Perfect: The Over 70s Australian Cricket Society (Red) vs the Sunbury Macedon Ranges Vic Country Combined (Blue) teams played at Windridge Oval in Rochester.
Photo by
Michael Lloyd
A thrilling cricket match was played on Tuesday afternoon at Windridge Oval in Rochester, with teams comprised of men in their 70s taking to the field.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
The two teams were the Australian Cricket Society in red and the Sunbury Macedon Ranges Vic Country Combined (blue).
The match started at 11am on October 17, with lunch after the first 40 overs. The game ended at 5:30pm.
Peter Lawford, who lives in Rochester and helps manage Lawford Engineering, spoke of his love for sport now and when he was younger.
“When I was younger, I played a lot of cricket, football and golf,” Mr Lawford said.
“I’ve been playing (cricket) for the past three years.”
Mr Lawford was asked why he was so passionate about the sport created in England centuries ago.
Good delivery: A bowler for ACS sends one down.
Photo by
Michael Lloyd
“Cricket gets in your blood. So I play as often as I can,” Mr Lawford said.
While the match was on, former Australian Cricket Society president Ian Hammet was up for a chat.
“It’s all about old blokes getting out in the park, running around and enjoying themselves,” he said.
“Most of us have played cricket in our younger years but later gave the game away. Only to rediscover the joy of playing cricket against mates our age.
“Part of our mission as a cricket society is participation. It’s all about giving everybody a go. We have moderated the rules in that we have restricted the number of overs and the number of runs. No more than 40 runs per player and seven overs.”
“We are foundation members of Veterans Cricket Victoria, which dates back to 2003. And we are now in our 20th year as an association.”
In November, teams from around Australia will participate in a tournament.
Eyes on the ball: A Sunbury Macedon Ranges Vic Country Combined batter prepares to play a shot.
Photo by
Michael Lloyd
“Next month, we’ve got an over 70s championships coming up in Bunbury in WA,” Mr Hammet said.
“In Victoria, veterans cricket is booming — we’re very fortunate. We have more veteran cricketers in Victoria than any other state, and the best of the best get picked in the Victorian team to play at the championships.
“Victoria is probably the dominant state in Australia. That’s largely since we have more players to choose from than other states.”
It proved to be a good day for the Vic Country team.
“Vic Country, three for 130, defeated ACS, five for 128,” Mr Lawford said.
Veterans cricket refers to teams of players 50 years and older and does not necessarily refer to the Australian Defence Force ex-service members.
23°C