Spotify’s George Hurley Wellington (Tech) and Spark Foundry’s Sophie Batten (Agencies) led their respective Big Clash teams to victory in Melbourne yesterday.
Hurley Wellington, who dominated the decider against Team HoldCos with a composed knock of 30 including two sixes, was voted player of the day, in spite of his team facing some sharp 135 kph rocks from Kristian James. He was well supported by Channel Factory’s Alex Irwin-Ross, who also cleared the fence several ties en route to 30 not out. Tech posted a score of 3/92.
HoldCos captain James Bethlehem, from WPP Media, was brought on to bowl at the death but couldn’t restrain the rampant Tech team from winning.
In the women’s decider, between Agencies and Media Owners, the Guardian’s Lexi Merton played a strong hand for the Agencies team, winning player of the day, but Alana Zanardo’s charges fell short of an Agencies side led by Batten.
WPP Media’s Bill Anderson won the Alex Peckish Courage Award.
The action now shifts north to Big Clash Sydney on 26 February, hosted in Vaucluse. Women’s captains include Kellyn Coetzee for HoldCos, Simone Donovan for Media Owners, Kathryn Furnari for Indies and Hannah Cooper for Tech.
The men’s teams will be led by Dan Sinfield for Media Owners, Matthew Coote for Tech, Ben McCallum for Indies and Alex Williams for HoldCos.
“A clash between the Independent agencies and the Holdco’s has been brewing for some time and no better place to settle this than at the Big Clash. Proud to be coming out of retirement to lead the Indie team onto the field,” McCallum said.
“We know we will likely be facing a state-of-the-art AI bowling attack, however the chance of it being operational on the day is unlikely. Experience, talent and strategy will win through.”
Sinfield told B&T that he was keen on revenge against Coote’s Tech bros and fend off William’s agency XI.
Following Sydney, the Big Clash will continue in Brisbane on 12 March and Adelaide on 26 March.
The tournament is sponsored by MiQ, News Australia, Seven and QMS, and is open to players of all abilities — from first-timers picking up a bat to seasoned campaigners who still know how to find the boundary.
With sponsor activations, music, food and drinks alongside the on-field action, Big Clash promises a high-energy start to the year for players and spectators alike.
To get involved, contact [email protected] for more information.
