Jason 'Junior' Scarff is one of the finest country cricketers in South Australia. His record for his beloved Noarlunga Cricket Club (The Shoes) is exceptional. Jason is currently Noarlunga's 'A' grade Captain, a position he has held since 'The Shoes' moved from the Southern Cricket Association (SCA) to the Great Southern Cricket Association (GSCA) at the end of the 2013/14 season. In that time he has captained the club to two GSCA 'A' grade premierships in 2016/17 and 2018/19 and his side were due to face off with Goolwa for a spot in the 2019/20 decider against Willunga, before COVID-19 brought the season to an untimely end.

As I mentioned, Jason's record is exceptional.....12,000 runs, 350 wickets, 3 x 'A' grade hatricks, 10 x Peter McPherson club champion awards, 6 x Association Player of the Year awards (4 x SCA, 2 x GSCA), 5 x 'A' grade premierships (04/05, 05/06,11/12,16/17,18/19), 5 x 'A' grade T20 premierships (3 as captain), Meyer Shield winning captain 2017, SA Outbacks State representative 2011/12. Talking with 'Junior', I get the impression there's plenty more to come!

How did you first get involved in Cricket? 

I first got involved in cricket growing up idolising my brother as I think most young brothers do. My brother and his mates watched and played cricket all the time, so I wanted to play. I followed them all out to Noarlunga. It was funny, I remember being young and Dave and his mates Olli, Hodgy and Rahe would sit on the couch watching the cricket, we especially loved watching Mark Waugh, and I was always saying "come on get up guys, let’s play backyard cricket", and they’d always yell out "shut up 'Junior', chill out, we’ll have plenty of time to play". I hated it! All I ever wanted to do was play. We had about four different grounds set out around our house. Mum and Dad loved it!

Who have been the biggest influences on your Cricket career?

The biggest influences in my life with cricket would definitely be my brother David and Mick Irvine (Ratsy) who played in the 'A' grade and was our club coach at the time when I started playing for Noarlunga. The man was tough and left a great foundation to make us what we are today and I have so much respect for him. 

What do you enjoy about playing for Noarlunga?

The thing I love about playing for Noarlunga the most is the mateship over all grades which I think is special. We still do after match presentations at the club and we all get back for a feed and a beer. That was drilled in to us when we were youngsters. I love to see the support still from the old faces that used to play when I was young. It’s great they still come out and show there support, especially Jon & Tim Head who rarely miss a game and do so much for the club. It’s got harder as the years have gone on but people still make an effort. It’s even better now that a lot of us have kids of our own and they all run amok together around the place and our wives all get along and have a good time. On the playing field our culture is very strong. We play hard and never give up. I’ve been involved with Noarlunga since under 14’s and still to this day I’ve never missed playing in the finals. 

What are some of your favourite sporting memories?

That’s a tough one because there’s been so many. The ones that come to mind the most would be making the State Country team in 2011 and playing on Adelaide Oval in the Les Favell Cup. I was lucky enough to get a few runs and win player of the match. My first season in the 'A' grade we were undefeated and won the premiership. I got to share that with my brother and that was pretty special. We went on to win the following season to make it three flags in a row. But probably the most special memory would be last season's premiership win against an unbelievable Willinga side, one of the best I’ve played against in my time. Just from where we came from and what we built as a side was special and so pleasing to see how much we stuck together and played for each other, which I think is the biggest key in any sport. We had to win the last two games just to make finals so coming from fourth to bring it home really was something special and I couldn’t of been prouder of the lads. 

Who are some of your toughest opponents?

I’ve played against some tough bastards (lol)! John Hopkins (Reynella) was an absolute legend and Shaun Tanner (Port Noarlunga) was very good. But Travis Bahr would be my 'number one'! That man refused to lie down, refused to give up and pulled off things that not many can pull off, especially with some of the situations. He made the hairs on your neck stand up and brought the best out of everyone. I played against him for four years and played with him for five years. 

You’ve achieved a great deal but are there still any aims left for you to achieve?

I’d love to play a game of cricket with my son, Jack. I think that would be really special. Of course I want to win more premiership’s because that’s what we play for and those nights are some of the best nights of your life. 

How have you found the change to the Great Southern Cricket Association after Southern disbanded?

It was pretty sad when the SCA folded. We held on for as long as we could and in the end the right call was made. Gary Bilney did an amazing job. Great Southern is a really well run competition with some very handy talent. The last six years have been awesome and Noarlunga haven’t looked back, so a big thanks to the Great Southern Cricket Association. The junior competitions are strong and I can’t wait to see some of those youngsters over the next five years. Even some young talent making their debuts in the 'A' grade have showed great signs. The 'A' grade is very strong at the top but it drops off a bit with depth but I think all associations would say the same thing. Additions like Simon Roberts (Willunga) are awesome. Playing against guys like that is unreal for the competition and he's an absolute champion of a bloke, I hope more guys like that come out and play when they can’t commit to grade cricket anymore. 

The grounds are incredible, absolutely incredible an that’s one thing we all noticed straight away when we crossed from the SCA. We were all like "Wow how good are these grounds lads!". Port Elliot, Goolwa, Encounter Bay and Burgess (Mt Compass) to name a few are excellent. It's even better having Encounter Bay and Burgess with turf wickets. It always makes it feel better playing 'real' cricket. The only thing I can fault in Great Southern is everyone is too nice and everyone is mates on the field. Leave it 'til after the game lads (lol). Southern was so brutal, fantastic but brutal and it was tolerated and accepted and I loved it. Such hard cricket but we all came together and at the end we shook hands, looked each other in the eye and had a beer after the game. The toughness is one thing I really miss. In saying that, the GSCA is getting better.

How do you see the future of sport in the Fleurieu region?

I think it’s only going to get better, especially with all the effort everyone makes with all the junior programs. Getting all kids involved in sport at an early age is awesome. We had coaching but not like these days. It’s not easy and we wouldn’t be strong like we are if it wasn’t for all those amazing volunteers and workers that make it happen. Sport really is an amazing thing and it brings us all together.