancashire) on one particular day scored 186 for his county on the first day of his honeymoon.
George Brown (Surrey) was a 16 stone underarm bowler of such ferocity that a wicket keeper and two long stops (one wearing a sack of straw) were customary. Even then it is a matter of record that on one occasion a delivery passed through the coat held out by one long stop and killed a dog on the boundary.
F.C. Cobden (Cambridge University, in 1870 performed a hat trick against Oxford University when Oxford needed only two runs to win and three wickets to fall.
A.E.J. Collins at age 13 years for Clifton School scored 628 not out in an 1899 house match. It is the highest recorded individual score in cricket and he was only deterred from adding to it by the threats of those still waiting to bat. He had been earlier dropped on 20.
Dennis Compton (Middlesex & England) had a reputation of being so an uncertain a runner that it was said that a call from him for a run was no more than a basis for negotiation.
A Mr Dartnell around 1867 once took 10 wickets for no runs against Thorndon Heath and there were no extras.
George Duckworth (Lancashire & England) was a wicketkeeper who, it is said, was surpassed only in appeals by Dr Barnardo.
Edward VII was once persuaded to play cricket but was immediately bowled out for nought by an over excited vicar from East Anglia.
Tom Emmett (Yorkshire & England) in his 45th year and for his county bowled 1,339 overs taking 132 wickets at 12 runs apiece.
D.D. Heath (Dr), Headmaster of Eton on one occasion, when the School XI was defeated by Westminster School, was said to have flogged the entire team including (possibly unjustly) the scorer.
Horace was a horse used by the staff of Trent Bridge and displayed such sensibility that in the 1890s when Fred Morley the last man in for Nottinghamshire would stride to the wicket, Horace would invariably sidle towards the roller.
Gilbert Jessup (Gloucestershire & England) in 1902 against Australia went to the wicket with England 48-5 needing 200 to win. He struck 107 in 77 minutes to steer England home.
Charles Kortright (Essex) on witnessing WG Grace’s refusal to depart the crease after having him caught subsequently flattened two stumps with his next delivery calling out to the departing WG- “Why are you going. There’s still one stump left.”
George Leer of Hambledon used to sing duets with his wicketkeeper while awaiting incoming batsmen.
Mr Leeton Smith (Somerset) once hit WG Grace for 6 successive sixes. Undaunted, WG stopped the umpire from calling over and then bowled the batsman with the seventh delivery.
J. Martison on one occasion against Cliffe Common carried his bat for nought as the remainder of his team were dismissed for a total of nought all to a Mr Tune.
A.A Milne, author of Winnie the Pooh and others, also played cricket and was able to confound batsmen by delivering balls from behind and over the head of umpires.
Hesketh Naylor was a New York businessman who got sexual gratification by maintaining an establishment of women to play cricket before him with balloons and without clothes.
Master Redfern was a Clifton schoolboy who going in number XI in the batting order shared a last wicket partnership of 187 of which his own contribution was 13.
Tom Richardson (Surrey) was fast bowler who in four seasons took 1,005 wickets at 14 runs apiece. He petitioned authorities to introduce 10 ball overs.
Alfred Shaw (Nottinghamshire & Sussex ) bowled 17,000 maiden overs in a career of 25,000 bowled.
Lord Tennyson (England) in 1921 scored 63 runs against Australia with one arm in a sling and using his bat like a tennis racquet.
George Thwaites once hit a ball into a thick clump of nettles. As the ball could still be seen it could not be declared lost. As such he completed 189 runs before a fielder’s father fetched his scythe.
Messrs Trevor and Vernon in an Essex village encounter scored 338 and 250 not out in an innings of 920 from 293 four ball overs. The opposition did not bat.
Tom Walker of Hambledon around 1770 once faced 170 balls for one run.
Norman Waterworth having but one leg took more than 1,000 wickets and made 3,600 runs in 22 seasons.
H.G. Wells (the science fiction writer) was the first player in modern times (from 1862) to take 4-4 in first class cricket.
A.C. Williams playing for Yorkshire in 1919 also substituted for Leicestershire and caught four of his own side.
E. Winter around 1832 miss cut a ball and in doing so drove the bails deep into the damaged stumps and was given not out.
William Yardley, a Rugby School pupil threw 101 yards with his right arm and 78 with his left.
13
THE FOUR AGES OF A CRICKET PLAYER
The following is an account of a famous after dinner speech from Henry Litting. It is a play on words based on William Shakespeare’s “Seven Ages of Man.” Past and present members of the Karori Cricket Club, on reading these words can determine for themselves were they currently best fit.
The First Age: (The Age of Innocence or Youth):
This is the age when you arrive at the cricket ground half an hour before you are supposed to start the game.
It is the age at when the only question is whether you bat at No 1 or No 2 and when it is only a matter of which end you open the bowling from.
It is the age where between overs you walk to cover point by right.
It is when a quick single is by way of a thick edge to first slip and when to wear a “box” (abdominal protector) was a sign of extreme effeminacy.
And when after the game you jump into some fast sports car in the front seat of which is a delicious blond. And as you drive away you are happy in the thought that she will be even easier to attain than the century that the scorer was at that time inscribing into the club records.
The Second Age: (The age of Maturity or the Middle Man):
This is the age when you arrive at the ground when the umpires are walking out to the middle and when, with difficulty, you might be persuaded to bat as high as No 6.
It is the age when you might ask, and sometimes get, a couple of overs before tea when the result is already beyond doubt.
It is the age in which to forget your box is even worse than forgetting your wife’s birthday; and the age in which, after the game you slip into your car and drive straight home to your wife to avoid a row.
The Third Age: The Age of Senility:
This is the age in which to be placed at No10 in the batting order is just a little too high; and when to be asked to bowl is to be considered a deliberate and calculated insult.
It is the age when a quick run involves a slow hit to a very deep cover point and when your box becomes a permanent appendage to your truss.
It is also when after the game you sit alone in the pub harbouring improper thoughts about the aging and rather unattractive barmaid.
The Fourth Age: The Age of Retirement:
This is the age when you can no longer play.
It is the age when you perambulate around the ground, a majestic silhouette against the setting sun and in which you pour out, to anyone prepared to listen, an unending steam of stories of your youth and how much better the game was back then.
It is the age when you box permanently reposes on the bedroom dressing table for use as a receptacle for your cuff links.
And finally it is the age when sex is nothing more than a Latin numeral.