Heroes of the Ages - Ernie Toshack, a member of Don Bradman’s 1948 “Invincibles”, holds a special place in the history of Randwick Petersham Cricket. Not because of his first-class and Test cricket on-field exploits, but because he is the only cricketer to have played first-class cricket while a member of the three clubs behind Randwick Petersham – Petersham, Marrickville and Randwick.
At 29 he ventured to Sydney to play Grade Cricket. Surprisingly, his first choice club Petersham couldn’t find a spot for him and it was Marrickville where Ernie made his Grade debut – in 3rd Grade. In the only match he played in that grade, he took 10 wickets (6-40 and 4-16) against Glebe. Promoted to 2nd Grade he took 9-94 in his only game and was immediately promoted to 1st Grade where he took 7-35 in a losing 1st Grade match against University. His 6-22 to dismiss Manly for just 59 however, resulted in a resounding win for his team.
