By Marcus Uhe
North Dandenong coach Lee Vowles left Lois Twohig Reserve to watch his reserves play on Saturday with a sinking feeling in his stomach an unwanted and uncomfortable companion for the ride.
His Maroons, at the foot of the Dandenong District Cricket Association Turf 1 ladder, and in the midst of a terrible run of form in recent weeks, was 3/32 against Dandenong West following an excellent spell of new-ball bowling.
In the previous two rounds, North Dandenong has narrowly avoided two outright losses, losing 17 wickets in both matches and making a combined 294 runs.
Skipper, Imran Laghmani was joined by Riley Shaw at the wicket with a huge task on their hands to rebuild the innings, with relegation staring the proud long-tenured Turf 1 club square in the face.
What Vowles then missed, therefore, could not have been predicted, describing the effort as “without a doubt” the best day of his side’s summer.
Twin centuries from Laghmani and Shaw saw the Maroons post a mammoth score of 7/350, with the two adding 232 for the fourth wicket in the largest Turf 1 partnership of the summer.
Laghmani reached 159 from 150 balls, his second hundred of the summer against the Bulls, with six sixes and 16 fours, while Shaw achieved triple-figures for the first time in North Dandenong colours, finishing unbeaten on 114.
Shaw anchored the partnership, a role he’s been looking to execute for much of the season, allowing his hard-hitting captain to showcase his natural, aggressive self.
“We were monitoring the game the whole way through and couldn’t believe it,” Vowles said.
“Young Riley, he’s been working a hell of a lot in the nets and started to get a few small scores throughout the season, now he’s turned the corner and got his first century on Turf, so we’re over the moon with that.
“Imran’s back from his back injury and he’s probably having the best season he’s had for a good while.
“I spoke to one of the umpires who was there at the end and with both Imran and Riley, he told me that he thought there was one possible chance they gave – I think that Riley early on.
“Apart from that he said the boys really dug in and stayed there.”
From the beginning of his tenure at the helm of North Dandenong, Vowles has stressed the importance of batting time and occupying the crease, a characteristic he identified as missing based on the results of previous seasons.
Coming into round 11, the Maroons had lost more wickets than any other side and scored the least runs in the division, with only one score beyond 200.
Only twice in one-day games have they lasted the full allotment of overs, while their longest innings in two-day cricket prior to Saturday lasted 55 overs.
It may have taken 11 rounds, but Vowles feels the fruits of their labour are finally beginning to blossom late in the summer.
“We’ve sat down and talked about trying to bat out the 80 overs and said it again this week – go in there, bat the overs out and see what score we can put on the board,” he said.
“It’s what other teams do; put the hard work in and just be patient.
“They realised that now, if you want to stay up, you’ve got to dig in.
“We’ve got the talent, it’s about staying in and doing what other teams do.
“I said that at the beginning of the season – if you stay in and do what you have to do, patience will pay off.
“Have we turned a corner? We hope so.”
With three teams tied on 18 points seeking to stay in Turf 1, a win for North Dandenong would put them in an ideal position to remain in the top flight for another year.
Beaconsfield and Narre South face big asks in their round 11 contests, and with North Dandenong and Beaconsfield to go head-to-head in round 12, six Maroon points this week could be their ticket to staying up.
In direct contrast to his Beaconsfield counterpart Mick Cronin, Vowles is not shying away from the relegation battle and the consequences riding on each contest.
The theory is that the threat will light a fire in his teammates and ignite a sense of pride.
“I think it’s the best way to motivate them.
“It’s the pinnacle – to be in Turf 1, that’s what everyone strives for and you’ve got to have your mindset (right).
“You know that you’re playing in one of the best Turf competitions in Melbourne, and that’s where you want to be.
“I said to them ‘if we don’t win a game or two, down we’re going to go’ and we don’t want that as a cricket club.
“The president now and the past president, Jason (Shaw), have put a lot of time and effort into that club, they’ve always been in the top league and that’s where we want to stay.”
350 is the third-highest team score this season, behind 384 and 354, with Dandenong West also on the receiving end of the second-biggest, against Berwick.
Nuwan Kulasekara’s 2/38 from 17 overs was the obvious standout among the Dandenong West bowlers, with all others’ economy rates exceeding four runs per over.
Riley Siwes took 3/91 from 22 overs and Amrith Sri Mahan took 2/70, a key figure in the early chaos, but leaked nearly six runs per over.
Adam Reid and Malinga Bandara both went wicketless.
