Greerton Cricket Club

TRACING THE RICH HISTORY OF OUR CLUB | PART 30 | BY BARRY LEABOURN

Greerton Cricket Club, is extremely proud of the exclusive list of players that have played international cricket on their passage through the GCC playing ranks, during their career. The names of GP Howarth, RO Collinge, BP Bracewell, GJ Hopkins and JA Raval are read with reverence on the GCC Honours Board.

While all have represented New Zealand in test cricket - there is a further player who had an International cricket CV.

The late Roger Robert Andrew Francis Bradley, who wore the Greerton uniform through the 1980's, would go on to play for the Netherlands after he moved to Europe in the 1990's.

Examination of the Greerton honours board, reveals that Roger was an attacking top order batsman, whose bowling was just as vigorous as use of his willow weapon.

Roger won arguably the GCC biggest prize each season, of the Cameron Cup, awarded to the premier batsman who posts the most runs in a season on two occasions. A powerful performance in the 1986/87 season produced a mighty 750 runs, followed by 612 runs the following year.

He seemed to make a habit of providing his big feats in pairs. In 1986/87, he grabbed two six wickets bags. The first was a remarkable six wickets at a cost of just 8 runs followed by 7/25 later in the season. Five years later, he blasted 107no and 102no to add the icing to his honours board bowling achievements.

Five decades ago, the Bay of Plenty daily newspapers of the Bay of Plenty Times and the Rotorua Daily Post, would devote lot of inches of copy to Bay of Plenty Cricket representative cricket. On many occasions the match reviews were accompanied by full score-cards. Roger Bradley featured in many Monday cricket stories with his batting feats and occasional bowling honours.

RRAF Bradley, was allocated BOPCA Player Number 347 when he debuted for the Bay against Midlands at Te Awamutu, in a two-day fixture on 8/9th November 1981.

Roger would play for 49 games in the Bay of Plenty Cricket strip, which places him in 20th place on the all-time list of BOPCA appearances which date back to 1932. His Bay games were spread over nine seasons from 1981 up till 1991. The RRAF Bradley name was missing from the 1984/85 list of matches, which may have been the start of his overseas journeys.

Some 1103 runs at a career average of 23.98 were accompanied a best of 116 and three fifties. Remarkably, his 1103 runs sits in 23rd place on the all-time total, from the 587 Bay of Plenty players selected to the start of the 2026/27 season.

While his Bay statistics say that he was only an occasional bowler he was credited with a five wickets bag of 5/74 in the 1982/83 season.

Sadly Roger passed away on the 24th March 2017 at just 54 years young.

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Bay of Plenty CricketO'Connor Warren Insurance BrokersOwen Phelps EVES Real EstateResponsiveCraigs Investment PartnersEVES Real Estate Bay of PlentyNorthern Districts Cricket AssociationGreerton Cricket ClubHemant Dhamija, EVES Bethlehem

Final winter training for the GCC juniors.

Season set to start Saturday 17 October

Remember to register as soon as possible so we can sort all the teams out and teams can start outdoor training.

Head to https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/org/Greerton-CC/d23fd465/register

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JUNIOR / YOUTH REGISTRATIONS
Close on Friday 25 September
Register early to secure your child’s spot.

🏏 🖤 💛 2026/27 Junior and Youth Registrations are NOW OPEN! 🏏🖤 💛

Season Dates: 17 Oct 2026 - 20 Mar 2027

Pricing information:

Welcome to all new and returning members to GCC!

The WBOP Cricket Association has again made the decision to run a 'full season' (Term 4 2026 & Term 1 2027) for junior cricket that runs the entire summer and requires just 1 registration!

Junior (primary & intermediate) Subs for the 2026/27 season are $170

All new players require a playing shirt and cap which are $45 / $35 each and should also be paid at the same time.

🏏🖤 💛 GCC Night Watchman Subsidy Available 🏏🖤 💛

GCC is proud to support our community with a limited allocation of vouchers, each covering 50% of registration costs, for families who may need a little extra support.

To apply, please email [email protected] between 14 August and 4 September, using the subject line “GCC NIGHT WATCHMAN SUBSIDY”. In your email, please briefly outline your circumstances and why you are applying for the subsidy.

All applications will be treated respectfully and reviewed against our eligibility criteria. Successful applicants will be contacted after 4 September.

Additional information:

Please note that Year 8 students will play the full season for the GCC. Those students going to Tauranga Boys College (or similar) continue to play for Greerton and for Term 1, 2027 and will start playing their Saturday cricket for TBC in Term 4 2027, at the start of the new season. This is as per WBOP Cricket and TBC directive.

REGISTER AND PAY HERE

https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/register/da45eb

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Owen Phelps EVES Real EstateCraigs Investment PartnersEVES Real Estate Bay of PlentyNorthern Districts Cricket AssociationGreerton Cricket ClubHemant Dhamija, EVES BethlehemResponsiveO'Connor Warren Insurance BrokersBay of Plenty Cricket

🏏 2026/27 Registrations are NOW OPEN! 🏏

It’s that time of year again — senior cricket registrations are officially open at Greerton Cricket Club! 🏏

Whether you’re a returning GCC player, new to the club, or keen to dust off the gear and get back into the game, we’d love to have you on board.

Join a proud, competitive and welcoming club and be part of another exciting season of cricket at GCC!

Season information
Classic Builders WBOPCA Senior – Summer 2026/27
Western Bay of Plenty Cricket Association
17 Oct 2026 - 21 Mar 2027

Pricing information – 2026/27 Season Subs
Full Membership: $320
Student Membership: $270

Minimum payment of 50% is required to complete registration.

Final payments due by December 1st 2026 Payment will be facilitated via PlayHQ. ��

REGISTER AND PAY HERE
https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/register/5b7ea8

If you need to talk about a payment plan, please talk to Ben Lind or Dave Kawan.

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🏏 THE COUNTDOWN IS ON! 🖤💛

Greerton Cricket Club | 2026/27
Pre-season is nearly here! 🔥

Looking for a new club?

💪 Training starts Thursday 13 August at TBC Cloud 6-8pm

⚔️ Pre-season clash vs Marist Suburbs – 26 September

New season. New challenges. Same Black & Gold.

LET’S GO, GREERTON! 🖤💛

Bay of Plenty CricketO'Connor Warren Insurance BrokersResponsiveOwen Phelps EVES Real EstateCraigs Investment PartnersEVES Real Estate Bay of PlentyNorthern Districts Cricket AssociationGreerton Cricket ClubHemant Dhamija, EVES Bethlehem

Coaching Programmes - Term 3 2026

Earlier today, we sent an email out to youth players and their parents across the BOP - calling for expressions of interest (EOI) in our 26-27 Rangatahi (Youth Representative) programme.

Players interested in being considered for the following programmes are invited to fill out an EOI via the link below:

BOP Lakelands (Boys) u15, u17, u19
BOP Coastlands (Boys) u15, u17, u19
BOP Girls u16 and u19

https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/pEgHNyE6jY

If you didn't receive the email and would like to see more detailed information about the programme please email [email protected] and we'll forward the email/FAQs.

*submitting an EOI does not guarantee selection into the programme.
* players 'age' is as at September 1st 2026

BOPCA will have a number of ID days in the coming months for Rangatahi teams.

Expressions of Interest:
Players wishing to be considered are asked to complete the Expression of Interest form
(link below) by Monday 17 August.

https://tinyurl.com/yemuuwpd

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