By Christopher Anderson
Australia Day weekend saw the return of two day cricket and indicated the run home had started in full earnest for the top grades at Mt Evelyn Cricket Club. Meanwhile, the lower grades had the weekend off to have one last break before the run to finals.
The form of the Community Bank – Mt Evelyn 1st XI had been on a steady improve over the middle part of the season, however a close loss to top of the table Warrandyte last round has left the team in a tight tussle with Heathwood and Montrose for the final position in the top 4. Round 12 opponents Chirnside Park are also clinging to their finals hrs despite their lowly position on the ladder. So all was set for an intriguing battle with much to play for.
Chirnside Park captain Scott Reece won the toss and had little hesitation electing to bat in magnificent conditions, on a Gary Martin Oval that had yielding significant runs across the season. The Panthers would make a positive start as early boundaries from the hard new ball would give their innings some impetus before settling into an arm wrestle between bat and ball. Darcy Skene and Jackson McFarlane would hold their nerve against some excellent bowling from Caleb Hrabe and Darcy Fraser, whilst capitalising on scoring opportunities to ensure the scoreboard would continue to tick over.
The pairs’ patience would force the Mounters to explore some alternative bowling options in the search of a breakthrough. With the partnership set, Skene would inexplicable lose his wicket to a false shot from the bowling Will Macklin for 41 with the score on 2/86. McFarlane and new partner Ryder Joyce would ensure there would be no more wobbles before the tea break, and the Panthers would’ve been well satisfied with their position at the half way point. With the score at 2/110, the visitors were placed to kick on the back end of the innings to extend the score beyond 300.
With a freshen up over the tea break, Darcy Fraser and Jake Blackwell continued their bowling partnership and they turned the game on its ear upon the resumption of play. Within two balls, Blackwell removed McFarlane for 49, and within six overs the Mounters had reduced Chirnside Park to 6/118, a long way from the lofty heights that looked possible at the break. Blackwell and Fraser teamed masterfully to take wickets and grind the scoring rate to a halt. The Panthers would’ve been well fight on, but the horse had bolted as their innings petered out to be closed with the score on 150.
Blackwell’s bowling figures of 4/8 off 15.1 overs including 11 maiden overs were remarkable, whilst Fraser wasn’t to be ignored with 4/54 off 20 overs. The early dismissal of the visitors innings left the Mounters with fifteen overs to bat, an opportunity to wipe a few runs off the chase, or alternatively, lose a couple of wickets to undo the bowling efforts. Fortunately for the Mounters, openers Adam Smith and Jesse Fraser would not only navigate their way through some healthy shouts for LBW, and some probing bowling, but also take a fair chunk off the chase finishing at 0/41 at stumps.
Mt Evelyn would be well pleased with their efforts on day one, and will be keen to chalk up a victory, however, they will be mindful that early wickets could put some unnecessary pressure on the batting line up.
Professionals Outer East 2nd XI travelled to Norwood, and after notching a string of impressive victories and establishing themselves top four, had another stern test against the Vikings, who with a win against the Mounters would see them jump into the top four. So this game is also poised to have a significant effect on finals calculations.
Upon winning the toss, Mt Evelyn captain, Shane Laird, took the opportunity to give ascendency to his team by putting a score on the board first. His top order bats would soon repay his faith as they would patiently work through some tidy bowling from Norwood’s opening bowlers. Openers Jamie Shaw (37) and Luke Jones (25) would make good early contributions whilst absorbing valuable time at the wicket. At 1/75 after 26 overs, the visitors were well poised to kick on to a considerable score. When Shaw was dismissed with the score on 75, Norwood wrestled control of the contest taking four wickets for the addition of just fifteen runs and picking up some key middle order wickets. At the halfway mark, the innings was teetering on the edge at 5/113.
The experienced Chris Morrow was joined by Luke Shepherd and the pair assumed responsibility for keeping the innings moving forward. The pair would put together an excellent partnership of 81 runs, and at 5/171, the Mounters were again in the position to accelerate the innings over the closing 15 overs. Shepherd’s wicket, after scoring 27, would be closely followed by that of Sam Vanhoogstraten and it was another blip in the innings that the Mounters could ill afford.
Thankfully for the visitors, Morrow would bat deep into the innings and with the help of the tail would push the score towards a competitive total. Morrow would fall desperately close to a well deserved century, losing his wicket within the sight of stumps for an brilliant score of 91, a defining contribution in an innings that toed-and-froed between bat and ball. The Vikings would have a small victory closing the innings before bowling the allotted overs leaving the game in an interesting position with the chase set at 232.
Rhead Group 3rd XI have ridden the roller coaster this season and have worked extremely hard to maintain touch with the top four. A strong of victories was ended last week as they couldn’t go toe to toe with the top of the ladder Mooroolbark. The one saving grace is their run home which is littered with teams around them on the ladder, leaving their destiny in their own hands.
The first hurdle was a struggling Croydon Ranges team. A win that is a must should they seriously be considered finals worthy. Under the split innings format, the Ranges won the toss and gave the Mounters first opportunity to bat. After the early dismissal of Dan Meades, the Mounters looked to take ascendency of the contest. Kadyn Newport looked to continue his good recent form, and he was helped by stars on the rise, Austin Leonard and Cambell Finch. All three would make useful contributions as they would take the score to 2/59 when drinks were taken.
Unfortunately, none of the top order would push beyond the 20s and this heaped pressure on the rest of the order that they just couldn’t resist. Regular wickets would curse the Mounters as a quick fire 31 from captain Graeme Foster the only saving grace. With Foster’s wicket within sight of the changeover, the Mounters found themselves in the unenviable position of 8/136, a handy score, but with little left in the shed for next week.
For the home side to have any chance of putting the pressure back on the visitors, they would need to capture early wickets. These were not forthcoming. The Ranges would take total domination of the contest. Not only would they not lose a wicket throughout their overs, but they would ensure their total would squeak past the Mounters total when stumps were drawn.
This leaves the Mounters with a monumental task of not only winning the game, but even extending it too far into day two. They need to somehow muster a significant amount of runs from their last two wickets, then find some wickets that were so elusive on day one. Their season hinges on finding a miracle.
