By David Nagel
The old saying goes that you should never write off a champion and Tooradin (6/270) star Russell Lehman (117) further endorsed that point with a masterful century on day one against Merinda Park on Saturday.
It’s not that anybody had actually written off the now 33-year-old; but a mixture of injuries and bad luck has curtailed the gun all-rounder from showcasing his absolute best in recent times.
The curse seemed to have struck once again in last week’s one-day loss to Cardinia, with Lehman forced to retire hurt on 27 after a freak accident while batting.
The left-handed bat was struck in the neck region by an errant throw as he looked to complete a quick single.
The hit was significant enough for the right-arm medium-pacer to sit out the post-tea session.
But just seven days later, Lehman took back the spotlight; a focus his cricket exploits have demanded for the best part of 20 years.
Saturday’s exquisite knock was his seventh Premier Division century, with two unbeaten hundreds (104 and 113) at Catani in November 2008 the early signs that Lehman was something special.
He had just turned 17 at the time, after making his senior debut for Catani as a 14-year-old on March 6, 2006.
Lehman crossed to Pakenham and made 116 not out in District Division in early 2010, and made 132 for the Lions in Premier Division during 2012/13.
He has now made four top-flight tons for Tooradin since moving to the Seagulls for the 2016/17 season.
He made centuries in three-consecutive seasons; beginning in 2017/18, with Saturday’s 203-ball innings his first triple-figure score since making 101 not out against his former club Pakenham in March 2020.
Lehman has won premierships at all three clubs, and won the coveted Terry Stephenson Medal for the best player in Premier Division on two occasions.
He won his first with Pakenham in 2014/15 before repeating the dose at Tooradin in 2019/20.
Lehman shared the stage on Saturday with the up-and-coming star of this generation; with Tyler Evans (67 not out) making his maiden Premier Division half-century.
The 20-year-old has already won multiple Premier Division flags at Tooradin; and reminded all and sundry of his elite all-round skills on the weekend.
Evans has covered the loss of injured speedster Brad Butler with real aplomb, taking 23 wickets for the season with the added responsibility of leading the Seagulls’ attack.
An attack led by Evans, Connor O’Riordan and Bailey Lownds is not what we would have envisaged in the pre-season, but circumstances have forced skipper Mick Sweeney’s hand.
Sweeney, who made 29 on Saturday, has full confidence that the new-look attack will deliver when it matters most.
“You have to be (confident), you have no choice; you pick the 11 and put your confidence in them and one of my messages is that you can’t be afraid to win,” Sweeney said.
“You go out there with 11 blokes and if it doesn’t work, you change, and if it’s not someone’s day it might be someone else’s.
“You’ve got to trust your teammates, because if it comes down to one, two or three, it’s never going to work.
“You pick your 11, you put your faith in them, you put your confidence in them and if it doesn’t come off it doesn’t come off.
“But you give it your absolute all and you believe it’s going to work out.
“And if it doesn’t, it’s not the end of the world…we go around again.”
Sweeney said he and key figures at the club had not been surprised by the output of Evans with the new ball this year.
“This is not out of nowhere for him; he’s been coming for a while and if you speak to anyone at the club they wouldn’t be surprised at Tyler’s performance and him leading our attack at 20 years old…he is our strike bowler,” Sweeney explained.
“I think the red ball will suit him, he’s fit, he can bowl for a long time; no-one is surprised by this.
“It’s a completely different attack; we’ve had to do it differently but it’s been great to see players take their chance and be ready for it.
“Without Brad (Butler), without Pete (Sweeney), Russ hasn’t bowled for three or four matches; Dylan Sutton has been injured for more than half the season; so we’ve been up against it a little bit but credit to all the bowlers for doing such an incredible job.”
Tyson Bertrand (3/66 off 22) led the bowling attack for the Cobras, who need to chase down 271 to keep their chances of staying in Premier Division alive.
They will do so without former captain Mat Campbell; who was stood down by the club last Wednesday after a board meeting was held on Tuesday night.
