Crows deal Catani first loss
Longwarry completed the boil-over of the season to date, stunning the previously undefeated Catani at home.
Bowling first, Justin McCleary (3-36) and Cole Cook (3-17) stamped their intentions with potent spells of bowling, as only a couple of the Catani batsmen could get away.
James Vela (44) played a classy knock but fell at an important stage, while Brad McDonald (32*) saw wickets tumble all-around him late; the Blues losing 7-49 to be all out for 147.
In reply, the Crows knew they were in sight of an upset, however, found themselves strangled by the Catani bowlers, as Tyler Molloy (3-35) and Josh Miller (3-37) ripped through the middle-order.
The Crows eventually required 13 for the victory with two wickets left and needed a hero.
Up stepped Cole Cook (28*) and Zac Wright (9*) who scampered through for the runs required with minimal time remaining, giving Longwarry a massive victory as the second half of the season commences.
Ellinbank may have resigned GarfieldTynong to relegation, as the Eagles climbed off the bottom of the ladder with a breakthrough victory.
Bowling first, Ellinbank found contributors in Chris Pallot (3-24) and Tom Robertson (228) as they strangled Tynong to the point that extras was the away side’s top scorer. The Titans’ fell to 125 all out.
In reply, the home side seemed home at 065, with Stuart Davis (31) flying, however, a collapse of 5-27 caused by Sean Somers (3-23) put the game in the balance. Luckily, Robertson (32) was on hand to guide his side home, as the young Ellinbank side finally tasted victory.
Hallora needed every possible ball at their disposal in pursuit of Iona’s target to get home by the skin of their teeth.
Bowling first, Hallora’s Daniel Hughes (3-43) and Liam Serong (2-24) found a way through the Swamp Tigers’ top order, with only Mick Taylor (34) able to make a meaningful contribution.
Luckily for the away side, the bottom five in the order all made double figures, pushing the score to 8-169 and seemingly out of Hallora’s grasp.
In reply, Sam Whibley (39) showed his A grade class with a swashbuckling knock, while Jai Serong (33) anchored the innings to put his side within touching distance. They were against some stern bowling from Kieran Lenders (2-35), who created a collapse that saw Hallora fall to 6-144.
With overs dwindling down, the Kangas’, like many other’s in this round, needed a pair of heroes. Brayden Notman (16*) and Daniel Hughes (9*) obliged, seeing their side home in the last over to complete the upset.
A wonderful knock from young Matt Kouris saw Drouin steal the match from rivals Western Park.
Winning the toss and bowling, Ben Dixon (322) and Mitch Goodwin (2-9) went to work early to reduce the Warriors to 4-47 on a flat track at Western Park. Tyler McMillan (54) rebuilt the innings on one leg with 11 boundaries, but didn’t find much support as Western Park limped to an under-par 141. John Perry (2-7) chipped in at the end.
In reply, league legend Dave Burn (3-26) went to work early, seemingly pushing Drouin out of the game as they were reduced to 5-58. However, Kouris, who had been a touch out of form prior to Christmas, decided it was his time to deliver. He single-handedly got his side over the line with a brilliant 66 not out, as Drouin leapfrogged a number of teams to solidify a top four spot.
A brilliant all-around performance from Warragul saw them easily account for Jindivick at the Kydd-Parke Reserve.
Batting first, Warragul was in trouble early thanks to wonderful spells from Luke Hume (2-26) and Tharindu Siriwardhana (2-25), as some of the Gulls’ best batsmen had rare failures. Luckily, Matt Runnalls (47), Brian Christensen (34) and Josh Wright (26) proved experience is incredibly crucial, pushing the score to a defendable 160.
In reply, Jindivick could only get a contribution from Sean Viotto (55) as the rest of the batsmen fell to the likes of Paddy Mulqueen (3-18) and Brian Christensen (2-12). The Jumping Jacks could only limp to 9-121, with Warragul thrusting themselves into the top four.