The revival of interest continued in the 191’2-13 season. There were six teams in the senior competition with some changes in the line-up: Morpeth, Northern Division, Cessnock, Standards, East Maitland Mechanics Institute and Brunkerville. The Standards Club was a newly formed town club which contained most of the old I Zingari players, while the East Maitland Mechanics Institute team contained most of the old East Maitland players of a few seasons back.
Some of the changes were due to the formation at the start of the season of a Maitland District Junior Cricket Association, which attracted entries from a number of clubs that had previously played in the junior and senior competitions of the HRDCA . This emanated from the School of Arts Club and was promoted as “a nursery for the senior Association”, but did tend to divide loyalties and to lead to a split in local cricket. During its first season the Junior Association had seventeen clubs affiliated with it and was credited with providing cricket for 540 players.
The season was marked by the outstanding performances in the Senior Association’s competition of Bill Trenerry of the Standards C C and Bob Lindsay of Northern Division. In the first published competition averages both figured prominently in the batting and bowling statistics.
Trenerry, a leg spinner, was top of the bowling averages with 30 wickets at 8.26 average, and second in the batting with 619 runs from 9 innings at 88.42 average. Bob Lindsay was top of the batting with 566 at an average of 94.33 and second in the bowling with 34 wickets at 13.29 average.
The Association was undefeated in representative matches during the season and a lot of credit for this was due to the performances of Trenerry and Lindsay. Trenerry scored 433 runs in 6 innings and Lindsay 236 in 5 innings. In the first inter-district match Newcastle was almost beaten outright when it made only 47 in its first innings (R McLean (5-21) and 133 to Hunter River’s 176 (W Trenerry 68). In the return match Trenerry scored 175 n.o. and Lindsay 94 in a total of 3 for 372. In reply Newcastle was 6 for 247.
Capping a fine season, Trenerry was selected to play for Country against Metropolitan at the Sydney Cricket Ground No. 2. Unfortunately for Maitland cricket, he left the district at the end of the 1912-13 season. later on, he was selected in the First AIF Services team that toured England, South Africa and Australia after the war and also played three interstate matches for NSW against Queensland in the early 1920s.
At Christmas, contrary to previous seasons, there was no visit from a Metropolitan team, but at Easter two Sydney teams played in Maitland. One was a combined team from Glebe, Petersham, Balmain and Waverley Clubs, led by W Cullen; and the other was Dr N Irwin Blue’s Sydney team that included Warren Bardsley, the great Australian left-handed opening batsman. Syd Freeman, a former leading Maitland player, was also a member of Irwin Blue’s team and he skittled the locals by taking 8-67 in the match.