Double century off 65 balls, 400-game milestone, spinners turning games

There were plenty of outstanding performers in local cricket on the weekend and we’ve rounded the stars with bat and ball across all the metropolitan competitions.

Champion Buckley Ridges spinner Wes Nicholas.

WHAT A BLAST

There was no six and out for Zac Rattray on Saturday. The Cheltenham Park opening batsman kept hitting sixes all the way past 200 as he completed a remarkable hand in D grade in the South East Cricket Association. The 20-year-old apprentice electrician cleared the boundary 23 times against Melbourne Dazzlers bowlers as he rocketed to 208 off only 65 balls. He went past 200 by hitting six sixes in one over. Rattray’s first century came off 35 deliveries and his second off 27 as his team stacked up 6-424 off 38 overs. It was his first ton in cricket. Rattray said he suspected he was in for a big score when he pulled the first ball of his innings through backward square for four. “I thought to myself, ‘Is this the day, hopefully today’s the day?’ It was. It was my day. Just a day out really. Sort of, see ball, hit ball, and it all paid off,’’ he said. Cheltenham Park captain Patrick Reaby said the innings was “the best knock I’ve ever seen, that’s for sure’’. He said the ball twice became stuck in trees as Rattray bombed the boundary. Reaby himself had a great match, cracking 83 and taking three wickets. But, like the Dazzlers bowlers, he was well and truly put in the shade by the rollicking Rattray.

Simon McEvoy gets clapped on to the ground for his 400th match for Langwarrin.

MILESTONE MAN

Leader scribe Simon McEvoy is a man of great modesty. He’ll want to strangle us for mentioning this, but he has been an outstanding cricketer and on Saturday he played his 400th match for Langwarrin. Of course, he told no one the milestone was approaching; his brother, Andrew, says he only found out because he’s in a what’s app group for the Langy scores. He passed the information on to us, suggesting a line or two on Simon would be appropriate. “Macca’’ was named vice-captain in Langwarrin’s team the century, has won numerous batting awards, played in premierships and represented the Mornington Peninsula Cricket Association, which he has reported on for the best part of 30 years (and never once mentioned his own accomplishments). He’s served Langy faithfully and often brilliantly, but it’s worth noting he opened the batting and received the first ball when Frankston Peninsula had its inaugural match in Premier Cricket in 1993-94. As Andrew McEvoy pointed out, Simon “hates the limelight, but deserves some of it’’. Well played.

300 UP

There was another notable milestone on the weekend, when Washington Park stalwart Daryl “Boomer’’ Meaklim turned out for his 300th game for the club. He’s done it all at the Sharks: gained life membership, been awarded best clubman, served as captain, and won flags and batting awards. Meaklim also played 185 matches at other clubs (Mackie and Bentleigh), meaning that with a bit of luck he could hit the 500-mark this season. “He’s a much-loved figure at the club, always the first one to ask players from the firsts, thirds or fifths how they went,’’ Washington Park president Chris Gorrie said. He said Meaklim was an outstanding player in his prime, “the bloke the opposition knew they had to get out because scores were built around him’’.

STAR SPINNER

In the Dandenong District Cricket Association, spinner Wes Nicholas played a big part in Buckley Ridges defeating North Dandenong in Turf 1. He took 4-43 off his 12 overs, a good return for Round 1. But without any fuss or fanfare Nicholas has built a remarkable record at Buckley. Club stalwart Chris Rattle points out that since MyCricket scoring began, Nicholas has taken 433 wickets for the club (including T20) at an average of 17.31. The Bucks have had quite a few first-class players in the past decade and Rattle said all of them had remarked on Nicholas’s ability, particularly English fast bowler Luke Fletcher.

Nathan Fowler bowling for Wallan.

FABULOUS FOWLER

Whittlesea president Blair Meeney described it as one of the best knocks he’d witnessed in almost four decades in the Diamond Valley association. Off-season signing Nathan Fowler, who is also a classy footballer for Wallan in the Riddell District league, helped himself to 13 sixes in a brutal knock of 163 as the Eagles claimed a thumping Mash Shield win over Hurstbridge. Meeney estimated Fowler “went from 20 to 160 in 60-70 balls” as Whittlesea piled on 6-309 from its 40 overs. “He hit them to all parts of the ground and some of the biggest sixes I’ve seen for a long time to be honest,” Meeney said.“For brutality, it’s probably the best knock I’ve ever seen.”

SEVEN UP

Still in the DVCA, Bundoora Park’s Vishesh Prasad enjoyed a memorable day out with a haul of 7-14 from 5.4 overs in the G3 Grade competition. After sending down six overs without success in the opening round, Prasad bowled five Hurtsbridge batsmen while two were caught as his team cruised to a 10-wicket victory.

COBRA STRIKES

In the North Metro association, Cobras recruit Dharaneswara Yerradimme returned superb figures of 6-14 from 5.1 overs to lead his side to a 103-run win over Cameron in Jika Shield.

Yerradimme claimed 11 scalps from 11 games for United Tarneit Sports Club last summer and went wicketless in the season-opener but looks a key inclusion for the top-flight club.

BRILLIANT BEAU

In his debut as Royal Park-Brunswick coach, Beau Carey put on an impressive display on Saturday. An off-season recruit from Strathmore, Carey led his team with both bat and ball in its VTCA Division 2 clash against St Andrews Pascoe Vale. The all-rounder claimed 3-47 in the first innings and top-scored with a fighting knock of 50. Sadly it wasn’t enough to drag his team over the line as the Parkers went down by 69 runs.

PROMOTION IN ORDER

VTCA Division 5 club East Coburg might need to move Satheesh Sivakumaran Fernandu up the order next week. Coming in at No. 6, with his team 4-59, Fernandu smashed a quick-fire 86 and by the time he’d fallen – last man out – had guided it to an imposing 223. However, he wasn’t done. Fernandu opened the bowling and ripped through the Sunshine YCW batting order, claiming 4-19, to cap an extraordinary all-round performance.

Matt Prosser bowling for Langwarrin. Picture: Valeriu Campan

MOVE OVER, WARNEY!

There’s a new leg-spinner on the scene and he may have even trumped the spin king. Langwarrin leggie Matt Prosser has had the sort of start to a season bowlers can only dream of. He took 5-4 in the Mornington Peninsula association season opener last week and on Saturday he snared 6-13 — giving him the breathtakingly good season figures of 11-17 off 11.4 overs. It’s no wonder Frankston Peninsula Heat tried hard in the off-season to lure Prosser, whose father, Robbie, played AFL for the Sydney Swans and also VFA for Springvale.

MCQUEEN THE KING

Seaford captain Ryan McQueen says he usually only brings himself on to bowl after “someone gets tonked’’. On Saturday the 34-year-old was the frontline destroyer after capturing the remarkable figures of 7-8 off eight overs to skittle Rye in MPCA Sub District. Rye was 2-36 off 16 overs when McQueen entered the attack with his “slow mediums’’. He started with a bang — a double wicket maiden — but even better was to come. In his sixth over McQueen nabbed three wickets as Rye crashed all out for 54 in the 31st over. “It happened quick, I tell you,’’ McQueen said. “It’s only just sinking in now, everyone messaging me. I’m like geez, it’s just cricket.’’ McQueen’s dazzling display wasn’t far short of the all-time bowling record in MPCA Sub District ranks. That’s held by Percy Thompson, who took 9-7 for French Island against Baxter in 1969-70.

SPIN A WINNER

You don’t see this every day. Parkdale’s spinners took all 10 wickets in its Cricket Southern Bayside clash with Bentleigh on Saturday. And the standout? That was Tej Gandhi who, after cracking 65 not out with the bat, took 5-6 off 8 overs with his left-arm offies.