By Marcus Uhe
North Dandenong finally secured the fourth and final position while Parkmore fell heartbreakingly short of avoiding relegation in a dramatic conclusion to the home-and-away season of the DDCA Turf 1 competition on Saturday.
The Maroons were the beneficiary of the weather gods at home after a poor showing against Berwick, who had them in-trouble during their chase of 260 before rain forced them off the pitch for an anti-climactic draw.
Jake Hancock led the way for the visitors with a commanding 93 not out as the Bears saved their best batting performance of the season until last.
With nothing to play for, having escaped the possibility of relegation and not able to qualify for finals, Lachlan Brown and James Wilcock ran-through North’s top-order to have them struggling at 5/71, needing to pick-up points to avoid qualifying for the final four on percentage alone, after Narre South defeated St Mary’s by five wickets earlier in the day.
Play was called off at 6.30, however, due to persistent showers at Lois Twohig, meaning David Bell’s men will taste finals action for the first time since the 2008-09 season.
They’ll face Hallam Kalora Park in the sudden-death final, who they defeated last week, after the Hawks’ clash with Buckley Ridges at nearby Park Oval also ended prematurely.
Like Berwick, Buckley had the upper-hand in the contest defending a first innings total of 5/273, with the Hawks struggling to take-flight at 5/88 in the 17th over.
Jake Cronin scored his maiden hundred in the Turf 1 competition with 142 off 127 at the top of the order, having played patiently early before freeing his arms later in the piece, most notably with four consecutive sixes in the 39th over off Jordan Hammond.
Cronin and Mahela Udawatte added 162 for the second wicket as the Hawks struggled to make inroads, with Hammond (2/84 off 12) uncharacteristically expensive.
The Hawks chase never quite got off the ground, thanks to early wickets to Michael Davies and Hadigallage Jayaratne.
Jayaratne was lively with the new ball, beating Jagveer Hayer for pace a number of times and removing the experienced pair of Leigh Booth and Matthew Cox during his opening spell.
Booth, who was caught in the slips cordon by Cronin, appeared unhappy with the decision, as Cronin grasped the chance low-down, prompting a short discussion in the middle before making his way back off the field.
With points shared for the draw, Buckley Ridges held-on to second place, earning a double-chance and the right to face Springvale South in a mouth-watering semi-final clash next week.
The Bloods just scraped home against a defiant Parkmore side, who were fighting for their Turf 1 lives having entered the final round in last position.
The Pirates could only manage 135 batting first at Alex Nelson Reserve thanks to a typically excellent bowling performance from the home side, led by Josh Dowling’s 4/32.
Their defence could hardly have begun better, as star batters Ryan Quirk and Jordan Wyatt were both removed within the first two overs without troubling the scorers.
When Jackson Sketcher was sent-packing by Niranjen Kumar to have the hosts reeling at 6/66 in the 19th over, a historic upset looked on the cards, and when Dowling came to the crease at 9/95, still 40 runs in arrears, victory was theirs for the taking.
But at the other end was Yoshan Kumara, who steered the chase home with an unbeaten 59, hitting the winning runs in the 36th over to consign Parkmore back to Turf 2.
The results meant Narre South’s victory over St Mary’s earlier in the day was largely inconsequential, despite a big-hitting innings from Jonty Jenner, who scored 88 of his 107 in boundaries (10 sixes and seven fours).
The Lions reigned-in the Saints’ total of 7/200 in the 21st over as they looked to close the percentage gap between themselves and North Dandenong, should results have boiled down to those circumstances.
Jeevan Mendis took 3/45 to finish as the competition’s leading wicket taker, but could only manage 14 with the bat in the unfamiliar position of opening.
