By JARROD POTTER
Victorian Premier Cricket – round 18 (week two)
THE cruel nature of cricket took hold of Dandenong this weekend – with their best not good enough to grant the Panthers passage into the Victorian Premier Cricket finals.
Needing a win and results to favour them elsewhere in the league, Dandenong (5/303dec) ticked all the right boxes in its win over Camberwell (263).
The bowling unit fired when it was required as Justin Butterfield (5/54) and James Wilcock (1/24) rattled off a ferocious opening spell of quick bowling.
Simon Hill (66) and Brendan Drew (65) held the Panthers at bay as long as the Magpies’ duo could muster, but eventually fell to Mick Sweeney (1/38) and Butterfield respectively.
A 43-run partnership from Drew and number 11 Simon O’Brien (22 not out) gave interest to the last hour of cricket as Camberwell edged towards Dandenong’s tally, but it all came to an end as Butterfield found the edge of Drew’s blade – hitting the catch to Charith Cooray to finish the match and sadly for Dandenong, it’s season as a whole.
Impressively monstrous chases from Prahran – making 7/330 off a James Miller 148 – and Fitzroy-Doncaster – making 5/258 – left Dandenong with the bittersweet satisfaction of finishing the season on a high but unable to reach the final-eight in the Victorian Premier Cricket ladder.
Brett Forsyth led Dandenong’s run scoring for the season with 656 runs at 41 while the Panthers’ lead bowler was Butterfield with 26 wickets at 27.04.
