Matthew Fielding has just returned from the Qld School Sport 10 -12 years Boys’ Cricket Championships with another Gold medal! This was a very exciting and challenging carnival for the team but they rose to the challenge and competed very strongly against teams from all over the state.
Matthew was selected as a batter in this team so did not bowl but quickly showed his tremendous ability with the bat. He started as the sixth batter in the first game but was promoted up the order as his talent shone through. He batted at number three in game two and then he was an opening batsman for the last three games. The games were 50 over games so each one took most of the day to play.
The team lost just one game in the pool games finishing 4th from three pools to proceed to the semi-finals. They played Met North who finished 1st in pool play being unbeaten in the pool rounds. Sunshine Coast batted first and got 117 off their 50 overs. The pitch was very difficult to bat on and although it appeared to be a low score, 117 runs proved to be enough, as Matthews’ team bowled Met North out for 79.
The final against Met West was played in a magnificent stadium with a huge electronic scoreboard with the boy’s names and scores up for everyone to follow. This was a very tight game and Matthew batted really well scoring 16 runs from 27 balls which was the second highest number of runs from the team. Sunshine Coast bowled first and bowled Met West out for 87, which was a great effort. Mr and Mrs Fielding watched the tensest game of cricket they have ever had to sit through as the boys got the required 87 runs with three wickets in hand. The momentum of the game kept changing as Sunshine Coast lost wickets but then lifted their batting again. The boys in both teams experienced many nerves which played a major role for both teams. In the end, the Sunshine Coast boys held their composure and finished victorious to claim the title of State Champions. The team were very proud of their efforts and enjoyed celebrating this well deserved win.
Matthew scored the third highest number of runs for his team, scoring 96 runs in the carnival. Matthew gained a lot of experience playing at this high level and is now looking forward to playing more club cricket at the Queensland State Championship level. He is passionate about cricket and we know he can achieve great things in this sport.
Wendy Stott