Pecker Tom Andrews smashes his way to four consecutive centuries to break club record
WOODVILLE’S Tom Andrews hailed as too good for Premier Cricket after scoring his fourth consecutive century.
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HE is yet to establish himself at first-class level but Tom Andrews is almost too good for club cricket, according to his coach.
“When he bats well, it's above the standard of premier cricket,’’ said Sam McNally, who coaches Andrews’ SACA Premier Cricket club Woodville.
“He doesn’t just grind out hundreds, he blasts them. When he’s on, he’s unstoppable and completely dominates the bowling.
“It becomes almost unfair on the bowlers.’’
Left-handed all-rounder Andrews on Saturday started the 2018/19 club season like he finished the last — with a hundred.
The 24-year-old’s blistering 104 from just 72 balls against Adelaide was his fourth consecutive century in premier cricket, breaking the club record of three set by former Redback Daniel Harris.
Andrews’ innings, which included five sixes and nine boundaries and led the Peckers to a thrilling eight-run win against the Buffalos, followed three centuries in Woodville’s final three games last season.
He scored 108 (off 125 balls) against Prospect, 131 not out (148) against Adelaide and 116 (87) against Adelaide University.
His hundreds against Uni and on the weekend came from just 69 balls.
“It’s a bit of a weird one, scoring consecutive hundreds over two seasons, but it's something I’m pretty proud of,’’ said Andrews, who has played four first-class and 20 List A matches for South Australia and is this week playing in the Redbacks’ Futures League match against Victoria at the new Karen Rolton Oval.
“I struggled with the bat in the first half of last season and worked pretty hard on my batting, so it's nice to get some good reward.’’
Andrews, a left-arm orthodox spinner from the Northern Territory, was dropped from SA’s Second XI side midway through last season, prompting him to take his batting more seriously.
The results have been compelling.
“Being dropped was a bit of a wake-up call for me,’’ Andrews said.
“I was more of a bowler than batsman when I was younger but I’ve tried to become more of an all-rounder and worked extra hard on my batting and it’s paid off.
“If you have a bad day with the ball it’s good to be able to have a chance to turn things around with the bat.’’
The red-headed Andrews, who has gone blond this year, has, during his purple patch, scored his runs at better than a run a ball.
“I haven’t been going out there trying to slog or do anything silly,’’ he said.
“I’ve just been waiting for the bad balls and once I’ve got my confidence up I’ve felt in control.’’
Former Australian under-19 player Andrews has averaged 38 with the bat in first-class cricket with the Redbacks, with a highest score of 50 against New South Wales in Sydney in February.
He has taken eight wickets at an average of 51.
“That’s my next challenge, to be able to grab a spot at the next level and then perform on a consistent basis,’’ Andrews said.
“My game’s evolving and hopefully I can take the next step at the higher level this season.’’
BEST WITH BAT
(Men)
Brad Davis (Sturt) 131 no
Tim Rouse (ND) 124
Jake Brown (Kens) 113 no
Tom Andrews (Wood) 104
Aaron Sayers (Port) 99 no
(Women)
Amanda Wellington (Port) 113
Jess O’Reilly (SD) 110
Rachel Church (Ken) 67 no
BEST WITH BALL
(Men)
Austin Umpherston (Port) 5/26
Dylan Smith (ND) 4/45
Hanno Jacobs (Sturt) 3/22
Mitch Tanner (Wood) 3/30
Michael McDonald (Port) 3/30
(Women)
Alex Price (Sturt) 5/23
Sarah-Jane Jameson (Kens) 4/13
Samantha Betts (ND) 4/20
THE DRAW
Men (Sat, Oct 12)
Northern Districts v Prospect (Salisbury).
Glenelg v West Torrens (Glenelg)
Tea Tree Gully v Southern District (Pertaringa)
Kensington v Adelaide (Parkinson)
Woodville v Adelaide University (Woodville)
Port Adelaide v East Torrens (Port Reserve)
Sturt (bye).
Women (Sun, Oct 14)
Northern Districts v Port Adelaide (Salisbury)
West Torrens v Southern District (Henley)
Sturt v Kensington (Park 25)
Andrew.capel@news.com.au