We played our first game for the Kim Hughes South West Shield in Bunbury, on a wicket that had been prepared earlier that morning. Captain Fraser Oates won the toss and elected to bowl, surprising his teammates and bringing a sigh of relief from the opposition. His aim was to use the good conditions, allow the wicket to do its thing and make the batsman think twice about playing forward.
It was a slow start, but the opposition’s opening batsman soon settled in and started to score more freely. Batting first seemed to be paying off for the boys from Bunbury, who played with a vast repertoire of good shots, especially drives through long off. But the century opening partnership didn’t perturb our boys, and eventually wickets started to fall. Mitchell Tobin was the best of the MacKillop bowlers, picking up two late wickets in one over to make it three for the game. Nick Barr also held onto three outfield catches and proved too hard to hit past. After Bunbury’s allotted 40 overs the score finished on 5/191. It looked a formidable target.
Our openers Nick Barr and Josh Wright were greeted with a quick bowler from one end who managed to get the ball to move sideways. But it was the bowler from the other end who removed Wright with his first delivery. The captain came and went quickly after running himself out, and then Shay Thackrah was very lucky not to be given out LBW on his first delivery. The boys then took time to settle in and see off the opening pace bowlers. Scoring was slow to start but patience paid off as other bowlers proved less lethal and runs became easier to get. The wicket also seemed to harden the longer the game went on, and Captain Oates’ decision to bowl first began to pay off.
Nick Barr sustained his innings with a few pies, and by drinks he had passed his 50 and looked hungry for more. He continued to smash the ball all over the ground and, after no time at all, reached a well-deserved century. Then he played the next ball onto a slow delivery, and had to leave with the game in the balance. Shay Thackrah, who had witnessed Barr’s outstanding performance from the non-striker’s end, soon took over where Nick had left off and compiled an unbeaten 70 with the help of Ethan Beattie, and the pair saw MacKillop reach the victory target with nine overs to spare.
It was a sensational effort by the team, and man of the match was Nick Barr.