Scotch College

Great endeavour in Brisbane cricket carnival

Scotch finished fourth out of 10 teams in the annual under 16 cricket carnival in Brisbane, held in early December. This was a very creditable performance, considering that our boys were often matched against teams of boys up to two years older.

Thirteen Scotch Year 8 and 9 boys participated in the carnival, which included teams from Western Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. Hosted by Brisbane Boys College, the carnival is a well-organised annual cricket competition, and an important feature of the Cricket Development Program at Scotch. The carnival provides an opportunity for participants to meet students from different backgrounds in a sporting and a social context.

Our boys showed great endeavour, involvement and enthusiasm throughout the carnival, despite seven consecutive days of 35-degree-plus heat and high humidity. The heat sapped a lot of our energy and made the return to our air-conditioned accommodation a pleasant experience at the end of each match.

The Scotch team won three out of five matches, and there were some excellent performances.

Maurice Clayton, who was selected in the representative side after the carnival, was the best performer. He was the leading run maker with 189 (including scores of 60, 46 and 57) and the leading wicket taker with nine wickets.

The most improved cricketer was Matt McLellan. Batting with great application and determination, he scored 146 runs (including 65 not out and 40). Other good performances were by Seb Mather (42 not out), Nick Cox (39 and 35) and Max Van den Broek (three wickets for 13). Several bowlers captured two wickets in an innings – Harry Webber, Patrick Swan, James Lindsay (twice) and Kaine Reynolds.

Tours of this nature allow boys to expand their cricket and life experiences. The Brisbane carnival provided opportunities for our boys to live away from home and meet new friends. It also allowed the boys to experience different types of turf wickets, weather and playing conditions, and gave students from different year levels the opportunity to meld into a single cohesive unit representing Scotch College.

The behaviour of the boys was beyond reproach, and the team was very grateful for Mr Peckham’s organisational and coaching role on tour.

Ian Banks
Teacher-in-Charge of Cricket

A great cricket and life experience

Three boys from King Edward’s School, in Birmingham, England, spent a month at Scotch during first term as part of the schools’ cricket exchange program.

Now in its fourth year, this program enables boys from the two countries to immerse themselves in the partner school, and in particular its cricket program. The English boys – Roly Grant, Amar Shanghavi and Simon Grant – who were hosted by Ed Barbour, Sebastian Mather and Max Van Den Broek respectively, had an enjoyable time attending Year 9 classes and representing the Year 9A cricket team.

It has been a great experience for them, and all boys indicated they had improved their cricket and learned an enormous amount about the Australian way of life. Ed Barbour, Sebastian Mather and Max Van Den Broek will travel to the UK in second term and spend a month at King Edward’s School.

Robert Mclaren
Head of Middle School

Come in, spinner - Nick's century of APS Wickets

When Scotch 1st XI leg-spinner Nick Smith took his 100th APS wicket in the Tait Cup match against Geelong Grammar in February, he became the first Scotch bowler to achieve this feat in APS cricket – a search of the archives doesn’t reveal a parallel achievement.

Nick’s slow-bowling feats have often carried the Scotch attack, and he says he has a simple philosophy about success in cricket – and in life. ‘A ship in a harbour is safe, but that’s not what

it’s built for,’ he says. In other words, get out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself to do as well as you possibly can.

Nick says the highlight of his APS career came in 2002–03, when as a young player he participated in a Scotch cricket premiership. He achieved his best bowling figures this season against Wesley – 6 for 39, and reached his 100th wicket in the next game. Although batting is not his forte, he has a highest score of 60 not out to his credit.

Footnote: We believe only three other players have taken 100 wickets in APS cricket: Simon O’Brien and Jack McNamara (both of Xavier) and James Sutherland of Geelong Grammar. James is now the CEO of Cricket Australia.