• The place for cricket fans to connect, learn, and share their knowledge of the game
  • The place for cricket fans

About Me

Matt Whitby

Investment Manager
Sydney, Australia
Managing Director, Real Estate Investment Management

One-eyed Dragons supporter and love all ball sports, especially Cricket. Played over a decade of Premier Grade cricket for Western Suburbs and the Randy-Petes in Sydney.

My Activity

question
Q: NSW Colts v Queensland Colts in Sydney - 1992

Back Row - Ken Duffy (Umpire), Jason Arnberger, Scott Thompson, Richard Burton, Dick Guy (Manager), Paul Wilson, Matthew Whitby, Jeremy Bray, Clive Cruickshank (Umpire)

Front Row – Paul McLean, Heath Muller, Adam Gilchrist (Captain), Darren Quint, Shane Lee, Anthony McQuire
answered
Q: Who is the one player from Sydney Grade Cricket who played between 1980 and 2000 you’d want as the first player selected if you had the opportunity to start your own NSW Premier first grade cricket team?
A: I’ll take Graeme Rummans
question
Q: My best Grade team - Matt Whitby 1990 - 2001

My First Grade career lasted over a decade and covered two clubs – Randwick-Petersham and Western Suburbs.

I have great memories and long-term friendships from both clubs, and regularly catch up with ex-team mates, with many an old story told and reminisced.

Here's my best grade team of players I played with, in batting order:

1. Anthony McQuire (Western Suburbs) - An attacking opening bat that played the cross bat shots as good as anyone. I played at the U-19s National’s for NSW with “Jerry” and he received Player of the Carnival, a year when a 17-year old Ricky Ponting also played.

answered
Q: Jim Robson, “Jungle” to all, has been involved in cricket in Sydney since he arrived from Goulburn back in 1974.

Jungle’s played cricket for University of NSW for 32 years, he was a NSW selector and for 16 years he was the manager of the SCG Indoor Cricket Centre. He also has two sons who can play the game.

Jungle played first grade cricket for UNSW from 1974 to 1996 scoring 8,567 runs at an average of 30.37 including 6 centuries and 45 half-centuries. He also took 186 wickets. In all grades Jungle scored 13,616 for UNSW.

Jim also plays Veterans Cricket and recently toured New Zealand with the NSW Over 60s team.

A: What an amazing, long and successful career Jungles. Giving back to the game was also invaluable and in your time as selector, you almost single handedly “identified” that an 18-19 year old Michael Clarke would succeed at First Class level, and you were right.
answered
Q: Who are the captains, coaches and leaders in cricket, sport, business or any field of life you admire and relate to most in terms of their achievements, respect and what they stand for?
If you’d like to mention why, please do.
A: Ange Postecoglou - determined and principled
question
Q: NSW Under 19 Cricket team 1991-92

Back Row – Lance Brooks (Umpire), Corey Doyle, Glenn Prouten, Brendon Hill, Matthew Whitby, Jeremy Bray, Shane Lee, Anthony McQuire, Ken Shine (Manager)
Front Row – Nathan Rennie, Heath Muller, Jason Arnberger (captain), Ted Cotton (Coach), Corey Pearson, Robert Luc, Nathan Ashley
question
Q: The 1994/95 season was my first season at Western Suburbs. I’d played all my cricket at Petersham and after 4 years in the top grade, I felt it was time for a change.
I started the season in good form. In the first game we played Fairfield and I took 5 for 59 and scored 99 not out. Unfortunately, we lost by 5 runs. One game, one loss.
We won the next 9 before losing to Campbelltown on a wet wicket against Campbelltown.
We ended the season with one outright win,10 first innings wins and two losses. We won the Minor Premiership and the coveted home ground advantage for our first semi-final.
Winning the Minor Premiership was a reward for all the hard work but also “guaranteed” a home game semi-final which meant that if the semi-final was a draw or washed out we’d go straight through to the final.
So it was Pratten Park for us; you beauty.
With the top two teams set to play a home semi-final, it was 1st plays 4th at Pratten, and 2nd plays at home against the 3rd placed team.
St George had come 2nd and due to play at Hurstville Oval against Bankstown but North Sydney took the Sydney Cricket Association (SCA) to court to challenge their determination that North Sydney’s last-round win had been a contrived result.
For the first time in most people’s memory, the first week of the semi-finals was postponed until the courts made their decision. Not ideal but we simply prepared to play whomever at Pratten Park. North Sydney won their appeal, so they moved into 3rd spot to play St George at St George home ground and Bankstown finished 4th to play Wests at Pratten Park.
Out of nowhere there was a whisper Wests semi-final was going to be moved away from Pratten Park. At no stage during that season was any game transferred away from Pratten Park.
Unfortunately for Wests as minor premiers history will show that the game was moved to a neutral ground, UNSW’s Village Green. With the legal and courts commotion that North Sydney had prevailed in, Wests decided against fighting the SCA decision and played on.
After scoring a very competitive 351 Bankstown successfully chased our score for the loss of 4 wickets on a very flat 2nd-day wicket.
From 4th position, Bankstown then went on to play North Sydney at Bankstown Oval (home ground) in the final and won the Premiership and Belvedere Cup.
Lamenting, I never did play semi-final cricket again, maybe we should have taken a leaf out of North Sydney’s playbook.
We'd still love to know why we lost our home ground advantage.
blog post
Its why many play sport, to play semi-finals and finals.In cricket, very few get to realise their dreams of playing for their country or first-class cricket. It’s a team game and semi-fina ...
blog post
Back Row - Ken Duffy (Umpire), Jason Arnberger, Scott Thompson, Richard Burton, Dick Guy (Manager), Paul Wilson, Matthew Whitby, Jeremy Bray, Clive Cruickshank (Umpire)Front Row – Paul McL ...
blog post
My First Grade career lasted over a decade and covered two clubs – Randwick-Petersham and Western Suburbs.I have great memories and long-term friendships from both clubs, and regularly cat ...