Newcastle takes on Central Coast in the NSW Country Cricket Championship final
Newcastle will face off with the Central Coast in the men’s Country Championship final this Sunday. Find out who’s in and out, the players to watch and where the game will be won and lost.
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Local rivals Newcastle and the Central Coast will fight it out to be crowned NSW country cricket champions at the regional final on Sunday.
The two teams qualified for the final after both topping their respective pools during the opening three rounds of the country championships last month.
The match will be played at Newcastle’s newly redeveloped No. 1 Sportsground, and will start at 10am.
Ahead of the big clash we’ve previewed both teams, the players to watch as well as where we think the game will be won and lost.
Newcastle
The defending champions will go into the game with the chance to win an unprecedented fourth-straight country crown, made all the more special by the opportunity to do it at home in front of friends and family.
“You’re getting into rare areas there with four in a row. It’s a massive task and it’s going to be a tough game on Sunday, make no mistake,” says Newcastle team manager David Redden.
“But this kind of opportunity doesn’t happen that often and it’s a real chance for our men to go and write something in the history books.”
Newcastle got off to the perfect start in their side of the draw in Tamworth by recording a big win over Central North and comfortably accounting for Greater Illawarra in the first two games.
However it all fell apart in the final match against North Coastal, with Newcastle bowled out for just 101 in the 131-run loss.
“We had a reasonable tournament in Tamworth,” says Redden. “We got a wake-up call on the last day, we didn’t play very well and North Coastal were very, very good. But the boys have been training hard because they know that this is a very good Central Coast side, very dangerous.”
Top-order batters Joey Gillard, Daniel Arms and Jeff Goninan were all among the runs in Tamworth, while quick Josh Bennett and leg spinner Daniel Chillingworth picked up plenty of wickets.
Newcastle will be sweating on the fitness of Pat Magann, who picked up back-to-back five-wicket hauls in his last two country championships games to lead the team’s account with 12.
The left-arm quick has been named in the squad, although it is unclear whether he will recover from a side strain in time to play.
Elsewhere, batsman Logan Weston will come into the squad for the unavailable Jed Dickson, while young gun Gillard has been cleared to play, despite being selected to represent NSW at the under 19s national championships in Adelaide next week.
Key players
Aaron Bills
The leg spinner has played a central role in clubs side Wests’ strong start to the season and will be a key part of Newcastle’s attack on Sunday.
Also good with the bat, Bills offers a solid lower-middle order option for runs and comes into the final on the back of good form in both the club and representative arena.
Jeff Goninan
A very good top order batsman who is very hard to stop once he gets going, Goninan is likely to bat at three or four for Newcastle.
He was one of the team’s better performers in the early rounds of the tournament with 38 not out against Central North and 50 against Greater Illawarra.
Josh Bennett
A terrific opening bowler, the former Australian Country representative is one of the spearheads of Newcastle’s pace attack and will be a series threat with the new ball.
He recorded figures of two for eight and three for 45 in his first two country championship matches.
Central Coast
Just like their opponents, the Central Coast enter the final on the back of a record of two wins and one loss in their country championships pool, played in Orange just two weeks ago.
The side got off to a great start with a dominant seven-wicket win over Western in the first game before a top-order batting collapse saw the team go down to the Riverina by 65 runs.
However the Central Coast rebounded in the final game, recording a massive 171-run victory over the ACT to secure their spot at the top of the pool.
“We had one bad loss and then two good wins, so coming out of that are plenty of positives. We got plenty of results from our batters and bowlers, which is good,” says coach John Rainger.
“They’re all chomping at the bit ready to go.”
Opener Jake Hardy starred with the bat, scoring 94 and 122 not out across his three digs Orange, while Brett Russell (63 not out), Tom Owen (60 not out) and Callum Rainger (49) all made solid contributions.
With the ball, skipper Broc Hardy was among the wickets, as were frontline spinners Chris Archer, Tom Owen and Conner Haddow.
While no doubt putting out a strong batting and bowling line-up, another strength of the young Central Coast side lies with its fielding, with Broc Hardy among one of the best fielders in the state.
The side also welcomes back star all-rounder Simon Keen from illness, with the former NSW state T20 and Sydney Thunder player to offer plenty of experience with both the bat and ball.
Players to watch
Broc Hardy
The skipper is a triple threat: an explosive batsman, dangerous bowler and excellent fielder.
Once he gets in he can really take the game away from teams, while he also well and truly proved his worth with the ball in the country championship qualifiers, recording figures of three for 37 and two for 45 with his off-spinners in the first two games.
Conner Haddow
The Englishman has been a star for the Central Coast with his left-arm spinners.
He took 11 wickets at just under nine in the three games in Orange, highlighted by the incredible return of seven for 24 against the ACT.
Simon Keen
Returning from illness, the 35-year-old will provide crucial experience to the young Central Coast side.
His medium pacers and middle-order batting will also play a huge role in any potential country championship win.
Where the game will be won and lost
Partnerships
This might seem like a no-brainer, but solid batting partnerships will be key to either posting a defendable target or chasing down a total.
“The main thing is: if you bat first, bat your 50 overs, don’t lose wickets in clumps and make sure you get partnerships together,” says Rainger.
“Usually if someone in your top five gets an 80 or goes on to get a hundred, you’ll usually have players batting around them. It’s a cliché, but it’s important.”
In fact, both sides paid the price for batting collapses, with Newcastle losing six for 13 in its heavy loss to North Coastal and the Central Coast losing four for 19 in the top order during its defeat to Riverina.
Spinners
Spin plays arguably the most important role for bowling sides in limited over cricket these days, and it won’t be any different at No 1 Sportsground on ground, with both sides enjoying an embarrassment of riches when it comes to the tweakers.
“Both teams have got excellent spinners. There are enough to bowl 25 or 30 overs in each innings,” says Redden.
“At this level of cricket, (taking the) pace off the ball seems to be hard for players to work around, and you’ve got to be able to sweep well.
“Both team’s spinners are very good, and you would think that they will have a huge amount to do with the outcome of the game for either team.”
In addition to Bills, Newcastle have fellow leggie Dan Chillingworth and off-spinner Nick Forster as their frontline tweakers, along with a number of other options.
Meanwhile the Central Coast have got their left-arm cartel of Chris Archer, Conner Haddow and Tom Owen as full-time spinners, as well as the likes of all-rounders like Broc Hardy – setting up a mouth-watering spin-off.
“We’ve known for a few years now that we’ve got good spinners. We’ve got left-arm spinners who are bowling well and who have always bowled well,” says Rainger.
“But Newcastle will attack our spinners. That’s our biggest factor: if they come out and attack our spinners, we’ve got to be able to fire back and take some wickets.”
No 1 Sportsground
With spin – and indeed, bowling in general – set to play a big role, the final may well be decided by which team best utilises No 1 Sportsground.
Fresh from an $8 million redevelopment, the ground has won plaudits for the state of the pitches, outfield and new lighting.
But it is also one of the bigger fields in regional NSW, which makes shot selection, field plans and running between the wickets all the more important.
“You’ve got to be able to have shots all around the wicket, you can’t get frustrated,” says Redden.
“If they give you men on the fence, you’ve got to hit that sweeper on a regular basis and accrue runs. The fielders and the fields that these sides set are good enough that if you want to go slogging, you’ll find yourself out.
“You got to play each ball on its merits, but you must take singles when they’re there and turn ones into twos. Newcastle No 1 Sportsground is a very big ground and there are lots of corners there. We need to run twos and threes, and it’s about playing really, really smart fundamentals.”
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