The 2020s
The Story Continues
The 2020s have already added another successful chapter to the long history of Templestowe Cricket Club, with premierships spanning senior, junior and Twenty20 cricket.
The decade began in remarkable fashion. Three teams were crowned premiers in 2020/21, with G Grade and H Grade completing successful seasons alongside another Twenty20 triumph in the Topline Cricket Shield.
Junior cricket added the next flag when Templestowe's Under 16B side won the A R Tongue competition in 2022/23, before the senior ranks returned to premiership success in 2023/24 with the 2nd XI winning G Grade.
The 2025/26 season brought two more significant achievements. The 1st XI defeated Deakin to claim the Peter White Shield, while the club's T20 side defeated Nunawading to win the Century Cricket Shield.
With seven premierships secured across the first six completed seasons, the decade has already produced success across different teams and generations. The stories below record those premierships as the 2020s continue to unfold.
2020/21 — Twenty20 Topline Cricket Shield Premiers
Ashby leads Templestowe to T20 glory
Templestowe claimed the first of its three premierships in 2020/21 with a seven-wicket victory over Box Hill North Super Kings in the Twenty20 Topline Cricket Shield grand final at Templestowe Reserve.
Box Hill North batted first and made 7/132 from its 20 overs. Lachlan Volpe led the Templestowe attack with 2/24, while captain Trent Pitts, Nick Mustafa and Charlie Baker were among the other wicket-takers as Templestowe kept the target within reach.
Volpe then helped launch the chase with 36 before Thomas Ashby took control with an unbeaten 58. Darren Petersen contributed an important 28 as Templestowe reached 3/133 in only 17.2 overs, securing the Topline Cricket Shield with 16 balls to spare.
Grand-final result
Templestowe 7/224 defeated Melbourne Super Kings 221 by 3 wickets
Date: 23 February 2021
Venue: Templestowe Reserve — Oval #1
Captain: Trent Pitts
The premiership team
Lachlan Volpe · Sam Noble · Trent Pitts (Captain) · Darren Petersen · Nathan Fraser · Jordan Goldsmith · Charlie Baker · Jake Regester-Hill · Thomas Ashby · Nick Mustafa · Lachlan Pasquali · Faaiz Butt
2020/21 — G Grade Premiers
Walker and Brophy steer Templestowe home
A few weeks after the club's Twenty20 success, Templestowe added another premiership with an emphatic eight-wicket victory over St Davids in a rain-affected grand final played across two days at Templestowe Reserve.
With the weather disrupting the final, St Davids' innings was ultimately limited to 35 overs. Templestowe kept the visitors to 6/125, with Charlie Norton taking 2/20 and Matthew Chivers 2/22, while Nathan Condie also claimed a wicket.
When Templestowe's opportunity to chase arrived, Steve Walker and Jason Brophy took control of the final. Both finished unbeaten, Walker making 51 and Brophy 50, as Templestowe reached 2/126 in 31.4 overs to complete an emphatic eight-wicket victory.
Grand-final result
Templestowe 2/126 defeated St Davids 6/125 by 8 wickets
Dates: 13 & 14 March 2021 (Rain affected)
Venue: Templestowe Reserve — Oval #2
Captain: Richard Passeri
Darren Hayman · Andrew Morrison · Daniel Italia-Prasad · Matthew Chivers · Richard Passeri (Captain) · Jason Brophy · Steve Walker · Solomon Walker · Charlie Norton · Fiona Elliott · Christian Allen · Nathan Condie
2020/21 — H Grade Premiers
The Bains complete a remarkable season
Templestowe's H Grade side completed a remarkable finish to 2020/21 by defeating Bulleen Templestowe by eight wickets at Timber Ridge Reserve, giving the club its third premiership of the season.
Templestowe won the toss and chose to bowl, restricting Bulleen Templestowe to 9/115 from 35 rain soaked overs. Matthew Bain led the attack with 3/22, Jack Cripps took 2/26 and captain Ryan Bain also claimed a wicket.
The following day, Matthew Bain completed an outstanding all-round performance with an unbeaten 50 in the sun. Will Green made 25 before Ryan Bain joined Matthew to finish the chase, the captain making 29 not out as Templestowe reached 2/117 in 28.4 overs.
Grand-final result
Templestowe 2/117 defeated Bulleen Templestowe 9/115 by 8 wickets
Dates: 13 & 14 March 2021 (Rain affected)
Venue: Timber Ridge Reserve
Captain: Ryan Bain
The premiership team
Matthew Bain · James Bain · Marcus Pilot · Chris Davies · Jack Cripps · Chris Massarotti · Matthew McLellan · Will Green · Oliver Slocombe · Ryan Bain (Captain) · Travis Wason · Peter Poposki · Liam Reid · Benedict Morello
2022/23 — Under 16B A R Tongue Premiers
Dinneen and Goel deliver the junior flag
Templestowe's juniors returned the club to the premiership list in 2022/23, defeating North Alphington by 31 runs in the Under 16B A R Tongue grand final at Pitcher Park.
Templestowe won the toss and batted first, with Andrew Dinneen's 58 providing the backbone of the innings. Josh Gill made an unbeaten 29 and Luca Rossi-Mel added 14 as Templestowe posted 128.
North Alphington was then dismissed for 97. Yash Goel led the attack with 4/20, while Julian Picarello took 2/5 and Gill completed an excellent all-round contribution with 2/9.
Grand-final result
Templestowe 128 defeated North Alphington 97 by 31 runs
Date: 19 March 2023
Venue: Pitcher Park
The premiership team
Yash Goel · Luca Rossi-Mel · Andrew Dinneen · Joshua Moulder · Liam Coviello · Josh Gill · Joshua Marcou · Torrin Davis · Julian Picarello · Liam Di Gregorio · Christopher Tsafkopoulos
2023/24 — G Grade Premiers
A premiership for our Mate
The 2023/24 season was an extraordinarily difficult one for Templestowe's G Grade side. During the season they lost their captain, teammate and friend Richard “Richie” Passeri, who passed away during the season.
Cricket inevitably took on a different meaning for the team after Richie's death. When they reached the grand final against Doncaster's 4th XI at Templestowe Reserve, they were playing not only for a premiership, but for their mate and former captain.
Doncaster won the toss and elected to bat, but Templestowe's bowlers took control. Darren Hayman produced an outstanding spell of 3/7, helping dismiss Doncaster for 126 in 33.3 overs.
Templestowe then made a composed start to the chase. Liam Coviello contributed 24 and Priyank Kumar 20, before Ben Thomas carried the side towards the premiership with an unbeaten 54. The target was reached at 3/132 in 27.2 overs, securing a seven-wicket victory.
For a team that had endured far more than the usual highs and lows of a cricket season, the result meant much more than another entry on the club's premiership list. They had finished the season as premiers — and they had done it for Richie.
Grand-final result
Templestowe 3/132 defeated Doncaster 126 by 7 wickets
Date: 16 March 2024
Venue: Templestowe Reserve — Oval #2
Captain: Christian Allen
The premiership team
Charlie Norton · Upendra Singh · Oliver Slocombe · Nathan Condie · Elliott Huber · Damian Abbey · Priyank Kumar · Christian Allen (Captain) · Daniel Italia-Prasad · Ben Thomas · Liam Coviello · Darren Hayman
2025/26 — T20 C Century Cricket Shield Premiers
Chhoker powers Templestowe to the T20 title
Templestowe claimed the Century Cricket Shield with a nine-run victory over Nunawading in a high-scoring grand final at Templestowe Reserve.
Batting first, Templestowe set an imposing target with 9/172 from its 20 overs. Sagar Chhoker produced the defining innings of the final, making a superb 69, while Gursimratpal Singh contributed 36 and captain Sahil Sharma added 23.
Nunawading responded strongly and kept the contest alive throughout the chase. With runs flowing and the target still within reach, Templestowe's bowlers had little margin for error. Agampodi Udara De Silva took 3/34 and Manpreet Singh Arora 2/18, helping prevent Nunawading from finding the final acceleration it needed.
Nunawading finished on 5/163 from its 20 overs, leaving Templestowe nine runs ahead after 40 overs of hard-fought T20 cricket. Chhoker's 69 had provided the foundation, but with Nunawading mounting a serious challenge, it took a composed bowling performance to turn that total into a premiership.
Grand-final result
Templestowe 9/172 defeated Nunawading 5/163 by 9 runs
Date: 10 February 2026
Venue: Templestowe Reserve — Oval #1
Captain: Sahil Sharma
The premiership team
Ayush Sehgal · Oliver Slocombe · Agampodi Udara De Silva · Sahil Sharma (Captain) · Jashan Balian · Raj Sailappan · Amanpreet Singh · Sagar Chhoker · Finn Huber · Anuj Tuteja · Gursimratpal Singh · Manpreet Singh Arora
2025/26 — Peter White Shield
First XI brings the Peter White Shield home
Templestowe's 2025/26 season produced one of the club's most significant premierships of the decade, with the 1st XI defeating Deakin by four wickets in a hard-fought two-day grand final at Templestowe Reserve.
Deakin won the toss and elected to bat, but Templestowe immediately made scoring difficult. Opening bowlers Dominic Watycha-Signor and captain Sahil Sharma settled into long, relentless spells, combining for 42 overs and conceding just 69 runs. Between them they bowled 18 maidens.
Watycha-Signor struck twice with the new ball as Deakin slipped to 2/20, before Sharma removed Aryan Meghani and Mukand Brar. His extraordinary spell of 22 overs, 11 maidens, 2/22 gave Deakin almost no opportunity to break free, while Watycha-Signor finished with 3/47 from 20 overs. At 5/35, Templestowe had taken firm control of the final.
Deakin fought back through Kevin Antony (58) and Shae Warren (26), but Gursimratpal Singh ensured the recovery never became a match-changing one. After breaking the partnership by removing Warren, Singh worked his way through the lower order to finish with 5/32 from 16.4 overs. Deakin were eventually dismissed for 135 after 72.4 overs — a total that reflected just how difficult Templestowe's bowlers had made scoring throughout the innings.
The chase was anything but straightforward. Templestowe lost Raj Sailappan and night-watchman Watycha-Signor with the score on just 2, and when Anuj Tuteja departed it was 3/18. Singh and Sagar Chhoker began the recovery, with Singh occupying the crease for 127 balls for his 27 while Chhoker counter-attacked for 30 from 52 balls.
Chhoker's dismissal at 56 was followed by another wicket at 64, leaving the final delicately balanced. Captain Sahil Sharma then took responsibility for seeing his side home. He combined with Singh to move the score to 95 before Singh was run out, leaving Templestowe still 41 runs short with six wickets down.
Sharma was not to be denied. After his marathon spell with the ball, he produced the decisive innings of the final, finishing 57 not out from 67 balls, including nine fours and a six. Agampodi Udara De Silva stayed with him for an unbeaten 9 as the pair carried Templestowe to 6/138 and a four-wicket victory.
It was a genuine all-round captain's performance from Sharma — 2/22 from 22 overs and an unbeaten 57 — backed by Watycha-Signor's sustained opening spell, Singh's five wickets and determined 27, and Chhoker's important contribution during a difficult chase.
Grand-final result
Templestowe 6/138 defeated Deakin 135 by 4 wickets
Dates: 14–15 March 2026
Venue: Templestowe Reserve — Oval #1
Captain: Sahil Sharma
The premiership team
Raj Sailappan · Amanpreet Singh · Priyank Kumar · Agampodi Udara De Silva · Anuj Tuteja · Ayush Sehgal · Sahil Sharma (Captain) · Daniel Italia-Prasad · Dominic Watycha-Signor · Oliver Slocombe · Gursimratpal Singh · Sagar Chhoker