Most cricketers are lucky to see a hat-trick in the flesh in their lifetimes – those who are incredibly lucky get to snare them.
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Orange City Warriors’ Toby Climpson, aged just 10, managed to take a hat-trick of his own two weeks ago in an Orange District Junior Cricket Association under-11 match against Centrals Black.
However, he didn’t stop at the normal three consecutive wickets which make up a hat-trick.
Instead young Climpson took his three wickets with the first three balls of his second over, which was the fourth of the match, and then another wicket with his fourth, and then another with his fifth.
With five consecutive scalps already in the bank – all of which were clean bowled – Climpson had secured an all but unheard of triple hat-trick, and had the even rarer chance of producing a perfect over.
However, it was thwarted by a Will Hepworth forward defence.
Not that Climpson cared, and he actually went on to finish with figures of 6-5, his sixth and final wicket coming in his third over.
I didn’t think I was going to get a hat-trick or anything.
- Orange City's triple hat-trick hero Toby Climpson
“Well, I guess it was lucky, I was bowling leg-spin and I got them out five times in a row,” he said of the feat.
His strategy for the over was every junior coach’s dream, something shouted at net sessions for as long as net sessions have existed.
“I bowled every single one of them at the stumps,” Climpson explained, simply.
“Well, I thought [the first wicket] was going to be it, I didn’t think I was going to get a hat-trick or anything like that.”
But he did take a hat-trick, and then some – he said the team’s celebration for the third one was big, and he threw his hat onto the ground in celebration.
He would throw the hat down twice more in the next two balls, but Climpson said it was more in shock than excitement.
“I was shocked, I couldn’t believe it had happened,” he said, adding he wasn’t sure where the hat throw celebration had come from.
To cap off the incredible bowling figures, Climpson also took two catches in the field.
Unfortunately for Climpson – but fortunately for the self-esteem of everyone in Orange who’s ever donned a set of whites – it didn’t all come together for him with the bat, making just the six runs during City’s innings, but understandably he wasn’t beating himself up over it.
In his 15 overs across five games, he’s only taken two other wickets – although when you’ve taken a triple hat-trick, every other statistic in the world means diddly squat.
The young gun isn’t worried by his lack of wickets outside his haul, either.
In fact, when asked if he reckoned he’d take a triple hat-trick again, he replied “yeah probably”.
Coach Matt Knox was understandably thrilled about Climpson’s feat, but – as you’d expect from a junior coach – said it showed the importance of putting the ball on a good line and length.
“You can do anything when you bowl on the stumps, it was good to see,” Knox said.
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