Local Melbourne Cricketer Takes All Ten Wickets In An Innings

One local cricketer has notched up the extraordinary feat of taking all 10 wickets in an innings last weekend.

Kevin Pace, who plays for Barnawartha North in Melbourne's Mercantile Cricket Association, racked up the ridiculous figures last Saturday, playing against Indigos in the competition's C North Grade.

Six bowled, two lbw, one caught and one stumped left him with figures of 10/8 off 8.4 overs - the best figures in MCA history, beating the previous best of 10/10 - skittling Indigos for 69 all out.

Even better? Pace rocked up 20 minutes late with Barnawartha bowling first.

"I've got two sons who were playing on a Saturday morning, so obviously they finished at about quarter to 12," he said.

"By the time I got there and traffic and all that I was 20 minutes late. I rocked up and they were 0/39, about 10 overs in, I think they may have been."

Pace normally bowls first change, but it meant missing out on one of Barnawartha's more notable qualities: starting with all nine fielders in the slips until a run gets scored.

"I saw them doing the slip action and I just cracked up laughing. They’re a good bunch of guys, just having a laugh. They slip a few beers in during the game and things like that. It’s the best way to play cricket," he said.

Pace's previous best was 5/12 in his first game for Barnawartha, and he'd taken 1/20 and 0/31 in his two other games this season.

"The week before I bowled well but I think I got taken for 10 off my last over, so I bowled really well then," he said.

"I just bowled full and right on the stumps…you miss it, I’ll hit it (is) my theory."

It could have been better still, with Pace saying a couple of chances went down and a hat-trick ball nearly clipped the stumps.

"I had three dropped catches as well, actually! Three dropped catches at slip," he laughed.

"I was on a hat-trick (too). I can’t honestly remember what part of the wickets I was on a hat-trick, it just happened so quick...the third ball he just missed it and it just missed the stumps, and I bowled him the fourth ball."

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The experience was bettered by the fact his son was fielding at mid-on.

"One of the boys just wanted to go and have a beer, so my son was with me at mid-on, just watching Dad take 10 wickets, which was great, because I don’t think he would have believed me,” he said.

"I don’t think the family still believe me to be quite honest."

After the haul he assured his teammates he didn't want to bat as they chased the modest target, but that was made tough: the Barnies were eight down when they reached it.

"I said to the boys 'there's no way I’m batting, boys, I’m not spoiling this day'," he said.

"The name’s Pace, not Batsman, that’s my theory. I was very nervous...all the boys were saying ‘surely we can’t lose this’. Well hang on, this is Barnawartha, we definitely can.

"But I was very adamant that I wasn’t batting. I said I’m going to retire hurt or take myself out. I’m not going through that and spoiling the day."

A week later, the incredible haul still hasn't quite sunk in.

"It was pretty good fun. It was pretty amazing. Still shock horror, to be quite honest. It’s just one of those days where I could have played golf and got a hole in one, I reckon," he said.

"I only started playing cricket six years ago, so the first game was with Barnawartha, and I just caught the bug and loved it.

"10 for eight...I don’t think I’ll get any better than that."