By DAVID NAGEL
PAKENHAM all-rounder Russell Lehman has timed his run to perfection to take out the West Gippsland Cricket Association’s top individual prize, The Terry Stephenson Medal at an awards ceremony at Kooweerup on Friday.
Lehman, who was well adrift of Cardinia’s runaway leader Neil Barfuss with just four rounds remaining in the season, had the perfect finish, polling 12 votes in his last four games to end on 21 votes, one ahead of Barfuss on 20, with Tooradin’s Tom Hussey on 14 back in third.
The 23-year-old, who played his first senior game with Catani at the age of just 14, made 522 runs and took 42 wickets for the season. The normally quiet-spoken all-rounder opened up when it came time to say thank you.
“Obviously, it’s a big honour and I’d like to thank the Pakenham Cricket Club, especially Mitsu (Phil Anning), I don’t tell him this but he’s one of the main reasons I play cricket, he’s like a second dad and the way he runs the club is spot on,” he said.
“And obviously my family and my girlfriend Sam, she lets me get away with a bit if I perform on a Saturday, she doesn’t normally see me until Sunday so I appreciate that as well.”
Lehman said he was happy to take on more responsibility this season in the absence of injured captain-coach Dom Paynter.
“I pulled my finger out and took my cricket a bit more seriously this year,” he said.
In other highlights, Robert Taylor and Peter Brennan were awarded WGCA Life Memberships, Lang Lang received the Jeff Wallace Award for Best Administered Club, and Lehman and Merinda Park’s Dylan Cuthbertson were announced joint Glasscock Medal winners for their performances in representing the WGCA at Country Week.
