Number 15

The opposition scored how much...?

#15 – LUKE HARRISON – 5/2, vs Moonee Valley. 2nd XI. 2012/13.

It’s our first game of the 2012/13 season. I’m captaining the 2nds and as per usual, Harro is starting the season in the 2nds, but we both know he won’t be with me for long. We are playing Moonee Valley at Moreland Reserve. As I arrive, I look over at the ground, and notice the whole outfield has been
rotary-hoed. Bizarre. I then walk over to the pitch & notice instant turf has been laid horizontally across the pitch at each end – this is photo-worthy - I take a few snaps.
Moonee valley won the toss and sent us in to bat. We start off much better than expected, with Frankie (top score 28), Mick Brne and Craig Middleton getting us to 1/54. That was an unbelievable effort in its own right. But we then lose 9/72. I batted for 10-15 minutes & thought, “How the hell have we made so many runs on this?”
As Harro & I walk off, I say to him, “Jesus. What the hell is with that deck? We just gotta bowl at the stumps.”
We have 29 overs left to bowl in the day. A young kid for Moonee Valley is opening the batting. Its his first hit for the year and his gear all looks pristine.
I suspect he is itching to put all this gear to good use. First ball – Harro strides in – his signature ball – BIG late in-swinging yorker – middle stump gone.
No better way for a swing bowler to start the season. Harro now has the ball on a string. Pushing 2-3 balls across & then unleashing his weapon of mass destruction. Clinical execution. I always loved captaining a side with Harro in it.
I’m up the other end just trying to land the ball in a dangerous spot & letting the pitch do the rest. Justy is fielding in close, “They’re popping today Boon. They’re popping.”
The wickets keep tumbling but I’m so caught up in planning our next wicket, I don’t realise that Moonee Valley have hardly scored. We take our 8th wicket in the 15th over and Budgie says, “Hey Boony, we could bowl these guys out for less than 10!!!” I look over at the scoreboard and they are 8/6. I had no idea.
J Leslie and C Freeman are watching from deep fine leg. I chat to them between overs. They’re stunned.
We take the next 2 wickets for no further score. Moonee Valley – All out for 6 in 17 overs!!!
It was only later that night that it started to sink in what we’d achieved. And to this day, every time I drive past Moreland Reserve, I smile & say to whoever is in the car, “We once bowled a team out for 6 over there.”

I never get sick of telling the story.