15 boundaries for Gangodawila
Division 1: Warragul v Western Park
The electrifying Sanjaya Gangodawila returned to form on the weekend, as Western Park thumped cross-town rivals Warragul. Losing the toss and being sent in, the Warriors lost two early wickets, as the Andrew Martin’s decision to field provided early dividends.
Jack Armour (4) fell to the fiery Todd Mann (2-43), before Joel Batson (1) was ran out to leave the away side reeling at 2-9. Leigh Diston (12) followed soon after, leaving Gangodawila and Sam Batson to pick up the pieces - and they struck back with a vengeance.
Batson (31) played a supporting role, ticking the strike over as “Ganga” stroked boundaries at will - 15 of them in fact, on his way to a sixth Division 1 century. The pair ultimately added 121 in quick time, before both fell to Martin (3-52), with the Western Park momentum halting momentarily.
Any hope for Warragul soon vanished, however, as Harry Moore (34) continued his fine form, while Zane Harper (15) cleared the fence on two occasions, as Western Park racked up a massive score of 8-231.
In reply, Todd Mann (15) came out firing, however the Gulls were simply no match for their more experienced counterparts.
Sam Batson (4-12) channeled his namesake Rasputin and kickstarted revolution on the Warragul top order, with wickets coming in a flurry. None of the middle-order lasted more than a couple of overs, as Matt Garner (2-10) and Kyle Baker (2-6), contributed to reduce the Gulls to 8-41 at one stage before a late rally pushed the score to 70 all out.
The result being a 161-run victory to Western Park.
Neerim District v Catani
Neerim has made it two wins on the trot, handing Catani their first WDCA Division 1 defeat. Losing the toss and being sent in, the Stags lost Heath Darcy (0) early, but made their opposition pay for their decision with a fierce top-order onslaught.
Jack Ward (37) showed why his return has been crucial for his side with another fine knock, before Rhys George (58) celebrated his first senior GCL appearance with another half-century, pushing his side’s score northwards.
Lachie Gregson (2-20) fought hard for the Cats, but they struggled to make inroads through the latter part of the innings, as Riley Ferguson (17), Kody Wilson (16) and Carter Davis (13*) all made contributions in the back end to give Neerim the ascendancy, as they made 6-171.
In reply, Catani required another huge effort from their top order. However, Dane Fawcett (3-27) welcomed the new boys to their new turf ground with a relentless spell as the likes of Ned Harrison (20), Josh Bethune (5) and Liam Adams (0) were unable to repeat their magic.
James Vela (24) gave his side a sniff, however wickets were falling at a rate of knots with Aaron Fawcett (3-19) joining his brother in the fun. Gregson (25*) ensured Catani made it into the triple-figures. However by this point the match was well and truly over as Catani were all out for 132 and fell out of the top four in the process.
Ellinbank v Drouin
Ellinbank has laid their credentials as the team to beat in 2021-22, crushing rivals Drouin in a ferocious display. Continuing the trend of winning the toss and bowling, the Eagles were one of the only sides to garner full effect as Chris Perry (2-16) claimed the scalp of Alex Gaudion with the second ball of the match.
Things went from bad to worse for the Hawks - ex-Ellinbank coach Ben Spicer (12) and Matt Kouris (4) fell to give Ellinbank all of the momentum. Drouin veterans Trevor Gardiner (21) and Jake Harper (13) battled hard to stay in the contest, however the Ellinbank pressure was too much to handle as Jeremy Gray (3-19) spun his way through the middle-order.
A late flurry from Simon Gardiner (43) put something of note on the board for the Hawks as they made 133. However, Sean Masterson (3-31) and Curtis Howell (2-31) did their job at the death to put Ellinbank in the box seat.
In reply, the Eagles took full advantage of their situation as Troy Ferguson and Matt Farthing demolished the Drouin attack. Ferguson in particular was unbelievable after this disappointing previous weekend. The stocky right-hander clearing room and launching an attack on the off-side, showing his side’s new-found attacking flair with an astonishing 89 off just 53 deliveries.
Farthing (32*) was no slouch either - hitting two rare maximums in support, as Ellinbank needed just 20 overs to reach the target one wicket down.
Buln Buln v Yarragon
Yarragon has recorded their first victory of the season, easily accounting for a disappointing Buln Buln. Winning the toss and bowling, the Panthers grinded their opposition into submission, as their bowling attack shared wickets by committee during the innings.
Kasun Ranasinghe (3-23) swapped his wicket-keeping gloves for the ball, bowling a terrific spell, whilst Gamini Kumara (2-20) and Amal Athulathmudali (2-29) took advantage of a brittle and undermanned Lyrebird batting order.
Lachie Jagoe (25) tried his best to give his side a chance, however their total of 111 was never going to be enough.
Buln needed early wickets in reply but were unable to get them, as Ranasinghe (52*) and Kumara (20) took any nerve out of the chase. Ricky McKerrow (2-36) struck twice quickly to give himself some consolation wickets, but Athulathmudali (32) was at his brutal best to snuff out the contest. The away side passed the total just three wickets down, as Buln sit in a dangerous position regarding relegation.