Panthers stumble

By Justin Robertson
THE out of form Dandenong Panthers have tumbled out of the Kookaburra one-day semi-finals with a lacklustre batting performance against the Northcote Dragons on Sunday at the Bill Lawry oval.
With parts of the ground still affected by Saturday’s wild weather the match was reduced to 24 overs per side, but Panthers skipper Darren Dempsey said the pitch was still in good nick and they had no excuses for such a poor batting display.
“All in all they were actually quite a good side and we got beaten fairly convincingly in the end,” he said. “We don’t play for that many flags and it was a chance for some silverware and prize money for the club, so to be knocked out as we were without putting up much of a fight was pretty disappointing.”
Dandenong lost a wicket in the first over and were in trouble at 4/24. Dempsey tried to glue the innings together – before being run out for 35 – but had little support. By the time they reached the innings changeover, the Panthers were struggling at 4/62. In reply, after losing an early wicket, Northcote steadied and finished 25 runs clear of Dandenong at 3/87.
The Panthers were unable to close the gap with their four remaining overs and ended the day on 7/85.
While the Panthers still remain on top of the premier cricket ladder, Dempsey said they had been lucky not to have lost more games. “We’ve had a lot of luck. In the past three games we’ve either been washed out when we were going to lose and the other games we have lost,” he said. “Teams haven’t been able to make up ground from a points perspective, and we are still on top of the ladder, but we really need to turn our patchy form around – and quick.”
This week with the weather forecast looking promising, the Panthers take on Hawthorn-Monash University and Dempsey is hoping his team can pick up a much needed win.
“On paper, it’s one of those games we should win, but we’ll need to play very well to beat Hawthorn,” he said.