Argentina: 1999-2000 season review

Argentine Cricket Association Development Officer Grant Dugmore reviews the 1999-2000 season:

"As the Gods would have it in the world of cricket, rain had the last laugh, washing out the final game of the season, involving an Argentine invitation XI and the touring Australian Old Collegians. The tourists managed one game though, narrowly defeating an ACA Presidents XI at Hurlingham on Saturday 13 May.

So the last and first cricket played in two different centuries in Argentina has been completed, and in many senses a large portion of history has been completed, and the future beckons invitingly.

On the club scene, St.Albans proved to be the dominant force, winning the 1st Division title in overwhelming fashion, leaving the traditional powerhouses of Belgrano, Lomas and Hurlingham trailing. Ably led by Christian Tunon, the team was spearheaded by the Paterlini brothers, Matias, the opening batsman, and Lucas, the younger opening bowler. Tommy Francis and Nicolas Prince continued their steady improvement, and the country's number one spinner, and national vice-captain, Hernan Pereyra, all provided solidity to a committed and organised outfit. St.Albans only lost 2 games the entire season, and also won the innovative Max Challenge held in January. One of the games they lost was costly, the final of the prestigious Robin Stuart Shield, against Belgrano.

The final was a thriller, St.Albans falling a mere 4 runs short of Belgrano's target of 274. Belgrano, on paper the most powerful outfit, were let down by a lack of consistency, and were perhaps more suited to success in the Shield, our version of a Cup-style competition. Premier batsmen Guillermo Kirschbaum and Donny Forrester never quite fired as expected, and Gaston Arizaga's early season spectacular transformation into an attacking batsman lost momentum in the second half of the season. They missed penetrative bowling, and although the likes of Perez Rivero and Cortabarria proved consistent, and the return of Jooris was a brief spark, were never quite able able to challenge the St.Alban's Sharks in the home straight, apart from the one-off final. Belgrano also felt the absence of solidity and strength of the Ferguson brothers too often.

Lomas and Hurlingham still have some work to do to catch the frontrunners, but both clubs have the ability and talent to challenge for higher honours in seasons ahead. The two Saturday Championship competitions, one before and one after Christmas, provided excellent opportunities for non first division cricketers, and also a valuable vehicle for promising youngsters to hone their obvious potential. Old Dragons and Lomas C shared the 1st competition, as the final was not completed, while Old Georgians, late entrants, walked off with the 2nd competition title.

The South dominated representative cricket against the North, winning the big one, the 101st three-day encounter, while also coming out victorious in the under-23 match, and winning the under-15 series 3-0.

Argentina repeated their inaugural success of the previous season by beating the ACA International XI {known as the Foreignors} by a 2-1 margin once again. Four tours were hosted, the Natal Midlands u16's from South Africa, the Hub Wanderers and Romany Club from England, and the Old Collegians from Australia. Next season promises to be much busier on this front, with 2 junior and 4 senior tours expected. Outward bound, at under 15 level two boys and one girls team travelled as a contingent to New Zealand, while the Golden Oldies also visited New Zealand later in the season.

The annual dinner and awards ceremony was held on 20 May, with special guest Mike Proctor in attendance on behalf of the ICC. Apart from team awards for various competitions, the following were the major prizes>

Cricketer of the Year...Matias Paterlini
ACA Special Award...Christian Tunon
Batting Award...Guillermo Kirschbaum
Bowling Award...Hernan Pereyra
Fielding Award...Paul Ferguson
Wicket-keeping Award...Marc Roberts
Best Colt {u21}...Lucas Paterlini
Best 2nd Division Player...Derek Culley
Most Improved 1st Division Player...Diego Lord
Most Improved 2nd Division Player...Luis Villace
Springbok Cup...Robbie Milligan
Len Allan Shield for Service...Maurice Runnacles
Coaching Award...Juan Williams
Umpiring Award...David Gibson
Junior awards, at under 15 level, were awarded as follows
Junior Player of the Year...Estanilao Falcon
Batting Award...Hernan Williams
Bowling Award...Agustin Casime
Player of the Year {Girls}...Cecilia Birnie
Most Improved Boys...Patricio Redruello; Nicolas Aguero Canesa
Most Improved Girls...Brenda Auld; Mercedes Esperon

A truly memorable season, made even more so by the knowledge that those ahead promise to be even more so, as Argentina looks forward to continued growth and expansion, and more competition within the America's region. The growth of Argentina remains crucial to the growth of cricket in South America and indeed through the global medium of the Spanish language."