TRAFALGAR Cricket Club fast bowler Jackson Noonan has moved to second on the club’s all-time wicket-takers list.
Noonan now has 261 senior wickets, trailing only club legend Craig ‘Olly’ Nielsen on 374.
The right armer had another productive season in 2023/24, taking 21 wickets for the First XI.
Noonan picked up his 250th senior wicket during the season, and went past club great Garry ‘Wizard’ Edwards, who finished his career with 254 scalps.
Virtually all of Noonan’s wickets have come at First XI level (223), with a sprinkling picked up in the lower grades during his younger years.
Perhaps unjustly, he only has four ‘five-fas’ to his name, although this can be attributed to the sheer amount of play and misses he delivers most games.
Statistics won’t show the number of times he has beaten the bat, which would sit at an average of half-a-dozen genuine play and misses every match.
With Noonan applying pressure at one end, bowlers at the other have possibly benefitted as batsmen look to play more shots, thus bringing about a higher chance of dismissals.
Noonan’s time with Trafalgar has been highlighted with a couple of senior premierships, to go with three First XI bowling aggregates.
He still holds the record for most wickets in a representative season, taking 15 for Central Gippsland in 2015/16.
While primarily known for his bowling, he has also proven to be a more than handy bat, and has more than 1600 runs to his name.
Over the years, he has been both an opening and pinch-hitter, with his most famous innings possibly being the 86 he peeled off in a one dayer against Moe as the Ships chased down more than 250.
Assuming he keeps playing, he should go past Nielsen’s mark in the next decade.
Noonan’s long-time teammates, Daniel Heathcote and Rhys Holdsworth also feature heavily in the club’s bowling records.
Heathcote is fourth on the all-time list (241 wickets), and Holdsworth fifth (239), meaning three of the top five wicket-takers in the club’s history are current players.
Holdsworth also continues to climb the batting ranks. He has been anchored in third on the all-time list for a few seasons, but is only 1200 runs away from going past club icon and modern day great, Graeme Rankin.
A few current players went past the 1000 run mark during the latest season. They were: Cooper Burgess, Leo Connolly, Brent Claridge and Billy Claridge.
Another highlight from the bowling records was Zack Brown.
Brown moved into the top 10 on the club’s all time list with 158 poles, an incredible number for someone who only turned 24 this year.
The right arm quick has a knack for taking wickets, and has two First XI bowling aggregates to this name (one in a premiership season) and was Man of the Match in the last season’s Grand Final after taking 4/9.
The Trafalgar Cricket Club is now preparing for the 2024/25 season.
The club fields and senior and junior teams, and welcomes new players and members.
For more information, email trafalgarcricketclub@gmail.com, or check out the club’s socials.
