KFC Team of the Week – CRCA #7
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IN GDSC-Premier League action this week Tucabia Copmanhurst narrowly avoided a major upset in a low-scoring affair at JJ Lawrence Turf while Brothers maintained their winning start to the season.
The top grades dominate the seventh KFC Team of the Week for this season; the best XI players each week based on the most outstanding individual performances across all senior grades in Clarence River Cricket Association.
Want to find out what happened in each of the matches and who else played well? The descriptions below contain a concise overview of every game played this week.
Here's the KFC Team of the Week #7 for CRCA:
1. Dylan Cleaver (Souths) - T20, Premier League: 49 runs; 24 runs
After a comparatively mediocre start to the season, over the past week Cleaver took some steps towards recapturing the form that turned him into one of the Clarence's most dominant batsmen the past two seasons.
The elegant opener top scored in Souths Services' 20-run win over GDSC Easts in round six of the Cleavers Mechanical Twenty20 Night Cricket competition at McKittrick Park last Wednesday night.
Cleaver and fellow opener Joey Pigg (30) took Shannon Connor (0 for 41 off 4) to task in a rare expensive night for the representative opening bowler, before Anthony Dickson (42) helped push the total up to 4 for 153.
Cleaver was involved in another solid start in GDSC Premier League on Saturday, scoring 24 runs in a 54-run opening partnership with Tom Kroehnert (24). However Souths didn't capitalise, collapsing to 5 for 61, before limping to 92 all out.
2. Jake Kroehnert (Brothers) - Premier League: 59 runs
The Brothers Clocktower Hotel captain extended his lead as the GDSC Premier League leading run scorer after four rounds with a solid 59 runs off 73 balls against GDSC Easts/Westlawn Crown Hotel at McKittrick Park.
After scoring a century in round one, Kroehnert has now scored 229 runs this season, followed by teammate Eli Fahey (113), Tucabia's Matt Pigg (110) and Easts' Jackson Grieve (109).
Kroehnert's 90-run 4th wicket partnership with Jamie Firth (52*) was easily the standout of the innings, as the tail failed to wag, going from 3 for 115 to be all out for 144 off 38.2 overs.
3. Noel O'Connell (Coutts) - 2nd Grade: 54 runs, 2/9 (2)
Coutts Crossing Grafton Hotel go into this weekend's GDSC 2nd Grade top of the table clash with unbeaten Sunline Fencing Tucabia Copmanhurst at JJ Lawrence Turf with wind in their sails after recording their fourth win on the trot on Saturday.
O'Connell chalked up his second consecutive half century, scoring 54 off 51 balls in a 100-run stand with opening batsman Bill North (63 off 94) against South Services at JJ Lawrence Synthetic.
North's dismissal set the stage for Josh Harris (39) and GDSC 2nd Grade leading run scorer Matt McKee (55*) to up the tempo and close the innings at 6 for 226.
In a small piece of history, playing against each other for the first time, Linden Harris claimed the wicket of his brother Josh Harris, who was caught in the deep by their other brother Jack Kelleher.
An understrength Souths batting line up managed just 118 before being bowled out in the 24th over. Hayden Woods (3 for 28 off 8) made inroads early for Coutts before O'Connell (2/9 off 2) cashed in late.
Captain Billy Wynn was the top performer with bat and ball for Souths, taking 2 for 21 off 8 overs and scoring 27 runs.
4. Ryan Cotten (Westlawn) - 2nd Grade: 35 runs, 3/17 (8)
Making his third appearance in the KFC Team of the Week, Cotten is no doubt relishing a change of scenery at Westlawn this season.
Cotten (35 off 48) and Luke Hayman (27 off 33) helped Westlawn reach 111 off 31.2 overs against GDSC Easts Valley Finance at Lower Fisher Turf as productive spells from Michael Cooper (1 for 9 off 8 including four maidens), Jimmy Watters (4 for 23 off 6.2) and Cory Jones (3 for 33 off 8) helped restrict the total.
But despite the modest total Westlawn returned to winning ways as Cotten rounded out a man of the match performance taking 3 for 17 off 8 overs, snaring all three scalps leg before wicket.
Cotten is now third in the GDSC 2nd Grade runs list on 179, behind Coutts Crossing's ageless Matt McKee (358) and early season Tucabia bolter Billy Blanch (222). Hayman also delivered a quality double, aking 3 for 9 off 4.2 with the ball.
With his 3rd Grade having the bye, usual Westlawn CC GJR Sheetmetal/Jones Mechanical captain Shaun Simpson stepped up to 2nd grade and in the process lost his wicket for the first time this season, succumbing to opening bowler Jeff Rainbow (2 for 36 off 8) for 8 runs. Simpson has scored 162 runs and is yet to be dismissed after five visits to the crease in GDSC 3rd Grade, second only to Brothers juggernaut Daniel Moar (219) for runs scored.
Meanwhile at Ulmarra Showground Sunline Fencing Tucabia Copmanhurst maintained their undefeated start to the season, successfully chasing GDSC Easts Poplar Sheds' total of 121 with five wickets and 12.1 overs to spare. Michael Monkton top scored for Tucabia with 38 runs off 31 balls.
5. Jamie Firth (Brothers) - Premier League: 52 not out
Ran out of partners in an important half-century for Brothers Clocktower Hotel in the first round of one-day matches for the 2020/21 GDSC Premie League season.
Firth joined his captain Jake Kroehnert st the crease with the score 3 for 25, and saw out the remainder of the innings, left stranded on 52 not out with 10 balls gone begging when No.11 Sam McLennan was adjudged lbw for a duck.
6. Ricky Johnson (Brothers) - 3rd Grade: 53 runs, 2/25 (5)
Johnson scored a rare GDSC 3rd Grade half-century, made possible by returning to the crease late in the innings for Brothers Jimmy Watters Painting/Hello Travelworld.
After he and Daniel Moar each retired 35 earlier in proceedings, the likes of Easts' Jason Harrison (3 for 23 off 5) and Brendan Palmer (3 for 21 off 5) threatened to derail Brothers' innings, forcing Johnson back to the crease at 8/143, where he helped push the total to 183 before Michael Harrison (2/22 off 2) knocked over his castle for 53.
All out for 185 off 28 overs, Brothers' total was never under serious threat as Johnson and Moar combined again, this time with the ball. Johnson (2 for 25 off 5) removed both openers, while Moar (1 for 9 off 5) created runrate headaches from the outset.
Daniel Lavender (28) top scored for Easts who finished 9 for 137 off 30 overs.
7. Allan Green (Coutts) - 3rd Grade: 3/8 (3.1), 36 retired
It was a case of captain courageous at Coutts Crossing, as Al Green took 3 for 8 off 3.1 with the ball, before being one of three batsmen to retire in an eight-wicket win against B&S Kitchens Tucabia Copmanhurst in GDSC 3rd Grade.
Gervais Bertus retired 35, while Scott Chard also did well with bat and ball, taking 2 for 10 off 3 and retiring 35, as Coutts swallowed Tucabia's total of 9 for 147 for the loss of just two wickets in 22 overs.
8. Tim Bultitude (Tucabia) - Premier League: 4/8 (8)
Chosen last week for his batting, this week Bultitude earns his place in the Best XI for his bowling.
Offspin twins Bultitude and Matt Pigg took advantage of a turner at JJ Lawrence Turf to turn a sound start into a tempestuous disaster for South Services.
Pigg started the rot and took 4 for 17 off 8, before Bultitude bamboozled the middle order with 4 for 8 off 8 overs including 4 maidens.
While Bultitude failed with the bat this week, teammates Bob McKenzie (23), Travis Anderson (21) and Pigg, whose three runs came off a lot of balls in a crucial 26-run 6th wicket partnership, did just enough to keep Tucabia's run chase alive.
9. Chris Cleaver (Souths) - T20, Premier League: 4/13 (4); 1/15 (8)
GDSC Easts only fell 20 runs short chasing South Services' 20-over total of 4 for 153 in Cleavers Mechanical Night Cricket. Those 20 missing runs can easily be accounted for in the runs column next to Cleaver's name (4 for 13 off 4).
After Shannon Connor blasted 42 and Easts blew out of the blocks to be 1 for 70, the left arm orthodox bowler jammed on the brakes, claiming all four of his wickets in succession with just seven runs added to the team's total.
Craig Paul (38) battled hard, but the damage was done. Adrian Boyd (4 for 23 off 4) cashed with the late wickets for Souths.
Cleaver (1 for 15 off 8) also contributed to his team going close against Tucabia in GDSC Premier League.
Meanwhile teammate Matt Dalton narrowly missed out on being named in the Best XI for the second week in a row. He took 3 for 20 off 7.3 and was in the middle of the pressure cooker when Derek Woods hit the winning runs with 27 balls to spare and no wickets left in the sheds.
10. Nathan Blanch (Easts/Westlawn) - Premier League: 5/17 (7.2)
The reigning KFC Player of the Week was showered in wickets yet again, and again on the losing side of the ledger.
The GDSC Easts/Westlawn Crown Hotel captain took 5 for 15 off 7.2 overs to help restrict Brothers to 144 after at one stage cruising and looking at a 180-plus total.
But Westlawn fell short in the chase, again through no fault of Blanch (9no). Batting at No.1, he was left stranded when Ethan Lucas (2 for 22 off 7) ripped through the defences of Rhys Hebbard (10) with 24 still required for Westlawn off 24 balls.
11. Bill Weatherstone (Brothers) - Premier League: 4/12 (8)
Three early wickets from Weatherstone had GDSC Easts/Westlawn Crown Hotel in trouble from the outset in their chase of Brothers Clocktower Hotel's total of 144 at McKittrick Park.
Weatherstone headed a solid bowling effort which included an impressive spell from Jordan Newman (2 for 18 off 8).
SO FAR THIS SEASON:
• KFC Team of the Week - CRCA #1
• KFC PLAYER OF THE WEEK #1: Jake Kroehnert 105
• KFC Team of the Week - CRCA #2
• KFC PLAYER OF THE WEEK #2: Beau Sevil 105*
• KFC Team of the Week - CRCA #3
• KFC PLAYER OF THE WEEK #3: Craig Paul match-winner
• KFC Team of the Week - CRCA #4
• KFC PLAYER OF THE WEEK #4: Billy Blanch leads the way
• KFC Team of the Week - CRCA #5
• KFC PLAYER OF THE WEEK #5: Andrew Ellis 120
• KFC Team of the Week - CRCA #6
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