The 2006-07 Dandenong District Cricket Association season has been and gone. Springvale South won the Turf One flag in an epic grand final against Berwick, while the Southern Pirates were demoted to Turf Two after a horrid year. This week Glen Atwell and Marc McGowan look back on the season that was, featuring who was hot, who was not and which players shone.
Berwick
Finished: First (runners-up).
Highlights: Carried the confidence of its first pennant in a decade last year to dominate the home and away season in finishing 16 points clear on top of the ladder. Ash Henry made a sensational return to his former club to finish second in the competition in wickets.
Lowlights: The crushing 9-run loss to Springvale South in the Turf One grand final that ruined an almost perfect season.
All-stars: Ash Henry, Alecs Roberts, Will Carr.
Buckley Ridges
Finished: Second.
Highlights: Winning seven games and losing three was a marked improvement for Buckley Ridges, which won just five in the 2005-06 season. Shane D’Rozario’s dominating Wookey Medal win.
Lowlights: A disappointing five-wicket semi-final loss against Springvale South. Buckley Ridges scored just 181 with the bat, despite Daniel Watson blasting 92.
All-stars: Daniel Watson, Shane D’Rozario, David Wheeler.
Springvale South
Finished: Third (premiers).
Highlights: An epic Turf One premiership victory that will be remembered as one of the greatest DDCA grand finals. Bobby Gray shining as a late-season revelation.
Lowlights: An up-and-down season for opener Rory Ingram, who started with all guns blazing, but finished with five disappointing games.
All-stars: Craig Slocombe, Bobby Gray, Peter Ryan.
North Dandenong
Finished: Fourth.
Highlights: A gutsy win against Narre Warren in round five that proved to be the difference between the two sides when finals positions were decided. Stuart Mack’s semi-final bowling performances against Berwick were inspirational.
Lowlights: Failing to capitalise on a good 2005-06 season and progress further than a semi-final.
All-stars: Adrian Baltruschaitis, Glenn Finkelde, Stuart Mack.
Narre Warren
Finished: Fifth.
Highlights: Won its first two matches of 2006-07 and then recorded four wins and a draw from the final six matches of the season to just miss out on making the Turf One finals for the first time.
Lowlights: The horror batting stretch that saw Narre Warren bowled out below 100 in three straight innings and saw its early season momentum well and truly halted.
All-stars: Wendell Perumal, Chris Pentland, Chris Jarrett.
Parkfield
Finished: Sixth.
Highlights: The superb batting performances of captain Dale Harris. Harris scored five half-centuries, including four innings of 80 or more. Despite missing out on a century, Harris finished fourth in the Wookey Medal count.
Lowlights: Failing to capitalise on an improved 2005-06 season, slipping one rung down the ladder. Losing the last two games of the season, including one against Doveton, and missing out on a finals berth.
All-stars: Dale Harris, Shane Doig, Tony Payne.Keysborough
Finished: Seventh.
Highlights: The emergence of Mahshan Perera. Perera dominated with the bat, averaging 35 and impressed with the ball, snaring 23 wickets for the season, including two four-wicket hauls.
Lowlights: Missing the finals for another year. After finishing last in 2004-05, and then eighth in 05-06, Keysborough seems to improve every season, but how long can the upward trend be sustained?
All-stars: Mahshan Perera, Channa Gunawardana, Buddhika Abayasiriwardana.
Dandenong West
Finished: Eighth.
Highlights: Winning the first two games of the season.
Lowlights: Losing the next six and slipping from second to eighth on the Turf One ladder in one season.
All-stars: Greg Siwes, Shannon Marum, Matthew Sofoulis.
Cranbourne
Finished: Ninth.
Highlights: Rounds seven to nine, where its strong batting won it two matches and would have given it a good chance at a third had rain not intervened. Improved from 11th in 2005-06.
Lowlights: Failed to win two matches on the trot for the entire season and rarely looked like even threatening for a spot in the top four.
All-stars: Daniel Diwell, Shane Murdoch, Steven Hall.
Doveton
Finished: 10th.
Highlights: After an awful start to the season, a three-match winning streak levelled the ledger to have the Doves dreaming of finals halfway through 2006-07. Played the spoiler in round 10 by upsetting Parkfield, which proved to be the end to its opponent’s finals aspirations.
Lowlights: Lost its first three contests and won just one game after round six as what was shaping as a good season fell drastically away.
All-stars: Ryan Hendy, Brad Downe, Nathan Wilson.St Mary’s
Finished: 11th.
Highlights: The outright defeat of Buckley Ridges in round four. Luke Byron shone, scoring 125 runs in two impressive innings. A last round defeat of Southern Pirates also provided hope for next season.
Lowlights: Sliding from sixth to 11th on the Turf One ladder. A tough season for opening bat Gary Cake, who averaged just 12.9 in each of his 11 innings.
All-stars: Troy Cashman, Luke Byron, Emmanuel Coomaraswamy.
Southern Pirates
Finished: 12th.
Highlights: The two wins for the season, against North Dandenong and Parkfield. A great season with the bat for Martyn Cull.
Lowlights: Eight losses from 11 games saw the Pirates successfully sail straight into Turf Two next season.
All-stars: Martyn Cull, Chamath Jayaweera, Stuart Dalton.
