The start of the season saw Marist Midnight (Stage 2 Div 4) take on Radford College Hawks at Melba. Marist won the toss, and Xanda Heffernan had no hesitation in putting the opposition into bat.

 

There were many new faces in the team, but the boys played well with strong team spirit. They enjoyed early success, reducing the opposition to 3/46 after seven overs, but some solid batting from Radford saw them build strong partnerships to reach 6/188.

 

The bowling was consistent, with wickets shared among George (2), Ranbeer (1), Yash (1), James (1), and Senuk (1). Senuk was unlucky not to claim a second wicket after clean-bowling a batter, only for the dismissal to be overturned as he was just over the popping crease.

 

At the change of innings, the boys showed fantastic teamwork and never gave up while chasing a big total. Yash Reddy had an outstanding day, top-scoring with 70 not out from 39 balls, but Marist fell just short, finishing on 159 all out.

 

There was excellent leadership from Captain Xanda, who supported and encouraged all players throughout the match. Everyone contributed to the positive team atmosphere, constantly backing each other up and communicating well in the field.

 

It was a great start to the season, the team’s fielding awareness—particularly their backing up at the stumps—was excellent.

 

Overall, it was a wonderful example of sportsmanship, teamwork, and effort from this new group. The players displayed great enthusiasm and support for one another both on and off the field.