Simmons takes prize

Craig Simmons took home a third-successive Martin Baird Medal from Lark Hill on Saturday night, putting an exclamation point at the end of another remarkable season.

The championship-winning Perth Scorchers left-hander will leave a legacy at Rockingham-Mandurah which may never be touched.

However, the 30-year-old is nowhere near finished yet.

The Mariners sensation polled either the maximum three or two votes on eight occasions from his 14 matches to finish clear of the chasing pack with 20 votes.

He was a clear-cut victor on the back of 604 runs at 46.46 and 20 wickets at 23.8, both marks leading the way for the first-grade team.

Simmons continues to be the benchmark all other Rockingham-Mandurah players are judged by and his third Baird Medal comes after his long-awaited breakout with two centuries for the Perth Scorchers.

Add this to last season’s Olly Cooley Medal, where he will be one of the main fancies again in 2013-14 and it is hard to argue he has not raised the bar yet again.

Simmons and Baird were teammates in Rockingham-Mandurah’s inaugural first-grade team in 2000-01 with the award and night honouring the memory of the State junior all-rounder, who tragically died before the 2002-03 season.

The red-headed larrikin played 17 first-grade matches and 110 all up for the Mariners, working his way through as an under-13 player with significant promise.

The medal can be won by any senior player and is voted on by the players after each round.

The rest of the leaderboard signified the efforts of all four grades as Brad Ranford finished runner-up on 14 votes, fourth grade paceman Richard Dawkins whipping home on 13 and Nathan Anderson, Michael Chappell, Adeel Ejaz and John Murphy getting 11 votes apiece.

Apart from the esteem which the night is held in by all Mariners members, it was a great occasion after the club won all four grades for the first time in 14 seasons.

This was confirmed with second grade’s one-wicket win at Lilac Hill after never looking likely through much of the match chasing Midland-Guildford’s 214.

Simmons took two votes from first-grade’s 126-run win of the Swans at Lark Hill by making a 61-ball 79 and taking 4-39.

Rockingham-Mandurah’s total of 6-313 was underpinned by Josh Smith’s gem of 131 from 120 balls, featuring 13 fours and 4 sixes as the Mariners went bananas early, after just 16 overs being 1-130.

Third grade finished a game and quotient outside the finals with an 8 win, 1 draw and 6 loss record after wiping the visitors off Lark Hill by scoring 9-216 before shooting the Swans down for 92.

Fourths got the job done when Chris Bowerman (58) and Ryan Hoskins (46) got Rockingham-Mandurah to 153.

Dawkins turned destroyer with 4-26 to skittle Midland-Guildford for 90 with the side storming up the ladder post-Christmas after just one win in the first eight rounds.

The under-15s dropped to second after a narrow ninerun loss to Midland with Wesley Steele’s hat-trick the highlight, and will now play at home on Saturday, the match starting at 9.30am.

The under-17s will carry four-straight wins into their final against Gosnells at Sutherlands Park on Saturday.

Jordan Brokate (56) keyed the side’s chase of the Swans’ 5-123 from 30 overs, with the side finishing on 6-188.