Almanac Cricket: The Hunt For The Pomborneit East Pitch

 

Les Everett’s ‘Abandoned Cricket Pitches’ Instagram page is probably my favourite place on that platform. Having grown up on a farm that had an abandoned pitch (Koallah, a suburb of Pomborneit), the beauty, yet sadness of an abandoned pitch is something close to my heart. I’ve contributed several pitches to Les’s page from my part of South West Victoria, but there was one I’d known of since I was a kid that was my holy grail of abandoned pitches. The Pomborneit East pitch needed to be found and photographed.

 

The locality of Pomborneit East was known as ‘Hawk’s Nest’ until 1931. Due to its remoteness amongst the stones and difficulty in access, Pomborneit East was relatively short lived as a viable community. The original track leading around the massive stone barriers was never altered unlike in other areas and Hawk’s Nest Road remains a cautious drive today. A telephone exchange operated at Pomborneit East from 1937 until 1969. A creamery associated with the Camperdown Cheese and Butter Factory operated at Pomborneit East from 1934 to 1960.

 

 

 

 

 

The Pomborneit East State School No.4126 opened in 1924. The only public building ever built in Pomborneit East, it was initially known as Corangamite State School, locally as Hawk’s Nest, then changed to Pomborneit East. The school was built on land purchased from the Kelly family and when the school closed in the early 1970s, the building and land were sold back to the Kelly family. The most famous student at Pomborneit East was Richard Elgin McGarvie. Richard McGarvie AC QC was appointed to the Supreme Court of Victoria on 1 June 1976, and served as a judge until 1992. He was appointed Governor of Victoria from 1992 to 1997.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Daryl and Satu, Pomborneit East residents, have organised permission with property owner and neighbour ‘Longy’ to look for the pitch. Their three children are all junior cricketers with the Pomborneit CC, while Satu won a Division 2 women’s premiership with the club in 2021/22. Longy, a Chinese man reasonably new to the area, seems bemused by my interest, but knows of cricket having bet on Big Bash games. As we go from Longy’s house towards Lake Corangamite, the rocky terrain noticeably flattens out.

 

We are on the edge of what is known as Carson’s Island, or Vaughan Island on earlier maps at the majestic Lake Corangamite, Australia’s largest permanent saline lake which covers around 230 square kilometres. Though it’s not a true island with it’s significant land bridge. Daryl remembers seeing the pitch years ago while shifting cattle. We walk around for a long time in the vicinity of where he thought it was but to no avail. There’s no sign of it on a Google Map search. Satu has joined us in the search but it’s not looking like we will find it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Longy appears on his four wheel motorbike. He knows he’s seen a ‘concrete slab’ somewhere. He takes us around further to where he thinks he has seen it. It’s still not easy to find. But then it happens. I stumble across a concrete pitch mostly covered in long, dead grass. This is it! With Longy’s permission we kick off the grass to fully expose the pitch.

 

 

 

Sport in Pomborneit East was very short lived. Football was played in the locality, Hawk’s Nest played Pomborneit FC twice in 1922 for one win each, and once in 1923 which saw Pomborneit record a 27 point win. No other games have been found for Hawks Nest FC, though it’s highly likely they played some more games in those two years (Pomborneit FC won the 1922 premiership).

 

Hawk’s Nest first appeared cricket wise in the 1930/31 season. Outright losses were sadly a feature of their debut season, four in total, a solitary win over Koallah on January 24th 1931 their only reason to celebrate. That inaugural team featured names synonymous with the locality for many years such as Parsons, Cust, Frith and Lovett. 1931/32, now known as the Pomborneit East CC, was not much better, suffering 9 outright losses. The only win that season coming against Pirron Yallock on the 5/12/1931, winning with scores of 54 v 40. With those results it’s quite understandable that they didn’t reappear again until the 1936/37 season.

 

 

 

 

Cricket was still tough for the Pomborneit East lads in 1936/37. A win and a draw amongst all the losses. Bowled out for 8 against the Larpent Imperials, though saved an outright result with 7/28 in the second innings. This season is notable for the debut of Alan Carson, who later went on to be an all time great at the Pomborneit Cricket Club and remains the only man to take 10 wickets in an innings for Pomborneit with 10/8 against Swan Marsh at Pomborneit on January 2nd 1954.

 

 

 

 

1937/38 sees Pomborneit East become much more competitive. The losses become closer and there are no outrights. Alan Carson emerges as a wicket taking force, and basically wins a game against Stoneyford himself with a club record at the time 66 runs and 4/47 with the ball as Pomborneit East win 161 to 9/138.

 

In 1938/39 Pomborneit East finally become a contender. nine wins and five losses in the home and away season. Jim Parsons, later to become a Pomborneit CC life member played the first of many, many games that year. Jim retired after the 1974/75 season and is fondly remembered as a gutsy fielder (mostly with his shins) and a prolific raffle ticket seller. He batted and bowled pretty well too. A big win in the semi final and they are into a two day preliminary final. Irrewillipe bat first and make 8/331 in the match at Pomborneit, Pomborneit East reply with 190, Alan Carson doing his best with 48 and 5/69.

 

1938/39 was the high point for the Pomborneit East CC. They returned to their old ways in 1939/40, only winning two games. Alan Carson took 42 wickets, playing in 9 of their 12 games and taking 6 five wicket hauls. A 7th place finish in the eight team competition.

 

Pomborneit East were more competitive in 1940/41 but fell short of finals action in the shadow of World War II. The Stoneyford CA went into recess until the 1944/45 season where most but not all clubs returned. Pomborneit East was one that didn’t. Alan Carson and Jim Parsons joined Nalangil for 1944/45 and were part of the team that played Pomborneit in the grand final. Carson and Parsons joined Pomborneit for the 1947/48 season after Nalangil folded.

 

Standing on the Pomborneit East pich is a cathartic experience. I think of the matches played here with it’s magnificent backdrop. I think of Pomborneit’s most successful captain Geoff Boyd, who took one of his four hat-tricks in the 1938/39 season on this very pitch. I think of how different and no doubt vibrant the Pomborneit East community was in the 1930’s. I love how the concrete is so well preserved when it was last used for cricket in 1941. I wonder how such a wonderful lake, salty as it is, has no tourism attached.

 

 

 

 

I’ve never seen a Pomborneit East CC photo. If one exists we would happily put it on the wall in the Pomborneit CC clubrooms in honour of our former comrades from the Eastern suburbs of Pomborneit. Please get in touch if you have any information around a photo or anything to do with the club or the Pomborneit East locality.

 

 

Read Luke’s story on the history of the long forgotten Pomborneit Football Club HERE

 

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