Sport
7 March, 2025
Josh Cooper’s magical triple hat-trick
Every cricketer dreams of taking a hat-trick at least once in their career.
A total of 48 hat-tricks have been bowled in the history of international test cricket, with legends like Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne and Merv Hughes among the select few.
A double hat-trick, four wickets in four consecutive balls, has never happened in test cricket but multiple times in international one-day and T20, with Lasith Malinga achieving it twice.
A triple hat-trick, five wickets in five consecutive balls is practically unheard of, especially on the international stage.
Yet it’s a feat Maryborough’s Josh Cooper did at Bull Millgate Oval against Clunes in A Reserve on Saturday, stamping his name in the history books.
Looking to defend 6/162, the Maryborough bowling attack, especially captain Bradey Tranter, was ruthless in dismantling the Magpies’ top order.
With the Magpies down but not out at 5/48 off 19 overs, Cooper bowled an uneventful 20th over, minus two consecutive wides to open his account.
“I bowled the last over before drinks, we had come off, everyone was in the rooms saying ‘let’s finish this off, it’s only five more wickets to go, let’s have an early evening’,” Cooper said.
“As we were all coming out, I said to the captain to pull me off because we had quicker bowlers still in the sheds who might be able to take these wickets more quickly.”
Despite his suggestion, Cooper was handed the ball for the second over after the drinks break, an over which will go down in infamy.
After his first ball to Thomas Hardy was a dot, something magical started to happen on the second ball.
“There is a bit of an old adage that terrible bowling takes wickets, it was a wide full toss poked out to cover,” Cooper said.
“That was followed by another wide full toss that was popped straight out to the same man at cover, it was the same ball two times in a row.”
Even after two very average deliveries to Hardy and Josh Dunn, Cooper was on a hat-trick. As Cooper was preparing to deliver the hat-trick ball to Paul Coon, he said only one thing was on his mind.
“The idea generally is to put it on the stumps, we pulled the field in to give it a chance and I was only aiming at the three wooden things and hoped it would beat him,” he said.
“The next three were full and on the stumps and just went straight through the gate, it was an unreal thing that I don’t think I will ever see again in my life let alone be the one to do it.”
Cooper bowled the last three batters for golden ducks, completing the triple hat-trick, icing the game for Maryborough and finishing with figures of 5/2 off two overs.
Cooper said the whole experience during and after the perfect over was surreal.
“I celebrated the first two because it’s always good to get a wicket but then the next three was unreal,” he said.
“It was like a bit of a movie because you are just in the middle of it, experiencing it, not knowing what to feel.”