By JARROD POTTER
VSDCA – South East 1st XI Round 6 (day 2)
GORING its way to first innings points, Noble Park (5/156dec) charged through Moorabbin (92 and 7/83) to almost steal the outright victory.
The Bulls were unstoppable at Moorleigh Village as first-innings points were caught up with quickly. The resounding work of Marasinghe Perera (62) and Mevan Fernando (64) set up a chance at the outright victory as Paul Hill (2 not out) brought his charges back in after a 59-over innings.
With 64 runs in the bank and 28 overs to make something magical happen, the Bulls charged in to keep the outright chance alive. Rizan Mawzoon (3/23) hit peak form at the right time to spear through the Moorabbin middle order, while Ash Perera (1/20) and Sanjeewa de Silva (2/7) also kept the pressure up to the home side. In the end the result was dictated by the setting sun as Moorabbin edged past the first innings target and survived by the skin of their teeth.
The win keeps Noble Park’s premiership defence alive as the Bulls move up to eighth place on the VSDCA South-East ladder, only three points behind the final six.
Noble Park is off to Croydon for a one-dayer in the last round of 2014.
ENDEAVOUR HILLS v OAKLEIGH
ENDEAVOUR HILLS (162) on the other hand threw away a prime opportunity to move into the upper echelons of the VSDCA ladder.
Silly middle order hitting left the Eagles 41 runs short against Oakleigh (210) as a slump set in quickly.
Number three Shean Vanderwert (60) looked the man to guide the Eagles home, as he ticked off the first half of the chase alongside the departing Gamindu Amarasinghe (12) and Thomas Hafil (11). Vanderwert would find the boundary with some scintillating strokes, en route to his second half-ton of the season, but his hard-hitting addiction proved his demise as a rush of blood left him out, slogging at 5/98.
He would be part of the middle-order procession that ran through the crease like it was a turnstile with the order falling from 2/71 to 7/111 in the blink of an eye. The best efforts of Vaughan Baxter (30) held together the lower order and kept some semblance of victory alive. Baxter and Ben Swift (17) were the partnership that needed to stick, but once Swift dollied a caught-and-bowled back to Ben Pinwill (5/48), the Eagles’ chances dissipated. Baxter would be the last out as he and captain Chris Pereira (4 not out) attempted to salvage the points.
Endeavour Hills will head to Bayswater for the final match of the year.
