MALE CHAMPION- SHIP BRISBANE QUEENSLAND 28 SEPTEMBER – 8 OCTOBER, 2015 FROM BACKYARD 2015 CONTENTS TO BAGGY GREEN CHAMPIONSHIPS The Cricket Australia Championships Preview 2 Underage Male PREVIEW Callum Ferguson’s Journey 3 Championships have been The competition will be at its peak in 2015 2014/15 Review 4 the biggest contributor with the addition of the Cricket Australia History of the Champs 5 to the national teams set XI comprising of the best talent from the up since its inception. A recent Under 15 Schools Competition. Squads 12 vital part of the Australian New South Wales will be looking to go 31 MyCricket Cricket pathway, these competitions may back-to-back after a faultless carnival Cricket Australia discount 32 be the first time players represent their last year, pushing on to try and make it six Umpires 33 state at an elite level which will no doubt championships since 2004-05. The ten Playing Conditions 34 lead to opportunities and the emergence of squads will be tested on often batsman- Australia’s next great talents. friendly of Queensland, culminating in a final on the first-class wicket of Allan Border These championships are a proven Field, overlooked by the National Cricket breeding ground for Australia’s next crop Centre and the High Performance Team. and have produced current international players such as David Warner, Josh Hazlewood and Australia captain Steve KOOKABURRA Smith. With the new addition of the Cricket Australia XI encompassing the best WELCOME under-16 talent, the opportunities are more plentiful than ever before. I encourage MESSAGE all players to embody the cricketing spirit Welcome to Cricket Australia’s Underage and for all involved to get along and support National Championships for 2015/16. Australia’s future stars. Greg Chappell First of all, welcome and congratulations to the players who have gone through their NATIONAL TALENT MANAGER State/Territory selection process which is an achievement in itself. These National Championships are about opportunities not only for the players but also the coaches and their support staff, the umpires, the local organising staff, groundsmen, and many other volunteers. All of you have achieved a great deal to come this far and we wish you every success in the tournament. This is just one opportunity Australian Cricket has to offer you to take this experience and build on it. Enjoy the competition and good luck! CALLUM FERGUSON’S GOLDEN YEARS The Under 17 National Championships’ most “It got to a point where one of the prolific batsman in the tournament’s 38-year Queensland boys came out with his face half history was never a big kid, always amongst covered in zinc; I think they were trying to 2014/15 REVIEW the shorter players in the team, but size didn’t resort to all different tactics.” New South Wales Metropolitan’s dominance 2014-15 FINAL STANDINGS matter according to Callum Ferguson. Ferguson has scored 300 runs more than over the tournament continued into NSW Metropolitan (28 Points) his next competitor, compiling 1078 runs “It’s not always the big guys that can hit the 2014/15, finishing as the only team to go ACT/NSW Country (22 Points) at an astonishing average of 71.9 between big sixes that dominate; it comes down to undefeated, take 60 wickets and twice Victoria (18 Points) 1999 and 2002. playing good ‘carpet’ cricket,” Ferguson said. claim outright victories. The squad had a Northern Territory (14 Points) constant ability to post big targets and And it was ‘carpet’ cricket that yielded the The South Australia did it against and Western Australia (13 Points) restrict their opponents, leading to the classy right-hander 574 runs in 2001-02, alongside players who went on to great South Australia (10 points) state’s 17th title. including the still-record individual score heights at national level, part of a purple Tasmania (8 Points) of 258 not out, a knock that saw him lead his patch of talent in the early millennium. The biggest ever sixth wicket partnership Queensland (4 Points) state onto the hallowed turf of the MCG. “I had guys like Mark Cosgrove, Cameron Borgas, was also bettered in the championships just gone, with South Australian Player of the TEAM OF THE CHAMPIONSHIPS “We were sent in to bat by a pretty strong Shaun Tait and Dan Cullen alongside me and I got Tournament Patrick Page Jnr (170) teaming Blake MacDonald ACT/NSW Country Queensland side on a wicket that did a little to play against rising stars like Cameron White, up with Nicholas Kartas (63) to compile 204- Manuel Hunwick WA bit and the mantra was to bat for as long as Tim Paine, and Nathan Reardon.” runs in the final round against Queensland. Patrick Page SA possible, I ended up making my highest ever Isaac Fisher QLD score.” The veteran of 30-ODIs for Australia has CHAMPIONSHIP STATISTICS Daniel Willoughby TAS a simple piece of advice for the next crop of It’s a knock that the 30-year-old hasn’t Spirit of Cricket Award: South Australia Brendan Smith NSW Metro (Capt) Australia’s batsmen that he adopted while bettered in over 200 domestic matches, Lewin Malady ACT/NSW Country (wk) representing his state. Player of the Championships: Patrick Page Jnr despite scoring almost 10,000 runs, Leading Wicket Taker: Sean Stuart (15 wickets) Sean Stuart WA showing at a young age Ferguson was “I took a bit of responsibility to make big Leading Run Maker: Patrick Page Jnr Fletcher Seymour TAS destined for big things. runs and the mindset that I had to make (391 runs) Jonah Koch VIC runs to win, I was the senior player, and Michael Ninnemann NT “I remember playing and missing quite a Leading Dismissals By a Fielder: Ryan Hartley that’s the mindset that kids need to have Arjun Nair SA few balls in the first hour, the ball was a bit (18 dismissals) now, that was and should still be the case.” Kyle Piper (Coach) bouncy so it helped me play my cut shot. HISTORY OF THE CRICKET AUSTRALIA UNDER-17 CHAMPIONSHIPS A triangular interstate series for U/15 The age limit was ’15 and under’ until 1954- schoolboy cricketers began in 1927 with 55, ‘under 16’ from 1955-56 to 1968-69 and Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland then again between 1977-78 and 1985-86. competing. Records are sparse for those The under-17 age level has been used since early years, but at least five of those boys 1986-87. went on to play Test Cricket: KD Mackay, BA Barnett, MR Harvey, RR Lindwall and MW The Parish Cup is named after the late Sievers. The competition was suspended Robert James Parish CMG, OBE, who was during World War Two, but resumed in Chairman of the Australian Cricket Board 1945-46 with the same states competing. between 1966 and 1969 and again between In 1950-51 Tasmania, South Australia and 1975 and 1980. The Parish Cup used is the Western Australia joined in. These six original trophy which was awarded for states competed annually until 1968-69 interstate competitions during the 1930s. after which the series went into abeyance New South Wales have won the Parish when the controlling body - the Australian Cup 17 times, Victoria 9, South Australia Schools’ Cricket Council (ASCC), decided 5, Queensland 4 and Western Australia to concentrate their limited resources at 3. Tasmania, Northern Territory and U/19 level. Australian Capital Territory are yet to win. The ASCC resumed the series in 1977- The championship has been very successful 78 with Queensland, Tasmania, Western in attracting the top players, with 568 Australia and Victoria competing. By 1979- participants reaching First Class ranks and 80 all States and Territories were involved. 150 of them going on to play at international Cricket Australia took over the running of level. the carnival in 1981-82 when it was obvious that the ASCC was struggling to finance and organise these events every year. PLAYER OF THE SERIES SERIES VENUE WINNER CRICKETER OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP 1977-78 Perth Victoria not chosen 1978-79 Rockhampton Western Australia SP O’Donnell* (Victoria) 1979-80 Melbourne Victoria IA Healy+* (Queensland) 1980-81 Launceston Victoria DW Brown (Victoria) 1981-82 Adelaide Queensland G Hayden (Queensland) 1982-83 Sydney Queensland GR Parker+ (Victoria) 1983-84 Brisbane Victoria GR Parker+ (Victoria) 1984-85 Canberra Queensland J Smith (Tasmania) 1985-86 Perth New South Wales GH Armstrong (ACT) 1986-87 Melbourne New South Wales MG Galbraith (Victoria) 1987-88 Launceston New South Wales JC Young (NSW) 1988-89 Sydney South Australia MJP Minagall (SA) 1989-90 Adelaide Victoria TF Corbett (Victoria) 1990-91 Brisbane New South Wales JP Maher (Queensland) 1991-92 Canberra New South Wales BJ Hodge* (Victoria) 1992-93 Hobart New South Wales BA Clemow+ (NSW) 1993-94 Adelaide New South Wales MD Pascoe (Queensland) 1994-95 Perth New South Wales DJ Thornley (NSW) 1995-96 Melbourne Queensland MJ North* (WA) 1996-97 Queensland New South Wales L Williams (SA) 1997-98 Hobart Victoria AJ Kent (Victoria) UNDER-17 CHAMPIONSHIP TEST PLAYERS (116) 1998-99 Sydney New South Wales EJM Cowan* (NSW) AC Agar, PJ Allan, TR Faulkner, BC Francis, JR ML Love, NM Lyons, AA BK Shepherd, PM Siddle, 1999-00 Brisbane Victoria PM Boraston (Victoria) Ambrose, RG Archer, Gallian, AC Gilchrist, Mallett, AL Mann, GA RB Simpson, MJ Slater, 2000-01 Brisbane South Australia CJ Borgas (South Australia) GJ Bailey, MG Bevan, JM GJ Gilmour, MW Goodwin, Manou, MR Marsh, RW SPD Smith, MA Starc, 2001-02 Melbourne New South Wales CJ Ferguson+ (South Australia) Bird, GS Blewett, NW BJ Haddin, JR Hammond, Marsh, SE Marsh, DR A Symonds, HB Taber, 2002-03 Perth New South Wales DN Porter (Western