By Jonty Ralphsmith
Brad Hodge’s cameo appearance for Berwick Springs in the Dandenong District Cricket Association (DDCA) T20 competition brought plenty of buzz and a full house despite the result going against his team.
The former Australian test cricketer and white ball master blaster was dismissed for 19, but showed shoots of class while batting and picked up 2/18 with the ball.
Batting at three with the Titans chasing 118, Hodge was at the crease in the first over after Jackson Marie was dismissed for a duck.
He got off the mark first ball with a forward push through forward square leg; Triyan De Silva the first Heinz Southern Districts bowler tasked with stopping him.
Hodge’s 46 games of international experience came to the fore fifth ball when he leant into a drive over extra cover which cleared the cones in front of the packed pavilion at Berwick Springs Recreation Reserve.
Four balls later he deposited offie Craig Hookey on to the marquee that shaded his teammates straight down the ground as he looked set to get his team across the line.
In between those two boundaries were a series of singles as he respected the good balls.
To the crowd’s disappointment he was eventually undone for 19 off 17 just prior to the midway point of the innings, trying to late cut leggie Jacob Hinds.
Berwick Springs still looked like getting home with Radomir Badzoka teeing off and Riley Hillman coming in down the order and lining up the quicks.
Ultimately, late striking from Jackson Philpin and Jett Kearney with the bat, and Philpin’s death bowling proved the difference as the Titans collapsed to be dismissed for 95.
Hodge: local clubs play key role
Brad Hodge commended the Titans while pointing to the satisfaction of giving back to the community as he reflected on his stint.
Initially slated to play last week before rain postponed the fixture, Hodge was keen to ensure his Channel 7 commentary commitments still aligned to allow him to make an appearance.
A young cricket club securing the services of a cricketer with such an esteemed reputation has helped put them on the map, with Hodge appreciative of the role he has been able to play in that.
“There was a lot of support not only from the local team but the opposition as well, so I’m just really proud that I can still give back to the local community,” Hodge said.
“I don’t get a huge amount of opportunity now, my daughter plays cricket so I watch her a lot.
“To come back to a local club and see how much it means to everyone involved was quite important, you’ve got to remember where the fruits of your labour started – with a local cricket club.”
Captain Braydon Hillman lost the toss with HSD electing to bat, so Hodge’s first involvement came with the ball, controlling the middle overs with handy off-spin.
The 49-year-old has bowled in 86 of his top-flight T20 games with an impressive economy rate of 7.80 and took 2/18 with the ball on Tuesday.
“The skipper asked me ‘are you keen for a bowl’ and I said ‘I’ve got a pretty good record in T20 cricket, I’ve got a good economy rate at the top level so I’m pretty sure it can be done here and it’s fun,” Hodge said.
“We’re all sportspeople, we want to get in there and contribute and have some fun batting and bowling.”
While livid that he was unable to guide his team to victory and see them through to the semi finals, Hodge held on to the fact that he hit a few out of the middle.
“I just wanted to hit a six to be honest,” Hodge said.
“All the crowd expects you to perform so you come here a little bit anxious because the expectation is to do well so I just wanted to hit a six and once you do that people will go ‘he’s still a good player.
“Job done there, but I would have liked to have got a 50-odd – it’s just the competitive nature in me.”
Hodge was giving of his time post game, enjoying conversations with club people and posing for photos with juniors.
Hillman: Thrill for club
After working so hard to make a marquee signing to top off a season that has been a big step forward for the club, Berwick Springs captain Braydon Hilman was pleased with what the T20 symbolised, despite the result.
Hodge was a statement signing and brought hundreds of spectators, renewing interest among some and instigating intrigue among others.
“It’s huge,” Hillman said.
“I’ve never seen this many people at our club all at once for a cricket match – there’s guys I haven’t seen for 10 years who have come down which is awesome to see.
“They said they came down because ‘you marketed the hell out of it we can’t not come down’ and the footy club guys have come down as well so it was good to join the clubs together.”
Speaking last week ahead of the fixture, Hillman spoke of his enthusiasm to pick the brain of a cricketer who is so experienced at such a high level.
Following Tuesday’s T20, Hillman said he enjoyed the experience of having Hodge to bounce ideas off while on the field despite the result not going their way.
“He was good, he helped with tactics especially with the spinners closing gaps, moving guys to one side, bowling one side of the wicket and that sort of thing,” Hillman said.
“He talked about whether we should go more pace on and he said to stick with the spinners.
“He was really good speaking about the wind and that sort of thing.”
That thought process was largely fruitful for the Titans, who bowled only two overs of seam-up between overs 5-18 as they stalled HSD for a large period.
Badzoka: “Surreal” batting with Hodge
Experienced swashbuckling Titan Radomir Badzoka was the batter who got to stand at the other end throughout Hodge’s entire innings and reflects fondly on the experience.
While Hodge got a couple away, Badzoka found the boundaries on multiple occasions throughout the partnership to give Hodge the best chance of settling and make a big score.
While it didn’t materialise, it did little to dampen the spirit at the ground, Badzoka loving the experience of being in the middle with Hodge in front of a big crowd.
“It was pretty quiet to be honest,” Badzoka said of their time at the crease.
“I gave a few pointers in terms of what the ball was doing and that kind of stuff but it was quite surreal watching him come out to bat – I didn’t know what to say when he came out!
“It was great fun, seeing him hit the straight drives was amazing.
“Everyone’s been quite excited – there’s never been a crowd this big.
“It’s great to see all the young boys excited, it’s a young club so everyone is up and about.”
Hinds: “My best dismissal”
While Hodge was the marquee player on everyone’s lips at Berwick Springs Recreation Reserve, HSD was excited to see Richmond second XI cricketer Jacob Hinds.
While he missed out at the top of the order with the bat, he played a crucial role stymying Berwick Springs’ momentum through the middle overs with his legspin, turning the game when he dismissed Hodge.
“I think so,” he said, when asked if it was the best wicket of his career.
“It’s hard to top Brad Hodge.
“He walks out with his Rajasthan Royals helmet which shows the calibre of player he is so to dismiss him is pretty special.”
Hinds has bowled to top-flight cricketers including emerging South Australian Jake Fraser-McGurk in the nets but it didn’t equip him for the thrill of bowling to such a player in a match situation.
“It was okay coming out of the hand, it wasn’t exactly where I wanted it,” he said of the dismissal ball.
“I wanted it a bit fuller bit I’ll take it – it looks alright when you’ve got Brad Hodge caught behind!”
Hinds is already keenly awaiting the Cobras semi final fixture on 4 February.
Hookey: Captaining against Hodge
Heinz Southern Districts skipper Craig Hookey saw a ball sail over his head for six off Hodge’s bat when he was bowling and had to captain against a player who averages 37 at a strike rate of 131 in 277 first class t20s.
Having pocketed a 22-run win, he said it was a great experience for the Cobras to be part of.
“We spoke after the day about it being hopefully a dress rehearsal for what is to come,” he said, his team sitting second on the Turf 2 table.
“We don’t often play in front of a crowd playing cricket so it was a good experience with about 300 people here.”
As for the task of stopping Hodge?
“I joked around with a few of the boys yesterday: ‘do I watch some highlights to see where he hits the ball?’
“I didn’t pick him to block the ball over mid off for six without effort, but it was good fun and the boys loved it so it was good to be part of.”
The captain-coach was also full of praise for the strong HSD attendance at Berwick Springs and was pleased to see his side get the job done with all-rounder Ryan Patterson and ‘keeper-batter Mackenzie Gardner absent.
Other results:
While Hodge was the drawcard of the DDCA T20 competition, there were three other matches on Tuesday night.
St Mary’s caused a stunning boilover against reigning T20 champions Berwick in a positive sign for a club that has been increasingly competitive, but so far unable to put a win on the board this season in Turf 1.
Led by an unbeaten 89 off 47 to Saveen Nanayakkara, St Mary’s’ aggressive batting lineup fired to chase down the Bears’ 3/153 in 14 overs.
Nanayakkara, who came so close to bowling his side to victory against Buckley Ridges on Saturday, only to go down in heartbreaking circumstances, shook-off the disappointment in an eye-catching performance.
Skipper Susantha Pradeep played an excellent supporting role to get his team off to a flyer with 29 off 12 after leading the way with 1/26 opening the bowling.
Brett Forsyth eased Springvale South to victory against Narre South with 70 off 58 in a chase of 115 after offie Jarryd Straker continued his wicket-taking ways with 3/16 off 4 to lead the bowling effort.
North Dandenong was a class above Fountain Gate at Lois Twohig, using the short square boundaries to its advantage in posting 193.
The Gators were in a reasonable position at 1/60 but then fell away quickly as the scoreboard pinch set in.
Fixtures for the next round of action are yet to be announced, at time of publication.
