The success story that is the juniors.
Drouin is represented by Under 16, Under 14 and Under 12 teams in the 2009-10 season.
If the juniors of this season follow on in the manner of those before them the club can
look forward to an extremely bright future.
The lists of names in past senior premiership teams and the honour boards that identify
the many that have served in executive positions reveal scores of players that started in
the juniors before going on to be part of A grade and other senior victories.
A number of them went on to win WDCA Country Week and GCL teams’ selections,
two – Tom Carroll and Ronald Harper - gained all-Gippsland honors and two – Carroll
and Alan Johnston - graduated to senior ranks in the Melbourne district competition.
Old newspaper records indicated there may have been some junior matches involving
Drouin teams in the late 1800s.
But it was post World War 2 before real attempts at structured junior competitions
emerged in the district.
A side from 1948-49 including Graham Austin, Arthur McPhan, Fred Harper and Alan
Aitken – all to later become A grade premiership players – traveled to places as far as
Noojee for games; often the whole team crammed into Joe Davey’s Rugby Tourer car.
There was a recess for about a decade before the WDCA re-established a junior
competition and it has continued uninterrupted since.
Drouin won the first two years – 1958-59 and 1959-60.
The tradition from 1948-49 of entire teams crowding into one or two cars and often only
one continued for many years.
In the early 1960’s Gerald Treasure’s Holden station wagon did what Joe Davey’s Rugby
Tourer had done previously, carry 11 budding Bradmans and the team’s gear to away
games.
Lindsay Rippon recalled doing the same in the early 1970s.
Regretfully there were a couple of years in the 1960s when Drouin was unable to field a
junior side.
But by the 1970s things had changed considerably.
The availability of a lot more keen
young cricketers saw stronger sides
coming through and in 1974-75won
the clubs third u/16 premiership.
1974/75 U16 premiers.
Back Row- Geoff Aitken,
Alan Haysom, Greg Vincent,
Michael Rippon{capt},
Michael Hamilton, Rob Piner,
George Budge,Terry Phillips.
Front Row- Rodney Vincent,
Brian Barwick, Tony Rippon.
1982/83 U/16 Premiers and Champions.
Back Row- Ron Harper{ coach},Charlie Richards, Peter Grieve, Bruce Lugton,
Paul Wyatt, Steven Bethune, Peter Harper{Capt}, Anthony Cussen, Brendon Tampoline,
Paul Thaw, Darren Burke, Dale Hynes, Willie Pepper, Phil Dent{Coach}.
Front Row- Darren Fox, Michael Caddy, Dean Atkins, Anthony Rdcliffe.
The 1982-83 premiership.was the fourth in 9 years. This team was coached by Ron
Harper and Phillip Dent.
Lean times hit again and Drouin wasn’t part of the junior competition for at least two
seasons later in the decade.
The WDCA made some big changes in the 1990s that produced major benefits for juniors
and laid the foundation to the expansions of the senior competition that would follow
later.
An Under 14 competition was introduced in 1993-94 and Under 12s twelve months after.
Drouin fielded teams in all three age groups and won another Under 16 premiership in
1994-95.
Graeme Davies was a driving force in resuming our U-16s, four members of this side still
remain today, John Perry, Daniel Butler, Nick Kensley and our current President in
Brendan Butler.
Drouin 1994/95 U/16 premiers.
Back Row- John Butler[Team Manager},Mark Shanks, Corey Moyle, Kent Edwards,
Grant Balcombe, Brendan Butler, Nick Kensley, Graeme Davies{Coach}.
Front Row-Daniel Butler, Jordan Edwards, John Perry{Capt}, Danny, Murphy,
Brenton Lewien, Ben Harris.
Junior player numbers increased dramatically and several senior players, as had always
been the case, came forward as coaches and team managers and parental support
improved greatly on that of earlier days.
Over the last ten years one player stands out, Blair Weller [Pictured] played A Grade at
15 years of age, played Hatch and Dowling Shield under age teams, Gippsland U18s &
U21s , Victorian U 21 Country , W.D.C.A Junior and Senior
Country week Teams, A.Grade Bowling Award and Club
Champion all before he was 21? Blair Also Co-Coached Back
to Back premierships in the U/14s, Blair is currently playing
Provincial Cricket league with Frankston.
Since the three age groups were introduced Drouin has
established itself firmly as one of the strongest junior clubs
winning one Under12 premiership before ladders and finals
were dispensed with in that grade bytheWDCA to avoid a “win at all costs” attitude, and
four Under 14{runners up 4 times} and another two,{Runners up 3 times} Under 16
premierships, the latest being 2007/08
2004/05 U/14 Premiers.
Back Row-Brayden Salton, Nicole Thomson, Rhys Fairlie, Josh Goodwin,
Chris Gardiner, Mitch Goodwin, Wayne Morris, Alex Gaudion,Jake Griffiths.
Front Row- Nickolas Gaudion,Ben Thomson{Coach}, Simon Gardiner{Capt},
Jake Harper, Blair Weller{Coach},Andrew Harrison.
2005/06 U/14 premiers
Back Row-Nathan Godwin, James Hearn, Nicholas Gaudion, Nicole Thomson, Nickolas
Burr, Joshua Godwin, Mathew Barrand, Jake Griffiths, Cameron Burton
Front Row-BlairWeller {Coach}, Wayne Morris, Jed Saik, Jake Harper {Capt}, Alex
Gaudion, Ben Thomson {Coach }.
2007/08 U16 Premiership Team,
Back Row- Nick Gaudion- Nick Burr, Alex Gaudion, Jake Harper {Capt}, Jed Saik,
Jayden Fairlie, Josh Godwin, Robert Fairlie {Coach}.
Front Row- Nicole Thomson, Cam Burton, Matt Barrand, Jordan Wyatt,
Leigh Diston{12th man}
The girls show their talents.
A number of girls decided that cricket wasn’t just for the boys and have made their
presence felt during the past six or seven years.
Four of them – Alex Barwick, Katrina Wardle, Jenna Rees and Nicole Thomson – began
alongside the boys in the WDCA Under 12 competition.
Their improvement was rapid and it wasn’t long before they recruited a number of other
girls from school.
In 2005 they were keen enough to take on all-comers in the Under 17 girls’ country
carnival at Traralgon. They also showed the senior club a thing or two, going out and
securing sponsorships to pay for their team shirts and hats.
Although inexperienced they won one of the three games they played with the four girls
mentioned earlier invited to try out for a Gippsland squad to play in Melbourne.
With a couple of new additions from nearby localities the Drouin girls headed to the 2006
country carnival where they unfortunately defeated in the grand final.
However, they were able to claim some regional bragging rights by beating both Central
Gippsland and Leongatha on their way to the grand final.
In 2007 the girls took one step further and won the Final.
2006/07 U/17s Girls Country carnival Runners Up.
Back Row-Shelby Rundell, Alex Barwick, Jessie Ablett, Nicole Thomson{capt},
Katrina Wardle, Georgia Williams, Casey Garrity.
Front Row- Jenna Rees, Nicole Strang, Karina Proctor, Laura Croft, Chealsea Hill,
Jessie Hedley.
Nicole Thomson was named vice-captain and then captain of the Gippsland girls’ squad
in successive years and – with the boys – played in three junior premierships and
captained the Under 14s in 2006-07.Nicole is the only female to have played senior
WDCA cricket for Drouin, appearing in the then Division five side for one game in
which she made six runs and took three wickets.
2007/08 Gippsland U17s Country Carnival Winning Team.
Back Row- Rob Thomson {Coach}, Katrina Wardle, Ally McArthur, Nicole Thomson,
Alex Barwick, Tash Arbuthnot.
Karina Proctor, Jess Hedley, Jenna Rees, Laura Croft, Caitlyn O’Neil