Tom Parry
HOT and humid weather aside, it was a perfect weekend for cricket.
Players in the Sale-Maffra Cricket Association were greeted with the finest pitches seen so far this season – hard surfaces covered with dry grass provided even bounce, serving as an ideal deck for batsmen.
Thunderstorms from the north did threaten to halt play; thankfully, none did, with the grey clouds instead skirting the grounds and travelling eastward.
Among the four one-dayers in the First Grade competition were two thumpings, one tight contest in Bundalaguah, and one of the biggest upsets ever witnessed in SMCA history.
Longford v Stratford
STEPHENSON Park paid witness to a result nobody saw coming, as the Lizards toppled the premiership favourites.
Stratford came into the game sans their key all-rounders, Jack Tatterson and Jack Rietschel, with the latter’s captaincy duties assumed by Chris Aurisch.
After winning the toss and choosing to bat, Aurisch and fellow opener Lewis Bolton got Stratford off to a healthy start, posting 38 runs in the first eight overs.
At this point, everything looked to be going the visitors’ way, until a devastating spell from Longford’s Andrew Tyson turned the game on its head.
Tyson took five wickets across his eight overs, three of which were taken across two overs without a run conceded.
By the time he’d finished in the 22nd over, the Redbacks were 5/68.
Dean Devisser, who arrived first drop, managed to survive Tyson’s onslaught and set about resurrecting Stratford’s innings with wicket-keeper Ben Dinning.
The pair amassed 47 runs in their 10 over partnership, ending when Dinning was caught for 25.
Sam Anstee lasted just 10 balls before he too was caught, leaving Devisser and Jake Rietschel – promoted from Second Grade in the absence of his nephew – to conclude the innings.
Rietschel scored a quick 28 runs off 21 balls, providing a much-needed boost to Stratford’s total, while Devisser was run out on the second-to-last ball of the innings, two runs shy of a half-ton.
Set 165 to win, Longford began their chase formidably, with Jack Heywood making 20 runs in the first three overs.
He and Tyson, who also opened the batting, were dismissed not long after, bringing Walt Sutton and Jordan Price to the middle.
In their third-wicket stand, Sutton and Price compiled 38 runs to put the Lizards in a very strong position – by the 12th over, the scoreboard was reading 2/60.
Then, Longford suffered one of their infamous collapses, losing four batsmen in the space of six overs to find themselves 6/72.
The match was suddenly back in Stratford’s favour.
And then it wasn’t, with Longford’s Jake Wynd launching an almighty fightback with the bat.
Wynd struck five fours and seven sixes over the next 10 overs to put his side back in the contest; by the time his wicket fell, the Lizards needed just eight runs for victory.
Clint Osborne was the man lucky enough to hit the winning runs, doing so with a glance to fine leg.
Longford won by two wickets with 11 overs to spare – an impressive effort by anyone’s standards.
In addition to making 83 off 44 balls, Wynd also took two wickets, solidifying his Man of the Match status.
The game was also Wynd’s last appearance for the Lizards, as he’ll be making a long-planned move to Queensland this week.
With that in mind, the result doubly serves as the perfect send-off.
Bundalaguah v Rosedale-Kilmany
NO encounter in Round 10 was closer than that played at Colin Wrigglesworth Oval, where the home side triumphed with seven balls to spare.
Rosedale-Kilmany won the toss and batted first, yet struggled to capitalise on the perfect conditions – by the 20 over mark, their score was an unassuming 2/59.
It wasn’t until Cameron Freshwater arrived at the crease in the 25th over that things started to fire for the Warriors.
Over the next six overs, he and Rohan Diamond added 30 runs before the latter was bowled by Gayashan Munasinghe.
Afterward, Freshwater forged a partnership with another Diamond, Adam to add a further 61 runs to the Warriors’ total, their innings concluding at 6/167.
Reaching that score wasn’t easy for RK’s men, for they contended with clean bowling and great fielding from Bundalaguah – for instance, Steve Spoljaric took two catches of his own deliveries, keeper Jos Dimarco had to run forward to collect a sky-high ball, and Kshitiz Sharma’s quick reflexes saw him give Rohan Diamond a scare.
In reply, Spoljaric and captain Jason Langshaw laid the foundations for Bundy with their 38-run stand, the score sitting at 2/70 by the halfway point.
Nick French was the one who provided spice for Bundy, collaborating with Spoljaric for 73 runs in the fourth wicket.
By the time Spoljaric departed in the 36th over, the Bulls were only 15 runs short of victory.
The late wickets of James Read and Sam Tudor gave the Warriors some hope, but it wasn’t enough to stymie the efforts of French, who hit a boundary to win the game.
In all, French struck 10 boundaries for his score of 59, but it was Spoljaric who once again proved best for the Bulls with 63 runs as batsman and three scalps as bowler.
Freshwater top-scored for RK with 44 not out, while Dylan Rowley and Nathan Hangan claimed two wickets each.
The result is a setback for the Warriors, albeit one that shouldn’t trouble them too much. They retain fourth place on the First XI ladder, with a comfortable gap of 13 points between themselves and fifth-placed Bundy.
Collegians v Maffra
ZAC Hurley’s team is back to its winning ways after a convincing eight-wicket victory at home.
The visiting side, Maffra, opted to bat first at the toss, giving them the opportunity to advertise their latest opening pair: Ben Sly and Dylan Freitag.
Freitag was gone within five overs for seven; his captain, Lee Hopkins didn’t fare much better, caught for a duck the very next over.
Sly (18) was next to fall, followed by Ben Harrington (one), Miller Eastham (one again) and Josh Davis (24), all lost within the first 20 overs.
The seventh-wicket alliance of Jai Allman and David Griffiths helped to salvage Maffra’s innings, adding 48 runs to the total before the latter was bowled in the 35th over.
A further 26 runs were added in the final five overs, for the loss of two batsmen, allowing the Eagles to finish at 9/127.
That target proved a cakewalk for the College boys, who achieved victory in the 27th over of their innings.
Opener Tom Morrison led Collegians’ response, attacking hard and early – in the seventh over, he hit three consecutive boundaries off the bowling of Freitag.
Morrison finished his innings unbeaten on 65, a knock that included a 63-run partnership with brother Charlie during the second wicket.
As for their bowlers, Stuart Anderson and Jake Durnell were best, finishing with three wickets each.
The win, coupled with Stratford’s loss, places Collegians on top of the ladder once again.
Sale v Boisdale-Briagolong
ANOTHER straightforward victory was recorded at Sale Oval, where the Swans were too strong for their opponents.
Batting first, Sale looked solid virtually from the outset, scoring at a run a ball for the majority of their innings.
Every man in their top order posted scores of at least 20, Ben Jones doing best with 57 – he belted 13 runs off a Dylan Bolton over to bring up his half-century.
Despite losing eight wickets, Sale concluded their 40 overs with 210 runs on the board.
Liam Hurst was the pick of Boisdale-Briagolong’s attack with figures of 3/39.
The Saints were slow to reply, scoring at half the rate that was required of them.
Nick Pang, who arrived following the third wicket, was the first batsman to offer resistance, scoring 16 runs off Michael O’Brien’s bowling in the 21st over.
Unfortunately, Pang was lost two overs later, but his efforts did seem to inspire Toby Leeds, who followed suit with a similarly quick-scoring knock.
In a fifth-wicket partnership with Michael Roberts, Leeds made 25 of the 46 runs to offer some hope to the B-Doubles.
That hope diminished after eight overs, at which time Leeds was caught.
Just 20 runs were added following his departure, the Saints all out for 148 in the 37th over.
Roberts carried his bat through the innings to finish on 57, making him the third Saint to reach a half-ton this season.
Sale’s Jones proved best with the ball, taking 5/36 including the final two wickets.
We think a fiva-fa and 57 will surely get Jones the three votes.
