Shaun Fankhauser reveals happiness leading to success at the crease for Ocean Grove

Grubber Shaun Fankhauser has revealed his secret to his success this season, with more than 270 runs coming in his past three games.

BPCA A1: Ocean Grove v Jan Juc at Ray Menzies Oval. Ocean Grove batsman Shaun Fankhauser made 106 not out Picture: Mark Wilson

A happy club is the secret to success, according to the BPCA A1’s leading run scorer.

Shaun Fankhauser has piled on 387 runs in seven innings, including two centuries, and leads the competition with an average of 64.5 for Ocean Grove.

The Grubbers sit inside the top four ahead of Saturday’s clash against Anglesea, with Fankhauser excited at the prospect of challenging the ladder leaders.

“I think we can finish second, there are four teams fighting for that spot you would think, Anglesea pretty much has that top spot,” he said.

“If we can sneak into second or third it means we won’t play Anglesea until the grand final if we get there, and I think we have the team to knock them off.

“We’re the last team to beat them in the grand final, so why can’t we do it again.

“I think a lot of teams are a bit defeated when they come up against them, they just think they’ll lose against them, but losing (Dale) Kerr and Ned (Cooper) were big losses.”

BPCA A1: Ocean Grove v Jan Juc at Ray Menzies Oval. Ocean Grove batsman Shaun Fankhauser made 106 not outPicture: Mark Wilson

Fankhauser is not the only Grubber experiencing personal success in the 2022-23 season, with Michael Thornton sitting inside the top 10 run scorers in the competition with 174 runs at 34.8, while Bailey Le Maistre took his first senior five wicket haul against Jan Juc.

The opening batter said the environment around the club was the key to his success this season.

“The club is really happy at the moment, everyone is in a good space and we’re playing decent cricket, the captaining from Dan (Roddis) has been really good and everyone is just happy and having fun,” he said.

“I think that having an atmosphere like that has helped me improve my game, it’s sort of taken the stress out of it a bit.

“I do think that I’m seeing the ball well, and that’s pretty much it to be honest.

“Bailey did a bit of everything to get his wickets, he’s just hard to play against.

“He bowls this sort of leg-spin that’s actually pace, so it can be really hard to face and hard to get away, and blokes just try to spank him everywhere and they get themselves out.

“It’s a really good confidence for him that he can take plenty of wickets at this level.”

Originally published as Shaun Fankhauser reveals happiness leading to success at the crease for Ocean Grove