THE SEMIS - A Grade v Uralla, 20th/27th March 1960
Armidale Waratahs (The Tahs) | April 06, 2026
Waratahs suffered a disastrous start to the season, winning only one game before the Christmas match against Churches. Things picked up in the new year, including outrights over Uralla, Easts and Churches before just qualifying for the semis in front of Uralla by holding onto their last two wickets in a tense draw with them in the last round.
Alan Gray (#26) was not surprisingly the leading run scorer but only two of the regular batsmen averaged over twenty - allrounders Don Paul (#37) 23 and Brian Roberts (#114) 22.1. It was the bowlers who had revived their season, with spinning skipper Eric Smith (#82) 54 wickets, pacemen Terry Mackenzie (#54) and Roberts both taking more than 20 and Paul, in limited appearance, 19 @ 7.6. Keeper Peter Morse (#19) had benefited from standing up to the stumps with 10 stumpings in his 22 dismissals.
Uralla’s innings was based on two significant partnerships. After Mackenzie took a wicket in the first over, Walter Taylor and Bruce Kellaway added 106 but Roberts removed Taylor with a return catch and then Kellaway was run out. Three more quick wickets had Uralla struggling at 6-129 and Waratahs right on top. Jim Cooper and C Roberts put together 59 and despite Roberts claiming a pfeiffer, Uralla had topped 200.
Waratahs started their innings in the box seat, as position on the table meant that a draw would be enough to progress to the Final. Gray and Hugh Ferris (#32) gave them a steady start, soaking up the heat from a lively Gordon Patterson opening and repelling the accurate Kellaway. In 28 overs, they added 68 for the first wicket until Gray was run out by the length of the pitch in a dreadful mix up. Kellaway, changed the course of the match the first time, having Ferris caught at slip and then slipping quickly through Morse, Doug Johnstone (#47) and Smith to reduce Waratahs to 5-87. Roberts and Tony Lemon (#110) got their heads down and back to the plan of a draw. Over after over from Kellaway could not break through and it was only in his last gasp that Patterson ended the twenty over partnership of 48. Paul, a high quality batsman to come in at 8, continued the resistance with the patient Lemon, but the last hour started with Waratahs the more likely, before Kellaway got him.
John Failes, another quality bat well down the Waratahs order at 9, showed a complete defence and with half an hour to go, the draw tactic looked secure until Kellaway did the unexpected, delivering a slower ball several steps before his usual delivery stride and Lemon played all over it and lost his stumps. Gordon Lee, who in truth knew only one way, swung wildly and missed a full toss in the next over from Taylor, bringing last man Mackenzie to the crease. Twenty more minutes passed with near misses for the bowlers passing Mackenzie’s bat and stumps and stoic defence from Failes. It ended five minutes from scheduled stumps when Failes pushed too hard at a ball from the tireless Kellaway and was caught by Cooper at short cover.
Kellaway had bowled unchanged through the innings - 27 overs - and added 7-70 to his top score of 75.
Waratahs v Uralla - A Grade Semi-Final, 20th/27th March 1960
