Top teams show their strength

By Jarrod Potter
OPENING round action in the Dandenong District Cricket Association had last year’s grand finalists Springvale South and Buckley Ridges earn convincing wins while Keysborough was given a cricket lesson by Heinz Southern Districts in an 80-run thrashing.
Springvale South’s Dillon Fernandesz and Tim Ford ensured the Bloods start this season the way they finished the last, as they took a six-wicket victory over Dandenong West at Greaves Reserve.
Fernandesz’s 4/13 and Ford’s 3/32 kept Dandenong West to 132 with West’s David Weerden top-scoring with 38.
Springvale South stumbled to 3/26 before the ever-reliable Warren Ayres (40 not out) and Craig Slocombe (34) steadied the innings with a 56-run partnership.
Slocombe was dismissed at 4/82, but the rest of the heavy lifting was applied by Ayres and Anthony Sharp (24 not out) to guide Springvale South to the win. Peter Atkinson was the best of the Dandenong West bowlers with 2/18 off eight overs.
Berwick’s Andrew Perrin made life hard for Parkfield at Parkfield Reserve, with Perrin’s triple-strike at the start of the innings leaving Parkfield rattled at 3/9.
Perrin finished with 4/17 for the innings as Parkfield scrambled to post a decent total.
Dale Harris (27) and Shane Bell (20) dragged the required score for Berwick to 111, but it wasn’t enough as Berwick’s Mitchell Hewitt (27) and Brad Francis (26) reeled in the runs in 29 overs. Buckley Ridges defeated Narre Warren by 57 runs at Park Oval, with Te Ahu Davis (86) and Daniel Watson (56) putting on 122 runs for the fourth wicket as the Ridges set the chase total at 7/217.
Narre Warren weren’t able to build partnerships as Matt Goodwright (3/18) and Westley Nicholas (3/35) made regular inroads to secure the six points.
North Dandenong compiled 5/151 off their 38 overs before Doveton stormed home to take a seven-wicket victory at Robinson Reserve.
Doveton’s Brad Downe (51) and Shaun Tongue (49 not out) chased up the North Dandenong total in 34 overs.
Keysborough were badly beaten by Heinz Southern Districts at Keysborough, as the Burras were only able to post 62 in response to HSD’s 142.
Jacob Hennigan (3/21) and Abhinay Motupalli (3/40) provided dour defence from the bowling end for Keysborough – while for the batsmen there wasn’t much to smile about with Motupalli doing the hard yards with the bat also, posting 20.