Portarlington cricketers Chris Dunne and Steve Dowie set to hit 300 and 200-game milestones

Two Portarlington stalwarts will bring up 500 combined games for the club this weekend.

Two D Grade hat-tricks, a pair of C Grade premierships 10 years apart, enduring mateship and coaching the next generation of women’s cricketers have been the biggest highlights of a combined 500 games between two loyal Portarlington cricketers.

Chris Dunne and Steve Dowie will play in their 300th and 200th milestone matches respectively this Saturday in C Grade against Barrabool at Belmont Common North.

The numbers from league statistician Ian Caldwell reveal Dunne has made 43 runs short of 4000 in that time, plus 338 wickets, while Dowie has stroked 2581 runs and taken 163 wickets, since joining the club in the late 1990s.

And Dunne, a home loan broker, comes into the Round 5 match in good nick, having made an unbeaten 77 last Saturday against Ocean Grove in a six-wicket win.

Steve Dowie and Chris Dunne will play their 200th and 300th games respectively against Barrabool. Picture: Mark Wilson

Dunne is also a strong contributer with the ball, taking his first hat-trick in D Grade two summers ago.

However, it’s the friendships they’ve made along the way which both players treasure the most.

“I’m more about team success,” Dunne said, who has won C Grade flags in 2004 and 2014 as skipper.

“But as you get older your enjoy your milestones with your mates.

“I just love cricket, I always have.”

Dunne arrived at the club in 1997, after starting his senior career at 14 years of age in Kyabram, and then a stint at Glen Iris CC.

Only knowing one bloke at a local club, then Demons president Ken Chisholm, he made his way to Portarlington for a hit at the age of 31.

“The A Grade at that stage was absolutely a brilliant team,” Dunne recalled of that golden era.

“We won three A Grade flags in a row ... (I thought) this club is something different.”

Entering his 26th season at Portarlington, Dunne has been a model of consistency.

“I’ve never missed a season since the age of 14, I’ve always played senior cricket,” he said.

“I’ve only missed because of injury or missed one week because of my wedding.”

Dowie and Dunne both arrived at the club in the late 1990s. Picture: Mark Wilson

Dunne has been one of a core group in the C Grade over many seasons, including Dowie, James Harvey, club president Mark Tilders, Tim Benham and keeper Peter Evans — he played his 300th last season and captained the 04 flag.

Meanwhile, Dowie arrived at the club around the same time as his mate Dunne, and was 12th man in a D Grade premiership in 1997.

“I’ve lived in Port all my life but didn’t really play a lot of cricket,” he said.

“It’s the only one I’ve ever played at.

“A couple of seasons where I haven’t played through old legs or what not.”

While premiership success has eluded him, and there was a D Grade hat-trick many summers ago against St Leonards, it’s the mateship which keeps him coming back.

Former Portarlington president Peter Evans played his 300th game last summer.

“The people involved are always good,” he said.

“We tend to attract really good people at this place.

“’Dunney’ loves a beer and so do I so we have a few of those together as well.

“The people are the ones that make it (special), it’s your teammates.

“That’s probably what I look forward to the most.”

Dowie also has a strong hand in the club’s future, guiding the women’s team which includes his daughters, Isabelle, 17 and Grace, 15.

“I get a fair bit out of it,” he said.

“They’re keen to learn and get better.

“I didn’t think either of them would be interesting in playing.”

Originally published as Portarlington cricketers Chris Dunne and Steve Dowie set to hit 300 and 200-game milestones