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Mitchell Britton and Markus 'Baz' Harris have been long-time mates and sports buffs from their time growing up in Tasmania, but it's not until they knocked on the door at Moonee Valley that they've actually played together. And now that's changed.
They've quickly established themselves at our club, and Mitch has been rewarded with the first five-wicket haul of his career.
And it was fitting that he was playing with Markus when he achieved it, in the Sixths on February 8.
Mitch's 5/30 has put the team in a solid position in the two-day match, and a win could spearhead a push into the finals.
At right: Mitchell Britton with his five-wicket ball and great mate Markus Harris.
And Mitch's five-for means that Markus hasn't got all the bragging rights among our Tasmanian contingent.
Markus took five wicket hauls in consecutive days on November 16 and 17, playing in the Sixths and the Fourths.
And Mitch's 5/30 were the best figures.
But who's counting?
If Mitch and Baz can continue with their form - and Baz in particular is handy with the bat - they may have more to celebrate with the Sixths come season's end.
And to round out Moonee Valley's Tasmanian connection, Charlie Jackson was part of a comfortable win in the Fifths on Saturday.



A milestone match - it's all that Matters

The 200 game milestone is the latest accolade for Moonee Valley’s Matt Thomas, who has spent more than half of his life at our club.
Matt started as a youngster and has been here virtually from the beginning of our juniors, when we started under-age grades at Moonee Valley in 1996.
At right:  The team which helped Matt Thomas celebrate his 200th game: L-R. Back - Channa DeSilva, Joshua Gorry, Ben Thomas, Matt Thomas, Shiwantha Kumara, Nadeera Thuppahi and Luca Nimorakiotakis. Front - Jack Newman, Bede Gannon, Suraj Weerasinghe and Samara Vithana.  
Already a Life Member, the 200-game mark is a testament to his achievements over more than two decades.
He’s played in a First Eleven premiership, captained the Firsts for two seasons and was selected captain of the VTCA Team of the Year in 2014/15.
He took to the field in the January 25/February 1 fixture against Sunshine YCW, and was one of the not-out batsmen when the game was called on Week 2 due to rain, with Moonee Valley in a dominant position.
Matt won the First Eleven bowling awards in 2013/14 and 2014/15 and was Club Champion in those seasons – his captaincy years – proving he leads from the front.
He's one of only nine Moonee Valley players to score centuries in consecutive innings, in 2006/07 – 131 not out in the Sevenths, followed up with 126 in the Seconds. 
Matt’s been selected four times in the Moonee Valley Team of the Year – twice as vice-captain.
He’s also spent time on the MVCC Committee, so he has truly made a lasting and important contribution to our club both on and off the field.

Pete's Golden moment - he's 200-up

Above: Peter Golding and his milestone team: L-R Sunil Bhandari, Daniel Phillips, Matthew Esmore, Sohail Hussain, Domenic Gibaldi, Dean Jukic, Peter Golding, Ian Denny, Joshua Norsetter, Stephen Esmore and Sagar Bhatia.
Thirds captain Peter Golding has joined a select group at Moonee Valley, bringing up his 200^th game on January 19.

Peter has been an integral part of Moonee Valley since 2007/08, when we lured him out of retirement with a call to junior parents for conscripts to bolster our one-day teams. Son Sam was playing juniors at the time, and Peter thought he might give it a go. He hasn’t looked back.

Peter’s one of our finest glovemen, having won our Wicketkeeper of the Year award four times since 2012/13.

He’s also made a telling contribution off the field, as our treasurer for the past six years and as secretary for four years before that.

Peter’s played everywhere from the First Eleven down, and is a two-time Premiership keeper – in the Seconds flags in 2009/10 and 2014/15.

He’s a dour and gritty batsman, and has been known to offer advice to the opposition fielders and bowlers as they try in vain to blast him out. Peter’s happy to play the waiting game at the crease, and has time and again frustrated the opposition as he accumulates a total against all odds.

Peter’s 200^th game will elevate him to Life Membership at the end of this season, and it was fitting that his milestone game was played with two revered Life Members – Ian Denny and Dean Jukic – in the team.

There’s nothing much at Ormond Park that Pete doesn’t know about – he’s a regular down there with his morning walks with his two dogs, wearing his familiar bucket hat. If you want a pitch report on Saturday morning, phone Peter – he’s invariably down there with the dogs, or has already had an inspection.

Above left: Joshua Norsetter in the Under 16s.

Above right: Tomas Morrissy in the Under 14s

Our young Valley stars play in the reps

Three Moonee Valley juniors took to the field in the North West Metropolitan Cricket Association representative teams over January, and did us proud.
Joshua Norsetter, who's been starring in the Valley senior teams since he was Under 14 and has already accumulated more than 90 senior games, played in the Under 16s.
Tomas Morrissy, who has played two years in the Moonee Valley Under 16s even though he qualifies for a younger age group, represented the NWMCA in the Under 14s, where they made the finals playing against associations from around the State.
Tomas also has plenty of senior experience.
At right: Our Under 12 rep star Katherine Baker with her coach Joshua Gorry.
And Katherine Baker, now in her fourth season at Moonee Valley, showed her skill and ability in the Under 12 girls team. She was watched for most of her games by her Valley coach Joshua Gorry.
Congratulations to the three of you - the whole Moonee Valley Cricket Club is proud of your efforts.
Now it's back to the second half of the season for our three representatives, and they're sure to continue to play a leading role.

     Main Club contact details:

* Charlie Walker - President/Secretary 0411 705 381; 9370 1802
* Peter Golding - Treasurer 0419 009 721
* Mark Gauci - Vice President 0457 778 335
* Peter Pickering - Junior Co-ordinator 0414 800 145  pjp@vicbar.com.au  
* Channa DeSilva - Membership Co-ordinator 0402 833 592

Email: mooneev@club.cricketvictoria.com.au


For more contacts, see " Office bearers & Officials " under "Club News & Info" at the top of the page

Last updated : February 9, 2020.
For more of our history, including our Premierships, click HERE