The South Canterbury cricket season has just come to an end. It has been a major success in many ways. Chief executive Mark Medlicott could not hide his delight after watching the campaign register several successes in the form of junior playing numbers, senior competitions, and the latest formats receiving plenty of welcome amongst fans. The season had everything - abandoned matches, turning points, run outs, and the lot. One of the standout aspects of the campaign that really impressed Medlicott seems to be the success achieved by the junior teams. A lot of time and money have been invested in the mentor and coaching programs for the junior teams. Medlicott is happy that the work has been giving rich dividends. At the same time, senior cricket also saw a tremendous jump in quality with any team capable of beating anyone on the day. Celtic, though, continue to display the dominance after managing to win the three titles on offer. It was no surprise, as Celtic were considered one of the favourites. The prize giving ceremony was recently held at the DB Brewery as part of the campaign. Here are some of the highlights from the season: Willie Wright scored a tonne, and it was an incredible performance [caption id="attachment_79867" align="aligncenter" width="628"] Willie Wright scored a ton[/caption] He is an immensely talented left-hander and he showed it with plenty of class in the run-up to the century. Hawke Cup certainly missed the player, even though he featured only in half of the campaign. It is not a surprise that Celtic were so convincing in the campaign, as possessing players like Wright has positioned them a step above the rest. Tim Leonard managed to score his first century in club cricket campaign The freshly laid surface at the Pleasant Point Domain was a major factor in assisting Leonard. He managed to end up with a brilliant performance for Point, as the total runs amassed went over 400. It remains one of the best matches in the campaign. His performance was a major factor behind Pleasant Point securing a semifinal berth. After scoring the tonne, Leonard claimed that the motivation provided by a place in the semifinals was a major factor in his performance. Incidentally, the century is also the first time he has managed to achieve this feat at the senior level. Pleasant Point have had a rather successful competition They managed to reach the semifinals of the one-day tournament. They also reached the Twenty20 finals, despite this campaign being only the second at the senior level. Pleasant Point are a youthful team. The possibility of the team going on to build on this excellent campaign remains high. Liam Beck was also a highly productive player for the club and he scored the only century in the finals. The campaign has witnessed a record number of runs Sri Lankan Supeshala Jayathilake has been one of the top players this season when it comes to batting performances. He has managed to smash more than 650 runs in the campaign. Jayathilake is also known for his ability with the ball, but he has taken fewer wickets than he managed in the 2015-16 campaign. However, his ability to find a scoring touch has been able to remove any doubts about his contribution. He has managed an average of 41.94 while also managing to score 7 half-centuries along the way. He has been named the Senior Batsman of the Year and received an SCCA Plaque. Celtic managing to win not one but three trophies happens to be the biggest highlight of the campaign The achievement is even more impressive considering that the competition was much stronger than in previous years. Celtic have been the de facto champions and they still managed to out with the stronger competition. Clearly, the huge experience possessed by the team played a major role. Even with all the competition, experience happens to be a feature that has to be built over time. The three title successes elevate Celtic to a new level for the next season, which promises to be even more interesting. Even though there have been such numerous positives in the campaign that has just concluded, chief executive Medlicott is not a man for mediocrity. The youth cricket is the single biggest benefactor from the plenty of work done by the league. Medlicott is ready to accept the credit that comes his way. However, he also admitted that work will be ongoing in order to find ways to increase the high school level interest. It remains a major problem not just for South Canterbury, and it affects the rest of the country. Final Thoughts Medlicott was also reasonably happy with the pitches, even though they had to take quite a beating due to the unpleasant weather during November. Another season at South Canterbury has come to a close, but not without providing a huge amount of positives to cricket fans. When looking back at a tournament or a competition, it usually opens new possibilities for future outcomes as details uncover different impressive moments. ​​​​​​​ Written by Kevin McNamara from New Zealand