Cometh the hour, cometh the man! Terry Crittenden stood up when Stockton & Northern Districts needed it the most
Stockton and Northern Districts Cricket Club | August 12, 2024
Others may have stayed away. A club struggling for players and staring down the barrel of a long summer in the Newcastle first grade competition.
But that’s not Terry Crittenden.
Instead the Waratah-based father, who recently turned 43, has opted to return in 2018-19 and help out his beloved Stockton and Northern Districts.
The all-rounder has also been joined by former teammates Ben West and Sam Jenkinson.
“Stockton are struggling a bit,” he said. “After a committee meeting Ben West and I decided to put our hand up and play a few games. It’s good to see Jenko back as well after his shoulder problems. “We want to try and help out and see what happens.”
Crittenden, a Maitland product from Western Suburbs, arrived at Lynn Oval around 2003-04 following a successful stint with fellow Newcastle side Hamwicks.
Soon after the NSW under-17 and Newcastle senior representative helped Stockton claim their most recent premiership in 2004- 05. The following summer he scored 833 runs, featuring three centuries, and took 18 wickets. Crittenden also skippered the Seagulls for a handful of campaigns and four seasons ago, in 2014-15, was part of the club’s last grand final XI.
Since then he has played a sprinkling of games, mostly T20, and last summer he didn’t don the uniform at all. Crittenden admitted being “sore for a week” after Stockton’s opening round loss to Charlestown at Kahibah Oval on September 29 and said the ensuing two washed out weekends “weren’t the worst thing”.
Seagulls captain Nick Foster was thankful to have the experienced campaigner back on board, especially with figures of 2-17 from five overs and almost run-a-ball 33 at the top of the order.
“He [Crittenden] has been outstanding for us over the years,” Foster said. “I think he’ll play as often as he can. He enjoyed the first round against Charlestown and he was pretty good for us.
“That experience is invaluable and having a couple of older heads around helps with that stability.
“You can see the attitude of the younger guys change as well. Even in how they turn up.”
Stockton are scheduled to host Wallsend on Saturday.
“I think that will be a tough one,” Foster, who represented Newcastle on Sunday, said. “They might be a bit of a surprise packet this season. When push comes to shove, Nathan Price is probably the best player in the competition, and there’s a few younger guys there as well. “If they can get to the semis they will be one of those teams you don’t want to come up against.
