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I was given a few tastes of first grade at the age of 17 and was captained by former NSW and Australian 2nd X1 batsman Tony Steele. Tony was a hard man but a very fair man for those that got to know him. Tony was a perfectionist in every venture he undertook, socially and in his business life. If it was a game of tiddly winks, tennis or golf Tony would want to win and find a way to take the cash every time.
My first-grade introduction was a baptism of fire and some of the best learning experiences ever. I was now playing with grown men who were duelling it out like there was no tomorrow which I took parts of into my future cricket career.
One of those early games was played at Manly Oval on a flat track of rolled baked mud recovering from the rugby season. When Tony gestured me up from fine leg for a bowl and placed the ball in my hand, he looked me in the eyes and said, “nothing short to this bloke. His name is Peter Toohey, and he is one of the best hookers and pullers in the game and doesn’t own a baggy green cap for nothing.”
Tony set the field for a flat deck accordingly. Yeah right, I thought. I used most of the first over to loosen up and said to myself it’s time to test this bloke out. The next ball was a rank half tracker that didn’t gut up above waist height that Peter pulled in front of square hard and flat. The ball didn’t go above head height and hit the mesh on top of the brick wall on the bowling club side of Manly oval.
After that over Tony called out Andy, got a sec. Tony’s summary and advice post my first over was ……. “If you bowl another short ball to Rats in this session, I will not bowl you again and you will be running from fine leg to fine leg for the rest of the game.”
My next over and contrary to Tony’s advice ……. I tried the old 3 card trick on the 5th or 6th ball with everything I had and was dispatched high and long into the top of the Slaggy Miller stand that backs on to Sydney Road. All be it over fine leg. I bowled 2 overs that game and true to his word Tony had me running from fine leg to fine leg till the close of play. Valuable lesson learnt. Don’t wear speedos under your creams.
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Responses
My first experience playing against Tony Steele was in 1972. I was playing for Central Cumberland District Cricket Club against Balmain at the SCG. Tony Steele opened the batting for Balmain. I was shocked at how Tony sledged the bowlers, I had never heard anything like it before. He was in superb form and kept telling our bowlers how crap they were each time he played a fine shot for a boundary.
Our opening bowler, Bill Lothian, then moved me to the fine leg boundary in front of the Brewongle Stand. Tony saw this fielding change and practiced playing a hook shot which I responded to by pretending to take a catch. When Tony saw this he gave a mocking laugh. A few balls later Bill bowled a bouncer which Tony hooked in the air straight to me, I didn't have to move. I then delighted in mimicking Ton's mocking laugh as he trudged off the field.