The last couple of months have been a very busy time for cricket with the conclusion of the winter series, practice and warm-up games for state and local sides and finally the arrival of the summer season. There is also plenty of news surrounding Redlands Tigers representative players.
Redlands all-rounder Marnus Labuschagne has been picked for the Australian Test Squad to tour the UAE which will see the Aussies play 2 test matches against Pakistan during October. Marnus first played for Queensland during the 2014-15 Sheffield Shield season and following a successful tour playing in India with the Australia A squad earlier this year has been selected to tour the UAE. As a club we wish Marnus every success in his Australian endeavours and look forward to hopefully celebrating yet another Aussie Cap number.
Redlands Tigers 1st Grade Captain and Wicket-keeper Jimmy Peirson has completed a rapid recovery from a hamstring injury that had seemed certain to force him out of the entire limited overs JTL tournament. Peirson, who led Queensland to the Sheffield Shield title last summer, underwent surgery in July after tearing his hamstring and was not expected to return to playing until late October. However, Jimmy has made a strong recovery, playing Premier Cricket for Redlands Tigers, and training without restriction. The Bulls gloveman return for Queensland in round 2 of the JTL one Day Series resuming both the captaincy and wicket keeping duties.
Sam Heazlett also made a successful return from injury during the off-season and was selected to play for Queensland in the JTL One Day Series. The classy left hander is set to open the batting for Queensland with fellow Big Bash team mate Chris Lynn batting at 3. This will be an exciting and entertaining combination to say the least. Jimmy, Sammy & Marnus have all renewed their BBL contracts with the Brisbane Heat for the 2018-19 season.
Redlands Tigers have hosted several JTL warm-up games leading into the summer season. The first on Aug 22nd saw the Queensland Bulls take on the Victorian Bushrangers with Queensland running out eventually winners. It was fanatic to see the Queensland boys running around Peter Burge Oval competing against the likes of Glen Maxwell and Cameron White. A week later on Sept 9th the National Performance Squad took on New South Wales. The NPS squad enjoyed a couple of very handy substitutes with Australian players Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon enjoying a game on the Burge. New South Wales ran away with the game but cricket lovers who got to see Starc and Lyon up close were the real winners.
The next generation of Redlands Tigers have also been in the news with Dylan Kritzinger & Jackson Sinfield selected in the U17 QLD Team that will complete at the U17 Nations in October. Not to be out done Clodagh Ryall was selected in the Under 18 Female Rookie Challenge series set to commence late September. Redlands Tigers have also hosted both the MetEast School Boys U12 selections and the BEARS U14 selection trials during the month of September. We certainly wish all of these players the very best in their coming tournaments.
The end of the Winter Season saw both Tigers winter teams progress to the finals. The Tigers A3 team fell short in the semi-finial losing to the eventual winners Sunny Coast in a hard-fought encounter. However, the Tigers B1 team went one better and successfully defeated QLD UT to win the grand final and claim the silverware. Congratulations to everyone involved, to all the players, coaches and supporters for an outstanding winter season.
On the local Premier Grade scene, the season commenced on the 1st of September with Tigers achieving mixed results over the first three rounds. The staged start to the season means not all teams have played yet but the U16 Taverners side has commenced well winning three from three. Both 1st Grade and 2nd Grade progressed to the quarter finials of the one-day competition, but sadly both lost to Wests on the weekend ending their one-day dreams. To stay up to date with the latest in Redlands Tigers results you can access live scoring and round by round updates via the official website – www.redlandstigers.com.
Darren Wallis
President RCI
October 2018
Marnus Labuschagne
Jimmy Pierson
Sam Heazlett