It was a red-letter day for Isis Cricket Club with two of their dynamic all-rounders taking out Bundaberg Cricket’s highest junior awards.
Jackson Rehbein and Jayden Santacaterina were presented with the Don Tallon Under-16 Player of the Year and the Laurie Gear Memorial Trophy for the Player with the Highest Representative Honours, respectively.
Both were members of the Isis/East Bundy Magpies team which placed fifth in U16 and the Isis side which triumphed in the Rum City Foods Division 3 Premiership, while Jackson also excelled for Brothers in the Intra Cup and Division 2, including taking five wickets for them in their Intra Cup last-round showdown with Norths.
Jackson topped the U16 batting aggregates and averages for the season with 493 @ 49.3, with a highest score of an unbeaten 101, and also finished third on the bowling aggregates with 16 wickets at 15.5 apiece.
Jayden also finished top 10 in the batting with 296 at an average of 24.67 and a best of an unconquered 114, but he won his award for his selection in the South Queensland U15 team after an outstanding tournament for Wide Bay Flames at the Bulls Masters Youth Carnival at Salter Oval in December.
The other Association Player of the Years were Brothers U14 captain Toby Collins in U14s after topping the Batting Aggregates and Averages with 389 @ 64.83, and Waves Junior Cricket 2 skipper Alex Stuchbery, who took the top award in his division after heading the Batting Aggregates with 451 at an average of 75.17 and coming in third in the Bowling with 16 scalps @ 8.25.
Alex’s elder brother Sam and Lenny Henry picked up the Bundaberg U14 and U12 Representative Player of the Year Awards, respectively.
Tireless YMCA club and association worker Brett Muller took home the Bob Keir Memorial Award for Service to Junior Cricket.
Meanwhile, Waves won two of the three junior grand finals, in U16 and Junior Cricket 2, while Brothers were easy winners in U14, defeating Brothers Pumas, Norths Bundy Power and Maryborough, respectively.
In U16, sent in to bat, minor premiers Waves were dismissed for 172 from their 50 overs, with opener Kori Pope laying the foundations with a determined 36, but captain, No. 4, and Queensland representative star Lucy Hamilton top scoring with 52 from 91 balls after making a blazing start.
Hayden Szegfu was Brothers’ best with the ball, claiming 3-25, but they failed dismally with the bat with, after opener Angus Rehbein scored 21, only one other player reaching double-figures as were routed for 78 in 33.1 overs.
Lucy was the Player of the final after also opening the bowling and setting the standard with 0-4 from her four overs.
Brody Coates, Brenton Catasti, Kori Pope and Sam Stuchbery each claimed two wickets, before Dawson Hess came on and cleaned up the tail with 3-11.
In U14, minor premiers Brothers had suffered their first loss of the season in the last round, at the hands of Maryborough, before bouncing back to thrash Norths by 10 wickets in the semi-finals, but after being sent in following a rain delayed start, they were on the ropes at 4-32.
But they recovered magnificently to be bowled out for 156 in 32.3 overs after a four-wicket haul from Maryborough opener Rorley Robinson, thanks mainly to captain and No. 3 Toby Lamond, with an unbeaten 44, and 28 from No. 8 Riley Collin.
In reply, the Heritage City was on track at 2-71 with No. 3 Lachlan Nitschinsk compiling 39, but after his mandatory retirement, they imploded, losing 9-11, with Lachlan returning but being the last man out, the sixth wicket for quiet achieving spinner Simon Millett, who was Man of the Match with 6-19 from 7.4 overs after winding up second on the bowling aggregates for the season.
Opener Riley Collin, who was a five-wicket destroyer in the semi-final, completed a great match all-round, figuring in the first four wickets, claiming 3-16 from six overs and effecting a run out, and also taking a catch near the end of the innings, while Toby shared the new ball with him and also chipped in with 1-9 from his seven overs.
In Junior Cricket 2, Norths Bundy Power had shocked their minor premiers club-mates Norths Maroon in the 1v4 semi-final, and they also gave it their best shot in the decider, chalking up 5-149 from their 30 overs, with Jab Irwin top scoring with 34 and Cameron Manski retiring on 32.
But Waves, who had finished second on the ladder before disposing of Norths Taipans in the
semi’s, staged a superb run chase to pass their target for the loss of three wickets with 3.4 overs to spare.
Opener Nicholas Delacy led out with 52 from just 30 balls before being retired, while captain and No. 3 Alex Stuchbery and No. 7 Jye Young both also retired for 30 and 20, respectively.
Nicholas was Man of the Match, while for Norths, Angus Algie was the only multiple-wicket-taker of the match with 2-4.
Other cricket stories: Lankowski, Laycock named Tallon Medal winners
