Dragons rue persistent rain
BELL Park was left to rue a day of persistent showers after coming within a handful of overs of securing six points against Marshall.
The Dragons looked set for victory on Saturday before a final downpour forced umpires to abandon the match at Marshall Reserve.
The Bears were in trouble at 3-34 off 16.4 overs in pursuit of Bell Park’s 6-136 in the rain-shortened 44-over game when the covers were dragged onto the field about 5.40pm, ending all hope of a Dragons victory.
“It was not so much the pitch, but all the square,” Bell Park coach Michael Lymer said of the conditions.
“We would’ve destroyed it and it would’ve turned into a mud pit. It’s a bit of a shame, to be honest, because we were probably in the box seat.
“We were well and truly on top and we only needed to play another three or four overs for it to qualify as a game. You need to play half the overs to get the result, and their run rate was well below ours, so I was keen to get back out there.
“Had we got back out there and the rain came again we would have won because they were below the run rate and we would’ve got six points.
“But at the end of the day Marshall has to play a lot of cricket on that ground and by going back out there it just wouldn’t have been fair for anyone.”
Daniel Maclean set up the Dragons’ total with a fine 45 and his team had the upper hand, leaving Mar- shall reeling with three quick wickets, two from promoted quick Jayden Ettridge in the absence of Mitch Trask, before the third rain delay ended play.
“It bucketed down, and that was the one that down the damage,” Lymer said. “By the time we got the covers on and over the square, the boys were drenched.”
The result has dinted Bell Park’s hopes of returning to top spot, with ladder-leader Bell Post Hill securing the points over Newcomb & District.
“If everyone else is in the same boat and there’s four draws across the board then it’s not a bad result,” Lymer said before knowing the results of the three other matches.
“But if there’s two or three games that got a result then it’s going to hurt us, especially when it’s as tight as it is. But you can’t help the weather gods, unfortunately.”