COAST CRICKET’S BIGGEST QUESTIONS ANSWERED

The art of swing bowling nudged Cupid off his chair the night Brad Markwell met his wife Linda Kaddatz, whose own rich family history melded into the perfect cricket cocktail.

See, Brad’s late father, Greg, owns the second-best figures in Gold Coast cricket history: 10-19, and in a grand final, if you don’t mind.

His unfathomable effort for Mudgeeraba against Palm Beach in the 1978 decider is stuff of legend – just ask Mr and Mrs Markwell.

“When I first met my wife and her family, I don’t know how we got on to cricket and I mentioned my dad and then Linda’s dad said ‘oh yeah, Greg Markwell’,” Brad, 43, said.

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“Her dad knew my dad from Gold Coast cricket – they played against each other.

“I couldn’t believe the history of that. Linda liked cricket so that made things easy.”

Her father Greg Kaddatz would be well aware of Markwell senior’s 10-for.

After all it’s a legend that also echoed into the generation of Linda’s brother and former Dolphins player Chris Kaddatz.

It carries on today with the Greg Markwell Medal being handed to the player of the grand final each year.

‘THE DAY I TOOK 9-8’

For Brad, who would go on to compile his own strong first grade journey as a fast-bowling all-rounder at Helensvale, he was one when his father’s spell shook Coast cricket.

“It was a big thing in a grand final, and an A-grade final, that was pretty crazy,” Brad said.

“But he was a pretty quiet man.

“It was only when I started playing and I realised how hard it is to get a wicket at all.

“I was coming home getting one or two wickets and dad would have said along the way ‘I got 10-for one day’ and I would have thought ‘no way’.”

Sadly, Markwell senior – who retired from cricket at 33 – passed away in 2006 aged 56 after a short battle with bowel cancer.

“I was in London at the time (of his diagnosis),” Brad said.

“They said ‘don’t worry, don’t come back’.

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“Then they said ‘you need to come back’ and I was on the plane and didn’t quite make it in time.”

Though with son Blake, 3, and daughter Jade, 7 months, the Markwell legacy may continue.

“Blake is already picking up the bat and playing in the yard,” Brad said.

“With the Markwell and Kaddatz connection they might be a future star.”

BUILDING OWN CRICKET STORIES

A 10-FOR is great but how many cricketers can say they know Lord’s intimately?

Brad’s cricket love took him to the home of the sport in 2002 when, at the behest of a mate, he jumped on a plane and headed to England.

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The Southport and Helensvale junior ended up working two years as a steward at the ground, helping home teams Middlesex and England.

After collecting a signed Andrew Flintoff shirt along the way, he then took an offer to work on the ground itself despite his lack of experience.

“It was a real eye-opener and I got to meet some great players,” he said.

“I couldn’t knock back working as curator at Lord’s.

“I learnt a few things along the way. I could probably look after a ground in England now but it’s a bit different here with the soil and things.”

A yearn for family and the infamously gloomy English weather hastened Markwell’s return home in 2011.

Brad immediately linked back with Helensvale and after helping the club reclaim a first grade spot then skippered the second grade side for two seasons.

In 2016 he celebrated his own rare sporting achievement by taking a hat-trick in the final over of a T20 game against Coomera, an effort he ranks near the top of his personal accolades.

He “retired” two years ago but was teased into playing a Masters v The Rest game last season.

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The ensuing three wickets and 53 not out reignited his fire for cricket.

The aches, pains and physio bill quickly quenched it again.

“They were knocking on my door after that effort (for the masters team),” said Brad, who now works night shifts at the Chempro pharmacy distribution centre at Molindinar.

“But I got an injury out of it – I’ve been to the physio three times and I’m still recovering.”

DROPPED CATCH, BIG PARTY

IT was a spell made possible by a dropped catch, finished in a fitting way and celebrated with brews from fishing gear.

Greg Markwell poetically claimed a caught and bowled to complete his 10-19 grand final rout in 1978/79, but a missed opportunity earlier in the day is the hidden story behind the freakish effort.

Former Mudgeeraba lower grade player Neville Taylor, who would go on to act as president of Cricket Gold Coast for 18 years until 2009, was there to cheer on his clubmates the day of Markwell’s mighty haul against Palm Beach Currumbin.

“There was a catch dropped at second slip off (fellow opening bowler) Des Ward in about the second or third over and of course if that had been taken Greg wouldn’t have got his 10-for,” Taylor said.

“Greg obviously bowled well and the last wicket was caught and bowled; Greg then threw the ball up on to the hill at TSS (to celebrate).

“People were jumping up all over the place.”

And then the party started.

“We ended up back at one of the homes and we celebrated long into the night,” Taylor said.

“Greg owned a sporting goods store and he had these fishing waders.

“So people were wearing these fishing waders around and they were full of beer: that’s what we were drinking out of.”

Markwell would finish his career recognised as a star on the Gold Coast circuit and representative team regular.

“He was a quiet man and wasn’t that big in stature, but he could play cricket,” Taylor recalled.

“He would definitely be in the best Gold Coast team of the past 40 years.

“He could move the ball and he was quite slippery

“Opener Des Ward was the guy who was on to you all the time so the batsmen tried to score at the other end of Greg.”

Teammate Greg Curtis admitted Markwell was hard to handle any day.

“He was slippery and you’d lose count the number of times he’d beat the bat,” he said.

“That day everything went perfectly.

“He was such an underrated cricketer.”