Dominant final win seals historic feat
A BITTERSWEET victory is a win nonetheless and it’s Atherton smiling after sealing a historic triple crown in the club’s 30th anniversary tackling the big smoke.
Only 53 more overs were possible over the weekend, all on Saturday, as Fred Pittorino and Gerard Fox put on a 95run partnership to take the lead beyond 200.
It would have been a challenge for Mulgrave whatever the weather and Atherton skipper Peter Sceresini was proud of how comprehensively his side drove home their advantage and confirmed their place as the best team all season.
“It’s bittersweet. It makes it better we got a full weekend last weekend and we got it convincingly on first innings, so at least there was a result,” he said.
“It would have been nice to get a full day on Saturday and put some more runs on and have a crack at them, but I think we definitely deserve it.
“There’s just been no individuals ... everyone’s chipped in at some point.”
Sceresini said it was special to end the nine-year two-day final drought, not only for the core group of 14 players and the club, but for the diehards in Atherton riding the wave of success.
“You don’t realise how many people get behind it,” he said.
“The boys have had people come up to them in the main street this week, that you haven’t seen in years and they’ve been reading about it the paper and say ‘good luck this weekend’. So it’s an extra bit special to do it up there for everyone in the community.”
Sceresini may not return for the premiership defence but one man likely to is Luke Parnell, who put the season’s success down to a strong bond within the group.
“Everyone gets on really well and it’s not about individuals, it’s about turning up for the boys,” Parnell said.
The Atherton paceman paid tribute to Paul Nasser for setting up the two-day final win with his first-innings 87.
“For a 19-year-old to bat like that showed a lot of maturity and without him we wouldn’t be holding the trophy up,” he said.
Mulgrave captain Jacob Stanton said Atherton was the best side when it counted but had high hopes the club could wrest the trophy back next season.
“When you look at the history of the club and the success that’s been there, you can’t win them all,” he said.
“In the end we didn’t play our best game last weekend.
“They’ve been the best side over the years ... and in the end they played better last week and that’s what it came down to, so good on them.”
IT’S AN EXTRA BIT SPECIAL TO DO IT UP THERE FOR EVERYONE IN THE COMMUNITY
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