Seasons to savour

Bridgetown’s Hugh Mitchell is coming off the season of his life in two sports, having made impressive contributions to his teams’ successes.

Mitchell captained the Bridgetown Bulldogs to the Lower South West Football League premiership and finished as Bridgetown’s leading run scorer in Bridgetown’s fourth consecutive Warren Blackwood Cricketing Association Premiership.

Both seasons brought Mitchell individual honours as he won the League Fairest and Best Award for the LSWFL and finished as Cricketer of the Year for Bridgetown.

Mitchell said the highlight of his year was winning the LSWFL grand final in front of a home crowd.

As a younger sportsman, Mitchell excelled at hockey, a sport which he said had helped with his hand-eye coordination.

Not all of his hockey skills were transferable and he has worked to play straighter and to break the habit of playing across the line, using the rolling wrists required to keep the ball down while hitting in hockey.

Mitchell pointed to advice that he received from club president Steve Bullied before the season and concentration as the key to his improved batting performance.

These tweaks clearly worked, as this season has seen his maiden century and his average jump to 47.27, up from 22.70 last season.

While the upcoming LSWFL season has been postponed this year due to COVID-19, Mitchell says the Bulldogs have maintained the core of their playing group and some of their players are staying ready for the season to start.