On A Good Wicket
[ The University of Melbourne Voice Vol. 3, No. 9
10 November - 8 December 2008 ]
New University of Melbourne cricket club recruit Mark Chilton says while it’s still early days, he’s enjoying his time at the crease in Melbourne. By David Scott.
With almost 7000 first class runs across 143 matches, former Lancashire Captain Mark Chilton (left) certainly knows how to put the runs on the board. So no-one was surprised when he hit 113 in just his third game for the University of Melbourne’s Premier First XI side.
“We’re very happy he’s made such a strong start for the club,” says club President Kevan Carroll. “Our weakness in recent years has been batting, and Mark was someone we’d identified who we thought could help our young team and lead by example in this area.”
“We know he’s a very good batsmen and the century just reinforces that.”
Uni sports fans have Victorian and Australian cricket stalwart Brad Hodge to thank for Chilton’s stint at University.
“While I’ve played in Sydney and Adelaide before, I’ve never spent any time in Melbourne,” says Chilton. “Brad (Hodge) played at Lancashire with us for a few seasons, and we lived pretty close by over there, and he was one of the guys who suggested I should come over.
“He put me in touch with (Melbourne University selector and Life Member) Wayne Phillips and that was it. It’s certainly nice to come to a place where you have few people who know you and know the area.
“I’ve been away before, but this has been the easiest transition, even with a young family. The club has been great and made me feel very welcome. I’m very enthusiastic about the next few months.”
While the club was undoubtedly keen to have Chilton’s ability in its match day squad, they were equally keen to tap into his experience off it as well. In his three years as Lancashire captain, he led the county to promotion in the Championship, and to an appearance in the Twenty20 Cup final in 2005.
Carroll says that while the club has traditionally been strong in its bowling and fielding, he hoped that Chilton would lead by example in the nets as well as on the field.
“That was one of the reasons I took this package – the batting-coach style role,” says Chilton. “The club is full of young people, and the idea of helping to develop some young cricketers was very appealing.
“My impressions so far from training have been great. There’s been a real enthusiasm and willingness to improve, and I hope as time goes on I’ll be able to try to help individuals with their techniques and approaches to batting. There are certainly no quick fixes, but that’s part of the challenge to slowly develop them over time.”
So will a renewed focus on the finer points of batting translate into more hundreds over the next few months? “It’s always nice to get a few, get some runs under your belt. You come over and the club has done a lot to help out, so it’s nice to repay the faith and show the guys you’re here on merit.”
“It’s a nice wicket down at the University, and I’m pretty confident if I can get off to some good starts and score in the 20s and 30s, I can go on from there and get some decent runs.”
Melbourne University’s next game is home to Ringwood on Saturday November 15 and Saturday November 22.
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