Rommel Shahzad's time in the south-west may be over but six months playing cricket for Allansford-Panmure has left an indelible mark on the off-spinner.
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The 24-year-old Canadian, who will join Darwin side Palmerston during the winter, walks away from his first Warrnambool and District cricket stint as a division one premiership player, a T20 cup winner and a Melbourne Country Week representative.
He was still struggling to wrap his head around the Gators' drought-breaking grand final triumph against Nestles.
Not because they shouldn't have won it but because he was supposed to be playing elsewhere in 2023-24.
"It was unreal," he told The Standard.
"I'd never expected it, it feels like a crazy story because I wasn't actually supposed to play for Allansford-Panmure. I was supposed to play cricket in Colac and when I couldn't get that gig, I got help from the guy in Colac and he told me 'I found a club for you which is Allansford-Panmure'.
As they say, the rest is history.
Shahzad claimed 37 wickets across all formats for the Gators, combining with teammates Simon Richardson (53 wickets) and Shiv Kumara (23 wickets) to form a lethal spin-bowling attack.
The Canadian, who made his List A debut for the North American country in 2022, also chipped in with 265 runs including two valuable 50s against Brierly-Christ Church and Merrivale.
Off the field, Shahzad is grateful for the way the Gators welcomed and embraced him from the very beginning.
"The club, it's been amazing," he said.
"From day one this team has treated me like family.
"The amount of volunteers they have, it was sort of surprising to me that nobody gets paid for the job they do around the club and everything is voluntarily and they just have this very good family culture which they brought me into.
"It just made me feel like I've known them for years."
Shahzad, who played a mixture of first and second grade with South Australian premier club Adelaide in 2017, hopes to try his luck at premier level again next summer.
He is grateful to QX3 Sports Warrnambool's Dean Hurford for helping him land the Palmerston deal.
Shahzad will always have fond memories of the south-west, whether he returns in a playing capacity or not.
"Allansford's been amazing and I've honestly loved Warrnambool," he said.
"It took me a while to settle in being a city guy but I've actually loved the place. I don't feel like leaving anymore."
Matt Hughes
Matt is a sports journalist at The Standard.
Matt is a sports journalist at The Standard.
