Vote now for Far North Coast Cricket’s combined LJ Hooker and Coastal League team of the season for 2021-22
As another season of Far North Coast cricket comes to an end, over 40 of the LJ Hooker and Coastal League’s best players have been nominated for the team of the season. VOTE NOW.
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Whether it’s a game-saving wicket or a match winning knock, there have been plenty of moments in the LJ Hooker and Coastal Leagues that have earned some of the Far North Coast’s best talents a nomination for the team of the season.
While cricket is a team sport, some of the individual brilliance on display from Tweed to Ballina has been key to team success.
These players are front and centre and they are the names that write themselves on the team sheet, but now you have the chance to vote for your own team of the season.
Vote for the combined LJ Hooker and Coastal League team of the season in our batters and bowlers poll.
SCROLL DOWN FOR THE POLLS >>
BATTERS
Jamie Tripp - Pottsville
The unmistakeable moustache is back in contention for the team of the season.
The Pottsville slogger had a terrific season and featured in our rankings for the region's top batsman.
He scored 376 runs in total this season with his best performance coming against Ballina where he scored 81 in a thumping win.
Jake Nind - Lennox Head
One of the North Coast’s most gifted sportspeople, Jake Nind took first place in the regular season batting rankings with almost 500 runs in 10 innings.
His Lennox Head side fought hard to make Saturday’s Coastal League grand final.
Harrison Bassingthwaighte - Cudgen
Cudgen’s Harrison Bassingthwaite had a top season that unfortunately ended with a semi-final loss to Byron Bay.
His 333 runs for the season placed him in the top ten batters across the North Coast.
Adam Rogers - Tweed-Banora
Adam Rogers put in a good shift scoring 350 runs in ten matches this season.
He fell 12 runs short of a century against Tintenbar-East Ballina in round ten of the Coastal League season.
Caleb Ziebell - Cudgen
The LJ Hooker League’s biggest hitter is a front runner for the team of the season.
More than half of his 473 runs for the season came in two matches, knocking Pottsville to pieces with 183 and Tintenbar-East Ballina with 115.
Ziebell is at his heart an all-rounder and can take a wicket when needed.
Doug North - Alstonville
Alstonville’s Doug North racked up almost 300 runs in eight matches this season earning him a nomination for the team of the season.
While Alstonville finished third last in the Coastal League he joins a number of batters closer to the foot of the table that impressed in the 2021-22 campaign.
Kyle Yager - Alstonville
The Alstonville captain led by example this season scoring 445 runs in nine matches.
He ticked over a century against Casino RSM Cavaliers when he went 101 not out in round ten.
Callum Gall - Cudgen
Another Cudgen batsman finds himself nominated for the team of the season.
Callum Gall scored over 250 runs this season for Cudgen putting in consistent performances all year.
He also edged himself into the top ten run scorers in the Coastal League and was 20th place in our region-wide batting rankings.
Scroll down for the polls >>
Nathan Hoey - Tintenbar-East Ballina
Nathan Hoey gets a nomination for his incredible numbers in a short number of games this year.
Hoey played only seven regular season innings but still managed to rack up 266 runs earning him a spot just inside the top 20 in our batting rankings.
Joe Allen - Pottsville
Joe Allen shares a name with a famous Welsh footballer, but the former Liverpool midfielder has nothing on the Pottsville batter when it comes to hitting boundaries.
Allen hit over 30 fours and eight sixes in matches that usually turned into a ‘slogfest’ this year.
Phil Dalli - Tintenbar-East Ballina
The legend of North Coast cricket finds himself in team of the season contention.
The Bar’s Phil Dalli managed 395 runs for his side this season including 124 runs in their victory over Thirstiers in round five.
Mitch Loane - Byron Bay
Mitch Loane was in the top five run scorers in the Coastal League this season for Byron Bay and was in the top ten region-wide.
Loane took away three half-centuries this season and even chipped in with a wicket for fourth grade this season.
Chris Humphreys - Thirstiers
Thirstiers Cricket Club didn’t have the season they wanted, finishing second last in the Coastal League but Chris Humphreys still managed some great individual displays scoring over 300 runs.
Almost two thirds of his runs came from boundaries with an incredible 27 fours and 20 sixes smashed by Humphreys.
Abe Crawford - Tintenbar-East Ballina
With 20 boundaries and almost 350 runs for the season, Tintenbar-East Ballina's trusted batsman was crucial in their run to the semi-finals.
He perhaps liked the big hits a bit too much being caught and dismissed eight times this season.
Alec Williams - Cudgen
Alec Williams finished as the fifth highest run scorer in the regular season of the LJ Hooker League.
With a total of 380 runs he finished not out three times while hitting a solid 70 runs in the semi-final against Tintenbar-East Ballina.
Peter Hall - Terranora Lakes
Terranora Lakes were only a few points away from the finals series but Peter Hall was a solid performer for the club.
Hall finished on 293 runs from just six matches, hitting 26 fours with a batting average if 48.
Mitchell Boyd - Tweed-Banora
The North Coast’s ninth highest run-scorer is nominated for the team of the season thanks to his standout performances for Tweed-Banora Colts.
His highlight of the season would be his 121* against Ballina Bears in round two of the LJ Hooker League.
Damien Vidler - Casino RSM Cavaliers
Casino had a disappointing season but Damien Vidler still produced the goods at the crease.
He backed up his 277 runs from 11 innings with four catches and four wickets.
BOWLERS
Levi Shouldice - Byron Bay
Levi Shouldice has taken the gold ball home having topped the Coastal League and region-wide rankings for wickets this season with 24.
Shouldice backed it up his regular season total of 22 with another two wickets in the semi-final against Cudgen at Cavanbah.
His best performance came against Lennox Head where he took 6/8.
Harry Kershler - Cudgen
Two of the best bowlers in the league came up against each other in the semi-final but Kershler certainly gave Shouldice a run for his money.
The youngster had an incredible season in the Coastal League with 18 wickets in all matches.
Nick Winkler - Lennox Head
Lennox Head could guarantee that Winkler would take home at least two wickets a game having knocked over 15 batsman in seven innings.
His best return was 4/47 against Terranora Lakes.
Lucas Wagland - Tintenbar-East Ballina
The region’s third highest wicket-taker knocked 17 batsman off the crease while conceding 224 runs.
Wagland was a very difficult customer for batters who couldn’t score a run off the bowler in 15 overs, the most maidens in the Coastal League season.
Ian Rowlings - Terranora Lakes
Rowlings took 17 wickets this season for Terranora and was placed high on our region-wide rankings.
He had an incredible start to the season taking four wickets against Alstonville and Thirstiers in the first two rounds.
Michael Blattner - Cudgen
With 15 wickets, Michael Blattner joined Harry Kershler in a fierce bowling attack for Cudgen.
An economy of 4.26 and strike rate of 23.20 places Blattner in nomination for the team of the season for 2021-22.
Lennox Bridle - Byron Bay
The Coastal League has dominated the combined nominations for the bowlers with another Byron Bay product joining the list.
Lennox Bridle took 15 wickets this season in ten matches including a 4/23 against Thirstiers Cricket Club.
Andrew Mckay - Thirstiers
Andrew Mckay was the region’s ninth best bowler before the finals series and took 13 wickets in nine games.
Bouncing between the Coastal League and the One-day competition, Mckay took 3/13 against Pottsville for his best return of the year.
Matt Sutton - Terranora Lakes
The ultimate all-rounder could have been given a nomination for this team as a batter or a bowler.
With 16 wickets from ten matches including a five-fer against Bangalow and 263 runs for the season, Sutton is a must-have for any top team.
He finished in the top ten for the region-wide bowling rankings and finished 14th in the batting rankings.
Kale Hare - Goonellabah
Kale Hare was the highest wicket-taker in the LJ Hooker League and his exploits have propelled Goonellabah Workers to the grand final against Cudgen.
His favourite opponent was Murwillumbah where he took eight wickets across two matches while only conceding 18 runs.
Brendan Downham - Pottsville
Brendan Downham rounded out the top ten for the North Coast’s best bowlers as Pottsville missed out on the finals.
He scored 13 wickets as he saved the best till last with a four-wicket haul against Thirstiers in the final round.
James Julius - Cudgen
James Julius finished in second place on the LJ Hooker bowling rankings with 20 wickets for Cudgen this season.
He was a threat to all teams this season taking wickets in all except two matches with one of those being a draw against the Ballina Bears.
Thomas Byrne - Tweed Banora
Thomas Byrne hits the list of bowlers for Tweed-Banora Colts with 16 wickets from eight matches.
Byrne took 4/11 against Casino RSM Cavaliers but narrowly missed the finals spots in the LJ Hooker League.
Reece Gregor - Goonellabah
Reece Gregor flew under the radar this season but his 16 wickets in ten matches saw him finish sixth in the LJ Hooker wicket-takers list.
He started off the year with a bang taking 4/15 against Casino and bookended it with 2/17 against Lennox Head in a semi-final winning performance.
Kaleb Auld - Marist Brothers Lismore
The seventh best wicket-taker in the LJ Hooker League was on fire with 14 wickets in just six matches.
His best performance was a five-wicket haul against Pottsville but his exploits bursting into the crease weren’t enough to keep Marist Brothers Lismore in contention for the finals.
Ben Barber Hayes - Tweed-Banora
Nobody kicked off their season better than Ben Barber-Hayes who bolted out the gate with 6/29 in round one against Murwillumbah.
Three wickets against Alstonville kept the momentum going but if there were a handful of extra wickets elsewhere in the season it might have been the difference to get them into the finals.
Tom Parsons - Marist Brothers Lismore
Tom Parsons is a feared bowler in the LJ Hooker League and his stats explain why.
If there is one thing that a batter should be wary of it’s an incredibly consistent bowler and while Parsons took 18 wickets in ten matches he was able to put the ball plum in the right spot each time.
That was seen best with a 4/25 against Tweed-Banora Colts.
Brendan Mitchell - Marist Brothers Lismore
Brendan Mitchell’s 14 wickets for Marist rounds out the nominations for the combined team of the season.
His wickets edge him into the top ten bowlers for the LJ Hooker League this season in a solid season for Lismore.
Michael Gardner - Tweed Banora
Fourteen wickets gets Michael Gardner into contention for the team of the season and rounds out the third Tweed-Banora Colts player in the top ten bowlers for the LJ Hooker season.
In just seven game he showed he had great persistence, often conceding runs but getting the rewards with wickets.
Steven Leahy - Tintenbar-East Ballina
Now here’s a tall order.
Steven Leahy featured in ten matches for The Bar this season taking 19 wickets earning him a nomination for the team of the season on top of recognition as one of the North Coast’s best bowlers.
He is a handy player to have in your team of the season.
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