Reid brings up ton in stunning style
IT was a century nine years in the making.
After toiling away in each of the four grades at Geelong, Mitch Reid finally cracked triple figures.
“It was a relief,” Reid said of his 161 against Essendon on Saturday.
“I don’t tend to think about the fact I haven’t made a hundred before. But I made 95 last year in the firsts, so when you get to 85-90 you start thinking about it.
“It’s nice to tick it off and it’s a monkey off the back now, so hopefully I can get a few more.”
Combining with Hayden Butterworth for a club record 262-run second-wicket stand, he said he could not have asked for a better return to first XI cricket.
“It’s a long time coming for me,” Reid said.
“I feel like I’ve been hitting the ball well the last few weeks and it was nice to get in a big partnership with ‘H’ and score my first century for the club.
“I’ve probably spent a season in every grade. Hopefully that can cement me in the team now because the team has been playing well and you want to be part of it.”
After his 224-ball knock, Reid was stumped with Geelong on the way to a total of 395.
Butterworth registered his sixth Premier century, finishing with 129 from 223 deliveries.
“He was unbelievable,” Reid said of Butterworth.
“He came in early as a No.3 and he put the pressure back on them.
“He made a run-a-ball 40 in his first hour of batting. It’s great to have him back at the club, he offers the group so much with his bowling and his leadership.”
Butterworth said he and Reid had a clear plan when they came together at 1-16 — set a platform.
“In earlier games we’d lost clumps (of wickets) at the top, so that was one of our big focuses,” he said.
“We talked about it through the sessions that if there were tough periods we’d work through it.”
When Reid raised both arms as he moved into triple figures, Butterworth said it was emotional.
“He’s one of the locals from the Bellarine, where I’m from,” he said.
“So when he did get his hundred it was a really special feeling. It was such a great feeling for everyone.”