By Nick Creely
This was no ordinary piece of silverware for all involved at St Brigid’s/St Louis.
They’ve defied, stunned and brushed aside all those in their wake, no matter the opposition, in what had been a truly remarkable Twenty20 campaign for a club that is in the second tier of the Dandenong District Cricket Association.
It’s now likely to be arguably the proudest moment in club history.
The men from the Cave ended their Dandenong District Twenty20 season with a stunning premiership, defeating yet another giant of the association on Wednesday night at Shepley Oval, Berwick – a side led by Matt Chasemore that has been one of the most consistent forces in Twenty20 cricket in the state, let alone the country.
“It was a great campaign for the Twenty20 side – it was a great win, we beat all the big boys,” said proud club president Noel Fitzgibbon.
“I’m very proud of the boys, they’ve done a sensational job, beating the big boys of the DDCA, to Springvale South, to Buckley (Ridges), and then Berwick, the state champions.”
The club’s remarkable run towards the Twenty20 premiership started back on 24 October, ironically against Berwick, where they were absolutely thumped after a Nathan Pilon century, before bouncing back a few weeks later against Cranbourne. The third round saw them slump to a 1-2 record after a shock loss to Doveton, but evened the ledger with a comfortable victory over Springvale a week later.
They then managed to scrape their way through to the quarter-finals with a strong win at home against Narre Warren. And that’s where things took a stunning turn.
Severe underdogs, the men from the Cave met the powerhouse Springvale South away from home, but superbly defended 147 against a star-studded Bloods, setting up a crunch semi final against Buckley Ridges at Park Oval.
The Bucks sent the ball whizzing the boundary to set the visitors a steep 195, but Vaib Deshpande had other ideas, blasting 104 as his side got home in the dying moments.
It all came down to Wednesday’s grand final against the Bears – the third Turf 1 powerhouse in a row – at the home of the Dandenong Cricket Club.
On a batting track that has seen plenty of runs this season, Chasemore’s side wasted little time and chose to bat, racking up 7/159 off their overs, with Matthew Hayes doing well with 2/33. But it was the great Nathan Pilon that once again shone, blasting 59 to cap off an extraordinary season with the white ball.
As they have for the entirety of the tournament, they had their backs against the wall in the chase, with Deshpande and Jarrod Munday falling in the opening overs to leave them 2/8, with class acts Blade Baxter (2/27) and Brendan Rose (2/25) using all of their brilliance to immediately swing the game in the Bears’ favour.
Mark Jamieson (32) and Liam Harris (19) fought hard to try and tick the scoreboard, but the Bears’ experience and class with the white ball saw them slump to 4/65 and in danger of the game slipping away.Enter Matthew Hayes, who played his best knock of the season…..and at just the right time.
Hayes took the bowling on to great success, sending nine fours and a six to the boundary on his way to 65 – his highest score of the season – drawing the underdogs close.
Skipper Jeremy Heys (20 not out) took it upon himself to be the finisher, slamming a six over the ropes in the final over of the match, and suddenly, the Saints were no longer the underdogs, they were the champions of the Twenty20 caper of the DDCA.
Fitzgibbon said the no one at his club will forget the moment the winning runs were scored – for a club that doesn’t demand the same attention as some of the powerhouses, these moments are made to savour.
“It was one of the biggest wins the club’s ever had – the boys all play for each other, we’re a tight knit group, and they all played their part,” Fitzgibbon said.
“We believed in ourselves, and our ability – there’s been a few boys at the club that have been around for a long time, and they’ve been very good cricketers.
“We had a squad of about 15 that all contributed and played their part, and we just didn’t fear anyone. We believed we could do it.
“It’d be one of the better wins for this club – we were formed in 1954, we’ve won Turf 1 premierships, in the FDCA, BTCA, and for us to win this one, it’ll certainly be treasured.”
Fitzgibbon said that the camaraderie and leadership in the side is second to none, and praised the players, who excelled under skipper Jeremy Heys this tournament.
“Jeremy’s been a leader for a number of years, he’s our spiritual leader,” he said.
“But they all play their part – there’s also a number of leaders, not just Jeremy. Pat Jamieson, Mark Jamieson, the boys that have been there for a long time, they just know what to do.
“They’re all leaders themselves in their own right.”
Fitzgibbon now hopes the stunning momentum of his Twenty20 champions can be translated to the home-and-away season, with a crunch day two clash against Parkmore Pirates essentially an elimination final for the group in Turf 2.
“It is (season defining) – we’re certainly looking forward to Saturday, and hopefully getting a win. We want to make finals, and do something similar to what we did in the T20 comp,” he said.
“We’re focused, and we will definitely take that momentum into Saturday. We’re confident we will, but we’ll see how we go.”
ST BRIGID/ST LOUIS TWENTY20 CHAMPIONS (T20 stats)
Vaib Deshpane – 251 runs at 41.8, 4 wickets at 39.5, economy of 7.1
Mark Jamieson – 119 runs at 19.8
Jarrod Munday – 79 runs at 26.3, 1 catch, 3 stumpings
Liam Harris – 128 runs at 42.7, 4 wickets at 23, economy of 7.1
Matthew Hayes – 110 runs at 55, 2 wickets at 37.5, economy of 9.4
Clinton Gottinger – 90 runs at 18
Jeremy Heys (capt) – 83 runs at 20.8
Alamdar Raza – 36 runs at 12, 4 wickets at 30, economy of 7.1
Patrick Jamieson – 39 runs at 19.5, 8 wickets at 13.8, economy of 8.8
Ryan Malcolm – 9 runs, 8 wickets at 18.1, economy of 6.6
Kane Hutchinson – 5 wickets at 26.8, economy of 8.9
