By Jonty Ralphsmith
Dandenong was pipped by Fitzroy-Doncaster in round 5 of the Vic Premier Cricket competition on Saturday.
The visitors batted first in a one-dayer at Shepley Oval, with opening bowler James Nanopoulos taking an early wicket before Fitzroy-Doncaster took control.
A 141-run second wicket partnership between Zachary Elliott and Liam Banthorpe set the innings up and fatigued the Panthers bowlers.
An absence of sustained pressure enabled both batters to pass 70, laying a platform for Mark Phelan and Matthew Bremner to add late fireworks as the visitors reached 5/238.
Early wickets, including the dismissal of run-scoring machine Brett Forsyth, and uncapitalised starts stung Dandenong.
Falling to 5/80 following the dismissal of Nanopoulos, a counter-punching unbeaten 85 to Josh Slater got the Panthers back into the contest.
He finished with an unbeaten 85 off 107, with his 60-run partnership with Sam Newell (42) particularly threatening, but the ‘keeper’s dismissal left too much to Slater.
He batted well with the tail, but was left with too much acceleration to do lat the death, with the Panthers falling 17 runs short.
The sixth-placed Panthers have a bye to reset next week before taking on seventh-placed Prahran.
Dandenong’s women, meanwhile, defeated Ringwood in the women’s T20 competition on Sunday but was unable to back it up, going down to Box Hill later in the day.
The Panthers’ bout with Ringwood was shortened by rain to just seven overs per side, with Ringwood’s 2/48 chased down in the second last ball of Dandenong’s innings.
The Panthers chose to bat first and limped 104 thanks to a rescue effort in the lower-order led by Kamaljout Kour and Sophie Strickland after being reduced to 6/34.
It was no match for Box Hill, which timed its eight-wicket win perfectly.
The Panthers currently sit third in the nine-team T20 competition.
