By Nick Creely
DDCA TURF 2 AND 3
REVIEW – ROUND 4 (DAY TWO)
TURF 2
What a monster win from the Parkmore Pirates.
And it came through the classy spin of Scottish recruit Jack Hogarth, who spun a web through Cranbourne in dominant fashion.
Defending 300 after a superb century from Anurudhdha Fonseka on day one, the Pirates didn’t even give the Eagles a sniff on its home deck.
Hogarth, a rising leggie part of Scotland’s Performance Academy, showcased just why he’ll be a handful in the DDCA as the year progresses, snaring 6/26 off 12 overs as the home side meekly rolled over for just 57 inside 34 overs.
Justin Dickinson (18 not out) was the only Eagle to reach double-figures as Hogarth rummaged through the top and middle orders.
Taking in first innings points, the Pirates had a crack at an outright win, but the Eagles managed to show some fight to end the second innings on 5/131. Dickinson once again found some runs with an excellent 47 for the home side.
Down at Perc Allison Oval, meanwhile, a truly astonishing display from Beaconsfield seamer Jake Cutting has seen the Tigers bank a win against Lyndale.
After the Tigers scratched its way to 112 on day one and had the visitors 7/62 at stumps, the game was very much in the balance when played resumed on Saturday.
But Jake Cutting – who bowled superbly late on the first day – was absolutely merciless with his lines and pressure, cutting apart the Dales with 6/7 off 16.1 overs, bowling an incredible 12 maidens as the visitors were rolled for 73.
Fellow seamer Callan Tout (4/28) was always in vintage touch, combining for 36 of the 39 overs with Cutting to cause serious issues.
The Tigers had another dip with the bat, reaching 3/136 before declaring with an outright victory in mind. Club great Brad Miles (57 not out) plundered an unbeaten half-century to continue his strong start to the season.
While the home side pushed hard for outright, the Dales managed to bat to stumps, finishing with 5/45, as Tout once again bowled phenomenally, snaring five wickets to finish with nine for the match.
In the remaining matches, Narre Warren (3/227) enjoyed a comfortable win against Narre North (151 and 2/42) at Narre Warren North Reserve, while Dingley (199) snared an important win against Dandenong West (127).
TURF 3
It was absolute scenes at Fotheringham Reserve late on day two.
Silverton were down and out against Keysborough, but found a way to fight its way back and deliver one of the most memorable first XI wins in the club’s recent memory – a rare reverse outright against the odds.
Keysborough were in a dominant position at stumps on day one at 3/98, needing just 14 runs to secure first innings points.
The Bakers fought hard to scramble and take the remaining wickets for just 30 runs, with Selva Tharaka (8/40) absolutely dominant for the home side. Crucially, however, the Knights took first innings points.
But the bad news was that there was plenty of time left to turn the result around, however unlikely it was.
With everything to play for and nothing left to lose, the Bakers came back out to bat with a positive attitude, and Luke Rhodes (68) and Wijenayake Weerarathna (40) went on the attack, helping the home side to 5/159 off 28 overs before declaring, setting up an intriguing finish.
Needing 143 to snare the outright win, the last thing on the Knights’ mind was to have the tables turned completely.
And that’s exactly what happened.
In an inspired performance – led by seamer Wijenayake Weerarathna (5/19) – the Bakers astonishingly rolled the visitors for just 41, sealing a famous win for the club after looking down and out, in a win that could very well set the season up for the club.
Springvale’s promising start to life in Turf 3 continued with a dominant effort against Berwick Springs on day two.
The Demons set the game up with 259 on day one, largely helped by a sparkling century from Nuwan Mendis, and kept the momentum going on Saturday.
The visitors struggled to recover after being 3/5 in the early exchanges, and despite showing some fight, were dismissed for 99, with Sachintha Rajapakse (4/30) making the ball talk, especially against the top order.
In the remaining matches, Parkfield (9/236) flexed its muscles against Fountain Gate (67 and 1/43), while Lynbrook (185) snared a confidence-boosting win against Coomoora (128).
