NSWYC Creak Shield
26 October 2025, Mittigar Oval, Blacktown
Manly Warringah won the toss and chose to bowl first under mild cloud cover, hoping to find some early swing. Oli and Virat opened the attack with impressive discipline, giving away 23 runs in the first six overs and keeping the Blacktown openers cautious.
The tight start continued as Tom and Liam took over, maintaining a steady line and building pressure through consistency. Despite the early control, Blacktown’s openers settled in and began to find their rhythm, building a strong partnership that reached 121 runs. The breakthrough finally came straight after the drinks break when Liam dismissed the opener, thanks to a sharp catch from Tom at mid-on.
Virat returned for his second spell, again bowling economically and testing the batters’ patience. His efforts paid off when Blacktown lost their second wicket at 162. Soon after, Zac chimed in with another wicket at 179, sparking some renewed energy in the field.
With nine overs remaining and seven wickets in hand, Blacktown shifted gears, attacking anything loose and pushing the run rate higher. Leo picked up the fourth wicket at 220, but the hosts finished the innings strongly at 258 for 5 from their 40 overs.
With a positive attitude and enduring team spirit, Jack and Sam went out to open our batting innings chasing 259. We started well getting 50 runs off the first 12 overs before losing our first wicket in the 13th over. Next in was Atticus and after getting a quick 17 run partnership, we lost another wicket in the 17th over. Leo came in next to bat, who partnered with Atticus getting us to drinks with 86 for 2 from our first 20 overs. In the 21 t over we unfortunately lost our third wicket and Archie went out to join Atticus at the crease, and they had a partnership of 31 before we lost our 4th wicket in the 29th over.
Felix was in next with a nice cameo of 10 off 12, followed by Zac and then Tim. Next to the crease was Liam getting us to the 37th before another wicket fell. Ollie and Tom batted next with Atticus, which got us to the 40 th over and a total of 9 for 173.
Overall, it was a great learning experience and brave effort, with a shoutout to Atticus getting 48 off 66 not out. Thank you to our coaches Justin and Craig for their support.
By Virat and Tim