ARMIDALE’S junior cricketers have put their skills to the test with success against fellow young guns from around the state.
On home turf, the Armidale under-14 side finished fourth in last week’s Walter Taylor Shield.
Darby Chalmers snared 5/17 in the final day against Penrith, but his teammates were unable to chase down the 100 runs required to win on a tough batting surface at Lambert Park.
There were plenty of highlights for Armidale.
Jack Carey’s unbeaten 39 and Angus Dawson’s 37 on day one gave their side a good start, while Dawson backed it up with the ball on day two to take 4/8, combining with Chalmers (4/22) to rip through West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook.
On day three, wicketkeeper Wally Davidson almost scored a half century against eventual champs Lismore as he made 48 before being bowled.
Meanwhile, Tao Grieves added to an expanding list of achievements by Armidale junior cricketers after he last week became the first Armidale player to come home with a trophy from the Lismore Under-12 carnival.
Grieves finished with the highest batting aggregate of 110 runs after five games.
He also earned himself a man of the match medal for his 21 runs against Toowoomba.
Teammate Ben Hamilton produced one of the knocks of the tournament when he scored an unbeaten 40 against Far North Coast.
He batted with Cotter Litchfield, who smashed 43 runs at the other end.
Armidale’s under-12s won two of their three pool games.
During the same week Armidale’s under-13 side travelled to Ballina where they played five 50-over-a-side games against quality opposition.
They defeated Hawkesbury, suffered a narrow loss to Ballina, and fought valiantly, but ultimately in vain, to save a rain-affected match on the final day.
“Some teams in this competition have 300 players vying for selection and the competition is of a very high standard,” coach Michael Dennis said.
“For many players this will be a turning point in their cricket development.
“The experience will provide incentive for many of our players to improve their skills and strive to raise themselves up a level.”
The under-13s’ bowling was a highlight of their campaign, with the bowlers taking regular wickets and bowling accurately and economically.
Henry Sindel took 10 wickets for the carnival. He, along with Kieran Dennis, BJ Cameron and Daniel Boyd all came away with three-wicket hauls.
Callum Ferguson’s 4/25 against Ballina gave him his personal best figures and it was the U13s’ best individual bowling performance.
