Father and Son Achieve Record Partnership in Amateur Cricket
Darren Cheek will always remember the time he scored 184 against Morphettville Park in 1996, not just for the century itself, but for the joy of hearing his nine-year-old son Sam cheering enthusiastically from the sidelines.
On a recent Saturday in Adelaide, Darren and Sam created a new unforgettable moment by combining for an opening partnership of 590 runs against the very same club.
At 63 years old, Darren and his 38-year-old son Sam remained at the crease for the entire 40 overs representing the Coromandel Cricket Club in their Section 8 match held at the Ascot Park primary school oval.
Sam produced an unbeaten 402 runs off just 137 balls, including 42 sixes and 30 fours, while Darren contributed an unbeaten 175 runs from 108 deliveries.
“We knew that we had to have a big win and we had to get a big percentage quotient on our ladder to get up into the final,” Darren said. “So we went out with the mindset that we got to go hard early.”
He added,
“Fortunately, the first couple of overs I was hitting them well and hitting the middle. It was a short boundary down straight, so my favourite shot is driving and even lofted drive, so I started off well, but Sam was in all sorts at the beginning.”
The remarkable partnership almost ended before it began when Sam was dropped on a second-ball duck. The fielder was struck in the head as the ball slipped through his fingers, allowing Sam to continue what became one of the greatest amateur innings.
“You always find it when you have a good score, the bowlers start getting nervous and you can see in their eyes there,” Darren explained. “They start bowling short and they start bowling full tosses … and [Sam] just went bang. It didn’t matter it was a small ground because most of his sixes were just huge.”
Four balls were lost to the cricket gods, but no windscreens or windows were broken during the innings.
Darren strategically managed the strike to allow Sam to continue dominating the bowling attack with sixes, with Sam crossing the 400-run mark with two balls remaining in the innings. They blocked the final two deliveries to ensure no extras were recorded against them.
The total partnership of 590 runs was a remarkable achievement. The broader significance of their performance became clear to Darren shortly after returning to the field.
“I get a text message on my phone from an acquaintance, you wouldn’t call him a close mate, but a friend in Mildura, saying, ‘Well done on your innings today,’” Darren recalled. “And like, I reply back saying, ‘what the hell, how do you know about that already?’”
While the opposition made 146-3 in response, Darren acknowledged that Morphettville Park simply had an off day.
“I can’t speak more highly of how good they were in their sportsmanship and their captain just kept pumping their players up, just saying, ‘come on, this is cricket.’ They fought it out the whole day.”
The opposition captain even quickly organized a guard of honour for Darren and Sam as they walked off the field.
For Darren, who has been with Coromandel Cricket Club since 1983, playing alongside his son adds a special dimension to his memories of 1996.
“It’s 30 years later and I’m having the joy of being with [Sam] and having the joy of seeing him, doing these remarkable things, so it was pretty special.”
This time, it was Sam’s two young sons, aged four and six, who were on the sidelines enthusiastically cheering.
“My goal is to still try and keep playing until the oldest [grandson] … until I can play a game with him,” Darren said.
