Townsville cricket star crowned Queensland grassroots cricket’s top bowler for season 2021/22
Almost 80 players were nominated and the readers have spoken as an athlete who bounced back from illness is crowned the best bowler in Queensland grassroots cricket. SEE WHO IT IS
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QUEENSLAND Country representative paceman Justin Dixon has conquered bowel disease to be crowned the best grassroots bowler in the state after a poll of cricketers across every region.
The leading wicket-taker in Townsville cricket this season took home a best-in-state nine per cent of the popular vote to win the honour, four years after a health scare forced him to give the game away for nearly a year.
His illness, now on the back seat in his life but always present, scuttled any hope he once held of moving away from his family support system to chance his arm in Brisbane’s grade cricket competition.
Instead the seamer has ruled the roost in North Queensland, scalping 39 batters in 13 matches at an average of 11.67 this season.
Dixon was surprised to win the honour as Queensland’s top bowling force because he had tried his best to keep his nomination quiet.
“I didn’t tell my mates to vote for me so I thought someone else would win,” the Charters Towers product admitted.
Votes from both Townsville’s cricketers and those he had terrorised in representative fixtures against other regions carried him to the title.
Dixon said he was honoured to be voted the best from a field of 79 talents across every region in Queensland but trophies and accolades were not the reason he played the game.
Dixon spent 10 months on the sidelines in 2018 fighting bowel disease and now plays purely for the friendships he has forged at Sub Parks and his love for the game.
“That’s probably the main reason I play, just for the enjoyment factor and playing with mates,” Dixon said.
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“All the other stuff like trophies, they’re always good as well but just enjoying it, that produces wins if you’re happy as a team. That’s when you’re playing at your best.”
Dixon took 3-30 from 13 overs in his last performance to help dismiss Wests for 126.
See the 79 names who were nominated for Queensland grassroots cricket’s top bowler in 2021/22
GOLD COAST
Matt Madeley (Runaway Bay)
The youngster has surprised even himself this season with his performances in the Kookaburra Cup. Madeley took eight wickets in the first match of the season to announce himself to the competition and has continued that good form through the campaign. A right-arm quick who bowls predominantly outswingers, Madeley is a workhorse who will happily shoulder the bowling burden when required.
Steve Graham (Runaway Bay)
Graham bolted out of the gate to lead all-comers in the opening month of the season. The lanky right-arm quick hits the deck hard and bowls consistent lines into the wicket. Consistency is a valuable asset in cricket and with Graham, his coach and teammates know what they’ll get from him each week.
Josh Henderson (Coomera Hope Island)
Henderson is the bowler every batsman is afraid of, with rapid pace and bounce spurred on by a towering figure. With one end tied up by Henderson’s 130km/h+ thunderbolts opposition clubs are forced to try score off others. The former Souths and Redlands first grader is Coomera’s team captain.
Josh Spies (Coomera Hope Island)
Still a teenager, Spies is making a name for himself in the Gold Coast’s Kookaburra Cup with his pressure bowling. It is becoming a rare sight to see a loose ball let batsmen off the hook.
Reece McDonald (Broadbeach Robina)
The first-year skipper has taken to the extra responsibility with aplomb this season and continued his reign as one of the best bowlers in Coast cricket. McDonald normally opens the bowling for Broadbeach and his right-arm medium pace has challenged batsmen for years. The bowling all-rounder is a former Sam Loxton Medal winner - proof of his standing among his peers.
Ryan Maloney (Helensvale Pacific Pines)
With more than 200 first grade wickets, Maloney’s right-arm pace has terrorised many a top order bat in his time. The Helensvale junior has bloomed into a six-foot-three senior star who is as capable with the bat and in the field.
Chandima Bandara (Helensvale Pacific Pines)
The Sri Lankan left-arm finger spinner announced himself to the Kookaburra Cup with a starring role for Helensvale in its run to the T20 grand final. Bandara was the most economical bowler in the competition this season, going at just over two runs an over. It’s his incredible economy that makes Bandara such a key part of the Helensvale bowling attack.
Mackenzie Barclay (Mudgeeraba)
Few local cricketers can strike fear in a top-order bat quite like Barclay. The left-arm quick can swing it both ways and often takes crucial wickets early in an innings to set Mudgeeraba up nicely. With not many left-hand bats going around in Coast cricket, his left-arm to right-hand bowling catches many out.
Griffith Williams (Mudgeeraba)
The Southport School Year 12 student made his first grade debut this season and already looks a classy prospect at the top level. The captain of Gold Coast’s Lords Taverners side, the leg-spinner gets great flight to right-handers and has a fantastic wrong’un in his kitbag. He claimed a four-fa in the T20 competition early in the season to announce himself to the competition.
TOOWOOMBA
Shaun McCarthy (Western Districts)
Has been one of Toowoomba’s best for the best part of a decade now. A six-time Queensland Country representative, McCarthy’s pace makes him unplayable at times. Took seven wickets in a game this season, not the first time he has produced a big haul.
Michael Dowe (Western Districts)
Came back to Toowoomba this season and has made an immediate impact. Took 12 wickets throughout the Harding-Madsen Shield series for Wests at an average of under 10, and conceded just 25 runs from 22 overs to start the two-day competition.
Andrew Johnston (University)
One of University’s most potent strike weapons, Johnston has picked up where he left off from a brilliant 2020/21 season. The quick has taken nine wickets in his last three innings, giving him 15 for the season with plenty of cricket to be played.
Hemal Shah (University)
Shah has developed his game to become one of Toowoomba’s most consistent all-rounders. Shah has taken 19 wickets for the season across all forms of the game, including a season best haul of four, to go along with an average of 30 with the bat.
Todd Martens (Diggers)
There is no bowler in Toowoomba in better form than Todd Martens. 10 wickets to start the year was just the beginning for the medium-pacer, who has taken three-straight five-wicket hauls since the commencement of the two-day season. In career best form.
John Schmacker (Diggers)
Has been trying hard for Northern Brothers Diggers all season and has been rewarded with a consistent year. Was Diggers’ best bowler during the Harding-Madsen Shield season and has continued that on to the two-day comp.
Harjinder Dhillon (Mets)
A regular in representative and higher honours teams in recent times, Dhillon is a reliable wickettaker and is capable no matter what the format. Has taken 16 wickets for the season and is a big reason why Mets are favourites to take out the title.
Hayden Campbell (Mets)
An unheralded talent that has taken advantage of every chance he has been given in A-grade. Has managed to take 16 wickets for the season in a team that has a wealth of bowling options, including best figures of 4-9.
Blake Martin (Highfields-Railways)
Martin has given the Bulldogs consistent wicket-taking in a year that hasn’t quite gone to plan for the club. Leads the A-grade charge with 16 scalps for 2021/22, taking a pair or better in six outings.
Tom Hughes (Highfields-Railways)
The captain is always happy to put in the hard work with the new ball, and has had some success with 10 wickets for the season. Backs up from a solid outing last year where he was more than reliable with an average of under 20.
Joel Bock (Southern Districts)
Another that is capable of putting his hand up for the title of Toowoomba’s best all rounder, Bock’s had a great return season with the Magpies. Claimed 14 scalps at a combined average of 19, to go along with scoring more than 40 per innings with the bat.
Matthew Budden (Southern Districts)
Taken his game to another level this season. Budden has stood up in big games, including taking four scalps in the one-day A-grade final to help his team lift the trophy. Has taken 16 wickets for the season as one of Souths’ leading options.
BRISBANE
Nick Bartlett (Coorparoo)
The right arm fast bowler started with the club in the 2016-17 season and sits around 20th on the all-time wicket taking list for the club, with more than 180 wickets at an average of around 13. He has taken five wickets in an innings multiple times and once snared 5-17 - which included a hat-trick. He is a sub-districts Plunkett Cup representative.
Myles Topp (Coorparoo)
The right arm quick is a veteran of the A1 team, having started with the club in 2009-10. He has taken more than 350 wickets at an average of around 15, including more than 10, five wicket hauls. The sub-districts stalwart is a past Paul Stafford Medal winner (2015-16).
Hayden Lanza (Coorparoo)
Lanza is a former Wests first grade player who once had the distinction of taking all 10 wickets in an innings. The opening bowler bends his back and troubles all opposition batsmen in every spell.
Thomas English (Mater Hill Cricket Club)
English, 34, is another Warehouse veteran who is a genuine allrounder with more than 500 wickets to his name - all this while averaging around 31 with the bat.
James Blinco (Ashgrove Cricket Club)
James Blinco has a big heart and his teammates love him for his effort. He is the club’s most consistent bowler who bowls line and length - then does it all over again in his second, third and fourth spells.
Paul Parker (Ashgrove Cricket Club)
An Englishman, Parker is a slower ball specialist who earlier in the season took 7-35. He has earned his stripes, working his way up through the grades to become Ashgrove’s leading wicket taker over the last two seasons.
Craig Trindal (Gold Crest)
Trindal is a stalwart whose credentials stretch across the Imparja Cup, NSW country, Sydney first grade and in Brisbane first grade for Valleys in the era of Matthew Hayden and co. His height enables him to deliver a ball that rises on the batsman. He is a terror in the middle and in the nets where he can, off the back of a length, cut the batter in half. He is a pure competitor who never gives up - and he can bat as well. But his bowling is first class.
Mineth Kularatna (Gold Crest)
The spritely young leg spinner joined the club a couple of years ago at age 14 and hasn’t looked back. He has taken the scalp of some very good bats, beaten in flight and spin. He looms as a leader of this club in years to come.
Harley Friske (Cleveland Thornlands)
Friske is an outstanding allrounder who earlier in the season earned representative honours because of his efforts with ball, bat and in the field.
Matthew Elliott (Cleveland Thornlands)
Elliott has best bowling of 4-21 so far this season and is one of his team’s best bowlers.
Santosh Nistala (Napoleons Cricket Club)
The team’s opening bowler who is also the rock of the middle order. However, despite having the added responsibility of being a batting ace, never lets it impact on his bowling.
Shaun O’Reilly (Indooroopilly District)
What O’Reilly doesn’t know about medium fast bowling is not worth knowing. The veteran has been with the club 25 years and he keeps on keeping on. He has taken more than 870 wickets at an average of 11.9 and is simply one of a kind.
Gagan Singh (Indooroopilly District)
Singh is a second grade medium fast bowler who has played 44 matches for the club, taking 102 wickets at an average of just 9.38.
SUNSHINE COAST
Connor Corlet (Caboolture)
Corlet is a right arm quick who has shown his ability of bringing something new to the crease every single match. He’s one that takes pride in limiting his opposition’s shot selections and has a handy 17 wickets this season in what is a competitive Caboolture bowling attack.
John Flew (Caboolture)
Another solid addition to what already is arguably the best bowling attack in the competition in right arm medium pening bowler John Flew. Flew hits the wicket hard off every ball which has helped him pick up 19 wickets this season.
Jadinta Singh (Nambour)
A new leg spinner to the Nambour cricket club is Jadinta Singh who has only been bowling spin for less than a year. He lands them well each ball and gets plenty of zip when required. He’s known as the ‘mystery bowler’ and helps penetrate plenty of wickets for his team.
Drew Pitcher (Nambour)
A bit of a Cinderella story here as Pitcher has climbed the ranks from six to first grade in a matter of months. The left arm medium pace bowler is extremely reliable with the ball and has proven to be effective through long spells but also in partnerships to build continuous pressure.
Reid Anderson (Maroochydore)
With 26 wickets to his name this season, Anderson is a quiet but very serious competitor. He was another Maroochydore junior who has climbed the ranks and bowls some of the quickest balls on the Coast.
Tiaan Scheepers (Coolum)
Nicknamed the ‘angry man’ Scheepers is a fierce South African bowler who loves placing himself in the thick of the action. The opening bowler loves the competition and uses his anger to the best of his ability.
Sam Brooks (Coolum)
This medium pace bowler has been huge for his Coolum team this season. He’s received high praise for his cutter balls and how much of a team player he is. Brooks has picked up 19 wickets this season and is a really good thinker of the game who always finds ways to best attack the opposition.
Luke McInnes (Maroochydore)
McInnes has risen through the ranks from a Maroochydore junior and is excelling in the first grade competition. He is a fierce competitor and although he isn’t as fast as some of the others on this list, he arguably has the most variations of any bowler on the Coast.
Ben Laughlin (Tewantin-Noosa)
The former Brisbane Heat and Queensland Bulls star has been revolutionary for his Tewantin-Noosa team this season. His overall experience and absolute duffel bag of skills is a reason for his 50 wickets this season. He has incredible change ups and knows exactly when to use his skills.
Scott Aufderheide (Tewantin-Noosa)
He’s got one of the trickiest surnames to pronounce and is one of the trickiest bowlers to face on the Coast. His shape and ability to take plenty of early wickets is why he’s regarded as one of the better quicks in the competition.
Jack Cockram (Caloundra)
This left arm orthodox spinner is an experienced and accurate campaigner. He wears down his opposition players and very rarely gives away easy runs. He can take wickets regularly at any stage of the game and is a huge asset to the Caloundra team.
Isaac Cottrell (Caloundra)
A dangerous left arm swing bowler who has been hampered by injuries this season but can bounce back to his best in due time. He is one to keep an eye on for years to come.
Josh Brady (Gympie)
An extremely classy all rounder with 17 wickets and 370 runs for his Gympie side this season. Brady has shown the use of his cricket smarts and knows how to work his opposition batsman out each over. He is known as one of the better bowlers and batters in the first trade competition.
Brycen Mitchell (Gympie)
A strong and demanding opening bowler, Mitchell was awarded captaincy for his Gympie side this season. His work at the crease speaks for itself as he’s picked up 25 wickets this season.
Jett Taylor (Glasshouse)
A strong and aggressive right arm pace bowler who bowls a heavy ball. He is growing in confidence each match and lets his skill do the talking, picking up 19 wickets this season.
Joel Owen (Glasshouse)
Regarded as the best spinner of the Coast, Owen bowls elegant left arm orthodox spin. He has proven his craft and has a great skill of changing up the pace of his deliveries. After coming through the ranks Owen has established himself as a senior member of the Glasshouse bowling unit.
MACKAY
Harrison Holmes (Souths Sharks)
Voted as Mackay’s best up-and-coming talent, opening bowler Holmes is leading the league’s wicket taking with 15 this season. With an average of 15.73 and best figures of 4/11, Holmes has caused problems consistently for top orders. The 18-year-old possesses a dangerous bouncer, which often rattles batters before he follows up with a toe-crushing yorker. Holmes will continue to terrorise opposition batters for the rest of the season.
Matthew Wicks (Mackay Brothers)
Despite missing multiple games this season, Wicks sits comfortably second in the bowling award with 13 dismissals. Opening the bowling for Brothers, Wicks has been the reason for plenty of top-order collapses this season. With amazing consistency and an acute ability to find the edge of the bat, Wicks has been instrumental in the Brothers’ form during the march towards finals.
Luke Pietzner (Mackay Magpies)
Pietzner is another young fast bowler making waves in Mackay cricket. The dual-sport star can carry the bat as well as he can bowl, but the opening bowler sits third in the competition for total wickets. His 12 dismissals comes at an average of 18.83, pairing well with fellow young fast bowler Harry Fortescue.
Nicholas Lotarski (Walkerston)
Lotarski has only played four, 40-over matches this season, but has managed to take nine wickets on the year. The pace bowler has best figures of 4-18 and an average of 14.44. Despite his lack of matches played, Lotarski has held strong form in his matches, taking at least one wicket in every match and always bowling at least seven, if not eight, overs.
ROCKHAMPTON/GLADSTONE
Justin Peacock (Gracemere)
An experienced campaigner, Peacock has been bamboozling batsmen with his leg spin for years. He’s Gracemere’s “go-to bowler” when the pressure is on. He loves getting into the battle and goes to the next level when taking on the opposition’s best batters. His accuracy - he can land the ball on the spot every time - and his economy rate are outstanding.
Joe McGahan (Frenchville)
A right-arm paceman, McGahan is one of the quickest bowlers in the Frenchville Sports Club A-Grade Premiership. He generally opens or comes on as first change and really puts the brakes on opposition teams’ scoring. He bowls a heavy ball and gets a steep bounce in his deliveries, which makes him hard to attack. A Queensland Country representative, he has proven time and again to be a real game-changer.
George Stacey (Capricorn Coast Parkana)
The right-arm medium pacer opens the attack for his team but it’s in his second spell where he proves most effective. Stacey is a consistent performer with the ball, and is constantly among the wickets. Standing at over 180cm, he gets plenty of movement off the deck as well as additional bounce which proves challenging for opposition batters. Stacey’s greatest strength is his ability to maintain a good line and length.
Harry Rideout (The Glen)
The young left-armer is one of the quickest bowlers in the Frenchville Sports Club A-Grade Premiership. He has gone from strength to strength since playing his first A-grade game with The Glen as a 16-year-old in 2017. He’s an aggressive bowler who loves to take it to the opposition batters, pushing them out of their comfort zone. He brings plenty of energy and enthusiasm to the team with his blistering opening spells.
Arun Anaimalai Murughan (Rockhampton Brothers)
The left-arm quick has proven a force for Brothers this season. He is currently the leading wicket taker in the Frenchville Sports Club A-Grade Premiership, having bagged 12 wickets for an average of 13.33, with his best haul 4/22. Anaimalai Murughan opens the attack and as well as genuine pace can also produce some swing. He is ever-reliable and lays the platform for his team with impressive opening spells.
TOWNSVILLE
Justin Dixon (Sub Parks)
Swing is Dixon’s biggest weapon, with a relentless bowling style that ramps up the pressure from ball one with few opportunities to release it. To compare Dixon to a well-known cricketer, teammates agree former Test quick Jason ‘Dizzy’ Gillespie is the call. Swinging the ball both ways, at pace, and always in control. Yep - that’s Dixon. Townsville’s leading wicket taker has 31 at 13.00 with an economy just under 3.00.
Justin Rawlins (Brothers)
The first ball of a Justin Rawlins spell is delivered with just as much effort and application as his last, which has won the high-motor quick the respect of his peers. Consistent line, length and pace are complimented by an ability to nip it back either way. Rawlins has taken 30 wickets at an eyecatching 10.9, with an economy rate of 2.65.
Steve Clifford (Wanderers)
For an age Jarrod Edmonson has been Wanderers’ star bowler but that script is being flipped by the incredible form Stephen Clifford has found himself in. Eight wickets (at an average of 5.16) in his last two matches has rocketed the medium-pacer into the Townsville competition’s top 10 wicket takers. In his last start Clifford bowled his first session swinging it in. In the second, at a whim, he bowled the entire session swinging it out - taking two wickets apiece. His form has been special to behold.
Travis Busch (Norths)
The Queensland Country representative paceman is still a P-Plater but has already claimed 18 wickets at 17.11 while averaging 2.85, proving how difficult his low angle of release is to hit off the square. Busch made his A Grade debut while still eligible for Under-13s in 2017/18 and in 30 starts has taken 31 wickets.
Sean Farrelly (Northern Beaches)
Northern Beaches have taken the fewest wickets of any team in the Townsville competition but those they have, they lay at the feet of leggie Sean Farrelly. At 5.55 an over Farrelly is expensive but his 11 wickets are second-most in the team and more often than not have laid the platform for Mark Little (14 wickets) down the other end. Constantly probing and attack, Farrelly is the man the Barras turn to when they need to make a breakthrough.
Kyle Dearness (Wests)
Dearness is the premium strikeman for Townsville’s premiership favourites, scalping 24 batsmen at an average of 10.75 to sit third in A Grade’s wicket standings, ahead of talented teammates Sam Lowry (20 at 11.5) and Jack Raffles (18 at 11.61). Dearness’ strike rate of 20.67 is the best of any bowler to have bowled 21 overs or more - he’s bowled 82.4.
CAIRNS
Jake Roach (Mulgrave)
A highly skilled Australian rules footballer, Roach is an elite club cricketer who represented Toyota ACCC Country XI
William Robertson (Mulgrave)
Robertson often delivers spin bowling master classes across the Cairns Cricket Association.
Harry Gardner (Barron)
After a quiet year at the crease in 2020-21, Gardner came back into form this season with a vengeance. The big-haired baller has claimed a Barron-leading 19 wickets across 94.5 overs, only yielding 306 runs in the process. In the short-form, Gardner led his club with 10-131 across a team-leading 21 overs.
Jordan Fulton (Barron)
The former Barron captain might have left the mantle of leadership behind years ago, but Fulton’s veteran presence continues to make him one of the more accomplished bowlers.
Fulton ranked third in Barron’s T20 bowling leaderboard (5-70), while taking 16 wickets in the one day competition thus far and another 4-128 in the Barrier Reef Big Bash.
Linden March (Norths)
When March is on the march, you’d better watch out. The Norths bowler can go from one wicket to four at the drop of a hat, as proven by is 4-14 haul against Mulgrave in a T20 match in September last year.
Daniel Freebody (Norths)
The left armer continues to be a reliable piece to Norths’ bowling attack. He ranks second in his club for one day wickets, claiming 13 on the season in 74 overs. For Barrier Reef Big Bash side Designer Home Dare Devils, Freebody finished second in the competition with 10 wickets at a rate of 6.38.
Stirling McAvoy (Cassowary Coast Cyclones)
Despite only playing part of the Cricket Far North season - due to cricketing commitments in NSW - McAvoy’s addition to the Cyclones’ T20 outfit was vital.
The young paceman even made a splash in the one day season, tallying a 5-26 effort against Mulgrave in October last year.
Harrison Ryan (Cassowary Coast Cyclones)
Ryan never takes a break from bowling, playing lights out for the Cyclones in first grade and third when the former is on break.
In just 28 overs, Ryan has gone 8-159 making him one of the more efficient bowlers in Innisfail.
Josh Chadwick (Rovers)
Rovers’ leading spinner, Chadwick knows no equal when it comes to staring down batters.
Chadwick’s taken 19 wickets so far in the one day season, highlighted by a stellar 4-19 onslaught against the Cyclones in October last year.
Brenton Edwards (Rovers)
The towering batsman continues to prove he’s just as potent with the ball. The former national country rep led the Designer Home Dare Devils to a Barrier Reef Big Bash title, collecting six wickets for 158 on the way. In CFN, Edwards bowled well in the short form finishing 3-88.
Daniel Parnell (Atherton)
This is one leg spinner you don’t want to get on the bad side of. Parnell has the skillset to make even the most accomplished of batsmen look foolish from time to time, formerly helming Atherton ‘s first grade side and collecting plenty of accolades on the way. Parnell has played lights out this season in all forms, highlighted by 14 wickets in the one day comp.
Luke Parnell (Atherton)
A feisty fast bowler who doesn’t mind a wet deck, Parnell is a solid journeyman of both Rovers and the Barrier Reef Big Bash.
In seven matches of one day cricket this season Parnell has eight wickets and a economy rating of 4.86.
IPSWICH
Troy Shepherd (WPC Cricket Club)
In 12 matches this season in the Sub-Districts B2 competition, Shepherd has taken 25 wickets at an average of 12.56 and a strike rate of 29.12. His season so far has been highlighted by a best of 5/34.
Toby Dowse (WPC Cricket Club)
Forming a dynamic partnership with teammate Troy Shepherd in the Sub-Districts B2 competition, Toby Dowse has also had an impressive season so far. Dowse has claimed 21 wickets with an average of 11.86 and a strike rate of 24. His season best figures is 5/46.
Jake McKinnon (WPC Cricket Club)
McKinnon has been one of the form players in Sub-Districts this season, sitting second on the wickets rankings with 27 from just 10 games in the C2 grade. His best was an impressive 6/20 and he has done it with an average of 9.33 and a strike rate of 18.
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