50 years of Western Park

by Nicholas Duck
Western Park Cricket Club are set to celebrate their 50-year history with a night to remember this weekend as they name their hall of fame side and unveil a new book spanning the club's history.
Players from across the club's five decades will gather at the Warragul Function Centre on November 14, sharing stories of past heroics and more than a few laughs as well.
The centrepiece of the night will be the naming of their team of the half century, as well as a team of the past 25 years.
Cricket scribe and Gazette contributor Sam Laffy's new book on the history of the club also will be launched. Laffy, along with his father John, have long acted as club historians, gathering as much information as they can from old newspapers to put the story of the Warriors into an official record.
Former player and bowler for Tasmania Mark Ridgway will host the evening.
Western Park in its current form began in the WDCA's 1977-78 season after the St Andrew's Cricket Club changed venues to Western Park, adopting the new ground's moniker in the process.
It took some time for the newly named club to hit its stride, failing to make A grade finals until 1989-90 where, after finishing well clear on top of the ladder, they were quickly bundled out by Drouin.
From there the Warriors endured a near decade of heartbreak, making finals each year without tasting success until finally earning their first top level title in 1997-98.
It's a far different story in their modern era, however. The club are easily the team to beat in the WDCA, having claimed the last four division one two-day titles.
Add to that a healthy heap of accolades in other divisions and formats, as well as strong junior numbers and a new women's team, and it's left the Warriors as current kings of the competition.
Division one coach Sam Batson said the night would be about acknowledging everyone who had made a contribution to Western Park, no matter how small.
"Obviously we'll be honouring the guys who make the team but frankly that's probably the least important thing about the night, the most important thing is catching up with old mates and people who have been part of the club's history," he said.
Having played for the Warriors for 18 years, Batson praised the club's atmosphere as a major factor in its recent successes.
"It's a welcoming place, me personally I've had probably 10 mates who've joined from other clubs just to be a part of the social side more than anything."
For club stalwart Peter Croft, who has been involved with Western Park for the entire 50 years, the night will be a chance to celebrate a club near and dear to his heart.
"It'll be fantastic. We'll see a lot of blokes we haven't seen for 20 years or longer, blokes I spent my career playing with. It'll be a fantastic night honouring the team of the 50 years," he said.
Getting to watch the club's current successes, in part spearheaded by Peter's son Jason, also was a point of pride.
"We used to think we were going to lose. Whereas these blokes think they're going to win. That's the difference," he said.
"They train more like a footy club some nights. If it was cloudy we'd cancel training and come up and get on the drop, if it's raining they do something. They'll go for a run or something else."
When asked about his chances of featuring in the team of the half century, Croft played it coy.
"I'm pretty sure there'll be a Croft in the team, but it won't be me."
Western Park are encouraging past players and officials to attend the celebration. To purchase a ticket head to square.link/u/Xt1dYjir