North claims WA top gong

On the day he announced his retirement from Australian domestic cricket, Marcus North took out the Lawrie Sawle medal for the WACA's player of the season, along with Nicole Bolton who claimed the Zoe Goss medal.

The win capped off a remarkable season for the outgoing batsman, adding to his national honours of Sheffield Shield Player of the Year and skipper of the Sheffield Shield Team of the Year.

The 34-year-old was honoured with a special presentation, in which current Warriors captain Adam Voges made a stirring speech about his long-time teammate and friend. North also collected the award for Western Warriors Four Day Player of the Year.

QUICK SINGLE: North announces retirement

Fury opening batter Bolton was not on hand for the event due to commitments with the Australian women’s Twenty20 side in Bangladesh, but was a standout of the night. Bolton’s collection of the prestigious Zoe Goss Medal was accompanied by her winning the Western Fury WT20 and Western Fury WNCL Player of the Year awards. 

The State gongs added to the Fury captain’s national recognition as WNCL Player of the Year and her naming in the WNCL and WT20 ALL*Stars teams. An acceptance clip of Bolton was played to the room, while the 25-year-old’s parents, Alan and Joanne, were on hand to accept the awards on their daughter’s behalf.

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Mitchell Johnson was acknowledged for an outstanding summer with the national team in winning the Gold Cup, awarded to the best West Australian cricketer across all levels and voted on by members of the Perth sporting media. Johnson claimed 59 wickets from eight Test matches at 15.24 across both the Ashes and South Africa series. He collected three Player of the Match honours and was named Player of the Series against England.

The night also rekindled one of the feel-good stories of the season, with Craig Simmons named Perth Scorchers Player of the Year, as voted by players, umpires and the Match Committee. The affable and modest Simmons found himself in the national spotlight this year as he set a new Big Bash League record by smashing a century off just 39 balls against the Adelaide Strikers at the WACA Ground in January. 

The 31-year-old proved the feat was no one-off by notching 112 two games later in the triumphant semifinal against the Sydney Sixers at the SCG. However, one of his most important innings came in the final against the Hobart Hurricanes, with his 45 adding to a solid team total of 191 that proved insurmountable, leading to Perth’s first BBL title from three attempts.

Senior batsman and recent Test centurion Shaun Marsh capped off a year of returned form by winning the Alcohol.Think Again Western Warriors Domestic One Day Player of the Year award for his efforts at the Ryobi Cup tournament in Sydney. Marsh recovered from a hamstring injury to build an impressive total of 304 runs from just four matches, at an average of 76.00. The performance played a large role in national selectors recalling him for the recent series against South Africa, where he made a ton in the First Test.

One of the highlights of the night was the induction of Tom Moody and the late Arthur Christian to the Gallery of Greats, which is considered the highest honour the WACA can bestow on an individual.

It is unlikely Christian’s two most momentous feats will ever be equalled as the only player to claim more than 1000 wickets in WACA club cricket ranks, while also having captained North Perth to six consecutive premierships. The most outstanding all-rounder of his era, Christian bowled brisk left-armers and struck the ball firmly enough to amass 12 club centuries and produce a highest score of 97 for WA. 

Christian captained the first WA team to beat Victoria and later coached the State team. He was a conscientious and energetic member of the WACA Executive for two decades, spending one year as chairman, and proved a formidable contributor to cricket in the State.

Moody’s induction follows a career as a player, captain and coach of WA cricket as he evolved from a young batting star into an incisive medium-pacer and highly effective State captain. No player has beaten his tally of five Sheffield Shield wins since finals were introduced nor has anyone come close to his three scores of 150 in all finals. Add his four one-day titles and Moody is the most successful player in WA history. He was also the stand out all-rounder whose powerful batting brought 9507 first-class runs for WA while he claimed 232 wickets and pouched 124 catches. 

Moody was only selected in eight Tests but scored two centuries, including 101 to complement his 61 and 50 in his only three Test match innings at the WACA Ground. He had a substantial impact as a one-day player with 76 international appearances. He was part of the winning World Cup squad in 1987 but had an even greater impact as a critical player in Australia’s 1999 triumph. Moody coached Sri Lanka, Western Australia and Worcestershire, as well as Indian Premier League franchises and proved a canny and articulate media commentator.