Club pact keeps Bullsharks on track
BURLEIGH skipper TJ Miller has revealed the club’s pre-season pact to stay at the top of the Kookaburra Cup despite feeling other teams had written them off.
The Bullsharks stunned rivals to win the competition last summer but were widely expected to quickly come back to the pack following the departure of premiershipwinning coach Simon Belston to Southport Labrador.
“I think everyone wrote us off early, which is kind of where we were last year – no one thought we were a chance,” Miller, 27, said.
However, Burleigh have got off to a flyer in their title defence, winning their opening five matches.
On Saturday, they chalked up their second straight double bonus point win – this time over Palm Beach Currumbin – chasing their opponent’s 88 down in just 15.2 overs after English import Freddie Hulbert had ripped through the Lions’ top order with a newball spell of 4-11.
Miller largely credited player-coach Rhys McCarthy for setting the standard, noting how he and the club’s leadership group had been vocal from day one of the pre-season in carrying their 2017-18 success forward.
“We were very big on that during pre-season in saying we’re not going to go backwards, this isn’t a point where it’s a flash in the pan and people say ‘Burleigh won that one year’,” Miller said.
“It was ‘this is a starting point, not the finish point’.
“It’s been pretty smooth sailing so far. I wouldn’t have expected to be as dominant as we have been but five-fromfive and an 11-point gap at the top is certainly a good way to start.
“But we had a similar start last year and dropped off in the middle period … so there’s a lot of work to go.”