Above: Craig Slocombe smashes a ball through the field on his way to 60 in Springvale South’s 337 against Cranbourne at Casey Fields on the weekend. By Marc McGowan
FINALS places were put on the line when round 10 Turf One action in the Dandenong District Cricket Association kicked into gear on Saturday.
@BT Sub Sport News:Buckley Ridges v Narre Warren
Narre Warren’s finals hopes will be on the line this weekend when it continues its evenly poised clash with Buckley Ridges at Park Oval.
Both teams sit on 33 points, with the Ridges boasting a superior percentage which has the team sitting in second as opposed to the Magpies’ fifth.
Narre Warren batted first and slumped to a disastrous 4/6 before captain-coach Wendell Perumal (43) steadied the ship and bowling star Chris Pentland (32) provided some late hitting to scrape their side to 145.
The Magpie bowlers worked hard to defend the meagre total and had Buckley Ridges at 5/72 at stumps.
@BT Sub Sport News:Berwick v St Mary’s
Berwick will be confident of maintaining its mammoth lead on the ladder after restricting St Mary’s to a small total at Arch Brown Reserve on Saturday.
Troy Cashman (69) was the mainstay of St Mary’s 8/200, and received good support from Luke Byron (48).
The innings fell away from its strong foundations, as St Mary’s went from 2/140 before a loss of 4/12 slowed the scoring and left the team vulnerable this weekend.
Berwick stars Ash Henry (3/80) and Will Carr (2/25) led from the front again to be the pick of the bowlers.
@BT Sub Sport News:Doveton v Parkfield
Doveton has a tough chase on its hands after conceding 253 to third-placed Parkfield at Robinson Reserve on the weekend.
Robust Doves bowler Brad Polson (3/46) was at his intimidating best, but the Bears had a host of contributors that kept the runs ticking over.
No-one dominated the scoreboard, but with four scores of 36 or more, led by Grant Milnes’ 47, Parkfield managed to recover from 2/30 to post a competitive total before being bowled out in 72 overs.
@BT Sub Sport News:Cranbourne v Springvale South
Cranbourne’s bowlers were put to the sword by Springvale South at Casey Fields on Saturday.
The Bloods lost Rory Ingram for 9 early on, but did not miss a beat from then on, with gun all-rounder Danny Law (101) belting his first ton of the season.
Fellow all-rounder Craig Slocombe (64) and Greg Scott (60) were the best in support as Springvale South knocked up 337.
Matt Moore (4/64) returned the best bowling figures for Cranbourne.
@BT Sub Sport News:Dandenong West v North Dandenong
North Dandenong is clinging to its place in the top four after a poor batting performance against Dandenong West at Greaves Reserve on the weekend.
North Dandenong’s top order was shredded to pieces and slumped to 3/8 and then 6/88 before the tail came to the rescue.
Glen Pepper (28), David Bell (26 not out) and Paul Court (19) made valuable cameos to stretch the score to a defendable 180.
Stuart Mack (4/29) then went to work with the ball, but was the only one on his side to make inroads in the Dandenong West line-up as it finished 4/62 at stumps.
@BT Sub Sport News:Southern Pirates v Keysborough
In the only game lacking a finals aspirant, Keysborough took charge against the Southern Pirates at Wachter Reserve on Saturday.
Mahshan Perera (51), as he has done so often for Keysborough, was a rock in the middle-order and found late support from Stephen Hennigan (36 not out) to help his side to 210.
Keysborough’s opening attack exploded into action in the remaining 14 overs before stumps to have the Pirates struggling at 3/30, with Channa Gunawardana (2/11) claiming multiple wickets.
