Victorian Bushrangers

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**Victorian Bushrangers**

First Match:	Victoria vs Tasmania, at Launceston, 1851. Tasmania won by 3 wickets
Captain:	Cameron White
Coach:	Greg Shipperd
Home Ground:	Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)
Honours:	Pura Cup: 26 Ford Ranger Cup: 4 KFC Twenty20 Big Bash: 2
Overall record:	Pura Cup: P:108, W:41, D:29, L:38, NR:0 Ford Ranger Cup: P:92, W:41, T:1, D:1, L: 48, NR:1 KFC Twenty20 Big Bash:P:8, W:7, L:0, NR:1
2006/07 Position:	Pura Cup: 3rd (24pts) Ford Ranger Cup: 1st (Runners up) (32pts) KFC Twenty20 Big Bash: 1st (Champions)
Most recent game:	Pura Cup vs Queensland Bulls, The GABBA, Brisbane, March 8-10, 2007. Queensland won by 101 runs.
Current as of:	March 23, 2007 [1]

The Victorian Bushrangers are an Australian cricket team based in Melbourne, Victoria. The team competes in the first class competition the Pura Cup, which was formerly known as the Sheffield Shield, in the limited overs Ford Ranger Cup, and the more recent Twenty20 competition known as the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash.

The team was founded in 1851 and most recently won the Pura Cup in 2003-04, but made the final in 2005-06. The 2006-07 season captain is Cameron White and the vice-captain is Brad Hodge. The club has also won both of the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash competitions which have been staged, without losing a match. The club finished 3rd in The Pura Cup in Season 2006/07, and finished runners up after coming 1st in The Ford Ranger Cup, losing the final to Queensland.

Most home games are played out of the MCG, subject to availability. The Junction Oval (St Kilda Cricket Ground) is the current alternative.

The team has provided many cricket greats to the Australian team. It was the first state team established in Australia and has had a long and successful history. Present day Bushrangers who have made it to the Australian team include Shane Warne, Shane Harwood, Cameron White and Brad Hodge

1 History
2 Current Squad (Including Ford Ranger Cup Number where applicable)
3 Championships
4 Records
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] History

Victoria was the dominant force in the early days of Australian first class cricket, winning two of the first three Sheffield Shield tournaments and won most of their early domestic friendly games against the other states.

Victoria has hosted a list of greats such as Warwick Armstrong, Bill Woodfull, Bill Ponsford, Chuck Fleetwood-Smith, Hugh Trumble, Lindsay Hassett, Dean Jones, Merv Hughes, Jack Ryder, Bill Lawry, Bob Cowper, Alan Connolly, Graham Yallop, Keith Stackpole and Ian Redpath. (See for a full listing of past players).

The Bushrangers' proud history dates back to the very start of Australian cricket when the Melbourne Cricket Club was formed in 1838 which was the largest sporting club in Australia at the time. In that same year the MCC played its first match against the Victorian Military but the first official interstate game was contested between Victoria and Tasmania in 1851 in Launceston.

The first game between the great rivals of Victoria and New South Wales was played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 1856. Playing in that inaugural game was a man by the name of Tom Wills who was essentially the backbone in which the Bushrangers have built their proud history. Wills also had a strong hand in the founding of Australian rules football. He captained the club for many years and his contributions set up the Victorian dominance in Australian first class cricket.

The annual Sheffield Shield tournament first began in the season of 1892-93 between Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia. Victoria won this tournament by defeating both opponents twice each.

The tradition of cricket on Boxing Day also featured Victoria when they played New South Wales in 1965.

The Victorian Cricket Association was founded in 1895 and is now located in Melbourne across from the MCG.

During the history of the shield Victoria has won 26 titles, the most recent in season 2003/04. Victoria has always been a powerful force in Australian cricket and the Australian team is never short of Victorians in the line-up.

[edit] Current Squad (Including Ford Ranger Cup Number where applicable)

2. Shane HARWOOD (RHB, RFM)
3. Brad KNOWLES (RHB, RFM)
6. Aiden BLIZZARD (LHB) [Rookie Contracted]
7. Brad HODGE (vc) (RHB, OS) [Cricket Australia Contracted]
8. David HUSSEY (RHB, OS)
9. Cameron WHITE (c) (RHB, LS)
10. Gerard DENTON (RHB, RFM)
11. Jon MOSS (RHB, RM)
13. Andrew McDONALD (RHB, RM)
14. Michael Klinger (RHB)
15. Rob CASSELL (RHB, RMF)
17. Adam CROSTHWAITE (RHB, WK)
19. Mick LEWIS (RHB, RFM)
20. Dirk NANNES (LHB, LFM) - Both Nannes and Siddle are allocated Number 20.
20. Peter SIDDLE (RHB, RFM) - Both Nannes and Siddle are allocated Number 20.
23. Shane WARNE (RHB, LS) [Cricket Australia Contracted, Retired]
24. Lloyd MASH (LHB)
25. Allan WISE (RHB, LFM)
39. Nick JEWELL (RHB)

The Following Players are Contracted, but are yet to play One Day Matches, or have no number.

Jason ARNBERGER (RHB, RFM)
Grant BALDWIN [Rookie Contracted]
Aaron FINCH (RHB) [Rookie Contract]
Matthew GALE [Rookie Contracted]
Matthew HARRISON (LHB) [Rookie Contract]
Jon HOLLAND [Rookie Contracted]
Peter NEVILL [Rookie Contracted]

The Following Players Are Uncontracted, but have figured in Bushrangers Squads this season (2006-07)

Clinton MCKAY (RHB, RFM)
Robert QUINEY (LHB)
Grant LINDSAY (RHB, RM)
Darren PATTINSON (RHB, RFM)

[edit] Championships

Sheffield Shield/Pura Cup (26): 1982/83, 1894/95, 1897/98, 1898/99, 1900/01, 1907/08, 1914/15, 1921/22, 1923/24, 1924/25, 1927/28, 1929/30, 1930/31, 1933/34, 1934/35, 1936/37, 1946/47, 1950/51, 1962/63, 1966/67, 1969/70, 1973/74, 1978/79, 1979/80, 1990/91, 2003/04
One-Day Competition (4): 1971/72, 1979/80, 1994/95, 1998/99
KFC Twenty20 Big Bash (2): 2005/06, 2006/07

[edit] Records

FIRST CLASS BATTING RECORDS

Match	Player	Runs
168	Darren Berry	10412
124	Dean Jones	9684
120	Brad Hodge	8744
114	Ray Bright	7618
107	Matthew Elliot	6902
105	Tony Dodemaide	6825
99	Bill Lawry	6815
95	DF Watmore	6732
92	Paul Reiffel	6103
92	Ian Redpath	5674