Melbourne, EMP have been crowned Premier Cricket’s premiership team for 2019-20
With the finals series cut short by three weeks, Cricket Victoria had to make a call about awarding men’s and women’s premierships. It has gone with Melbourne and Essendon Maribyrnong Park.
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And the flag goes to …. Melbourne.
After 48 hours of waiting and debating, the Demons were today declared the Victorian Premier Cricket 2019-20 men’s premiership team.
The Cameron White-captained Melbourne finished third on the ladder after the home-and-away season, behind Melbourne University and Footscray.
But after week one of the finals it became the “highest ranked’’ side after it thrashed the Bulldogs and Uni stumbled against Northcote in the qualifying finals.
The semi-finals, preliminary finals and grand final were to follow but with the season scrapped because of the coronavirus crisis the Demons are premiers.
There had been speculation Cricket Victoria would award no premiership for the season or recognise Melbourne University for its top-of-the-ladder finish.
On social media Carlton star Evan Gulbis argued the finals were not “a re-rank every week’’.
“It is a structured draw with a crossover for a loss in (a) double chance game. I could argue that Northcote are now in Prelim 1,’’ he said.
But it will go in the books as Melbourne’s 21st flag and its first since 2013-14.
And for Adam Dale it’s his second premiership as coach.
He was captain and coach when the Demons defeated St Kilda in 2009-10.
Dale is stepping down from the role.
“I told Melbourne a month ago, because I wanted to give the club the best opportunity to get the best candidate,’’ he said.
“I leave on really good terms. Melbourne is a wonderful club, and I’ve loved being part of it.
“My job, with others, was to put the club in a stronger position than what we were. We have done that by having good representation in the Under 17 and Under 19 (state) teams and our higher XI players are performing well. Three of the four men’s teams were in finals.
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“We have a good culture, we’ve got strong leaders, a really talented and enjoyable group. It’s a good time to pass it over.’’
Dale returned to Melbourne club midway through the 2017-18 season.
“We were under pressure as a club,’’ he said. “There was a job to be done and everyone has bunkered down and contributed. Credit to the whole club to get to this position. But there’s still lots of work to be done and it needs another person to do that because I don’t have the time … coaching a District team in the current environment is nearly a full-time job.’’
Dale said Melbourne’s strength this season was its “collective desire to improve’’.
He said young swing bowler Fergus O’Neill and batsman Blake Thomson (who topped Melbourne’s run list this season with 719 at 59.92) had “lots of upside’’, South African leggie Kyle Williamson would “create lots of discussion’’ and Sam Harper, Will Pucovski and Jackson Coleman were ‘’wonderful talents with really good futures’’.
Dale also has high hopes for a younger brigade that includes Marcus Jackman, Campbell Kellaway and Xavier Buxton.
Essendon Maribyrnong Park is the women’s premiership team.
It finished on top of the ladder and defeated Plenty Valley in the semi-final to go through to the grand final against second-placed Prahran.
Briana Binch took three wickets in the semi to lift her tally this season to 36.
Alyssa Humphries (34) and Taylah Lynn (33) made the bulk of the runs as EMP chased down PV’s 107.
In a statement this afternoon Cricket Victoria said the declaration of all premierships and the cancellation of the rest of the season was unprecedented in Victorian cricket.
“This is a first for the competition,’’ CEO Andrew Ingleton said.
“From Cricket Victoria’s perspective we are very disappointed that the finals, at all levels, were not able to proceed and allow us to determine winners through the normal course of events.
“But we have a duty to follow the advice of Cricket Australia’s Chief Medical Officer and the State and Federal health agencies to support the current public health measures to reduce the transmission risk of coronavirus in Victoria.”
Cricket Victoria Board chairman Paul Barker said: “I know some clubs and players will be frustrated with the premierships that have been determined through this process.
“Without a precedent for the impact of a global health pandemic on our competition, Cricket Victoria management relied on the existing rules of the Premier competition in making this determination. The final determinations were unanimously supported by the Board.”
“On behalf of Cricket Victoria, I would like to congratulate all of those clubs declared premiers today, albeit in a vastly differently landscape to what we are all used to.”
CV also said it had cancelled this season’s Premier Cricket awards as a public event.
The winners of the Jack Ryder Medal and Una Paisley Medal and other club and player awards will be announced to clubs and the public in coming weeks.
PREMIERSHIP TEAMS
2019-20 Women’s Premiers
First XI 2019-20 One Day Premiership: Essendon Maribyrnong Park Ladies Cricket Club
Second XI 2019-20 One Day Premiership: Box Hill Cricket Club
2019-20 Men’s Premiers
First XI Premiership: Melbourne Cricket Club
Second XI Premiership: Prahran Cricket Club
Third XI Premiership: Ringwood Cricket Club
Fourth XI Premiership: Dandenong Cricket Club