GPS First XI cricket: Who are the sons - and brothers - of old boy guns?
GPS First XI cricket 2022: Who are the sons – or brothers – of old boy cricket guns? We reveal the family ties around the GPS First XI scene.
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The current batch of GPS First XI teams are littered with names familiar with the respective college sporting communities.
This season’s intake of cricketers includes two of the most famous names in Queensland cricket history - Love and McDermott.
Brisbane Grammar School opener Matthew Love is the son of the great Martin Love who scored a remarkable 11,224 runs for the Bulls in Sheffield Shield cricket, at an average of 46.
When Queensland won its first ever Shield in 1994-95, No.3 Love scored a first innings 146.
The former Test batsman of course attended Toowoomba Grammar School - not BGS where his son schools.
RELATED LINKS
Ron Cochrane, the doyen of GPS sport, rates Martin Love the best GPS batsman he has seen - even better than the World Test No.1 batsman Marnus Labuschagne (BSHS).
So here is a list of current First XI players who are upholding family traditions.
Zac McDermott is the son of Queensland great and Test fast bowling champion Craig McDermott.
They don’t get much better than McDermott who was world class, despite carrying for Australian attack on his young shoulders half a decade in the 1980s. Then Warne arrived, Ian Healy went behind the stumps and things got easier for McDerrmott, a fitness fantatic.
He took 291 Test wickets and 329 Shield wickets for Queensland, evolving from a tearaway quick to learn to bowl on flat tracks like the Adelaide Oval.
Late in his career, and after he retired, passed that knowledge of bowling on unfriendly pace pitches down to the line to the next generation of Queensland quicks.
ST JOSEPH’S GREGORY TERRACE
If the Campbell name sounds familiar, it should. Tom Campbell is Terrace’s batting ace and off-spin bowling trump who follows in the footsteps of his brother, Will, a member of Terrace’s 2020 GPS premiership winning team. Another brother, George, was a Second XI player in 2018.
Tom Casey also has a proud past - his grandfather played Firsts at Terrace.
THE SOUTHPORT SCHOOL
There is no more famous surname in TSS history than the Veivers family, and another Veivers name has popped up this season. Medium pacer Cooper Veivers is the nephew of Bo who, in 1998, was named the all-rounder of the season (Paul Norris Trophy) and the bowler of the season (Westcott Family Trophy).
Zac McDermott is Craig’s son, but Zac is an outstanding cricketer in his own right. He made our round 1 Team of the Week, and was “this close’’ to making our round 3 Team of the Week as well after a splendid effort with bat and ball at the weekend.
Of course Zac’s brother Alistair, a TSS old boy, was a Queensland Bulls Sheffield Shield winner who, in 20 matches, took 75 wickets at just 26. And Australian T20 player Ben McDermott is a Churchie First XI old boy.
RELATED LINKS
GPS TEAM OF THE WEEK - ROUND 2
GPS TEAM OF THE WEEK – ROUND 1
NUDGEE COLLEGE
You’d think you were seeing double if you were following the Nudgee College Firsts this season, with four brothers following in the footsteps of older siblings.
Lachlan Russell is the brother of Kallum Russell, Matt Fielding is the brother of Dan Fielding and Jack Balkin is following in the footsteps of Tom Balkin, one of the state’s best young prospects.
And of course no Nudgee First XI side would be complete without a McFadyen - this year all-rounder Fergus McFadyen follows on from Connor and Noah - an unlucky omission from the Australian under 19 squad.
BRISBANE BOYS COLLEGE
The apple does not fall far from the tree at BBC, with pace bowler Pat Gibson the brother of big hearted First XI old boy Will, and leg-spinning all-rounder Samuel Bell the young brother of Charlie Bell. Will Gibson helped BBC to a shared premiership in 2020 (with Terrace), while Charlie played 2018-19. There is a nice footnote to the Gibson story. Pat and Will’s dad Brendon, the BBC’s home game scorer, also played First XI cricket - but at Brisbane State High School.
BRISBANE GRAMMAR SCHOOL
BGS has old boy connections left, right and centre.
Look no further than the home ground scorer, Simon Tolhurst, for old boy connections. He must have been filled with pride watching his son Angus anchor BGS’s victory over Terrace last Saturday. Simon Tolhurst was BGS First XI player No.1 551.
And while on the scorers theme, young Ollie Spence has a link to one of the Queensland cricket great officials - his grandfather was Bob Spence who has had the QCA 4th Grade competition named in his honour.
Matthew Love, who scored 96 not out late last season for the Firsts and who has played in the team’s opening two rounds this season, is the son of Martin Love as stated earlier in this year.
Ethan Du Payne, who swept to produce a crucial run out at the weekend against Terrace, is the son of Matthew De Payne who is a Valley club stalwart.
First XI squad member Ben Mooney is also the son of Phil Mooney who captained one of BGS’s finest First XI teams.
TOOWOOMBA GRAMMAR SCHOOL
Australian rules football devotees will instantly know the name Samson Ryan, the young Richmond Tigers ruckman. What they might not know is that Samson Ryan was also a First XI gun and that his young brother, Jem Ryan, is the TGS fast bowling enforcer.
Another link to the past is Cooper Webster whose dad Chris was a First XI player. Earlier this season Webster took one of the great GPS First XI catches.
BRISBANE STATE HIGH SCHOOL
In this season’s First XI BSHS heritage squad is Brayden Meegama, whose brother Maynard Meegama is an established grade player after representing the First XI in 2018.
ANGLICAN CHURCH GRAMMAR SCHOOL
Churchie’s Lachlan Cooper has a nice story around his family’s involvement in school cricket. His grandfather played GPS First XI in Sydney for Kings College, while his father was a Second XI cricketer at The Southport School “so there’s always a bit of banter whenever Churchie plays TSS’’, Cooper joked.
RELATED LINKS
GPS FIRST XI – PLAYERS TO WATCH
GUN GPS FIRST’S OLD BOYS XI TO HELP THE HEAT, BULLS
FOOTNOTE: Ipswich Grammar School’s First XI players do not have family links to past First XI cricketers.
OUR COVERAGE CONTINUES ON SATURDAY
ROUND 4
Brisbane State High School v Terrace
The Southport School v Churchie
Ipswich Grammar School v Brisbane Grammar School
Brisbane Boys College v Nudgee College
Bye: TGS
Originally published as GPS First XI cricket: Who are the sons - and brothers - of old boy guns?
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