Wild Dogs fall to Traralgon in final

By Nathan Weatherhead

The Warragul Wild Dogs lost the GCL final to Traralgon and District by seven wickets at Western Park on Sunday.

After rain delayed the start of play and with a revised over limit of 37 per side, Warragul won the toss and sent openers Jack Armour and Ben Spicer to the crease.

It was a watchful start before Spicer fell, quickly followed by Yashan Samarasinghe and Damon Healy to see the Wild Dog side in trouble at 3/9.

A partnership between stalwart Fraser Duncan and Armour kept Warragul in the game, the pair putting on 36, before Traralgon captain Lee Stockdale turned to James Pryde.

It was a game changing move as Pryde went on a tear, taking 6/14 from 7.2 overs to roll through the Warragul order in quick succession, bundling them out for an under par 74.

Traralgon showed their prowess with the willow when the chase got underway. Anthony Scott and Jordan Gilmore looked to finish the match early with an array of strokes, but Wild Dogs’ captain Sam Batson was able to find a way through Gilmore, sending his stumps flying for 10 keeping the Wild Dogs hopes alive.

Another wicket to spinner Natsai M’Shangwe saw Traralgon slip to 2/39, but a patient finish from Jordan McMahon and Ben Marks saw them home by seven wickets in 17.5 overs.

Captain Sam Batson said the side knew they were well below par, but thought his troops bowled well under the circumstances.

“We just didn’t have enough on the board today. In the end it was disappointing, but I think we bowled well, a few more wickets it could have gotten ugly, they certainly wanted to finish it quickly,” he said.

Despite the loss, he said he was incredibly proud of his teammates' effort throughout the series.

“Really proud of everyone, to only have 14 players across the five games, in the past that could be north of 20. Giving up Saturday and Sunday is difficult the older you get, so I’m very proud of their effort and commitment,” he said.

During the presentations, Sam Batson, Yashan Samarasinghe, Jack Armour and Natsai M’Shangwe were all named in the All Gippsland 11 for the GCL season, while Jack Armour was also named player of the year.

Armour said he felt there was a fair bit of luck that led to him winning the award, but said it was great to be recognised.

“It’s a great feeling. There’s some elite company on the trophy and I feel a little out of place. It’s an honour to win an award named after the great Alan Rankin. Overall, it’s been a great year and it’s awesome to be recognised,” he said.

Batson also thanked those behind the scenes who helped the side during their meteoric rise in the competition..

“You don’t make a final without the hard work from people like Dave Armour, Michael Neilson who backs us in rep cricket and Norm our coach, who really helped us knuckle down a couple of years ago to help get us here.

“Hopefully this is a good baseline for us. Obviously, we might not make the final again next year, but we want to be competitive every game we play. Hopefully, this is the start of a consistent run in the GCL,” he said.