Season Review 2017-18

The 2017-18 season was another positive season at HBCC even though, for the first time in five years, we didn't come away with a premiership.

The club welcomed lots of new faces into both its senior ranks and junior programs, as we again entered 4 senior sides along with 5 junior teams for the second season running along with running Milo in2cricket again on a Friday night.

Junior Cricket

Our terrific group of kids again did the club proud with lots of great performances throughout the year. Three of our four competitive juniors sides qualified for finals but unfortunately were all knocked out in the semi finals. Nonetheless, they can all be very proud of their seasons and the way the represented the club and the great fun they had along the way.

Our Under 10s had a ball with a mix of new and returning players playing on Friday nights. All the kids had a good go with all making runs and taking wickets along the way. Neil Pitt steered them in the right direction earlier on before Ronan Magee took over things  and ensured the kids had a great time for the rest of the year. Once again the highlight was the round robin where the kids performed really well in their one official taste of competitive cricket.

Our Under 12-6 team adopted the new Cricket Australia formats this year and had an amazing season with a number of heart stopping finishes. These kids stayed in every game against plenty of good opposition and just had the happy knack of winning the close ones. With a new one-dayer each week, the kids had a ball as they took home 12 wins and a tie to finish on top at the end of the home and away. The kids didn't have their best day in the semi but once again competed right to the end, going down by just 10 runs.

Our Under 12-2 side was keen for more finals action after losing a close grand final last season and once again were at the pointy end of the ladder. They finished the season in second place with 7 wins, 2 draws and 3 losses but unfortunately also fell short in the semi final.

Our Under 14-3 team showed plenty of promise early in the season with a number of good wins before falling a way a little after Christmas. The kids competed the whole way through and put in some excellent team efforts as they qualified for finals. They pushed the eventual premiers Lilydale on a couple of occasions but unfortunately couldn't get past them in the semi final.

The Under 16-2 side were a bit out-gunned for much of the season but managed tow good wins in the early part of the season. Three games in a row against the eventual premiers threatened to kill off any confidence the boys had left but them gathered themselves well and competed well in the last few games culminating with an exciting tie in the last round against the eventual runners-up St Andrews.

Senior Cricket

Our four season sides competed well throughout the year with our young Second XI providing the main highlight by working their way through to a grand final after two stirring finals victories. Unfortunately they were well beaten by a very strong South Croydon in the big one, but can be very proud of their season and of their development.

The First XI were once again too inconsistent and a few poor hours of cricket here and there saw the boys miss finals again. Consistency is the main thing lacking as the team's best should see it play in finals. In the end the side slipped to sixth in the competitive Meehan Shield.

Our Thirds and Fourths again competed in modified rules grades with a mix of juniors, new seniors, past masters and junior parents. The team make-up was always a bit of a revolving door with players heading up and down through the teams but both sides competed hard all year despite often falling short. The development of young players was another highlight with several youngsters making their senior debuts, including three under 12s

General Operations

We managed to well amd truly keep the doors open and have an enjoyable year of cricket but off the field we weren't at our most organised with a lot of the load being carried by a small number of people. We have a key goal as we move into 2018-19 to renew and refresh leadership across the club including an expanded committee.