Blazing R-Bus ton keeps Xavs unbeaten

Wednesday 16 November
Joe Rush blasted an incredible century to help the OXCC 1s recover from an ordinary start against the Scotch 2s and remain unbeaten, but the 2s could't quite cap a memorable day for the Altis family with a victory.

Both match reports and scorecards are below.

Rush blasts Xavs past Scotch 2s
OXCC 1s 1-189 def. Old Scotch 2s 3-188

The OXCC ones continued their undefeated start to season 2011/12 with a mixed performance against a plucky Old Scotch Seconds.

Scotch won the flip and chose to make first use of what could only be described as terrific conditions. After hearing how the seconds had destroyed Scotch last week, I think we may have taken the foot of the pedal and to their credit OS took full advantage. The Scotch captain aka Frodo Baggins took full toll on some very loose bowling as he played some terrific shots all around the ground.

The openers had their fair share of luck and were very lucky to survive a probing opening spell from Hugh Lyons, however there were too many loose balls coming from the other end. Hamish Bull was brought into the attack early and stemmed the flow of runs straight away. As “Cheese” built up pressure from one end we continued to leak runs from the other and Scotch went to drinks in a very healthy position at 0/99. After some harsh words form the skipper at drinks we managed to turn the last 20 overs around and restrict Scotch to a very gettable 188. This was due to some solid fielding and a much fuller length from the bowlers. The skipper was able to tie down an end and also able to find that elusive breakthrough when he sent the 'support act' on his way for an incredibly boring 24. This would be one of only three wickets to fall in the innings with Bull and O’Sullivan claiming on apiece.

With 188 on the board and rain on the horizon we were looking for an aggressive start to put the opposition on the back foot. Now almost a regular opener Joe Rush was joined by Dan Curtain in his first game for 2011/12. Curtain looked at his delicious best and Rushy was swatting balls onto Barkers Road as the score raced to 42 in just the 6th over before Curto missed a straight one and was given out LBW. This brought probably our two best batsmen for 2011/12 so far to the crease. Crossy joined Joe and what happened next had to be seen to be believed. Rushy decided that he had better places to be and went about ending the game early. He smashed 7 sixes and 13 boundaries in a magnificent 117no ­ easily his best innings for the OXCC to date. Shaun and Joe in next to no time put on an incredible unbeaten stand of 148 to win the game in just 23.5 overs. Shaun played his role perfectly hitting the ones and twos and allowing Joe to do his thing. However the star was undoubtedly Rushy and on a special day he proved to everyone just how much talent he really has. Congratulations!

So after a disappointing first 20 overs we managed to turn things around for the next 43.5. Always a sign of a good team. We have set ourselves up very nicely at 4-0 but need to make sure we capitalise this week against the Bloods out at Keysborough. Hopefully everyone will be at training as we look to go 5-0!

Bowling (0-M-W-R)
J.O’Sullivan 7-0-1-43
H.Lyons 8-1-0-44
H.Bull 8-1-1-22
R.Harbeck 6-0-0-36
M.Cosgrave 8-1-1-17
S.Cross 3-0-0-15

Batting
D.Curtain 20
J.Rush 117 no
S.Cross 35 no


Xav 2s go down despite Altis reunion
Old Trinity 9-126 def. OX2 10-83

First it was the Chappells, then the Waughs and this week it was the Altis’s!

After a convincing victory at Scotch, we faced an Old Trinity side with confidence, although our task was made a lot harder by losing a number of our regular players in Quinn, Faithful and Hawker. After several emails, text messages and phone calls we managed to assemble a side capable of challenging Old Trinity. OX2 debuts were handed to Tom Edwards, Ryan Colbert, Ben and Paul Altis. This was a special occasion for the three Altis brothers, whose family home was just around the corner.

The skipper lost the toss for the second week running and his troops were sent into field. Lachal and O’Flaherty opened the bowling and produced a tight opening spell. Despite no boundaries being scored, the opposition opening batsmen appeared to look comfortable. Lachal was very unlucky to have a catch dropped at slips, however a few overs later produced a fine caught and bowled. O’Flaherty bowled with great pace and deserved a few wickets. Corsi and Edwards then came into the attack, Corsi or Adam Dale being very unlucky in having an LBW decision turned down, while Edwards produced some fine spin bowling and duly deserved a return of three wickets, although he had a dolly put down after drinks.

Our fielding was terrific all day, actually has been all season and in Rick Perri’s first over we witnessed arguably one of the finest catches we had ever seen. Ryan Colbert produced a diving catch like no other, which even our well aged umpire described as one of the greatest he had ever seen.

Perri bowled well and his finger pointing salute to his fieldsmen meant business. O’Flaherty also produced a fine run out, despite wicket keeper Altis M aiding the decision somehow. In his first spell of the season, O’Hanlon then produced a wicket with his first ball.

After 40 overs, Old Trinity were 9/126 and the Xavs walked off with their heads held high after a fine display of bowling and fielding.

Edwards and Corsi opened the batting, however their partnership was brief, as Corsi edged one in the fourth over. Making his first appearance for the season Mark Nour looked solid and played a glorious cover drive, although he skied one too many and was caught on 14. Matt Altis joined Edwards and looked composed; however Edwards chopped one on, which saw Ben Altis join his younger brother t the crease. At drinks and with 80 runs to get the message was to up the tempo, however what happened next will surely be discussed for years to come. Matt ran his older brother out. Paul Altis then joined Matt at the crease and was unlucky to be given out LBW for zero. Unfortunately the tail did not wag and we fell short by 40 odd runs.

Special mention must be given to Ryan Colbert, Ben and Paul Altis for helping out.

Big game this week and please can we all spend some time in the nets this week!

Captains Votes:
3 Tom Edwards
2 Matt Altis
1 Andrew Lachal

Bowling
Lachal 2/19 (8)
O’Flaherty 0/25 (8)
Corsi 0/17 (8)
Edwards 3/34 (8)
Perri 2/21 (6)
O’Hanlon 1/6 (2)

Batting
Edwards 10
Corsi 4
Nour 14
Altis M 27
Altis B 5
Altis P 0
O’Flaherty 4
Colbert 0
Lachal 6*
Perri 2
O’Hanlon 0

See you all at training this week and please remember to pay your subs!

Two big triumphs for Xavs in round three

Monday 7 November
It was a magnificent weekend for the OXCC in round three of the MCC Club XI season, with the 1sts belting Old Brighton to remain unbeaten, while the 2nds notched their first win by demolishing the Old Scotch 2nds by 10 wickets. Both teams also snared a valuable bonus point.

Both match reports and scorecards are below.

1s belt Brighton
OXCC 1s 8-211 def. Old Brighton 83 all out

The OXCC 1s ventured down to the picturesque Brighton Grammar on Sunday to take on what was thought to be a competitive Brighton.

After winning the toss and electing to bat the boys got off to a great start with Joe Rush and Matt Douglas providing plenty of highlights. The partnership was broken when Rushy decided to take a single to what he thought was a napping Brighton skipper at mid wicket. Dougie was a little slow off the mark and after a direct hit he was sent on his way. A now slightly guilty looking Joe Rush was joined by Shaun Cross who had looked the pick of the batsmen over the last few weeks.

The pair took the score to 56 before Rushy was tempted by a half volley and in his attempt to hit the ball back to 9 Murphy street only managed to send it sailing down long off’s throat. So at 2-56 we were in need of a solid partnership. Hamish Buckley joined Crossy and the pair went about building their innings with quick singles and well judged twos. Their partnership took the score to 132 before Crossy got a dicey LBW decision and was out for 37. Buckley went on to score a well made 52 and it was welcome return to form for Bucks who had been out of sorts of late. However we lost quick wickets  and found ourselves 6-158 with still 15 overs to bat. Enter Hugh Lyons on debut in the ones after some good form in the seconds. Hugh gave us the impetuous that we needed as he smashed the Brighton bowlers all over the ground. Hugh ended up on 25no and took our score to a very competitive 211 after a handy 10th wicket stand with Hamish Bull.

  As we went into the field we knew that if we kept things full and straight it would be very hard for Brighton to score. Conor O’Flaherty and Hugh Lyons bowled brilliant opening spells and were incredibly unlucky not to have 3-4 LBW appeals upheld. None the less Brighton had managed to get 33 runs on the board without the loss of a wicket. It was a change of pace that managed to bring the breakthrough as the skipper 'spun' one through the gate to clean bowl the opening batsmen.

However the highlight of the days play was undoubtedly the spell from Michael 'Father' Hannan. Bowling off half his run as he manages his dodgy knee, Father was just about unplayable as he bowled full and straight whilst swinging it both ways; his reward was five wickets - all clean bowled. Lucky for our next opponents he is spending the next two weeks in the USA as he prepares for the Derby!!! Hugh Lyons came on and picked up a well deserved wicket as Buckley looking dashing in his new keeping attire stuck out his right mitt to steal what would have been a regulation catch for first slip.  Hamish Bull also chimed in as he reeled the Brighton batsmen in and picked up another two wickets.

  To win a game so convincingly was fantastic , but we now look to Old Scotch Seconds ­ Nothing can be taken for granted as we search for the early season wins that will be so vital come the end of the year.

  Batting
J.Rush              30
M.Douglas         9
S.Cross            37
H. Buckley        52
T.Edwards         3
D.Webb            13
M.Hannan         10
H.Lyons            25no
H.OFlarety        0
H.Bull               16no
M.Cosgrave       DNB

  Bowling (O-M-W-R)
C.O'Flaherty   5-1-0-10
H.Lyons        5-0-1-29
M.Hannan     8-0-5-26
M.Cosgrave  8-1-2-24
H.Bull           1.1-0­2-3

2s smash Scotch
OXCC 2s 0-106 def. Old Scotch 2s 103 all out

‘Tails never fails’, was the response from the OX2 team after captain Corsi lost the toss and was asked to bowl. A last minute side was assembled and prior to the first ball being bowled questions were asked of how long we would last following our first game defeat. However Sunday Dust was in the air and did the Old Xaverians come out firing!

Andrew Lachal playing in his first game of the season and wearing Mark Nour’s spikes opened the bowling along with Mick Younger who received an SOS call from David Quinn. Their opening spell was terrific, quick, sharp and accurate. Within ten overs the score was sour for the Scotchies, who were struggling at 4/18. There was a real buzz about the Xavs, our fielding was terrific, Rohan Hawker was exceptional, along with the ever realiable Faithfull and O’Hanlon. Quinn behind the stumps was particularly impressive and looks to have sealed that role for the season.

After a 7 over spell, Lachal ended with 2 wickets, with Younger bowling out his 8 overs for great figures of 4/34, one over yielding 12 runs. Hopefully we will see him in Old Xavs colours again. Mike Byrne, another of Quinn’s primary school teacher colleagues then came on and did he celebrate his wicket in style! We won’t forget that in a hurry! Corsi then bowled two overs before the drinks break and collected a wicket, with the umpire taking his time is raising his finger for an LBW. At drinks Scotch were 7 down.

Corsi then collected 2 further wickets and Byrne finished with 1/35 off six overs, with one more wicket to get, Lachal was recalled and finished the opposition off within 2 balls to end with figures of 3/14 off 7.2 overs.

Rowan Hawker and Will Bull then opened for the Old Xavs, Hawker being the aggressor with his first 16 runs all coming off boundaries. As the runs flowed so did Bull’s stylish shots. The runs were ticking on the board at a great rate and the Xavs were looking very solid. The left hand, right hand partnership was well on top of the Scoth attack. Much to the skipper’s surprise, O’Hanlon then announced that a bonus point was on offer, unheard of for the OX2, however within reach!

Both Bull and Hawker were dropped by the opposition, however by the 18 over Bull confirmed the win and the bonus point with yet another boundary!

This was a terrific result and a real show of character and unity, let’s keep the momentum up!

Captains Votes:
3 Rowan Hawker
2 Mick Younger
1 William Donald Bull

Bowling Figures
Younger 4/34 (8)
Lachal 3/14 (7.2)
Byrne 1/35 (6)
Corsi 3/19 (5)
Batting Figures
Hawker 46*
Bull 39*

See you all at training this week and please remember to pay your subs!

Xavs unbeaten after two

Sunday 23 October 2011
The Old Xavs 1sts have won their opening two matches of season 2011/12 after another hard-fought victory, this time by 20 runs over the MCC on Sunday. The 2nds unfortunately couldn't get off to a winning start with a loss to Old Caulfield.

At Fawkner Park, the 1sts were out to build on their round one victory over Old Caulfield Blue with a strong performance, and got the day off to a solid start by making 6-192 from the allotted 40 overs on a difficult pitch. Dan Molan was the batting star with a splendid 68 not out, while Shaun Cross provided great support with a valuable 30.

In response the Xavs had to work hard to bowl the MCC out for 172, ensuring a 20-run victory. Rory Harbeck bowled superbly to finish with 4-21 while Michael Hannan was also excellent with 3-16.

After their opening game of the season was postponed, the 2nds were aiming to make it two OXCC victories over Old Caulfield Blue in two weeks when they travelled to Glen Huntly Park, however the Xavs were bowled out for 77 and weren't able to bring home the points.

Full scorecards and match reports for both teams will be published on oxcc.com.au in coming days.

Looking ahead to round three action, the 1sts will be out to make it three from three when they take on Old Brighton at Brighton Grammar next Sunday, while the 2nds are up against the Old Scotch 2s at Scotch College, also on Sunday.

Xavs triumph on opening day

Tuesday 18 October 2011
The Old Xavs 1sts started season 2011/12 with a nine-run victory over Old Caulfield Blue at Glen Huntly Park on Sunday, but the 2nds will have to wait another week to get their season underway, as their opening-round fixture was abandoned as Old Haileybury couldn't get a pitch prepared out at Keysborough.

1sts match report: R1 v Old Caulfield blues @ Glen Huntly Park
By Matt Cosgrave

The OXCC ones started season 2011/12 with a hard fought win against Old Caulfield on Sunday. After winning the toss on what can only be described as a under-prepared pitch the skipper had no hesitation in giving his batsmen first use.

After spending the previous day / night on their brother Martin’s bucks day it was two bleary eyed Rush brothers who opened the innings. And in typical Rush fashion they got us off to a great start with 12 runs coming from the first over. But the Rush union did not last long as Dan missed a ball the kept low and smashed into his off stump. This brought our new number three Shaun Cross to the crease and he along with the youngest Rush went about setting up the innings. Both batsmen were in total control, hitting boundaries at will and making life look incredibly easy. They took the score to 73 before Crossy was deceived by the Caulfield slow right arm bowler and was hit in front of middle. His dismissal triggered a collapse as we lost Buckley, J.Rush, Hannan and Beetham all in quick succession. Young Cauley Beetham had a morning to forget as he arrived late and also missed a grubber to make a quacker. David Webb and Rory Harbeck both making their return after year long absences from the OXCC , batted sensibly and took us to a competitive total. Rory continued to bat well with the tail and made sure we got to our end score of 155. Although not a great score, we knew that any score around 150 would be hard to chase down given the condition of the pitch.

After a solid spread from the Caulfield boys the OXCC took the field for the first time this season and both opening bowlers started well. Conor O’Flahrety and Harbeck both bowled tight lines early and didn’t allow the batsmen to get away to that quick start that they so desired. The early introduction of spin was the catalyst for the first breakthrough, with the skipper getting a slow grubber through the defences of the opening batsmen. But the star of the show was new leg spinner Hamish 'Cheese' Bull. From the outset Bully bowled a terrific full length and didn’t allow the batsmen to get away. As the spinners began to to turn the screws the wickets began to fall. Hamish bowled eight straight and finished with the brilliant figures of 5-15. David Webb came on just before drinks and struck straight away. We reduced OCG to 7-66 in the 24th over and seemingly had the game won. However the batsmen began hitting the bad ball for four and picking up the singles at will. The batsmen took the score to 137 before Harbeck broke through for a much needed wicket. With some bad bowling from the skipper OCG got within 9 runs. With the game in the balance we turned to Michael 'Father' Hannan, who until now was resting his knee from bowling duties. But not missing a beat Father came on and uprooted the off stump. Giving all OXCC supporters something to look forward to in future weeks. But with the game still up for grabs it was left to David Webb to bowl the final over. It only took two balls before Webby’s clever variations deceived the number eleven and victory was ours.

It was great that we finally managed to get the points but it would have been devastating had we let a game we seemingly had in our grasp slip. Our attention now turns to the MCC on Sunday @ Fawkner Park. MCC always seem to put a competitive team in against us and I would expect next week to be no different. After the 2nds had their opening game against Old Haileybury abandoned, they will also commence their season against Old Caulfield Blues at Glen Huntly Park, next Sunday.

Training continues on Wednesday and then we head to The Skinny Dog on Friday night for the Season Launch, hopefully we will see some familiar faces there for a beer.

Batting
D.Rush 7
J.Rush 34
S.Cross 26
H.Buckley 6
D.Webb 10
M.Hannan 8
C.Beetham 0
R.Harbeck 26no
H.Bull 9
C.O’Flaherty 9
M.Cosgrave 3

Total 10/155

Bowling (O-M-W-R)
C.O’Flaherty 6-1-0-17
R.Harbeck 8-0-1-32
D.Webb 6.4-0-2-14
M.Cosgrave 8-2-1-36
H.Bull 8-3-5-15
M.Hannan 2-0-1-16

Don't miss the OXCC Season Launch

Thursday 6 October 2011
Do not miss out on one of the great nights on the OXCC social calendar.

Our great sponsors the Skinny Dog Hotel will once again be hosting us on Friday 21 October, so keep this night free in your calendars.

It's been a big off-season and with both teams well placed for success in 2011/12, it would be great to see big numbers at the Season Launch to get this campaign off to a great start.

CLICK HERE for the Facebook link.

Round 1 nearly here

Thursday 6 October 2011
Round 1 of the 2011/12 MCC Club XI Competition season is nearly upon us, with the OXCC 2s kicking the campaign off for the club against Old Haileybury on Saturday 15th October, while the 1s travel take on Old Caulfield away on Sunday 16th.

CLICK HERE for the full season fixture for both OXCC teams.

OXCC names 2nds skipper, 1sts vice-captains & new sponsor

Thursday 11 August 2011
With the 2011/12 season not far away, club captain Matt Cosgrave reports on some exciting off-season developments for the OXCC

2nds name new skipper
After a shifting through the vast array of candidates, the OXCC committee has finally decided upon the new 2nds captain for season 2011/12.

Firstly we should acknowledge the great work Charles Moon has done over the past three or four seasons. 'Barrel' did a brilliant job during his tenure, leading his team to within an inch of the 2010/11 finals series. I am sure those around the club will see plenty of Barrel during the year. Thanks again for all your work.

Maurice Corsi has been given the task of stepping into Barrel's large shoes. Maurice finished at Xavier College in 2002 and has been playing for the club for the last three seasons. He has been a consistent performer over the past three years and will be looking to continue on in the upcoming season. Matt 'Garry' Altis will be helping Maurice out during the year and has been named vice captain.

Well done guys, I am sure you will do a fantastic job!

OXCC welcomes Boston Kennedy aboard

In other news the OXCC is pleased to announce that a new sponsor has jumped on board for the upcoming season. Boston Kennedy has joined Honan’s Insurance and the Skinny Dog Hotel as financial partners for the upcoming season. Thanks again to all as their support helps the club enormously.

Boston Kennedy is a leading international executive search and selection company. Founded in Australia in 2001, they have evolved into a Global provider of innovative executive search and selection, advisory and human resource consulting services. A big thanks to owner and CEO Sarah Kennedy for her support of the OXCC this year. Jump on their website www.bostonkennedy.com.au and have a look around.

A reminder that training will commence on Wednesday October 5th from 6.15pm @ Xavier College. This is a late start to pre-season training so I encourage all those keen to play this year to have a hit in your own time before we hit the nets.

1sts vice captains announced
The 1sts vice captains have been named for the upcoming season and there has been a new inclusion!

Hamish Buckley continues in the role he has held for last two years and will be looking to recapture his blistering batting form that has made him one of the most consistent players in the competition.

Hame has been a great support to both myself, and Joe Rush before me, and his help will once again be welcomed in season 2011/12.

There has been an addition to the brains trust for the upcoming season with Dan Rush becoming a vice captain. Dan has been the most destructive and feared player in the competition for the last three years.

His brutal batting at the top of the order has blown the opposition out of the water on many occasions. Both Dan and Hamish will prove to be valuable assets as we look to jump that final hurdle in 2011/12.

OXCC stars kicking winter goals

OXCC opening batsman and OXFC spearhead Dan Rush lines up for one of his many VAFA Premier division goals in season 2011 so far. Image courtesy oldxavs.com.au

Wednesday 6 July 2011
Some of the OXCC’s finest are plying their winter trade with various football clubs over the colder months, with many part of the other Xavier College old boys' powerhouse - the Old Xaverians Football Club, which competes in the Premier division (formerly A Section) of the Victorian Amateur Football Association.

Both clubs have a long proud history and more than a few players are currently involved with both in some way.

Leading the pack is OXCC opening batsmen and sometimes opening bowler Dan Rush, who is once again kicking bags in the senior side, highlighted by his incredible nine-goal haul against Old Haileybury just a few weeks ago! Also strutting his stuff for the ones is opening bowler Lachie Smith and the ever-annoying Brendan Goss. Both have patrolled the half forward line at Toorak Park for much of the past two seasons.

Another all time OXCC great Andrew Gowers has taken the reins of the footy club this year and has coached the side to fourth position with seven wins after eleven rounds. The OXFC seniors are aiming for their third-straight flag and 12th A-section premiership since 1995.

There are plenty of OXCC links running around in the reserves this season as well. Under the guidance of the OXCC seconds star Matt O’Hanlon, the likes of Josh Douglas, Jack Stean, Loui Teirnan and cricket club legend James McDonnell (surely in his last football season before fully returning to the cricket club) have been slowly but surely moving their way up the ladder, fighting off all but one challenger to sit first ahead of Uni Blues. Martin Rush has admirably already started his pre-season for cricket, taking up the responsibility of running for the seconds.

Current OXCC fill-in Pat Halpin has taken charge of the Thirds for Season 2011 and leads a team full of his OXCC stars including the likes of Faithfull, Tickets Trahair, Dan Molan, Matt 'Gary' Altis and Andy Lachal, all of whom are currently flying and a big reason behind the Thirds sit undefeated after nine rounds of the season.

It doesn’t  stop there with  former OXCC captain Joe Rush and current vice captain Hamish Buckley putting their minds together, as they lead the next generation of Xaverians football stars in the U19 Premier side, while current batting superstar Dan Curtain is coaching the U19 seconds who sit comfortably in the top two.

Current OXCC skipper Matt Cosgrave sits on the committee at the football club as well, as part of his presidential apprenticeship.

The cricket club's involvement in football clubs stretches far and wide as we also have OXCC star Jobe Watson racking up Brownlow votes at Essendon and stalwart Nick Hulett clinging to the hope of one more flag with the OXFC Crocs, while effectively running the Collingwood Football Club as Eddie's right hand man down at the Pies. Opening bowler and OXCC larrikin Julian 'Dirk' Timms has pulled the boots on and is starring for his new local club the Angola Tigers!!!

Even though the whites may be packed away for while, there is still plenty of OXCC stars to follow during the winter months!

The batting & bowling stars of 2010/11

Tuesday 7 June 2011
The OXCC had many great contributors during the season 2010-11 but none more so than the players named below who excelled in their chosen field during the year.

On the batting front an honourable mention must go to Dan Curtain.

Dan was a new recruit to the club in season 2010/11 and made an instant impact smashing a memorable 102 against arch-rival Scotch in just his second game. Dan's 218 runs at an average of 54 were made even more remarkable considering he played just five matches. He was also a star during the Twenty20 carnival and was involved in that memorable partnership with Hamish Buckley, where Curto smashed an astonishing 87 on the way to the team's 2/189 in 15 overs.

However the undoubted star with the bat was Dan Rush. Dan continued where he left off in previous years proving to be the most dangerous and devastating batsmen in the competition. His ability to destroy a team in the space of just a few overs was once again on show, none more so than against Caulfield where he belted an outstanding 111 not out in a match-winning performance. Dan made 282 runs at an average of 56.8 during the season. Dan was named the OXCC’s Twenty20 player of the year after strong performances in the MCC Twenty20 championship as well as the game against the OXFC.

It was not only his batting this season that made Dan so valuable but he also chimed in with the ball and proved a valuable asset to have up the captain's sleeve. Well done to both Dans on fantastic years.

On the bowling front there were a couple of standouts. Julian Timms again proved to be the pick of the seamers taking 11 wickets at an average of 18 throughout the season. Boof has easily been the most consistent seamer at the club over the last 3 years continually taking wickets and keeping things tight with his left armers. Due to the seconds' missing scorebook it is a little difficult to get accurate figures for that team but from all accounts Matt O’Hanlon again performed strongly taking out the seconds bowling award for the second year in a row.

OXCC Skipper Matt Cosgrave topped the wickets for the fourth consecutive season taking 19 wickets at an average of 11 during the season, whilst falling just one wicket short of the competition mark.

Well done to all mentioned above and I hope you are all resting up and are getting ready for yet another tilt at that elusive premiership.

Xavs' season ends in semi

Wednesday 9 March 2011
The season officially came to an end for the OXCC 1sts on Sunday with a semi-final loss to Old Scotch at Scotch.

Scotch batted fist and made 228 in good conditions on the picturesque Scotch College main, an attainable target for the big-hitting Xavs.

After reaching 1-50 from 10 overs and looking good in the pursuit, too many Xavs players threw their wickets away and the visitors were eventually bowled out for 150. Opening batsman Dan Curtain deserves special mention for making an excellent half century, but he lacked support.

It was a disappointing end to an extremely frustrating season in which the side played some typically exhilarating cricket and unearthed some young stars of the future, but fell one win short of contesting yet another grand final.

The 2010/11 season will be remembered for the extraordinary amount of washed out matches, but the team's efforts in finishing the season with some excellent form to reach the finals and coming close to another shot at the flag, should be acknowledged.

Ultimately, the side didn't do what it set out to - win the club it's first premiership since 2000/01 - so now it's time to regroup and focus on maximising the undoubted potential of this talented young side in 2011/12.

Season reviews and stats of both the 1sts and 2nds will be published shortly.

Semi-final team to take on Scotch

Thursday 3 March 2011
The boys from the OXCC return to enemy territory on Sunday as they do battle against arch rival Old Scotch for a place in the club's third consecutive grand final.

Over the past three seasons these two teams have had some epic encounters, and Sunday should be no different. Last time these two teams met over 500 runs were scored in what was one of the more remarkable 40-over games this season.

The OXCC 1s side has chopped and changed over the year but we are going into this game with a strong and settled side.

Team to play Old Scotch @ Main Oval Scotch College - 1pm Sunday, is;

M.Cosgrave (c)
H.Buckley (vc)
M.Rush (vc)
D.Rush
D.Curtain
J.Rush
B.Goss
D.Prowse
J.McDonnell
J.Timms
L.Cosgrave

It would be fantastic to have some support for the lads. If you cant get to the ground follow LIVE updates on facebook.com/OldXavsCricket

IN OTHER NEWS: 
Congratulations to OXCC Life Member Jack Martin who was recently honoured with the Xaverian Award. The Xaverian Award is presented to a past student who has shown a deep commitment to the ideals of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It is a highly prestigious award, valued by the School Community, to someone who has lived a life for others.

Well done Jack!

Hope to see you all on the weekend!

Xavs belt Trinity to commence finals campaign

Sunday 27 February 2011
1s to face Scotch for a spot in the big one
Having finished one of the more bizarre home-and-away seasons sitting in fifth position, the OXCC was faced with prospect of travelling to Bulleen to take on Old Trinity in an elimination final. 

Xavs and Trinity have had some very spirited battles over the years and this was sure to be the same. For the first time in recent memory we went into battle without any of the three Rush brothers as they attended their sister's wedding, really testing the depth of the club.

When we arrived at Trinity we were greeted with a very white pitch and a lush green outfield.  Trinity won the toss and elected to have a bat something that didn’t faze the skipper as he would have had a rundle anyway. The comment was made as the team assembled in their positions in the field that this was one of the best OXCC fielding sides in recent history, the boys would not disappoint.  Julian Timms set the tone for the day when in the first over he bowled a beautiful in-swinger that cleaned up middle stump, the boys were visibly pumped and we had a perfect start. Luke Cosgrave showed no signs of his hamstring injury that has kept him out for a couple of weeks, as he bowled a brilliant line outside of stump not allowing the batsmen a chance to score. He was rewarded with the wicket of Trinity’s captain, as his tight lines brought about an outside edge that was snaffled by David Prowse with the gloves on.

Following the terrific openings spells, Lachal was brought into the attack. Playing his first game in the ones Lash bowled a very disciplined line outside off stump and was rewarded straight away when he breached the defences of the Old Trinity stalwart “Rusty”. With the Xavs very much on top Dan Molan was brought into the attack in order to rush through some overs . Both he and Lash bowled up until drinks restricting the scoring and Trinity went to the break at 3-66.  Straight after drinks Molan outsmarted Trinity’s set batsman to have him caught in at a cleverly positioned short mid off.

M.Cosgrave joined the attack and kept things tight in tandem with Molan while the game began to slip away from the ‘hedgeburners’. Cosgrave found himself on a hat-trick and was unlucky not to snaffle it after the umpire refused his appeal with the batsman sitting in-front of middle stump.

Throughout the entire innings the fielding was nothing short of magnificent and it was  highlighted by Loui Teirnan’s terrific direct hit from cover that found the batsman well and truly short of his ground. For the first time in many weeks not a single chance was spilt and some beauties were taken, nothing better than the left handed snaffle from the skipper at short cover, possibly one of the greatest catches seen at Bulleen fields.

The boys did a fantastic job to bowl Trinity out for just 117 on what was a road of a pitch. Without doubt this was the  best the team has bowled and fielded for the entire year. But the job was only half done.

David Prowse was sent up the order to open with Dan Curtain in the absence of Dan Rush and the two started well before Curto left what seemed like a straight ball that cannoned into his middle stump. This brought Hamish Buckley to the crease and he wasted no time as he and Prowse took the score to 80 before Bucks was adjudged to be out LBW. With dark clouds and rain beginning to circle the ground it was imperative that we got the runs in quick fashion. The scramble for runs allowed Trinity to pick up a couple of late wickets but the result was never truly in doubt.

So with one final down our attention now turns to yet another do or die final against arch rival Old Scotch. The game will most likely be on Sunday @ Scotch but stay tuned for details. Training will continue this Wednesday and it's imperative that everyone gets down for a hit. With only a maximum of two weeks remaining its important that we do everything in our power to make sure that we go one step further in 2011.

See you on Wednesday. Go Xavs!

OXCC Bowling: 10/116
J.Timms  6-2-2-21
L.Cosgrave 8-3-1-13
A.Lachal 6.1 -0-2-22
D.Molan 8-0-1-26
M.Cosgrave 8-0-3-27

OXCC Batting : 6/117 ­ 19.2 overs
D.Curtain   16
D.Prowse  15
H.Buckley  41
D.Molan    16
B.Goss       15
J.Stean       1
L.Teirnan 4no
A.Lachal   0no

Finals arrive for 1s as 2s get close in season finale

Monday 21 February 2011
1s heading to Trinity for elimination final
The OXCC 1sts will take on Old Trinity in an elimination final at Bulleen on Saturday after finishing fifth in the MCC Club XI in 2010/11.

The Xavs were staring down the barrel of missing out on finals action for the first time for quite a few years with only three rounds remaining, however a strong finish to the season, as well as an automatic four points in the final round due to a walkover against Old Haileybury, means the Xavs will once again have a shot at winning the club's first flag in a decade.

Under the current finals system, the 1st and 2nd teams on the ladder earn a week-off and progress straight to the semi-finals, with 3rd playing 6th and 4th playing 5th in knock-out finals.

Xavs and Trinity have had some spirited battles over the years and Saturday's encounter at Trinity's Bulleen campus promises to be no different, so all friends and supporters are urged to get along and support the boys as they play off for a place in the final four.

It's been an extraordinary season, with extremely wet weather wreaking havoc on the competition and forcing a huge number of washouts. But the Xavs 1s perservered and despite only finishing a game-and-a-half behind top-placed Old Scotch, had to wait until the second last week of the regular season before a finals berth was assured.

CLICK HERE for the final 2010/11 MCC Club XI ladder after 13 completed rounds.

Round 13 2nds match report - by Charles Moon
While it was the last weekend of the regular season, the boys gathered at Xavier with a steely resolve on Sunday to try and end the season on a positive note against the MCC Dees.

On a grenade-ish green top, the large skipper in the red cap decided to back his top order and set a target.  The opening  overs, while not entertaining, laid a great platform as Faithful and Maurizio put on 41 for the opening stanza. Gary and Tendy then proceeded to put on a solid 30 run partnership with some crisp hitting. After nagging the skip for a promotion, Nour's duck saw him depart quicker then the girls at Revellers on seeing Moe's rug.

Quinn and Lachal were then able to add some valuable runs with a 43 run romance before the red caps were eventually toppled for 139. A respectful innings in the conditions considering Myles was too dusty to bat in the top order.

After devouring some of Carl's finest kitchen work, the Xavs ran out to defend a reasonable score. It's fair to say Tickets hadn't been setting the world alight with his mediums, but after some good exercise on Saturday with FIFA and table tennis and any one of his 17 girlfriends, an inspiring 3/21 spell off 8 straight overs gave the home side a great start. Andy Lachal backed up Tickets beautifully and developed a fantastic rhythm that had the Dees on the back foot at 5/75.  Although Corsi was able to bowl fantastically at the death, the Dees were able to get the runs 8 down.

While disappointing to miss the post season, we've had a good competitive season and look forward to bigger and better things next year and hopefully some consistent weather.

Officially, I will be stepping down as Captain of the 2s and I wanted to publicly thank Matt O'Hanlon, Dave Quinn and Carl Nunan for their tireless work behind the scenes over the past years - it's been a true privilege to wear the armband for this great club.

Once again, could I encourage you all to support the 1s during their finals campaign. Training is still on Wednesdays!

Batting:
Faith - 20
Corsi - 18
Altis - 12
O'Brien - 16
Nour - quack
Quinn - 22
Tickets - 6
Moe - 3
Lachal - 28
Chappy - 0*
Moon - massive quack (middle stump last seen over Bulleen)

Bowling:
Tickets - 3/21
Nour - 0/28
Lachal- 2/29
Moe - 1/40
Corsi - 2/18

Scotch hits 'Mole' in the road as Xavs secure finals berth

Sunday 13 February 2011
On a chilly February afternoon the OXCC ones took to the Roche Oval at Xavier in search of a finals berth. To say things got off on the wrong foot would be an understatement. The skipper lost his first toss for the year and was sent for a stint in the field, and as if to rub salt in the wound, was forced to take the field minus three of the starting eleven. Two Rush brothers were stuck in traffic and Brendan Goss was true to form and was only sighted once the fourth over was completed.

Nevertheless both Jack O’Sullivan and Julian Timms bowled tight lines in their opening spells and consistently troubled the opening batsmen without much luck. The run rate was steady as both openers looked to slowly build a competitive score. Dan Rush was brought into the attack and bowled great lines as he kept the scoring to a minimum while he also troubled the batsmen with his un comfortable bounce.

Despite the solid start we let ourselves down putting down two very simple chances that would have put the opposition very much on the back foot. Scotch went to drinks 0/81 and had a few Xaverians scratching their heads. However after drinks the two-pronged spin attach was introduced, the captain struck first having the opening batsmen sky a ball to cover. From then on it was if Scotch forgot that it was a one day game. As Cosgrave and Molan both tied down an end making scoring very difficult. Once one wicket fell the innings fell apart for Scotch with Dan Molan running riot through the middle order. His slippery offies proved too much for the batsmen as his vast array of sliders sent no less than five batsmen back to the shed. The innings came to a close in bizarre fashion with the Scotch batsmen blocking the last few overs out, despite the lack of runs on the board.

With 140 the target Dan opened up in his typically belligerent way smashing a devastating 32 before he fell with the score on 36. This took the pressure off his opening partner Hamish Buckley as he looked to rediscover the form that has netted him back-to-back MVP awards. Bucks was joined by the promoted Joe Rush who was also looking for some runs before finals time. However it wasn’t to be for Joey as he almost had his head knocked off by a searing bouncer then was defeated by big Coxy’s “slower” bouncer which he nicked behind. This didn’t faze 'Big Book' as he went about playing his most purposeful innings for the season.

Martin Rush was also promoted up the order and played a cameo that included the biggest six seen on the Roche in recent memory. Martin was not content in just clearing the ropes as he sent the leg spinner's tasty offering over the Stevenson Centre roof, and the ball was never seen again. After reaching 2/139 we had a small collapse with just one run required, causing some batsmen to go searching for their batting gear.

Overall it was a solid hit out for the lads just a couple of weeks before finals. However we still need to working on getting to the ground on time (Gossy) and making sure that we take the chances that come our way in the field. With our final home-and-away game (round 13) fixture against Old Haileybury a guaranteed win given the Bloods' forfeiting earlier in the season, we sit back and wait for results next week to see who we play in that first final. Well done lads!

On Saturday the 2nds made a very competitive 140 against Old Brighton on a Fawkner Park pitch offering plenty to the bowlers, but fell just short to end their finals dream with the MCC to come in the final round of the season.

Bowling:
J.Timms 6-1-0-20
J.O’Sullivan 7-0-1-23
D.Rush 8-0-0-31
M.O’Hanlon 3-0-0-12
M.Cosgrave 8-1-1-30
D.Molan 8-3-5-19

Scotch 140 all out

Batting:
D.Rush 32
H.Buckley 68
J.Rush 13
M.Rush 22
B.Goss 4 no
D.Molan 0 no

OXCC 1sts 4/145 (14 overs)

Xavs storm into top six

Monday 7 February 2011
On the back of Sunday's comprehensive win over Old Caulfield, which was highlighted by Dan Rush's stunning century, the Old Xavs 1sts have moved back into the top six with two rounds remaining before finals commence.

The Xavs have gone past Caulfield, Old Melburnians and Old Brighton and moved into the top six, but with race for a finals berth incredibly close, a win over Old Scotch 2nds this Sunday at Xavier is essential. The 1sts are guaranteed the four points with a bye (originally v Old Haileybury, who forfeited midway through the season) in the final round.

The in-form OXCC 2nds had their finals chances dealt a blow when Saturday's clash with Old Trinity at Bulleen was washed out, but remain in the hunt.

CLICK HERE for the MCC Club XI ladder after 12 rounds.

Dangerous Dan sends Caulfield packing

Sunday 6 February 2011
After Xavier was hit with 85mm of rain on Friday night as well as more on Saturday morning, it was to the surprise of many that we managed to get a pitch up on Sunday. After removing the covers early on Sunday morning and finding a dry but very green pitch, the OXCC had no hesitation in sending Caulfield in for a hit after the skipper called correctly.

Luke Cosgrave and Julian Timms were given the new seed and started well as they had both batsmen playing and missing. The breakthrough came in the third over when Boof managed to find the edge of the opposition's elder statesmen where the very talkative Jack Stean made no mistake. Despite the early breakthrough runs began to flow easily and the run rate reached seven-an-over. Needing to stop the easy flow of runs the skipper turned to OXCC legend James McDonnell. Playing his first game in two years Malla turned back the clock to have Caulfield’s dangerous opening batsmen snaffled smartly in the gully by Dan Molan and then the number three nicking behind in his second. It was a welcome return to the whites for Malla and I'm sure we all would love to see more of it. Both Malla and Dan Rush bowled tightly, the latter not having much luck as edges seemed to elude the fieldsmen.

Just before drinks his luck changed when a full toss was smacked towards cover and seemingly on a non stop route towards the boundary, only for the more agile of the two Cosgraves to leap and intercept the pill and claim the catch. At drinks Caulfield were a very satisfactory 93 runs. The boys needed to tighten up in the field and make sure that we kept them to a reasonable score. After drinks spin was introduced for the first time and had the desired effect with only 21 runs coming from the next 10 overs after drinks as M.Cosgrave and new found offie Hamish Buckley turned the screws. With that pressure wickets began to fall as the batsmen failed to deal with the dipping run rate. Boof returned to claim the last two wickets to go with his early breakthrough and we had bowled the opposition out with an over to spare for what was a very gettable 166. However no one could have predicted just how easy it would turn out to be.

With Dan Curtain currently doing some hard yards on a beach in Thailand it was up to Hamish Buckley to rejoin the ever dangerous Dan Rush at the top of the batting order. The two started solidly without doing anything extravagant with Dan being dropped at short cover third ball. Despite this it was clear that Dan had decided that he was there for a good time not a long time. Rushy proceeded to smash all bowlers and brought up his 50 while Bucks was still yet to bring up double figures. Dan’s 50 was simply a teaser for what was to follow. With Bucks starting to show some touch and the score on 106 he was drawn out of his crease and stumped for 29. Daniel Molan joined Rushy at the crease and watched as Dan continued on his merry way. His clean hitting was something to behold as he hit an amazing seven sixes on his way to a brilliant 111no. Dan’s innings was one of the more impressive seen in recent times as he single handedly took the game away from the opposition.

In true Rush style he brought his 100 up with a massive six down the ground. Molan provided good support and also ended up on 30no as the pair finished the game off in just the 21st over. Well done to all the boys and especially to Dan on what was a very good day for the team. Despite some sloppy instances in the field we were hard to fault. Let's make sure we finish the season off well next week against Old Scotch Seconds and then hopefully look towards finals in the weeks ahead. Lastly lets make sure we get some good numbers at training as we come towards the end of the season.

Bowling (Old Caulfield all out 166)
L.Cosgrave 5-0-0-29
J.Timms 7.1-0-3-24
J.McDonnell 8-3-2-20
D.Rush 8-0-1-29
M.Cosgrave 8-0-4-29
H.Buckley 4-0-0-20

Batting (Old Xavs 1/167)
D.Rush 111no
H.Buckley 29
D.Molan 30no

Boys of summer take points over the lads from Toorak Park

Monday 31 January 2011
In perfect cricket conditions on Saturday the OXCC defeated a spirited and very competitive OXFC in what was hopefully the first of many encounters between the two clubs.

After winning the toss Cosgrave had no hesitation in batting and unleashing Dan Rush on what was bound to be a rusty bowling line up. After a solid start from Howie and Rat, Dan and Hamish Buckley got going, with Rushy especially harsh on anything pitched in his "hitting zone". The opening partnership was broken on 60 when Buckley (10) slashed at a wide ball from Reserves coach Matt O'Hanlon and Big Nick Bye snaffled a beauty in the gully, sparking wild celebrations. However this only brought the youngest of the three Rush brothers to the crease and after receiving a wide ball first up he hit the following "free hit" sailing into on-coming traffic on Barker's Road. Joe's onslaught didn't last long as O'Hanlon sparked a mini collapse knocking out all three of Joe's stumps and then had Martin stumped leaving the OXCC 3-90. The loss of his siblings didn't seem to worry Dan at all as he continued to target parked cars with his massive sixes. He was joined by Brendan Goss who looked assured and composed as he and Dan put on 55 before Rushy was deceived in flight by a Sticks straight break and stumped for a devastating 67 from only 35 balls.

Gossy was looking ominous before he was given out LBW for 33 leaving the door open for yet another OXFC fightback. Josh Douglas was brought on bowling some interesting leg breaks and surprisingly managed to take a wicket when he had his good mate David Prowse stumped by a polished Liam Ginnivan behind the stumps. While Tendy O'Brien guided the OXCC to a score that was going to be hard to chase down that man O'Hanlon was taking wickets left right and centre, at one stage finding himself on a hatrick. Although the hatrick delivery was dealt with easily Moe still managed to take home a well deserved 5/24 from his 3 overs. So with 190 in the back pocket the OXCC were confident that they could take home the chocolates.

After a delicious BBQ was consumed the OXFC took to the chase with Darvs and Dyno entrusted in getting them off to a fast start. And they started well when Darvs not showing any signs of rust, flicked the first ball of the innings for four. Aided by some overthrows the boys had taken 13 of the first and looked ready for the challenge. However the early introduction of spin in the second over caused a stumble as Darvell spooned one to short midwicket and Dynon was unluckily bowled by the first ball Cosgrave has spun in 7 years. Sticks and Walga looked solid before Sticks was cleaned up by a Julian Timms inswinger. This brought captain Ginnivan to the crease and both he and Walga looked to build a partnership through quick singles. They took the score past 50 before this tactic of quick singles became their downfall as both batsmen ended up at one end of the pitch, the Skipper pulled rank and sent Walga back to the pavilion.

Enter Jack Stean, who proceeded to smash the bowling to all parts of the ground. After loosing his skipper in another run out and Malla for a GOLDEN DUCK, he took it upon himself to bring his side back into the game. Stean showed just why the OXCC have been so keen for him to pull the whites on this season with a swashbuckling 56 before he was bowled by the Buckley who starred with ball with 3/14. The innings finished in the 17th over with the OXFC bowled out for a very respectable 150. 

A great day was had by all and a big thank you to all those who helped get the game up and going. Hopefully there are more encounters to follow.

Go Xavs!

OXCC Batting
D.Rush 67
H.Buckley 10
J.Rush 13
M.Rush 4
B.Goss 33
D.Prowse 9
T.Obrien 13
M.Douglas 10
J.Timms 1
M.Cosgrave 2
R.Perri 0
Total 10/190

OXFC Bowling (0-W-R)
T.O’Meara 4-0-38
L.Howard 4-1-38
M.O’Hanlon 3-5-24
J.McDonnell 3-1-26
M.Darvell 1-0-18
N.Bye 2-1-14
J.Douglas 2-1-15
J.Stean 1-0-5

OXFC Batting
M.Darvell 13
T.Dynon 0
N.Bye 9
M.Walsh 17
L.Ginnivan 19
J.Stean 56
J.McDonnell 0
J.Douglas 2
L.Howard 18
T.O’Meara 8
M.O’Hanlon 1
Total 10/150

OXCC Bowling (O-W-R)
J.Timms 4-1-40
M.Cosgrave 4-2-29
D.Rush 2-0-10
R.Perri 2-0-17
H.Buckley 2-3-14
B.Goss 1-0-8
J.Rush 2-2-17
M.Rush 1-0-14

OXCC v OXCC Twenty20 Showdown looms

Monday 24 January 2011
The Old Xavs Cricket Club - MCC Club XI Twenty20 premiers for 2010/11 - will be looking to continue its impressive Twenty20 form this week when for the first time it takes on the boys from the Old Xavs Footy Club. The game is sure to be full of excitement and filled with intruiging one-on-one duels and will take place this Saturday 29 January at Xavier at 3pm.

Will James McDonnell be able to live up to his own hype or will the in-form Rush brothers take him down a peg? Will Josh Agius be able to re-capture the form of his most recent cricket innings - 165 - which was made for the OXCC, or will Cosgrave be able to spin one past his flashing blade? Whatever the outcome it is sure to be a great day.

The day will include a free BBQ so get down and enjoy the festivities!

If you can't make it to the ground, feel free to join the teams at the Skinny Dog later where the celebrations and commiserations will take place.

2s score famous win, but 1s go down to Scotch

Monday 24 January 2011
Round 10 1sts report: OXCC Go Down Despite Curtain Ton
The OXCC ones ventured to Scotch College on what was a rare sunny Saturday afternoon.  With the bizarre cricket season that we have had and the race for the top six being so tight, Saturday's game was effectively an 8 point game.

After winning the flip and deciding to bat on what was a smallish oval with a very fast outfield it was vital that we got off to a good start.  Rushy and Curto did exactly that! Dan started well despatching the Scotch captain and opening bowler over long on for six in the opening over and he continued his calculated attack on the bowling smashing Shearer out of the attack whilst allowing Curto to take his time and build his innings.   The pair put on 63 in eight overs before Rushy was caught behind.  We had the platform , now it was just a matter of building a defendable score. Buckley joined Curtain and the two went about smashing the Scotch bowlers to all parts of the Meares Oval when just before drinks Bucks nicked an outswinger behind to be gone for 21.

This brought Brendan Goss to the crease with his school boy mate. Curtain was seeing them like beach balls hitting the ball to wherever he saw fit. He continued on his merry way  and with Gossy managed to put on just over 100 and have us set up for a very competitive score, when Gossy fell that left us @ 3/196 in the 30th over.  However what followed was a mini collapse  where we lost 4-30. Amongst the continuous fall of wickets Curtain continued on his merry way bringing up a sublime 102.  The innings was full of class as Curto showed everyone watching just what an amazing talent he is. We finished our 40 overs at 7-251. This was a good score but we would have to bowl well in order to make sure it was enough.

So we started our stint in the field full of confidence, knowing a couple of early wickets would put some serious pressure on the batting side.  Things didn’t go exactly to plan as the opening bowlers bowled without luck as edges simply wouldn’t go to hand. It took until spin was introduced with the score on 40 for the Xavs to strike. Cosgrave struck again either side of drinks  to leave Scotch with plenty to do @ 3-99 and when Orr decided to chance his arm one last time only to hold out to a great catch in the deep from Dan Rush it left Scotch reeling at 4/124 and needing nearly 8 per over to steal the win. 

However the Xavs ran into an inform Rob Ashton who single handily took the game away. He hit nearly everything out of the middle and in a chanceless 90no won the game for Scotch.  Over the last 20 overs we struggled to maintain a consistent  line and length and were made to pay.

This loss however is not the end of the road. We will re-focus on our last couple of games and hopefully a few results fall our way and we will sneak into the finals.  A special mention again to Dan Curtain who played a super innings under a lot of pressure. Well Done Dan.

Hopefully we will see a few interested spectators when we take on the OXFC on Sat @ Xavier.

Batting - 7/251
D.Rush 38
D.Curtain 102
H.Buckley 21
B.Goss    39
J,Rush      7
M.Rush    7
M.Douglas 6
J.Timms   9no
M.Cosgrave 6no

Bowling - 4/252
L.Cosgrave 8-1-0-57
D.Rush 3-0-0-27
L.Smith 7-0-0-46
M.Cosgrave 8-1-4-39
B.Goss 2-0-0-17
J.Timms 8-0-0-47
J.Rush 1-0-0-12


Round 10 2nds report: Wispy dominates one of the great wins
Gather round young and old, grab yourself a cup of tea or whatever remedies tickle your fancy, settle in and listen up - because I have a story to tell you. A story of cricketing triumph, of gutsy teamwork, of a solid individual performance and a group’s will to win. This is what happened last Saturday when the OXCC(2)’s took on Old Melburnians….

It had been since late in 2010 that the OXCC(2)’s had played a game, in what can only be described as a frustrating and rare season of cricket. So it was with great anticipation that we returned to the Plunkett Oval at Xavier to meet OM’s in a season defining Round 10 game. The team was cobbled together late in the week with a number of players missing and unavailable, but the boys (including 3 debutants ­ O’Brien, J Lachal and Monfries) gathered at the ground on time and in a fresh state of mind and body. The coin was tossed by the fill in man in black and white, Jerry “call me Pistol” McDonnell after the Competition organisers were unable to supply an umpire and the red caps won the toss and elected to bat on what looked to be a hard, but furry deck with a lightening outfield.

The openers, Watson and Monfries, were sent out with instruction to see off the opening bowling attack without the loss of a wicket. The plan was working well until the third over when Monfries fell to an Eddie George special that ripped through his gate. Gus came off talking of demons and hand grenades, so there was some reservation in the batting camp ­ but this was later proved probably incorrect as the scoring indicated the wicket was nothing other than a batsman’s paradise. Pig Corsi went out to the middle and knuckled down with Wisp to produce an important partnership. Wispy’s first four scoring shots were boundaries and it was clear that running between wickets was not going to be the preference for this opener. Pig survived a solid shout after being wrapped on the pads, but Umpire McDonnell correctly kept his finger in his pocket after hearing the thick inside edge. Corsi scored freely and played some delightful shots, including a text book pull shot, to score a handy 29 runs before falling LBW. The pair had added 67 runs and Wisp was nearing his half century.

Quinn was next to the crease and by this stage the opposition openers had bowled out and we were interested to see what the second change was to bring. Newton and Walker bowled some straight mediums in their spells on a great batting wicket, so Quinn and Watson continued to score with relative ease. The umpire in his black slacks was then called into action again when Quinn was beaten by a Gibson ball that hit his front leg in line and low down. OXCC were in good shape at the fall of the third wicket ­ 3/128 after 29 overs. Altis was next in and after being in the pads since the opening ball was sent out with instruction to tick along the run rate at his end and let Wispy continue to score at the other end, nearing his maiden century.

Suddenly Jobe was into the 90’s and seeing them well, also running solidly between wickets with Gary, who was also striking the ball sweetly. Gibson flighted a juicy half volley up to our opener, who quickly shuffled to the pitch of the ball and hoisted the ball long over long off. After a quick calculation from the scorers, it was confirmed that the boundary had brought up Wispy’s first ever century in cricket and his best score for the OXCC(2)’s. A quality knock that barely gave a chance and an important innings in the context of this game and season.

These two continued on, with the runs seeming to come with ease and Gary finding some much needed batting form at number 4, before they both fell late in the batting overs. Jobe finished with a quality 107 runs and Altis made a fine 38. Tendy O’Brien finished with red ink but had limited opportunities in the middle, which was a good sign for the OXCC who had managed to get to a hard to chase total of 224 runs after 40 overs with the loss of only 5 wickets.

After demolishing the lunchtime spread, the boys pulled on the whites as the sun rose high in the blue sky and we headed out to defend the 224 runs. Tickets Trahair and Mark “birthday boy” Nour opened the bowling, but struggled to maintain a consistent line and length to two excellent opening batsmen for OM’s. Runs were being peeled off at ease and Gibson reached his half century in the eighth over before a bowling change was due. We were making it easy for their batsmen and a change of pace and variation was needed in the bowling attack.

A Lachal and O’Hanlon came on and held the scoring up, but still couldn’t manage to dismiss the openers. A couple of sharp chances went to ground, but OM’s were relatively untroubled as they went into drinks none down and with 98 runs on the board. In his first spell, Lachal had bowled 3 maidens in a row and managed to frustrate the batsmen as the run rate staggered.

OXCC went into the break with no wickets on the board and maybe slightly concerned that the 224 runs may not have been enough. We needed to change our approach and make the batsmen push harder for their runs. There was a common feeling in the camp that the opening partnership had absorbed much of the batting time and although they scored with relative ease, the run rate never managed to get well ahead of what was required. A breakthrough could expose their middle order and we would be well and truly in with a massive chance of winning the game.

J Lachal and Monfries had been introduced into the attack and they continued just after drinks, but it wasn’t until the 26th over before we had our breakthrough. Gussy managed to beat the centurion in flight and the ball trickled into the woodwork and the bails were removed. It was a well-earned first ever OXCC wicket from Gus who bowled extremely well in tough circumstances and at a great time for the team, who had grassed a regulation chance from the same batsman only 1 run earlier. After a deceiving medium pacer from J Lachal, the batsmen hoisted the ball high into the air and towards the extra cover fieldsman. A Lachal correctly called himself in and made good position under the falling cherry. But the brothers Lachal could not hold this wicket as the ball seemed to hit every part of Lasha’s rig (except his hands) and then fell safely to the turf. It was a decent opportunity missed, considering the batsman was on 99.

Gus then struck again with a straight one that was plumb in front and we were starting to gain momentum in the field. The tight bowling caused a mix up and a run out followed, proving that with the screws tightening and the overs running out; wickets could be there for the taking. The game couldn’t have been any more evenly balanced.

It was then time to introduce our own centurion into the attack and see if Wispy could turn his fortunes with the bat into wickets with the ball. His first two overs were tight, but with no success. In the meantime, A Lachal managed to get his first wicket and OM’s were three down, but with 190 runs on the board and one opener still at the crease. The skipper went to Wispy and mentioned this might be his last over before a change in the attack. Clearly not wanting this to happen, Jobe sent down some hand grenades. His fifth over changed the course of the game. A dot ball to start, a boundary off the second and then his first wicket ­ a regulation catch in the covers. Another dot ball followed and then two wickets in a row to end his over. By the end of the 37th over, OM’s had slumped to 8/208 and looking panicked. O’Hanlon bowled the next over and with 12 balls left, OM’s needed 11 runs with two wickets in hand. The field was brought in, the fieldsmen were chirping and all the pressure was on OM’s, who had gone from the box seat to staring down the barrel of an embarrassing defeat.

On his hat-trick ball and the start of the penultimate over, Jobe snuck a half tracker through the gate and not only did he have his own hat-trick, the team was on the verge of an infamous victory and the team celebrated accordingly. One dot ball followed before the man of the match struck again and OM’s 1oth wicket fell. They were 10 runs short of our total and the points were all ours! Jobe finished with 6 wickets for only 19 runs, including a hat-trick.

Although Jobe’s performance was a one-off and quite simply brilliant, the whole team contributed on the day, including all batsmen and bowlers. It was a great victory for this team and we are now in a relatively good position coming into finals. Well done to all.

There is no game this weekend, but following that we have three more home and away fixtures and all are winnable games. So it’s important to keep training and carry some momentum into the final hours of this season. Information on training etc. will no doubt be forwarded to you at some stage this week.

BATTING:
Watson 107
Monfries 1
Corsi 29
Quinn 24
Altis 38
O’Brien 3*
Total 224 (40 overs)

BOWLING:
Trahair 0/27 (5 overs)
Nour 0/29 (4 overs)
Lachal A 1/34 (7 overs)
O’Hanlon 0/36 (6 overs)
Lachal J 0/36 (5 overs)
Monfries 2/42 (6 overs)
Watson 6/19 (6 overs)
All out 214

OXCC(2) won by 10 runs.

OXCC Round 10 teams

Thursday 20 January 2011
OXCC teams for round 10:

OXCC 1sts to play Old Scotch on the Meares Oval at Scotch College on Saturday 22 January, @ 1pm:
M. Cosgrave(c), M.Rush (vc), H.Buckley(vc), D.Rush, D.Curtain, B.Goss, J.Rush, M.Douglas, J.Timms, L. Cossi and L. Smith.

OXCC 2nds to play Old Melburnians at Xavier College on Saturday 22 January, @ 1pm:
M. O'Hanlon(c), D. Quinn (vc), A. Lachal, T. O'Brien, T. Trahair, M. Corsi, M. Altis, M. Nour, J. Watson, A. Monfries, J. Lachal.

Massive weekend for the club, see message from the skip below.

Message from the captain: Xavs-Scotch blockbuster beckons

Tuesday 18 January 2011
OXCC 1sts skipper Matt Cosgrave has issued the following statement ahead of round 10 of the MCC Club XI this weekend:

The OXCC 1sts face a round 10 BLOCKBUSTER against arch-rival Old Scotch this week.

With Melbourne's bizarre summer washing out another round of MCC Club XI cricket last weekend and limiting the season to just four games so far, it's vital for both teams to take home the four points.

The game starts from 1pm @ Scotch College so plenty of support would be welcome!

If you can't make it down to the Malvern end of Genferrie Road fear not, for the 2nds are paying an equally important game at home against Old Melbourne Grammar. So if you're at a loose end this weekend get to one of the OXCC games and cheer on the boys in the red hats.

CLICK HERE for the 2010/11 MCC Club XI Competition ladder.

Crucial round looms as Xavs return in 2011

Tuesday 11 January 2011
Following the break for Christmas and the New Year, play resumes this weekend in MCC Club XI Competition, and it's a crucial round for both Old Xavs sides.

With five rounds to play, the OXCC 1sts sit 8th on the 11-team ladder but are only two points from fourth place and right in contention for another finals berth. This Saturday afternoon the Xavs take on top-placed Old Geelong at Xavier in what looms as the club's most important home-and-away match for many years. The top six sides contest the finals series.

The 2nds are 10th, but with 12 points, are also only a couple of wins outside the final six. They take on 11th-placed old Scotch 2nds on Sunday at Xavier.

CLICK HERE for the full 2010/11 MCC Club XI Competition ladder after round 8.

Xavs 1s win first flag of 2010/11

Monday 13 December 2010
The OXCC has broken the drought winning its first silver wear in 10 years, taking home the inaugural MCC 20/20 (15/15) Competition on Saturday. Played at Wesley College the round robin format was a hit. Below are the match reports for the the Preliminary Game, Semi Final and Final. Congrats boys!

With Melbourne Grammar pulling out of the tournament on Friday Night due to a poorly scheduled Polo tournament, we were left with only two sides in our group, it was decided that both Brighton and the OXCC would go through to the semi finals no matter the result of their preliminary clash and that we would not need to make our way out to the ground until 11am as apposed to the 9am start for all other teams, something that no doubt worked in our favour.

So we took on Brighton on what was a very small ground and after  the OB skipper won the toss ,we were sent for a strenuous 15 over stint in the field. Dan Rush and Julian Timms took the new seed and began well. But it wasn't long before the OB batsmen were dictating terms as the rushed to 0-33 off 4 overs. Timms was finding it difficult to contain then prestigious swing he was getting, unfortunately it was swinging straight into the middle of the bat. The partnership was broken by a sharp piece of fielding by VC Martin Rush, his thrid run out for the season. The Skipper introduced himself into the attack and struck straight away having his opposing number smartly taken down at long off. However what was to follow was truly remarkable, the new batsmen obviously liked what he saw from Cosgrave and first ball attempted to launch him onto high street road, only for D.Rush to run around the long on boundary and pluck the ball out of mid air in his right duke. It was definitely one of the catches of the season and the celebration wasn't too bad either! Tickets came on and bowled well picking a wicket in his first over however his good work was overshadowed by Matt O'Hanlon's first and only over for the day in which he was deposited over the boundary twice. This was the last we saw of Mo as he quickly announced his retirement form the days proceedings at the conclusion of the innings. We were a little scrappy towards the end of our 15 overs and allowed Brighton to reach a then record score for the day 7-131. 

Dan Curtain and Dan Rush or Alphie and Dos as they were called on Saturday Night, were sent into open the innings and in a sign of things to come Dan proceeded to whack the first ball of the innings over long on for six. Another two followed that over and we raced to 20 off the first. Curtain was dismissed in the following over which brought Dan and Joe Rush together at the crease for the first time ever. For people in surrounding suburbs lets hope that it doesn't happen too often as an amazing 13 sixes were hit and Brighton's spirit broken. The 80 run partnership put the games result beyond doubt.After J.Rush was dismissed for 34 and Dan for a powerful 66, Buckley, M.Rush, Teirnan and Obrien finished the job off in a remarkable 9 overs.

Batting:
D.Rush      66
D.Curtain   5
J.Rush      34
H.Buckley 12
M.Rush     8
L.Teirnan   7 no
T.Obrien    1no

Bowling:
J.Timms 3-0-0-35
D.Rush 3-0-0-26
M.Cosgrave 3-0-2-11
T.Trahair 2-0-1-18
M.O'Hanlon 1-0-1-18
L.Teirnan 2- 0 - 1-18
J.Rush 1-0-0-6

So through to the Semi Final, the only question that remained was who would we play. Our opponents would be Wesley after they defeated Old Scotch in a tense game earlier in the day. The boys enjoyed the break between games making the most of Wesley's hospitable nature and the $3 Beers.

After a heated exchange only a few weeks ago we wanted to make sure that the purple haze had nothing to "chat" about. After winning the flip and deciding to bat we went about making sure we picked up where we left off against Brighton. Wesley started well bowling tight lines and with the bowlers bowling with a big breeze scoring was hard. At 1-13 after 4 overs things didn't look great as in form batsman D.Rush was back in the shed, but Wesley had just dropped a sitter at deep square leg off Curtain something that they would regret later. Buckley was sent in at three so that J.Rush could be used when we were hitting with the wind later in the innings. Curtain and Buckley went about building the innings playing smart cricket and running hard between the wickets. After 8 overs the bowlers changed ends and both Curto and Bucks decided that they had enough of running and it was time to launch. What followed was simply stunning as both batsmen began a furious assault on the Wesley bowlers hitting an amazing 12 sixes in a 147 run partnership. Curtain was particularly impressive with his clean hitting down the ground a highlight. Their partnership was something else and was good enough to draw every one sitting inside the pavilion outdoors to watch. When Curtain was finally dismissed for  a brilliant 85 and the score at 160, Wesley may have thought we would ease up. But Big Joey rush came in and proceeded to hit 6,6,6,1 off the final four ball of the innings. Leaving the final score at 2-187 off 15 very entertaining overs. Buckley remained 79no out in what was equally an good innings and a welcome return to form for Big Book. No bowler was spared, but special mention should go to a poor Wesley bowler by the name of Morris who took home the embarrassing figures 3-0-0-68.

So we took the field knowing that a few tight overs at the beginning would put the heat right on Wesley and we did just that.  They slumped to 4-13 as D.Rush and Timms ran riot through the top order, effectively ending any possible thought that they could get near the mammoth total. Tickets again bowled well picking up two wickets in an impressive effort into the breeze.  But the highlight in the field was no doubt the brilliant run out from O'Hanlon's replacement Jack Stean. Running in from square leg Stean picked up and off balance knocked off peg at the blowers end right out of the ground. That capped a perfect performance from the team where we could not have batted, bowled or fielded any better while at the same time putting Wesley well and truly back in their box.

Batting: 2-187
D.Curtain    85
D.Rush       4
H.Buckley  79no
J.Rush       19no

Bowling: OW 9-64
D.Rush 2-0-2-10
J.Timms 2-0-2-9
M.Cosgrave 2.1-0-1-11
L.Teirnan 1-0-0-3
J.Rush 3-0-0-18
T.Trahair 2-0-2-9

Grand Finals have not been happy hunting grounds for the OXCC in recent years but today would prove to be a totally different story. After Brighton somehow managed to beat Caufield in their Semi Final we were up against the team that we had destroyed in our first game. OB won the toss and decided to bat hoping to get best use of a pitch that had been played on all day.

OB once again started brightly with their Skipper Dooley leading te way with a big six over long off, but as they had done all day Dan and Boof bowled beautifully and cut deep into the batting order as Brighton slumped to 5-36 in the 6th over. Cosgrave and stean bowled tightly and Stean picked up his first wicket for the OXCC. Joey Rush came on a cleaned up the last pole to bowl Brighton out for a miserable 55.

Needless to say we went into the change of innings full of confidence that our inform batting line up would do the trick.  Dan and Joe continued their good six hitting form and we coasted to the score with little trouble.

Batting:
D.Rush:    20
D.Curtain  10
H.Buckley 1
J.Rush      20no
T.Obrien    0
M.Rush     9no

Bowling :
D.Rush 3-0-3-17
J.Timms 3-0-2-23
M.Cosgrave 3-0-1-5
J.Stean 1-0-1-6
J.Rush 1-0-1-1

This was a fantastic win by the group and I can honestly say that every player contributed in some way shape or form. Hopefully we can take some of this momentum into the remainder of the season and at the end of it walk away with not only the 20/20 Flag but the 40 over flag aswell.

Big weekend for the club with the Derby being played this Sat @ Fawkner Park. It would be great to see plenty of support.

Well done again boys!!

Go Xavs!

In-form Rush destroys MCC

Tuesday 7 December 2010
The OXCC ones jumped back on the winners and some  important players found some touch as we smashed an in form MCC side on Saturday afternoon.

With the MCC sitting fourth on the ladder we knew that we were in for a tough game against a side that has been a big improver over the offseason.  After the groundsman did a brilliant job simply getting a pitch up after the weeks rainfall, the OXCC won the toss and sent the opposition in on a pitch that  was sure to do a bit early.

In what was a surprise move Dan Rush took the new seed in partnership with Josh Douglas and the two proved very difficult to get away. Douglas bowled without luck and he made sure his dissatisfaction was heard when  he had an regulation edge hit J.Rush on the foot at first slip. However it was D.Rush who proved to make the decisive breakthrough clean bowling the dangerous looking Kane Bowden, Rush then followed it up with a Peter Siddle like delivery that struck the MCC number 3 on the toe dead in front and he was sent on his way for a golden blob, leaving  Dangerous Dan sitting on a hatrick. The Hatrick was avoided but the damage had only just begun , the run rate slowed to a crawl and Timms joined in on the fun  getting the batsmen to slash straight to cover.

Lachie Smith bowling off his short run bowled tightly in conjunction with M.Cosgrave as runs continued to be hard to come by and wickets kept falling. Dan couldn’t stay out of the game and took a screamer at mid on running backwards off the skipper. This was by far and away the best we have bowled all season and we will need to continue to do so for the rest of the season if we want to keep winning . On a sour note we still managed to drop 4 catches something that we will not be able to get away with against most teams.

Set a very gettable 96 to get both Dan Curtain and that man Rush left nothing to chance as they warmed up for this weeks 20/20 comp smashing the MCC bowlers to all ends of Fawkner Park. Rush was brutal on anything, hitting 5 boundaries and 2 sixes before his brilliant 56 was stopped in its tracks as he was caught on commercial road ending a very entertaining opening stand of 75. Curtain was just as damaging and looked in top form as he raced to a very assured 30no. The chase was completed in an amazing 9.1 overs sending a message to the competition that after a slow and interrupted start to the season so, the boys in the red caps have found some form and are most certainly back.

Its important that we take this current form into this weeks 20/20 comp @ Wesley. I encourage everyone to get down for what promises to be a great day.

Bowling :
D.Rush:  7-0-2-27
J.Douglas: 7-1-0-12
J.Timms: 7-0-2-19
L.Smith : 7-1-0-19
M.Cosgrave: 7-4-3-5

  Batting:
D.Rush 56
D.Curtin 30no
H.Buckley 8
B.Goss 4no

Round one washed away

Monday 18 October 2010
Heavy rain in Melbourne leading into round one of the 2010/11 MCC Club XI season caused the cancellation of all fixtured matches.

Cossy named new OXCC 1st XI captain

Sunday 11 July 2010
Congratulations to 21-year-old Matt Cosgrave, who has been named captain of the Old Xaverians Cricket Club 1st XI for the 2010/11 season.

Cosgrave replaces fellow 2007 Xavier College graduate Joe Rush, who served the club with distinction for two years as captain. Rush, one of the most damaging middle order batsmen in the MCC Club XI competition, will continue to play.

OXCC President Carl Nunan made the announcement after Rush decided not to continue as skipper.

Cosgrave has been an impressive contributor for the Xavs since starting at the club in the summer of 2007/08. His tricky off-spinners earned him the honour of being the leading wicket-taker in the competition in 2008/09, and he was Rush's vice-captain, along with Hamish Buckley, in the season just past. He was a member of the losing grand final sides of both 2008/09 and 2009/10, something he is keen to rectify.

"It's a huge honour to have been named captain of the Old Xavs," Cosgrave told oxcc.com.au in an exclusive interview shortly after the announcement.

"I firmly believe that the club is in a great position to win a premiership, and I look forward to leading the group on the field.

"I urge all players who are keen to have a hit to come down to the indoor nets at the Stephenson Centre when we commence in September and be part of what should be an exciting season," Cosgrave added.

Rush, meanwhile, has done an outstanding job of leading the team, both on and off the field, over the past two years. He came so close to being a premiership captain in 2008/09, and led the team to another grand final appearance 12 months later. He will continue to be integral part of the OXCC 1st XI batting order.

Charles Moon will again lead the OXCC 2nd XI, with ongoing support from Matt O'Hanlon and David Quinn. All three have done a mountain of work in building up the club's increasingly successful second side.