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The Weekly Times - 28th February, 2018

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Wednesday 28 <strong>February</strong>, <strong>2018</strong> THE WEEKLY TIMES 31<br />

Healy ton secures<br />

19th WNCL title<br />

SYDNEY Tigers internationals Alyssa Healy and Ellyse Perry<br />

have spearheaded the NSW Breakers to a 19th Women’s National<br />

Cricket League championship.<br />

<strong>The</strong> Australian representatives<br />

produced a<br />

batting masterclass to<br />

help the all conquering<br />

Breakers post a formidable<br />

tally of 302 in<br />

their Grand Final showdown<br />

with Western<br />

Australia last Saturday<br />

at Blacktown International<br />

Sportspark.<br />

Player of the Match<br />

Healy smashed a magnificent<br />

122 from 109<br />

balls and Perry a run-aball<br />

96 as unbeaten NSW<br />

defeated a gallant WA by<br />

51 runs to secure yet another<br />

trophy.<br />

It was the Breakers’<br />

19th one day domestic<br />

title in the competition’s<br />

22 year history and gave<br />

retiring skipper Alex<br />

Blackwell, who scored<br />

24 runs, a rousing sendoff.<br />

Hot shot Healy was at<br />

her dynamic best, clouting<br />

18 boundaries and<br />

sharing a crucial third<br />

wicket partnership of<br />

147 with superstar Perry,<br />

who this summer collected<br />

the ICC World Player<br />

of the Year and Belinda<br />

Clark Medals.<br />

WA skipper Elyse Villani<br />

(74) and England<br />

international Amy Jones<br />

(59) shone for the visitors<br />

who were dismissed for<br />

251.<br />

MEANWHILE Sydney<br />

Cricket Club’s bid for<br />

a Poidevin-Gray Shield<br />

Under 21 title was ruined<br />

after the Tigers’ semi final<br />

clash with Gordon<br />

was abandoned due to<br />

heavy rain.<br />

Gordon posted 8-200 in<br />

overcast conditions with<br />

fine contributions from<br />

Axel Cahlin (63), Michael<br />

Roberts (44), Oliver Zannino<br />

(31), Liam Windel<br />

(19) and Chris Searle (15<br />

not out).<br />

But due to inclement<br />

weather Sydney never<br />

got the opportunity to begin<br />

its run chase with the<br />

match declared a draw<br />

and Gordon advancing<br />

to the Shield decider via<br />

a higher ranking.<br />

Spinners Ben Manenti<br />

(2-34) and Delray Rawlins<br />

(2-35) along with<br />

seamer Harry Manenti<br />

(2-42), Liam Scott (1-<br />

18) and paceman Chris<br />

Thompsett (1-24) shared<br />

the bowling spoils.<br />

SYDNEY first grade<br />

cricket team need to<br />

stand and deliver with<br />

the bat this Saturday<br />

when play resumes in<br />

their important NSW Premier<br />

Cricket clash with<br />

Randwick-Petersham at<br />

Coogee Oval.<br />

<strong>The</strong> fifth placed Tigers<br />

will be chasing 304 runs<br />

for victory to consolidate<br />

a finals spot and require<br />

big performances from<br />

their top six.<br />

Half centuries from<br />

skipper Anthony Sams<br />

(64), Daniel Sams (64)<br />

and Riley Ayre (61) plus<br />

handy contributions<br />

from Shaun Eaton (38)<br />

and Adam Semple (33)<br />

helped the Randy Petes<br />

amass 303 on the opening<br />

day.<br />

Best of the Sydney<br />

bowlers were quick Nic<br />

Bills (3-53 off 17 overs),<br />

off spinner Ben Manenti<br />

(3-82 off 36 overs) and<br />

Harry Dalton (2-10 off<br />

six).<br />

SECONDS: Randwick-Petersham<br />

4-155<br />

(James Mahony-Brack<br />

63, Jack Tector 33,<br />

Joshua Bohannon<br />

29no, Matt Calder 21,<br />

Ash Squire 3-46) v Sydney<br />

112 (Delray Rawlins<br />

23, Matt Pasternatsky<br />

20, J Bohannon 6-32,<br />

Alex Deller 2-30).<br />

THIRDS: Randwick-<br />

Petersham 232 (Dylan<br />

Powell 73, Ben Stares<br />

61no, Ashley Burton<br />

31, Craig Di Blasio 3-18,<br />

Ryan Corns 3-50) v<br />

Sydney.<br />

FOURTHS: Sydney<br />

8-192 (Justin Felsch<br />

64, Dominic Tonkin 45,<br />

Ahmed Hassan 28, Alex<br />

Rashleigh 14no, Rod<br />

Stafford 4-71) v Randwick-Petersham.<br />

FIFTHS: Randwick-<br />

Petersham 103 (Fergus<br />

Bowen 25, Ed House<br />

24, Avery Weilandt 4-9,<br />

Ellis Sherriff 3-12) v<br />

Sydney 2-32.<br />

Vintage ton and hat trick<br />

for Ellis and Napper<br />

LEGENDARY North Ryde RSL cricketer Richard Ellis has celebrated his<br />

th irthday in style y cracking a magnificent century in the orthern<br />

Districts Cricket Association competition.<br />

Playing in a combined<br />

third/fourth grade conference<br />

fixture against<br />

Rydalmere at Upjohn<br />

Park, evergreen Ellis<br />

blasted 135 to engineer<br />

an outright victory.<br />

Skipper Ellis produced<br />

a vintage performance<br />

– smashing 24 boundaries<br />

and a six in North<br />

Ryde’s total of 9 dec<br />

274.<br />

But the ageless warrior<br />

was upstaged by<br />

team mate Sam Napper,<br />

a sharp seam bowler<br />

who claimed a hat<br />

trick with the only four<br />

balls he delivered in the<br />

match!<br />

Napper conceded<br />

three runs off his first<br />

ball then grabbed three<br />

wickets off his next<br />

three deliveries to return<br />

the figures of 3-3.<br />

<strong>The</strong> North Ryde duo<br />

are pictured celebrating<br />

their outstanding first<br />

day feats.<br />

KOOKABURRAS hockey whiz Lachlan Sharp and Australian junior womens squash champion<br />

Shehana Virthana received their $300 TWT Club Six/Ryde Sports Foundation Sports Star of the<br />

Month awards last Friday night at Gladesville RSL Club. Pictured accepting Lachlan’s cheque from<br />

Gladesville RSL Club President Jim Butt is Ryde-Hunters Hill Hockey Club legend Maurice Dawson<br />

with Shehana, Ryde Sports Foundation Chairman Jim Hull, Ryde Eastwood Leagues Club president<br />

Jim McClymont, North Ryde RSL Community Club director Beth Ashcroft and Gladesville RSL<br />

director Gary Winslow. Sharp flew out with the Kookaburras last weekend to represent Australia at<br />

the Sultan Azian Shah Cup in Malaysia. TWT on-the-spot PHOTO.<br />

Rising star Sam dives<br />

into a bright future<br />

RYDE schoolboy Sam Fricker is a rising star<br />

in the diving world and showed his wares with<br />

the Australian Diving Team at the 23rd FINA International<br />

Grand Prix in Rostock, Germany last<br />

weekend.<br />

Coach Vyninka Arlow,<br />

1998 Commonwealth<br />

Games gold medal winner<br />

and veteran of two Olympic<br />

and two Commonwealth<br />

Games, said Sam is the<br />

hardest working athlete she<br />

has ever coached and that<br />

is why he has gained Australian<br />

team selection so<br />

quickly.<br />

“<strong>The</strong> Rostock competition<br />

was an extremely high-level<br />

competition and great experience<br />

for Sam to learn<br />

from, and a chance to really<br />

be a part of the diving<br />

world,” commented Vyninka.<br />

It has been a rapid rise for<br />

the Trinity Grammar School<br />

Year 10 student and former<br />

TWT Clubs Six Ryde Sports<br />

Foundation Sports Star of<br />

the Year finalist.<br />

Sam’s background in<br />

gymnastics helped him<br />

win a regional title and a<br />

Schools National title in his<br />

first year of diving at the age<br />

of 11 while his drive to succeed<br />

has continued to propel<br />

him forward. “Sam had<br />

intensity and focus and was<br />

determined to achieve his<br />

goals even as an 11-yearold,”<br />

said his mother Toni<br />

Fricker.<br />

Competing in the one and<br />

three-metre springboard,<br />

10-metre platform, and<br />

synchronised diving, the<br />

Trinity Grammar Year 10<br />

student said he enjoys the<br />

challenge of the 10-metre<br />

platform most: “For me, the<br />

bigger the risk, the bigger<br />

the reward when you get it<br />

right,” he commented.<br />

Clearly committed to the<br />

sport, Sam trains for up to<br />

27 hours a week working<br />

five mornings a week on<br />

strength, fitness and dry<br />

board training, supported<br />

by six sessions a week in<br />

the pool practising one-metre,<br />

three-metre and 10-metre<br />

platform dives - he is<br />

in the pool every weekday<br />

afternoon and on Saturday<br />

mornings.<br />

When it became clear that<br />

Sam had a natural talent<br />

and passion for the sport<br />

he, along with his mother,<br />

brothers and sisters moved<br />

to Ryde from the Hunter region<br />

with Sam commencing<br />

Year 7 at Trinity Grammar in<br />

2015.<br />

“At 11 years old, I made<br />

my first NSW team to compete<br />

at National Schools<br />

Sport Australia. I had just<br />

started diving a bit for fun<br />

and was still doing gymnastics.<br />

I went into the NSW<br />

Institute of Sport (NSWIS)<br />

when I was almost 13 and<br />

that is when serious training<br />

started,” said Sam.<br />

Asked what he sees as<br />

the main challenges in his<br />

chosen sport Sam replied:<br />

“Diving is hard on your<br />

body and you have to be<br />

strong physically, but it also<br />

requires mental strength<br />

and a serious commitment<br />

if you want to do well. Trying<br />

to get every dive perfect<br />

is also a challenge.”<br />

Sam said he finds motivation<br />

by setting himself short<br />

and long-term goals and<br />

creating a plan for how to<br />

get there. While his major<br />

goal is earning a place on<br />

the 2020 Olympics team, in<br />

the shorter-term he has his<br />

sights set on the International<br />

Youth Diving Championships<br />

in Dresden and<br />

the <strong>2018</strong> Commonwealth<br />

Games in April, and the<br />

Junior Worlds, Youth Olympics,<br />

Open Nationals, and<br />

Elite Junior Nationals later<br />

in the year.<br />

Asked who he looks up to,<br />

Sam cites Australian diver<br />

and 2008 Olympic champion,<br />

Matt Mitcham and Chinese<br />

diver Qiu Bo (Olympic<br />

silver medallist and three<br />

times World Champion on<br />

10-metre platform) as his<br />

role models.<br />

Sam competed against<br />

Qui who is nine years his<br />

senior last week. Toni, elaborates:<br />

“Sam was training<br />

with NSWIS while Matt was<br />

still a part of the NSWIS<br />

Diving Team and that was<br />

really great for him. Sam<br />

also has a number of teachers<br />

at Trinity who have mentored<br />

and encouraged him,<br />

along with NSWIS Head<br />

Coach, Chava Sobrino and<br />

Assistant Head Coach, Joel<br />

Rodriguez.”<br />

Sam was the youngest<br />

amongst the field of over<br />

100 competitors from 22<br />

countries entered in the<br />

FINA International Grand<br />

Prix in Germany.<br />

<strong>The</strong> rise to the top hasn’t<br />

always been a smooth ride.<br />

Sam withdrew from the<br />

Australian Elite Junior<br />

Championships in 2016 due<br />

to a wrist injury.<br />

“Winning all of my events<br />

at Elite Nationals in 2017<br />

was the most memorable<br />

moment of my diving career<br />

- I really wanted to do that<br />

in 2017 since I was unable<br />

to achieve my goals at the<br />

event in 2016,” said Sam.<br />

<strong>The</strong> list of achievements<br />

doesn’t stop there.<br />

Sam made the Senior<br />

Australian Diving Team this<br />

year, competed in Dresden<br />

at the International Youth<br />

Diving Championships as<br />

part of the Junior Australian<br />

Diving Team, won Silver<br />

at the Open Nationals and<br />

was named Elite Junior<br />

Diver of the Year by Diving<br />

Australia at the Elite Junior<br />

Nationals in 2017 after<br />

winning all four events he<br />

entered.<br />

At a school level Sam is a<br />

proud member of the Trinity<br />

CAS Diving Team who have<br />

won the Barnett Shield for<br />

the past three years. Diving<br />

is Trinity’s most successful<br />

sport, winning the CAS<br />

Diving Shield (now known<br />

as the Steve Barnett Shield)<br />

32 times.

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