By Nicholas Creely
Cranbourne has suffered a shock home loss to the hands of Mordialloc as the final round of Twenty20s were played in the glorious sunshine on Tuesday evening.
Despite being the competition’s favourites, the Eagles lacked their natural flair after Bloodhounds batsman Hari Krishan (47) lifted them to 8/129 off their 20 overs in front of a strong home crowd.
Once again Steven Spoljaric (3/19) starred with the ball while Jakeb McVicar (2/15) was handy during the middle overs of the innings.
In response, the Eagles could only muster up 8/99, with key linchpins Matt Chasemore (8) and Steven Spoljaric (17) unable to cash in.
Ian Daniel (2/14) was stellar once again, while Shaun Jamieson (3/17) enjoyed his chance in the side.
In other important matches, Springvale South (6/175) has comfortably knocked over Lynbrook (102) at Alex Nelson Reserve, with the Bloods proving too strong with both bat and ball, another dominant Michael Davies (45 and 2/10) performance has seen HSD thrash Dandy West (9/94), marquee Brendan Rose (3/24) starred in Berwick’s (7/152) win over Springvale (130), while Buckley Ridges (6/171) dismantled a disappointing Dingley (78) at Park Oval, with Susantha Pradeep (43 and 2/12) on fire once again. Pradeep has been destructive in the tournament, and will be vital for the Bucks heading into the finals.
Other matches saw St Mary’s (3/128) comfortably knock off Beaconsfield (127) in what has been a stellar tournament for them, Narre South (8/181) chase down Silverton’s (6/177) tough total, with Jawed Hussaini scoring a boundary off the last ball of the match to clinch the points, Parkfield (8/137) overcome North Dandenong (114), as marquee and formed West Indian player Brendon Parchment stole the show with a whirlwind 55 for the North and Bears marquee Dylan Hadfield (28 and 2/17) showed his class.
Hadfield has been particularly impressive as the star marquee with both bat and ball, and has translated his impressive Premier Cricket form across.
Berwick, Cranbourne, St Mary’s, Hallam-Kalora Park, Parkfield, Buckley Ridges, Dingley and Heinz-Southern Districts will face off in the quarter-finals on 11 January, with the fixture and venues yet to be announced.
LEADING RUNS SCORERS:
Susantha Pradeep, Buckley Ridges 151
Michael Davies, Heinz-Southern Districts 149
Leigh Booth, Hallam-Kalora Park 145
Hemantha Alles, Parkfield 121
Ian Daniel, Mordialloc 117
LEADING WICKET TAKERS:
Dylan Hadfield, Parkfield 7
Steven Spoljaric, Cranbourne 7
Cameron Kelly, Cranbourne 7
Jurgen Andersen, North Dandenong 7
Rajith Priyan, Springvale South 7
Kaushalya Weeraratne, Heinz-Southern Districts 7
Matt Chasemore, Cranbourne 6
