Cricket Fitness

I think we've reached peak silliness now:

Darren Berry, after Shaun Tait taking wickets last Wednesday night: "Oh, he  won't play on Monday night in Brisbane, he'll need more than 4 days to come up" (or words to that effect).

4 overs, FFS!!!!

Lee wrote:I think we've reached peak silliness now:

Darren Berry, after Shaun Tait taking wickets last Wednesday night: "Oh, he  won't play on Monday night in Brisbane, he'll need more than 4 days to come up" (or words to that effect).

4 overs, FFS!!!!

He was referring to a player that has been prone to injury for most of his career so those remarks don't surprise me
Just like a player (footy) we had Lee who would play 1 game and would miss the next 3. Always injured.

You dont have to fit to play cricket
Ive played against Booney and Bayman
Ample proof of my hypothesis

Scrappy wrote:You dont have to fit to play cricket
Ive played against Booney and Bayman
Ample proof of my hypothesis

True, I was tired after the 5th boundary I hit off of you....

Booney wrote:

Scrappy wrote:You dont have to fit to play cricket
Ive played against Booney and Bayman
Ample proof of my hypothesis

True, I was tired after the 5th boundary I hit off of you....

you don't get fit hitting boundaries, only when running between wickets, my highest score was 131 & sadly my scoring consisted of 1's, 4's & 6's


sadly i wish i tried turf cricket as that would have been a bigger challenge, my son is playing C grade against men in turf cricket, i have no doubt watching them play that Scrappy, Mr Booney & myself could handle that, however watching the A grade bowlers bowl standing behind the nets i would be struggling to make runs & struggling to survive

132! The statistician at the club I played, from around 2005/6 on wards, rewrites the scorebook for any player who makes 100.

He uses coloured pens, a crisp new scorebook, rewrites all the information from batsmen to bowlers figures and extras and the club has the sheet mounted and framed with players being presented the gift on presentation night.

I got two in one year, 124 and 132. The 132 consisted of a stretch of 60+ runs from 20 odd to nearly 90 where 4's and 6's only were scored. I love looking at that when my man cave is being used. Even more so when people ask what it is.....

*Sigh* Memories...

I too wish I had played some turf when at the peak of my powers, I also, since playing a season or two of baseball post cricket retirement, wish I had a season or more of baseball when I still had an arm and could throw.

Booney and Bayman, if you played good hard wicket cricket, you would have played good turf cricket just as easily.

I played about 10 years Adelaide & Suburban (lucky enough to captain the Association Under 21's and Senior teams to some Shield wins), then played turf the rest of my time.

There's nothing better than playing on a good turf deck, nothing worse than playing on a bad one. Nothing more consistent than a hard wicket deck.

I would have paid good money to watch the Booney v Scrappy duels

WYCCC and Woodville Districts CC had a long standing, often "interesting" rivalry.

Independent Central Cricket days were good days. The likes of Fitzroy, Port Districts, Woodville and their neighbours United Districts, WYCC and even Rose Park made for a small yet competitive competition.

When batting I would often enough have mid pitch conferences with my batting partners
Not to decide on batting tactics, but to grasp back air into my lungs after running quick singes

Cricket fitness at its worst
Anyone else guilty of that ?

You ran?

I played about 10 seasons of Adelaide Turf. A couple of seasons in A2 but after a bit of a break then in the "good ol' boys" grades of H through to E. Then we had a spell in the One Day comp.

Most pitches were good, but a few of the Northern Suburbs goat tracks that didn't get much preparation were a challenge. Some kept low, some high, some moved a foot after hitting a weed.

My HS was 99. Urrggggh!
Caught at first slip to a leading Adelaide Solicitor bowling long hop rubbish.
My own fault of course. I know how Shane Warne and Shaun Marsh felt!

I too was not known for exceptional running between wickets, having a somewhat larger girth.

Could handle the 1s.
2s were risky and it had to go somewhere near the fence for that.
3s - I don't reckon I ever ran one. Would have had to be on drip after one of those.

Chambo Off To Work We Go wrote:3s - I don't reckon I ever ran one. Would have had to be on drip after one of those.

Booney wrote:You ran?

he used to beat me to the hot dog stand

Lee wrote:

I would have paid good money to watch the Booney v Scrappy duels  

perhaps an afternoon in the nets can be organized ? then again if there are enough blokes (or girls) interested, perhaps a social match could also be fun

Social match NO
Nets NO
Front bar bragging about how unfit but how good we used to be YES

Scrappy wrote:Social match NO
Nets NO
Front bar bragging about how unfit but how good we used to be YES

Agreed. I read the comment and my groin* started to hurt while my shoulder dropped.

Please note - These two body parts do not have a close alignment.

Booney , as you got infinitely older , the aches and pains from playing sport manifest even more

I dont regret playing sport , but my body does

I have three parts that are shot.

One I can live with, another that reminds me once in a while and another that I deal with almost daily. Wouldn't change it for the world.

I always worked on the basis that if you were never seen to run above a slow pace (flat out), you were never expected to rise above that.

As time went on, I worked on the principle of saving myself for the last hour's play. I moved so little that I had plenty left after that for post-match drinks.

I told the other players that wicketkeepers needed to be slow and fat.

Worked for me.

This is quite possibly one of the best threads I've read on here.

Lee wrote:I always worked on the basis that if you were never seen to run above a slow pace (flat out), you were never expected to rise above that.

As time went on, I worked on the principle of saving myself for the last hour's play.  I moved so little that I had plenty left after that for post-match drinks.

I told the other players that wicketkeepers needed to be slow and fat.

Worked for me.

Our first slipsman (another esteemed member of the legal profession) subscribed to this theory.
Essentially, he was first slip because he had 2 artificial hips and COULDN'T run. Basically it was less than a Cliff Young shuffle. He managed to throw down some "offies" off a step and a half.  Was #11 batsmen and unless it was a guaranteed "3", he wouldn't shuffle down the pitch for a single. Fielders often ran 80m to chase a ball whilst he took the single.

Wait, WHAT??

He was still playing cricket with 2 artificial hips??

One of my BIGgest disappointments in cricket was mostly at the endish of my career , and othet times
Cricketers young and old that persisted in smoking dope before and during games.
How hard would it be to bat when partially or totally stoned ?


One cricketer a star fast bowler I played with , consistently smoked dope , and took other substances
He once came up to me in a finals match and said I feel good, I can bowl all day ....
Indeed he  did bowl all day , he celebrated all night after we won a G/Final , indeed a speed bowler that day

I was captain-coach of a team in a Turf Grand Final.

It was going to be a tough game, but we had two good opening bowlers, so we were hopeful.

Unfortunately, one turned up very late, just as play was about to start.  He informed me he felt like he'd been "hit by a baseball bat".

He bowled terribly and we lost chasing a big score.

Strangely, he never played for us again.

The same player didn't turn up for a match the year before.  We were chasing a modest total and I'd got a few runs and we tied their score at only 6 down, me at the other end,

Wicket, wicket.

Next over I get out after thinking my job was done (no excuse).

Last man absent.

Tie.