Jeff Goninan was on the verge of replacing his bat.
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But the 23-year-old may reconsider swapping the taped-up Kingsgrove willow after notching up a record Newcastle District Cricket Association one-day total of 189 at Cardiff on Saturday.
The Stockton-Raymond Terrace skipper went past the 175 posted by Hamilton-Wickham all-rounder Sam Webber in 2010-2011 as well as the 174 amassed in round one by in-form Wests player Aaron Wivell.
And all Goninan wanted was to get off the mark after failing to trouble the scorers in the season opener seven days earlier.
“After getting a duck the first week I just wanted to get off the mark to be honest,” Goninan said. “It turned out to be alright.”
After winning the toss and electing to bat the opener made the most of his time in the middle, spending a little over three hours carving his name into the history books.
The 150 deliveries faced by the apprentice carpenter included 29 boundary shots – 22 into the fence and seven over it – which made up a large percentage of his personal tally.
Towards the end of the team’s 50-over innings, Goninan hulled out to deep mid-wicket and was a touch disappointed not to rack up a double century.
“There was about three overs left and I’d hit boundaries the two balls before,” the right-hander said.
“It was just a rush of blood and I thought I could get there [200] that over, but I got caught on fence. Being so close I was a bit gutted not to get 200, but I would have taken 189 at the start of the day.”
In terms of the achievement Goninan was unaware of the Tom Locker Cup record until told by Stockton manager David Redden when he came from the field.
The Adamstown Heights-based captain was more pleased with the partnerships formed as part of the 5-333 total, which included 186 with Daniel Upward (69) and 121 with Nick Foster (40).
The eventual 208-run victory was the exact response the Seagulls craved following a 214-run loss to Hamwicks at home first up.
“It was good, especially for some of the younger kids,” Goninan said. “Getting pumped the first game and then hitting straight back to get a big win will give them a bit of confidence.”
This was Goninan’s personal best performance, eclipsing the first of his nine Newcastle top grade tons – a 137 made against Wallsend in 2012-2013. Outside the upcoming campaign of his junior club, and aspiring to make another grand final like they did two seasons ago, Goninan will strive to play with the Newcastle representative squad across all formats. He also wants to rejoin the Bush Blues at the Australian Country Championships, which take place in Wollongong in January.
