Match Results from Singapore, Malta, Chester and Yorkshire

Match 1 v Singapore National Juniors at Kallang on 10 August 2011 – 30 over match

The Australians were pitted against a team of Singapore lads aged in the main sixteen years with a couple a year or two older.  They represented the cream of Singapore’s emerging young cricketers and it was a credit to the boys and their mentors that they were turned out so well.  Respectful of the advanced age of their opponents – in fact the Australians were collectively some 500 years older – the boys played admirably.

Never say age is no barrier – when compared with the athleticism of these teenagers – experience was no virtue either.  The lads simply outclassed the oldies with bat and ball while in the field they turned singles into twos while the Over 60s struggled to complete a single ahead of well directed throws from the outfield. Had the lads offered a handicap of two runs for every runs scored, the Over 60s would still have been beaten by three runs.

The Over 60s were in a word – rusty!  Having won the toss and electing to bat the Juniors maintained a steady seven runs per over throughout their thirty-over innings.  A very sound fifty by Vikas was the best innings of the day – like all the top order batsmen he was a fluent stroke player; all used their feet to advance down the wicket to nullify any turn off the matting stretched over a clay base.  The bowling was honest but lacked penetration in hot humid conditions which did little to assist the team climatise having arrived from the Australian winter earlier the morning of the match after the long flight from Melbourne.

In reply the Over 60s used the innings to provide practice to each batsman with most retiring after 25 balls faced.  Arthur Pritchard impressed with some fine square cuts to back up his effort in the field.  The run chase was never a reality but by the thirtieth over most batsmen had been given the opportunity to spend some time in the middle.

Scores: Singapore 217/4 (7ret) (Vikas 58r, Archit 26r, Anantha 25r, Varman 20r, Karthik 18r, Chirath 17*, Utsav 15*, Abhiraj 15; C Cook 1/32 (6), B Breakspeare 1/22 (5), R Chapman 1/14 (2), J Bell 1/10 (1), K Last 0/23 (4), R Agg 0/12 (2), A Reid 0/18 (3), M Gandy 0/26 (3), C Tobin 0/20 (1), A  Pritchard 0/32 (2)) defeated Australia O60’s 107/2 (4ret) (A Pritchard 21r, I Fraser 21r, B Breakspeare 13r, K Last 12*; J Bell 2, R Agg 9r, C Tobin 4, A Reid 5*; Archit 1/7) by 110 runs.

Match 2 Intra Club Practice at Marsa Sports Club, Malta on 12 August 2011

A practice match between the Australian Over 60s Test XI and the Social XI was arranged with the batters from each team facing the bowlers from each team.  It proved a worthwhile excerise after a long 20 hour haul from Singapore the previous day.

The Marsa Sports Club cricket ground was once the province of the British Command – the exclusive club the domain solely of the English until the island gained its independence.  The wicket was synethic matting stretched over a clay base similar to that in Singapore.  It played very slow and scoring was quite predestrian.  Most batters retired after a short hit out.

Australia B 121/2 (6ret) (R Wilson 23r, G Lott 19r, C Wundersitz 14r, D Braidner 13, G Crole 14r, R Matters 1/14, G Healy 1/20 and Australia A 95/1 (7ret) (C Tobin 15r, J Bell 15r, I Fraser 11r, R Agg 10r, A Pritchard 1r, D Truman 8r, C Cooke 7*, A Reid 2*, D Axelby 0; M Gandy 1/10 (6), C Cooke 0/18 (6), R Axelby 0/6 (6), A Reid 0/9 (6), K Last 0/8 (6), I Fraser 0/12 (3), R Agg 0/7 (3), D Axelby 0/7 (2).

Match 3  v Malta at Marsa Sports Club, Malta on 14 August 2011 – 40 over match

Australia Over 60s batted first and totalled 127 with the majority of runs coming from the bat of Ian Fraser who regularly found the gaps to compile 43 before retiring.  He was well supported by Chris Tobin and Dennis Axelby who also retired with 17 each and Arthur Pritchard with a steady 14 retired.

In reply Malta squeezed out victory with four overs to spare thanks to a youthful English lad, George Agius, who threw hit bat lustily 30*.  The locals innings was well founded by an opening stand of 38 by Nowell Khosla and Paul Bradley.  Arthur Pritchard, the most successful Australian bowler, was on a hat trick.  Spinners Denis Axelby and Mike Gandy also took wickets.

Scores: Australia Over 60s 127/2 (4ret) (I Fraser 43r, C Tobin 17r, D Axelby 17r, A Pritchard 14r, R Agg 9, A Reid 9*, D Truman 7*, J Bell 3; S Ali 2/26) lost to Malta 131/6 ( P Bradley 37, G Agius 30*, N Khosla 17, S Aquilina 15, P Naudi 12; A Pritchard 3/16 (8), D Axelby 2/17 (5), M Gandy 1/16 (2.1), C Cooke 0/15 (5), R Axelby 0/22 (7), A Reid 0/29 (6), K Last 0/12 (3) by four wickets.

Match 4 v Chester Spitfire Over 60’s at Chester Boughton Hall, Chester on 16 August 2011 – 45 over match

The first match on English soil by the Australians was a disaster; this after a promising start to the innings with Brian Breakspeare and Chris Tobin striking the ball fluently reaching 50 in the twelth over. Tobin proved the best of the Australians; unfortunately he suffered a calf injury and was forced to bat with a runner.  Despite this handicap his 41 including six fours was a sound knock. 

With the dismissal of both openers the run rate slowed and didn’t regain ascendancy over the tight medium pace Chester attack and three successive run outs saw the game swing in favour of the Chester eleven.  In the end 164/8 off 45 overs was never likely to challenge.

The English opening pair saw to that  and the Australian bowlers could not contain Nick Sharpe and Ian Brown who added 150 before Brown was unlucky to be given lbw in the twenty fourth over.  The match was all over in the twenty sixth over.

The outcome was a huge awakening for the Australians as the English team was far more competitive than realized. Perhaps too the fact they have been playing constant cricket for four months added to the differential between the teams.

Scores: Australia Over 60s 164/8 (C Tobin 41, J Bell 29, B Breakspeare 26, K Last 24, I Fraser 12, A Pitchard 9, D Axelby 7, D Truman 6*, A Reid 0, C Cooke 0*, Sundries 9; B Yardley 2/35, C Lees 2/24, T Williams 1/22, H Morris 0/29, R Powell 0/16, A  Hitchmough 0/10, K Crofton 0/19) lost to Chester Over 60s 165/1 (N Sharpe 77*, I Brown 68, A Hitchmough 9*, Sundries 11; R Axelby 1/25 (5), C Cooke 0/40 (5.4), B Breakspeare 0/9 (3), A Pritchard 0/21 (2), M Gandy 0/23 (5), D Axelby 0/23 (5), A Reid 0/14 (1)) by nine wickets with 18.1 overs in hand.

Match 5 v Yorkshire Spitfire Over 60s at Great Ayton on 17 August 2011 – 45 over match

An improved performance by the Australians.  Yorkshire proved a tough competitor which was to be expected as it leads the Spitfire Over 60s League.  Their bowling was tight rather than penetrative but the Australian batsmen missed scoring opportunities by failing to turn ones into twos – the result a total some thirty below a competitive score.  Rob Agg was the mainstay with a patient 47* while Brian Breakspeare and John Bell made good contributions.  I52 from 45 overs was never to be enough.

There is no doubt about the English batters – most play consistently and often.  Opener Mick Rawlings was outstanding and carried his bat to the end with 73.

The bowling showed much improvement from the previous day.  Skipper Ron Axelby was very accurate – unlucky not to gain success but his nine overs included four maidens.

Scores: Australia Over 60s 152/4 (R Agg 47*, B Breakspeare 3, J Bell 29,  I Fraser 19*, R Chapman 12, A Pritchard 1, Sundries 11; A Harrison 1/15, A Steers 1/13, D Chapman 1/13, D Addison 1/22) lost to Yorkshire Over 60s 156/4 (M Rawlings 73*, A Steers 24, D Wyrill 16, N Fox 11; C Cooke 1/29 (9),  A Pritchard 1/12 (3), I Fraser 1/17 (3), R Axelby 0/17 (9), D Axelby 0/28 (7), K Last 0/7 (1.3) by six wickets.

Injuries continue to mount – this time to paceman Colin Cooke and spinner Mike Gandy.  With opener Chris Tobin and all-rounder Ross Chapman nursing calf muscle problems and Alan Reid and Rob Agg also suffering the team looked forward to a rest day before the Test match on Friday.