The best bowlers of the past decade in the Darwin and District Cricket Association by MyCricket data
Two Waratah brothers, a three-time premiership skipper and a Palmerston destroyer have made the list of the Darwin and District Cricket Association’s best bowlers. SEE WHO MADE THE LIST
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After highlighting the Territory’s best bats of the past decade recently, it is only fair the NT News shone a light on the most brilliant bowlers since season 2012 in the Premier Grade of the Darwin and District Cricket Association.
And it acknowledged a few all-rounders in the process, with Waratah’s James Seymour, fellow Red Cap leggie Brad Schmulian and three-time Darwin premiership skipper and left arm orthodox Luke Shelton making the cut with both lists.
However a few names were clearly above the rest, from Waratah spinner Udara Weerasinghe’s decade-high 321 wickets, followed by 224 poles from Luke Zanchetta.
NT cricket expert Grey Morris said there had been a big swing towards the slow men over the past decade, with eight inclusions in the Top Ten being spinners.
“Spin bowlers have thrived on the dry and flat wickets produced by a series of Top End curators, most of them inclined toward the art of off-spin and the more complex leg spinners,” Morris said.
However, he also paid tribute to the feats of the two fast and medium trundlers included for their tireless workload on local wickets, “many pundits called an extension to the Stuart Highway”.
SEE WHO MADE THE LIST WITH:
UDARA WEERASINGHE:
CLUB: Palmerston, Nightcliff, Waratah (2012-21)
SEASONS: 10
MATCHES BOWLED IN: 131
WICKETS: 321
RUNS CONCEDED: 5503
AVERAGE: 17.14
BEST BOWLING: 7/42
FIVE WICKET HAULS: 10
A well-known leader in the Darwin cricket community whether it’s through his coaching or his inspirational bowling.
He’s played at Palmerston, Nightcliff and most recently Waratah, consistently picking up wickets wherever he’s gone.
He has claimed the most wickets of any bowler over the past decade and is the only trundler in that period to have exceeded 300 wickets.
His off-spin exploits have dogged many a batsman and his skill with the ball doesn’t seem to be coming to an end anytime soon.
LUKE ZANCHETTA
CLUB: Darwin (2012-21)
SEASONS: 10
MATCHES: 105
WICKETS: 224
RUNS: 3666
AVERAGE: 16.03
BEST BOWLING: 6/24
FIVE WICKET HAULS: Seven
Zanchetta, a three-time premiership player with the Eagles (2015-17) and serial pest of Palmerston, has claimed the second highest number of wickets over the past decade.
The right-armer was a key reason why Waratah was rolled for just 96 in the 2015 decider, with Zanchetta snaring 3/27 off 13 overs.
With seven five-wicket hauls over a lengthy career in NT cricket – including 6/24 against Palmerston in 2018 – Zanchetta is an obvious selection in the Territory’s best bowlers list.
However, his best season came a year before, collecting 37 wickets at just 10.84, including 6/28 in another demolition job of Palmerston.
BRAD SCHMULIAN:
CLUB: Waratah (2012-18)
SEASONS: Six
MATCHES: 71
WICKETS: 191
RUNS: 3277
AVERAGE: 17.15
BEST BOWLING: 7/30.
FIVE WICKET HAULS: Seven
Easily one of the Territory’s best all-rounders of the past decade, Schmulian also made our Top Ten best bats.
The 2017 Ralph Weisse medallist, Waratah’s first, claimed 38 wickets at just 19 that record-setting year.
However, his biggest season bowling haul came four years earlier with 45 wickets at the miserly average of just 15.36, including a match haul of 14/122 against Palmerston.
LUKE SHELTON:
CLUB: Darwin (2014-20)
SEASONS: Six
MATCHES: 66
WICKETS: 183
RUNS: 2737
AVERAGE: 14.95
BEST BOWLING: 8/32
FIVE WICKET HAULS: 10
The three-time premiership skipper, who also made the Top Ten list for both batters and bowlers, spun a web come finals time.
He claimed a match-defining 4/27 off 24 overs in 2017, 3/9 off 8.1 overs against Palmerston in the Eagles’ 2016 triumph and a pole off the one ball he sent down in 2015 versus Waratah — plus an additional 2/26 in the second innings.
From those three grand finals, Shelton snatched 10 wickets at just 6.6 runs apiece.
HAMISH MARTIN:
CLUB: Palmerston, Tracy Village (2014-21)
SEASONS: Eight
MATCHES: 91
WICKETS: 185
RUNS: 3520
AVERAGE: 19.02
BEST BOWLING: 7/107
FIVE WICKET HAULS: 12
The Palmerston all-rounder has been weaving his magic from a young age.
And still only in his early 20s, Martin a long future in the game ahead of him.
He has been a standout since the age of 15, when in 2015 he took 38 wickets at 15.61 at Premier Grade level.
That earned him selection into the NT under-15s and under-17s representative sides and the nod as the NT junior cricketer of the year.
Snaring 6/66 against Nightcliff in 2021, Martin would be eyeing off a first class contract.
JAMES SEYMOUR:
CLUB: Waratah (2014-20)
SEASONS: Seven
MATCHES: 85
WICKETS: 164
RUNS: 3486
AVERAGE: 21.25
BEST BOWLING: 8/46
FIVE WICKET HAULS: Four
His batting has been well documented for the past few years, but Waratah’s Seymour is also a dominant force with ball in hand.
He was the bane of Tracy Village in 2018, where in one game he claimed 5/11 followed by 8/56 to seal an innings win for the Tahs.
His bowling performances have also caught the eye in Victorian Premier Cricket with the Essendon skipper picking up a very recent, very crucial 4/34.
BENJAMIN REICHSTEIN:
CLUB: Darwin, PINT (2012-21)
SEASONS: Eight
MATCHES: 92
WICKETS: 150
RUNS: 3318
AVERAGE: 22.12
BEST BOWLING: 6/36
FIVE WICKET HAULS: Four
The Centralian all-rounder burst onto the scene with some thrilling performances with bat and ball in 2012.
His best bowling included a thrilling 6/36 against Southern Districts and a 5/53 against Palmerston.
Outside of cricket, Reichstein can also be found on the racetrack, competing in his first season of Formula Ford racing in 2015.
CHRIS CAMPBELL:
CLUB: Palmerston, Waratah, Tracy Village (2012-21)
SEASONS: 10
MATCHES: 102
WICKETS: 141
RUNS: 4230
AVERAGE: 30
BEST BOWLING: 4/20
FIVE WICKET HAULS: 0
An accumulator rather than a big bag grabber, Campbell took nearly 150 wickets over the past decade without snaring a five-wicket haul.
However, his best season came in 2015 with 22 wickets at 23.59 for Waratah, which culminated in a Red Caps’ loss to Darwin in the 2015 grand final.
A three-club player over the past 10 years, Campbell took 1/40 off 12 overs in that decider.
MADURA WEERASINGHE:
CLUB: Waratah, Nightcliff (2012-2021)
SEASONS: Eight
MATCHES: 92
WICKETS: 127
RUNS: 3133
AVERAGE: 24.66
BEST BOWLING: 3/6
FIVE WICKET HAULS: 0
The brother of Udara is a standout himself, often picking up key wickets.
A 3/6 against PINT back in 2017 remains his best result according to MyCricket data and he continues to get the better of batters to this day.
He has played no small part in Waratah’s recent return to success and will have his eyes firmly set on that elusive five-wicket haul this season.
MATTHEW HAMMOND:
CLUB: Southern Districts, Palmerston (2012-21)
SEASONS: Nine
MATCHES: 92
WICKETS: 125
RUNS: 2749
AVERAGE: 21.99
BEST BOWLING: 5/36
FIVE WICKET HAULS: Four
The first-year Southern Districts skipper, who has been part of the club since his Under 15 days, was a premiership winner in 2019.
A consistent performer with the ball who never quite broke the 30 wickets-a-year barrier, Hammond’s best season was in that flag-claiming year where he claimed 26 wickets at just 15.35.
The NT Strike representative, who made an unbeaten 60 off 71 balls against an Cricket Australia XI at DXC Arena last season, also captained the Storm in the Strike League.
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