Neil Maxwell - you can change the game

Neil Maxwell made his first grade debut for Northern District in 1985 and has since gone on an incredible cricket journey.

As an all-rounder Neil played 35 first class and 27 one day cricket games for Victoria and NSW. He played for Australia A against the West Indies and has represented Fiji, the country of his birth on numerous occasions.

Off the field cricket Neil’s contribution to cricket has been extensive. His business, marketing and entrepreneurial skills are very highly regarded in Australia and Internationally and he is currently the Chairman of Sydney Cricket Club and on the Board of Cricket NSW.

Let’s find out more about Maxy’s journey

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Welcome Neil,

Firstly, what year were you born and where?

1967 in Lautoka, Fiji

Where did you go the high school?

Normanhurst Boys High – before it became ‘selective’!!

Do you remember your first ever game of cricket?

Played for Thornleigh Under 12’s at Hassell Park, St Ives – got a 2^nd ball duck and a couple of wickets.

Where did you play your junior cricket?

Normanhurst CC when we were the only team. Up to Northern District CC for Green Shield & Grade from 17

What age did you make your first-grade debut for Northern District?

18 years old against Petersham at Petersham Oval. 5 catches at bat pad (I grew to love this position!) and 28 run out. Played against Bronco D’Jura, Graham Hughes, ‘Prince’ Hartshorne, Sullivan brothers and I remember asking, who is that bloke on the hill sledging us. That was ‘Riles’ who had been suspended but turned up for a sledge anyway!!

I was very nervous but not for the reasons you may think – it was going to be my first ‘team’ shower with Tim Ebbeck and Mark Taylor who took great delight throughout the match telling me what was going to happen.

Did you consider yourself a bowling all-rounder or a batting all-rounder and did that change over the years

I was selected as a batsman who bowled a bit but after one season in England when I was 20 and I came back bowling a few yards quicker and transformed over time to be a pretend all-rounder.

What was your highest score in first grade in Sydney?

I only scored 3-4 centuries – I remember my first was against Campbelltown at Waitara. Derek Pringle played.

Do you remember your best bowling figures in first grade in Sydney?

I remember 8 for20 against Fairfield and 12 for the match. I played in teams with very good bowling attacks – Steve Whitfield & Peter Taylor (ND’s), Kieran Knight, Gavin Robertson, Simon Cook, Richard Burton (Balmain) so we shared the wickets quite a lot.

You played for Fiji in the 1990 ICC trophy Tournament – can you tell us a little bit about that experience and how the team went?

Some of the most enjoyable cricket I have played. Played across the globe – Holland, Malaysia, PNG, Fiji, Kenya, Canada, Ireland. Great fun and amazing stories with these guys – some of which had never been on a plane let alone overseas.

One quick story, in Holland I couldn’t work out why they were all wearing army pants to breakfast. It turns out they were making bread rolls, wrapping them in napkins and smuggling them to their rooms. They would then eat them for lunch and dinner and save their meal allowance.

The boys could play, especially when there was a ban on drinking!

You moved to Victoria in 1990. Who did you play for in Melbourne?

I played with Melbourne CC which was an amazing experience. Grade cricket was a lot more formal down there. Good standard but we trained in whites and were spoilt rotten when it came to facilities.

Three enjoyable seasons, 2 Grand Finals and one amazing Premiership win over Collingwood.

What was your highest score in first grade in Melbourne?

I managed 131 not out in the final which we won by 8 or so runs. It was at Prahan Park and it was a cracker of a game. Melbourne CC was 4 for 27 with debutant Brad Hodge out for a duck! We managed 298. Collingwood was 8 for 190 with Matthew Elliott still in. They were then 8 for 290 and he was on 150. We stuck with the leg spinner who took the next 2 wickets midday into day 3.

What do you remember about your first-class debut for Victoria?

My first-class debut was against Pakistan in 1992. It was a 3-day warm up game in Bendigo as a lead into the World Cup (they ended up winning the Tournament!). I will never forget the first 2 hours of that game. Imran Khan, their captain met Simon O’Donnell for the toss. The conversation went like this…

SOD: Hi Immy.

IK: Hi Simon. I have some good news, I have some bad news.

SOD: What is the good news!

IK: Waqar is not playing, bad back.

SOD: Okay, what is the bad news?

IK: Wasim wants to hurt you!

Simon had been out of form and went in at 3. Wasim came back on and bowled around the wicket, ‘thunderbolts’. He was ducking and weaving, top edged a hook shot for 6 and then nicked one. It was terrifying. Wasim then had a spell.

I remember thinking that morning – if this is first-class cricket then I don’t want a bar of it!

I ended up with 4 wickets & 20 odd not out but another quick story. I was on a hat trick in my second over and they almost had to bring Imran off the bus to face it because it was one of the last few overs of the day and he was over it and ready to head to the hotel. I was frothing at the mouth and bowled a good length ball which he duly played without fuss.

I thought, what better opportunity to bounce the great man and hopefully sit him on his arse. I steamed in, let it go with all my might and remember witnessing him almost ‘yawn’, rock back and hit me clear over the grandstand, over the adjacent road and onto a nearby factory roof. It took an embarrassingly long time for them to recover the ball down the main street of Bendigo!

When did you return to Sydney and what was the reason to return home?

I was appointed the first ever Marketing Manager of NSW Cricket Association in 1993. I had an annual budget of $50k! I loved being back in Sydney and playing with the Blues.

Neil celebrates taking a wicket for NSW

Who did you play for when back in Sydney?

I returned to Northern District for a year but I was living at Drummoyne and working in the City. It took a toll driving from the city to Waitara and then back to Drummoyne. Fred Bennett approached me about playing at Balmain and it made sense for the second season back. I loved playing and training 100m from home.

You were then selected to play for NSW. What were the emotions and were they different to the when you made your first-class debut?

I’ll be honest, my aspiration was always to play for NSW. I had a thing for the ‘baggy blue’, the history and that colour. Like a few of us, I managed to get a game when the team was without 8 or 9 of its Australian players. I fell horribly crook with a fever and missed 2 days of the match! Never happened before or since. Managed to get back on the field to get a ’golden duck’ and wasn’t fit enough to bowl – memorable debut! We won the match thanks to Greg Matthews 11 wickets.

You played 35 first class and 27 one day games in first class cricket, how do you look back on your first-class career?

I loved it. I played in one of the greatest eras of Australian cricket. Getting a game in the full-strength NSW team was a huge effort. It literally had 10 Australian players…Slater, Taylor, Bevan, Waugh, Waugh, Matthews, S. Lee, Emery, Holdsworth, McGrath, McNamara, Robertson etc etc.

I never forget Mike Whitney saying to me when I first turned up at NSW training as a 19-year-old…My brains and your body, we could be a world beater! I wish I knew what I knew at the end of my career at the start.

You played for Australia A, what the experience was like?   

One match against West Indies at the SCG in front of 30,000 people. Steve Waugh was Captain, Dean Jones, Gilchrist, Blewett, Langer, Elliott, Kasper, Fleming and we won. I bowled 7 overs for 19 runs, first ball I got hit over cover for 6.

You moved to New Zealand to play cricket in 1996, was it work or cricket related?

Not to play cricket, I moved for work. I was appointed Marketing Director of NZ Cricket.

What did you find most challenging about playing first class cricket?

Mental game. Loved the challenge, loved the pressure - just hanging in there until you got on top.  Interestingly, the NSW game was very different to the Victorian game. NSW was relaxed, confident. Victoria was intense and at the time, selfish. I will never forget returning to NSW and almost feeling liberated in the environment – no politics, no self-interest…all about the team!

What’s been your most memorable moment in cricket?

Too many!

Who’s been the biggest influence in your cricket career?

Gavin Ridley, School First XI coach and maths teacher. Had a passion for playing which I thrived off. Also, I learnt a lot from the Northern District players. As a youngster watching Mark Taylor construct an innings, Tim Ebbeck’s enthusiasm, Randal Green’s confidence and Ross Turner’s captaincy.

The most important thing I learnt from all of the above was how to read a game and have the confidence to influence a win!

Who was the funniest cricketing team mate?

Merv Hughes – and bloody annoying too! Shane Lee, Brad McNamara and co were all good fun.

Who is your favourite all time cricketer?

I love watching the modern batsmen – Hayden, Slater, Waugh brothers, Smith etc. Warne was a freak. There is an excitement about express bowling Lee, Akthar, Cummins to name a few.

What was the best teams you were involved in?

The 1993/94 Shield and One Day season was a belter. We had Australian players for only 2 or 3 games and we were a young team that knocked over some quality sides. I remember one statistic. WA had 173 Australian caps in their side and we had none at the time. We rolled them in Sydney to make the final.

All five (5) first grade Premierships – 2 with Northern District, 1 each with Balmain Tigers, Melbourne CC & Riccarton in Christchurch.

The most enjoyable time in cricket for me was a few seasons Captaining 2^nd Grade. I derived great enjoyment from teaching the kids (I was 37-38!) how to approach a game and again…how to influence or change a situation in the match. The pressure was off to perform and I enjoyed the time passing on knowledge and experiences.

NSW Shield winning champions - Neil front row, far right

Did you have a saying or quote that you live by and how has it helped you?

You can change the game! I was challenged by my first skipper Ross Turner during a game and it fired me up. I loved the fact that you could change the course of a game, particularly as a bowler.

Steve Waugh used a similar line once that would have had me run through the proverbial brick wall. He said during a tight game against SA… “I believe you can win us the game from here!”. When Tugga believed in you it resonated.

If you’re in the middle seat of the middle row of Qantas QF1flight to London which team mates would you choose to on your left and right?

Michael Bevan because he didn’t speak and you would get a good sleep!

Merv Hughes for a bit of a laugh and he makes a decent pillow.

Did you have any cricketing superstitions?

More routine than superstitions – left pad and all that. For some reason I hated watching when we batted.

Which ground in Sydney club cricket did you enjoy playing at the most?

I do love Drummoyne Oval.

What was the best innings you saw played in First Grade Cricket?

Gold medal – Brad Patterson (now known as Kurtis Patterson’s dad!) A magnificent 70 odd in a grade final against St George in fading light and the season on his shoulders.

Shane Lee single handedly won matches for Mosman against us on two occasions. Clean, power hitting.

It pains me to say it, Ed Cowan played a majestic knock at Drummoyne one day. Elegant and frustratingly sound.

Rod ‘Log’ Bower & Randal Green could both tear bowling attacks apart.

Who were the top 3 players in Grade cricket you admired most in terms of skills and competitive spirit

There has been so many…

Randal Green – destructive batsman and aggressive 120 kph bowler! I remember his speech when he became captain…This bloke likes the short ball, so bounce him; this bloke doesn’t like the short ball, so bounce him and I don’t know this bloke, so bounce him!

Shane Lee – used to always turn it on against me. Match winning innings – hated it!

Steve Whitfield – one of the great spinners. Flight, drift and bounce. Keiran Knight.

Who was the best spinner you played against?

Shane Warne, Mushtaq Ahmed, Tom Shiner, Greg Matthews in no particular order! Loved watching Gavin Robertson on his day but we tended to play together more than not.

Who was the quickest bowler you cane up against?

Without doubt Ken McLeod, left arm West Indian. Just quick and hated a bouncer!

Oh yeah, and Brett Lee was up there too!

Charity game

What’s the best advice you ever received?

You can change the game.

What advice would you offer a young 18-year-old who has the ambition of playing test cricket?

Don’t take it too seriously. Unfortunately, the system insists you dedicate your life to this pursuit from 13 years of age. Have fun but challenge yourself.

You were involved in the early stages of IPL and in fact the CEO of the Kings XI Punjab. It must have been an exciting time, what are your memories of your involvement?

It was manic. Billionaire owners who had no clue about cricket. We tossed the coin for the second ever IPL match and our franchise, Kings XI did not have a playing uniform in the ground. One of the owners, a Bollywood actress had said “I will take care of the ‘costumes’” and that is exactly what they were!

That said, a wonderful experience even though it has no doubt taken a few years off my life.

You’re on the Cricket NSW Board – how’s cricket tracking in NSW and what are the top 3 priorities from the Boards perspective to ensure the strength of cricket in NSW is not just maintained but grows

Cricket NSW has a very good Board at the moment and I am delighted to be a part of it.

I think there is a huge opportunity for cricket to come out of COVID-19 and be a ‘game of choice’ for kids waiting to get into sport again.

We have just undertaken a High-Performance review and I feel we are well placed to get back on track. That is, hold onto some of core pillars of the game that have worked for decades. In particular, Grade / Premier Cricket – the core pillar for high performance in my mind.

The female game has so much to give us as a product offering. Needs to be presented separately from the men’s game as comparing the two does it a disservice.

Back in the late 80s you worked for Cricket NSW under the successful leadership of CEO Bob Radford. A larger than life character, Bob’s reputation as a strong willed, passionate cricket man preceded him. Is there a story you’d be willing to share that would capture the essence of Bob?

Bob was ahead of his time as an administrator. He loved the history of the game but pushed the boundaries in many ways. During my interview he said, ”Do you drink Maxwell” I said “No Mr Radford”. He said “Good. ‘Cause there’s only room for one pisshead in this place and that’s me. You start on Monday”.

I will never forget my first day…my mates were lining up for University classes and I was in the Prime Minister’s office listening to Bob negotiate a new rain insurance ticketing policy. Many, many unique experiences!

Bob read every annual report. He found Michael Bevan that way and had him come to Sydney.

What are your hobbies?

Family, cricket are more than a hobby, but I enjoy Church very much these days.

Are there any lessons from your time in cricket that you take into work or life in general?

Never give up….you can change the game!