TWENTY years into the 21st century, many great cricketers have come through the Sunraysia Cricket Association (SCA).
To commemorate this, Sunraysia Daily has partnered with the SCA to put together a team of seasons 2000-01 until 2019-20.
An independent panel chaired by Sunraysia Daily sports journalist Angus Dearlove and featuring former SCA players, umpires and officials deliberated over the final makeup of the team, which has been elected under a traditional Australian XI format, with two opening batsmen, three middle-order batmen, a specialist all-rounder, a wicketkeeper-batsman, one spin bowler and three seamers.
To qualify, a player must have played in seven seasons within that time period and only their statistics and accolades from the above seasons came into consideration.
For example, Irymple and Mildura East star Thomas Vadlja is a seven-time Innes medallist but three of those were won in the 1990s, while – perhaps most controversially – Coomealla Wentworth and Mildura Settlers batting tyro Jason Morrison was ruled ineligible due to this season being only his sixth in the SCA.
Had Morrison played one more season he would have been a lock for the side.
While the SCA’s early 2000s statistics are hit and miss, with MyCricket not having been fully used in those early years, there are several current players who stack up well against the competition.
For example, who is the modern day all-rounder whose statistics with the ball actually hold him in good stead to be selected as a bowler?
Who has been Sunraysia’s best wicketkeeper over the past 20 years?
Is it current Workers Gol Gol coach Adam Thomson, with a great record of team success and batting prowess?
Or is it one of the older generation such as Brendan Payne, who had a long career in the SCA and was well known for his impressive glovework?
Who gets the specialist all-rounder spot?
Will it be former Australia A cricketer Mark Cleary, or will Settlers teammate Richie Wyld, Irymple and East’s Vadlja or Mildura West’s Chris Williams get the nod?
The team will be unveiled at Innes Medal night on Wednesday.
