By JARROD POTTER
THERE was plenty of silver success for a local School Sports Victoria under-15 cricket tandem at the recently held national championships.
Dulnath Hendawitharana from Noble Park North and Cornish College paceman Jakob Woinarski featured in the high-ranking side at the School Sport Australia (SSA) national championships in Queensland.
The side was only pipped to the post by New South Wales Green, leaving the SSV lads with a respectable second-place finish at the hard fought championship.
Spinning all-rounder Hendawitharana saved the best for the finals as his start to the carnival featured a couple of 20s with Victoria Metro moving into the final four.
Hendawitharana was the glue that held the Victorian middle order together in a heroic semi-final victory against Queensland.
His gutsy 85-run stand with Triyan De Silva revived the Victorian hopes after the side fell to 5/20 early on. Hendawitharana smacked 75 in an emphatic fight-back, hitting eight boundaries and a monster six, that pushed the side along to 203 by stumps.
The bowlers seared through Queensland to book SSV’s place in the final.
He didn’t have as much luck in the final, though, making 12 as the side fell for 135 from 45.5 overs, only to be chased down by New South Wales with nearly 20 overs to spare.
Woinarski claimed nine wickets at the carnival with a best return of 3/33 against New South Wales Green in the opening round of the competition.
