Numurkah’s Cricket Shepparton Haisman Shield superstar Liam Gledhill broke a club record last round after becoming the first player in Blues history to pass 7000 A-grade runs, but it didn’t take an unorthodox technique to get there.
The stalwart’s latest feat adds to a pile of achievements, with Gledhill already leading the runs, wickets, catches and games tallies for the club in the top flight.
All those statistics wouldn’t be known without the enthusiasm of teammate Mitch Grandell, however, with Haisman Shield coach Matthew Cline explaining the stats hobbyist was the one who broke the record’s news.
“Not too many people at the club knew it was coming,” Cline said.
“But Mitch Grandell, he’s the stats guy and has a bit of a spreadsheet and has all the historic score sheets and books on file so he knows all the averages, games played and things like that.”
But a post on Facebook last Wednesday outlined the latest achievement for all to bear witness, Gledhill surpassing a figure no other Numurkah clubman has achieved.
The two-time premiership captain’s mindset is the key in Cline’s eyes, as the all-rounder fronts up with an unmatched competitiveness each time he puts on the pads and wields the willow.
“I think with ‘Flip’, it’s the sheer amount of experience that he has,” Cline said.
“He’s got great composure. His technique is quite basic but he knows his strength and weaknesses so well.
“He’s got a winning mentality and competitiveness, and he instils that a lot into our team.
“It’s awesome to have him around and the mindset he brings.”
The long-time cricketer has become a leader inside the four walls of the Blues, although not necessarily with words of wisdom to the emerging young Numurkah cohort.
It’s rather Gledhill’s poise and contagious determination that instils his teammates with belief.
“He keeps everyone level headed and it’s not necessarily by him saying how to do things or being overbearing,” Cline said.
“He’s composed around the young fellas and gives them confidence to play the way they like to play, instead of being too heavily focused on techniques.
“It’s a nice presence to have around our young team at the moment.”
With his current runs tally sitting at 7061 after Numurkah’s round 10 innings, Gledhill’s A-grade average sits above 33, with the chance it may only continue to grow if the Blues claim an elusive finals ticket for March.
Numurkah will take to the field to defend a target of 252 against Old Students on Saturday.
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