Captains for 2022-23 season

First XI – Jakson Knight

Second XI – Craig Butterfield

Third XI – Haydn Shaw

Fourth XI – Sullivan Gould

Congratulations and Good luck to the Captains for the 2022/23 season in the VSDCA

 

Spotswood CC joins Subbies

Spotswood Cricket Club are thrilled to announce that we will be joining the Victorian Sub District Cricket Association (VSDCA) from the 2021-22 season.
4 clubs, Donvale CC, Port Melbourne CC, Strathmore CC and Spotswood CC were admitted in to the newly expanded VSDCA.
After an association with the VTCA from 1929, our club believes this move will enhance our future and create a pathway for our junior cricketers.
Our senior cricketers/teams will play under fantastic conditions in a well-structured competition. We will be tested, but I am sure the Spotty spirit will get us through.

If you are interesting in becoming part of this exciting journey please make contact with our friendly committee members.

president@spotswoodcc.com.au 

vicepresident@spotswoodcc.com.au 

secretary@spotswoodcc.com.au

More information to come.

Regards
John Wheeler
President

Donald McLean Reserve Masterplan Update

The Spotswood Cricket Club would like to provide all our members with an update on the Donald McLean Reserve Masterplan.

As some of you may recall the issue of redevelopment / upgrade of the Couch Pavilion and playing / recreational facilities has been on Hobson Bay City Council’s agenda for many years and the SCC have been active in pursuing improved facilities for our Club.

As background to the current development project, the proposal has partly come about as a result of the Westgate Tunnel project impacting on the Donald McLean Reserve, and as such the sporting club tenants of the Reserve have been invited to provide input into these proposed changes/upgrades. The issue is slightly complicated by the fact that some of the funding for the proposed upgrades are being provided by the Westgate Tunnel project via John Holland constructions.

In regards to current plans for the Donald McLean Reserve and the new pavilion, these were provided to all clubs released by the Council in October 2018. The plans broadly are for a refurbishment of Oval#1, new irrigation and lighting for Oval#2, transfer of cricket practice nets to a new location in the Reserve and a new Couch Pavilion. Other improvements such as sealed car parking along The Avenue, new tennis courts and a playground adjacent to Melbourne Road are included. Please refer to plans below for more details.

In terms of consultation and input to these plans, representatives of SCC have met with Council officers and architects on a regular basis since late last year to provide feedback on project scope, design and timelines.

All the meetings/workshops with the Council have been attended by representatives from both the cricket and football clubs plus two from the Westgate Golf Club. John Wheeler, Simon Barnes and Keith Brown attended on SCC’s behalf.

Local residents and club members were invited and encouraged to attend a briefing on 26 June in the Couch Pavilion by Council. Apart from individual responses direct on the night, a collective response to those publicly exhibited plans was provided to Council by all tenant clubs so that they are aware that we have common objectives/issues with the redevelopment.

At this point we’re still waiting on a confirmed schedule of activities as Council have not officially approved the project. At this stage we understand it will be considered at the September meeting of Council.

However, we are fairly confident that the Oval 1 refurbishment will commence prior to / at start of season 2019/20. We will utilise Altona Green turf pitch as a decant oval during the period that Oval 1 is out of action (which will hopefully only be for season 2019/20). Therefore 1XI and 2XI will play on Oval 2 and 3XI and 4XI will use Altona Green for 2019/20.

Timelines for development of the Couch Pavilion are still not confirmed, however there is a possibility that this will commence in early 2020. This timeline for the pavilion creates significant issues for the SCC which the Committee are actively investigating and planning for.

We should all be very excited about the proposed plans and in particular the prospect of that the Club’s upgraded facilities (both clubrooms, playing fields and ancillary upgrades) enabling us to grow and achieve greater things into the future.

However, given the disruptions to ‘normal business’ over the next few seasons we will need to be organised, plan well and be ready as a collective to take on these challenges!

We will continue to provide updates to members throughout the life of this project.

If you would like to discuss this further please feel free to contact Simon Barnes (Senior Vice President – SCC) on 0407 302 522 or vicepresident@spotswoodcc.com.au.

Thank you
SCC Management Committee

Couch Pavilion plan

8a Donald McLean_Pavilion_REV F

Reserve plan

8b Donald_Masterplan_Rev E

Our Junior Academy is here!

Some exciting news from the Spotswood Cricket Club! We’re very pleased to announce the launch of the new Spotswood Junior Cricket Academy.

The academy will be an intensive training program to help grow junior players’ skills.  We will have specialty coaches for one-on-one training and group coaches to be there every step of the way.

Session dates and times. All sessions will be Mondays 6.00pm – 7.30pm.

  • May 27
  • June 3, 10, 17, 24
  • July 1
Western Sports Centre
2/310 Foleys Rd
Derrimut
  • July 8, 22
  • August 5, 19
Westgate Sports Centre
corner Dohertys Rd / Grieve Pde
Altona North

The program will include video analysis, sports psychology, and continual feedback and progress measurements to help players achieve efficient techniques. It is aimed at U/15, U/13 and U/11 players. We will cap the participants at 20 to ensure everybody receives the necessary coaching and support to grow and improve.

The cost per participant is just $120 for Spotswood CC players and $140 for all other participants – this covers all 10 sessions. Please email juniors@spotswoodcc.com.au to register.

** Only 2 places are left as at 4 May, so get in quick! **

Photo source: Western Sports Centre

It’s a wrap! The season that was at SCC

So season 2018/19 is well and truly at a close. How did it end? With 1 premiership team – our under 11s – and 2 teams into finals. We had a great run in the T20s, getting to the semi final. We had our first Spotswood representatives playing in an all girls competition, through a combined team with Gellibrand. Sadly, we had no women’s team this year but we’re determined to get back into the women’s comp soon

We said at the start of the season that we wanted to try harder to bring the whole club together, and our “One Club” presentation event was a perfect example of that, bringing together our life members, Coterie members, sponsors, all players, families and guests to celebrate the end of season.

All our award winners for season 2018/19 are below. Congratulations to everyone who contributed to the club this year. We look forward to seeing you in a few months time as we start winding up for 2019/20.

CLUB AWARDS AND THANKS

Trevor Davies – Alfredo Luizzi Memorial Plaque (club person of the year)
For commitment to Thursday evening meals the past two seasons. Thanks also to the rest of the team who are there most weeks to help things run smoothly: Simon O’Brien, Chris Fitzharris, David Gould

Volunteer thank yous – We can’t run this club without the effort of a lot of special people who give their time, energy and talents. Our committee, as always, have put in a mountain of effort. Beyond the committee though, we’re lucky to have a number of volunteers who do heaps around the club, with no fanfare and a lot of modesty. We’d like to thank them for all their work. Special thanks to:

  • Lenny Robbins Snr – for practice wicket curation, line marking, grounds management, emptying bins
  • Wayne Schwarz – for maintaining the ground at Edwards in fantastic condition, including ground marking and cutting around pitch, cleaning the rooms, and helping with bbqs
  • Stephen Jamieson – for scoring mens firsts and managing MyCricket match stats for VTCA teams
  • Ann Maree Butterfield – for scoring mens seconds and T20s
  • Mark Cranwell and Nick Bartol – for running Junior Blasters
  • Stuart Redpath and Chris Mounas – for coaching junior teams
  • Mark Grouios and Jason Dunham – for managing junior teams
  • Rosemary Wray and Josie Cranwell – for putting on a great spread every weekend for men’s afternoon teas
  • Melissa Ramsbottom – for her graphic design work, donating art works for Pink Stumps Day and event photography
  • Mary O’Brien – for regular contributions in the kitchen Saturday nights alongside Simon
  • Lindsay Gordon – for mixing the drinks to keep our men’s matches well hydrated
  • Noel Kennedy – for scoring under 15 boys matches
  • Jennifer Robbins – for co-ordinating the juniors canteen for season and Westgate Shield, and for scoring for U13 girls
  • Sharon Schwarz – for running canteen for the U17 girls Youth Premier League competition and helping with Westgate Shield canteen
  • Chair of selectors John Ross and selection committee
  • Junior committee: Leonard Robbins, Jason Dunham, Stuart Redpath, Mark Grouios, Jennifer Robbins, Alison Francis.

JUNIOR AWARDS

Boys under 11s – Premiers: WRJCA Under 11 A Saturday

Congratulations to our under 11s for an outstanding season – they lost only 1 match for the season, were minor premiers and took out their competition premiership with a good win over Yarraville a week ago.

  • Batting: William Scothern
  • Bowling: Robbie Virk
  • Fielding: Harvey Redpath
  • Encouragement: Jett Cook
  • Coach’s award: Zac Francis

Girls under 13s – WRJCA Molly Strano Under 13 – Girls League

For the first time, we had Spotswood players in an all-girls cricket competition. Congrats to Lizzie Robbins and Zali and Gemma Ferguson for representing the club in a joint team with Gellibrand CC. Spread the word – we want to grow cricket for girls, and plan to field a full Spotswood team next year.

Boys under 13s – WRJCA Under 13B Friday South

Our under 13s had a solid season, finishing 6th of 11 teams and with promising improvement along the way. We look forward to seeing what they can do next season.

  • Batting: Harvey Redpath
  • Bowling: Jayvier Virk
  • All rounder: Jayvier Virk
  • Most improved: Mitchell Jones
  • Coach’s award: Blake Gleeson

Boys under 15s – WRJCA Under 15 C Sth competition

Our under 15s gave us one of the highlights of the season, with the video of their wonderful, long-awaited win on social media a few weeks back getting lots of attention.

  • Champion player: Nathan Kennedy
  • Batting: John Robbins
  • Bowling: Mitchell Schibeci
  • All rounder: Sidney Dunham
  • Most improved: Max Schwarz

SENIOR AWARDS

Men’s First XI – VTCA Kookaburra Sports / Turner Shield Senior Division

Our Firsts had a fabulous start to the season, but couldn’t go on with it, in what became a very evenly balanced competition. They finished 7th, with 5 wins for the season.

  • Batting average: Thilina Masmulla
  • Bowling average: Allan Wise
  • Achievement awards: Gene Maurice 108 vs Seddon Round 1; Dan Schuppan 5/24 vs Yarraville Club Round 3 and 5/31 vs Sunshine United Round 4

Mens’ Second XI – Semi Finalists, VTCA Patrick Quinn Shield Senior Seconds

Our Seconds fought hard, and very nearly got there. Finishing second on the ladder, with 9 wins from 14 matches, they came up against a stronger team in the semi.

  • Batting average: Gagan Sokhey
  • Bowling average: Gagandeep Singh
  • Achievement awards: Gagan Sokhey 103 vs Sunshine United Round 12; Gagandeep Singh 5/43 vs Sunshine United, in the semi final

Men’s Third XI – VTCA Frank Keon Shield C1

Our Thirds were extremely unlucky to miss out on finals, finishing fifth, and only 3 points outside the four. It was a season of some great performances though.

  • Batting average: Michael McCarthy
  • Bowling average: Chris Beckett
  • Achievement awards: Michael McCarthy 102 vs Point Cook Round 4 and 106 vs Craigieburn Round 5; Richard McCarthy 112* vs Aberfeldie Round 13

Men’s Fourth XI – VTCA Ken Eastwood Shield C3

Our Fourths team gave a valuable opportunity for juniors to get a taste of senior cricket, with 4 under 15s stepping up this season. It also gave our older players a chance to have a run, and with nearly 40 players taking part over the season, the team’s reach was broad. One match we had four father-son combos in action – something we love to see. The team finished 6th of 10 teams.

  • Batting average: Greg Musarra
  • Bowling average: Stuart Stanford
  • Achievement award: Charlie Barnes 5/13 vs St Andrews Pascoe Vale Round 14

AGM Monday 20 May

To our Spotswood Cricket Club members

You are invited to attend the 86th Annual General Meeting of the Spotswood Cricket Club Inc. to be held at W C Couch Pavilion, Monday 20 May 2019 commencing 7.30 pm

Spotswood CC 86th AGM Agenda

I appeal to all members to make this season’s AGM a priority. There are many ways, both large and small, in which each member can help with the massive task of running a large club such as ours. Please give some serious thought to taking a place on the Committee to help meet these challenges.

I’m certainly looking forward to seeing you all at the Annual General Meeting. A light supper and liquid refreshments will be available at the conclusion of the meeting.

Yours in cricket
Peter Young
President, Spotswood Cricket Club Inc

P.S. Non members are welcome to attend – remember we offer social memberships too, so why not join and play your part in making our club stronger?

_______________________________________________________

If you are unable to attend, an apology and nomination of a proxy would be appropriate. Please note that in accordance with Section 19 of the rules, a member is not entitled to vote at the meeting unless he/she is financial.

Proxies
Each member is entitled to appoint another member as their proxy by notice given to the Secretary no later than 24 hours before the time of the meeting. Use the form below.

Nominations Procedures
Section 25a(i) Club Constitution states: “nominations may be made in writing, signed by two financial members of the Club together with the written consent of the candidate.” A nomination form is below and must be delivered to the Secretary not less than seven (7) days prior to the AGM.

AGM nomination and proxy form

Positions to be filled

  • President (1)
  • Vice President (1)
  • Secretary (1)
  • Assistant Secretary (1)
  • Treasurer (1)
  • Junior Administrator (1)
  • A minimum of three (3) ordinary committee members
  • Delegates:  VTCA (1)    VWCA (1)    WRJCA (1)

It is vital we fill these positions and we strongly encourage you to consider it – how can you make a contribution to the club’s success on and off the field?

Pink Stumps Day a sold-out success!

DSC_0080 edited

MC Tony Schibeci with our special guest for the day, Clare Cannon

Pink Stumps Day returned to Spotswood CC in style, with our sold-out lunch featuring colour, inspiration and fun on the way to blasting away our fundraising target for the McGrath Foundation, with our eventual donation to them a whopping $3,295!

Up to 120 guests piled in on the day and were welcomed by an archway of bright pink balloons and very different looking clubrooms than our usual summer Saturdays. Across the afternoon, they enjoyed lunch, desserts, and a fascinating interview with our guest speaker Clare Cannon in conversation with MC and club member Tony Schibeci.

 

DSC_0055

Auctioneer Peter Young hard at work

The charity auction and raffle then got to the heart of the reason for coming together, and together raised a phenomenal amount of money – way beyond even our most ambitious hopes. The fabulous “fight like a girl” painting by Mel Ramsbottom, a pink wicketkeeping glove worn and signed by Adam Gilchrist, a 5-star resort holiday to Thailand and many wonderful prints of iconic images were among the items keeping our auctioneer (none other than President, Peter Young) busy. The raffle, featuring donated prizes from a huge number of generous local businesses and individuals, including Spotswood Cricket Club players, was a great hit with the crowd too. We’d like to extend a huge thankyou to them all our prize donors – see our list below.

 

Rumour has it they had to send out for more Prosecco as the event wore on… And once the music started, it was on for old and young, with the afternoon turning into an impromptu karaoke session and our singer Kat getting most of the room up on their feet or at least tapping their toes.

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Our super popular muso Kat was joined by many guest singers as the afternoon wore on!

An event this successful doesn’t just happen by magic – there are a lot of people to thank. 

Huge thanks to Melissa Ramsbottom, not only for donating a painting and hand-made framed inspirational quotes for the auctions, but also for taking photos throughout the day to capture the event, as she so often has this year.

Social member Margret Dawson once again approached local businesses seeking their support with raffle prize donations, and her persistence and commitment to the task was invaluable  not to mention her fabulous potato salad which received rave reviews from the guests.

Special mention to Deb Barnes and Arianne Spratt for their scrumptious brownies and pink meringues which adorned the lovely dessert towers.

We couldn’t have done it all without co-organiser Sarah Grouios, whose wonderful styling and decorating of the room, and running of the raffle on the day made such a difference.

Final thanks must go to our Vice President, Simon Barnes, who drove the whole event, including making the commitment to McGrath Foundation, setting up and coordinating ticket bookings, bringing the right people into the mix, making sure everyone was fed and “watered”, and much much more.

Til next year then! In the meantime, check out our photo gallery below. If anyone else took photos on the day they are willing for us to share here and on Facebook, please send them to us.

Many thanks to all our generous raffle prize donors below!

Businesses / groups:

Little Bulla Salon, Spotswood
Newport Cellars, Newport
Two Birds Brewery, Spotswood
Terry White Pharmacy Spotswood
Sandra Christakakis, from Pink Butterflies
Priceline Pharmacy, Williamstown
Spottiswoode Hotel, Spotswood
Dukkah Restaurant, South Kingsville
Victoria Hotel, Yarraville
Doyle & Sons Café, Spotswood
Motorino Restaurant, South Kingsville
Mabel & Woods Boutique, Spotswood
Love It, Williamstown
Lux Living, Spotswood
Bunch of Cakes, Spotswood
Candied Bakery, Spotswood
Chase’ Kitchen, Spotswood
Hudsons Road Wine Bar, Spotswood
Rockafella Barbers, Spotswood
Spotswood Kingsville RSL
Angel Nails, Spotswood
Al Nada Bakery, Spotswood
Just Sausage Rolls @ Spotswood RSL

Individuals:

Sharon Schwarz
Karen Minnett
Ian Rickman
Gordon Mutch
Players from Spotswood CC 1st XI and 2nd XI teams

Photos from the day – with thanks to Melissa Ramsbottom