Noble Park (173) has a lot of work to do in a very small space of time if it wants to challenge for this year’s Victorian Sub-District Cricket Association (VSDCA) premiership after being pushed aside easily by near-neighbour Endeavour Hills (226) on Saturday.
The last round of the season was set up to be a real confidence-booster for Noble, who was already locked in for finals and playing against an Eagles’ outfit that had won just three games for the season.
But things did not pan out as expected, from the moment Eagles’ skipper Tyrell Panditharatne elected to bat first on his home deck.
The Eagles batted aggressively early, with Ashwanth Nagendran (27 off 16 balls) and Zac Perryman (46 off 44) not allowing the Noble Park bowlers to settle.
Adish Bhavsar (32 off 44) and Assadollah Vala (23 off 31) then took a more traditional approach through the middle overs, with Noble Park ace Sahan Perera (3/33) pulling things back for the visitors.
The Eagles lost momentum at a crucial stage of their innings, falling to 7/168, but had two more bullets to fire.
Jasmeet Singh (36 off 47) and Bineth Bandara (16 off 34) took the innings deep, sharing a 50-run partnership for the eighth wicket that would prove vital in the final washup.
Pawan Edirisinghe (4/19) took four of the last six wickets to fall to be the pick of the Noble Park bowlers.
Noble then struggled early in its reply with Eagles’ opener Ishan Kahatapitigama (5/48) making several key breakthroughs.
He took the scalps of Archie Stefan (14) and Janaka Liyanabadalge (0) in quick succession, then nailed the crucial wicket of Perera (10) to make it 3/40 after nine overs.
Edirisinghe (25) and Mahesh Kumara (63) then attempted a rescue mission for Noble, but a five-wicket haul to Kahatapitigama and two each to Jasmeet Singh (2/24) and Vala (2/25) ensured the Eagles would finish a poor season in style.
Kumara will take some good form into this week’s elimination final against Werribee, cracking five boundaries and two sixes in his 73 balls at the crease.
Noble, last year’s runners up, will really need to turn things around having won just two of its last six games.
Noble finish the season in sixth, having led the competition after nine rounds.
The win over Noble saw Endeavour Hills leap over Box Hill into fourteenth place in the 16-team competition.
VSDCA R15 (Day 1): Endeavour Hills 226 def Noble Park 173, Box Hill 56 def by Croydon 5/263, Donvale 9/157 def by Balwyn 6/158, Mt Waverley 9/231 def Bayswater 7/228, Altona 157 def by Spotswood 9/161, Hoppers Crossing 9/193 def Williamstown 7/149, Werribee 3/130 def Taylors Lakes 129, Yarraville 267 def Melton 9/265.
Ladder R15: Werribee 69, Balwyn 69, Altona 68, Spotswood 66, Hoppers Crossing 60, Noble Park 57/ Bayswater 49, Taylors Lakes 48, Croydon 45, Yarraville 42, Mt Waverley 42, Williamstown 39, Melton 30, Endeavour Hills 27, Box Hill 21, Donvale 0.
Fixture – Finals Week 1: Werribee (1) v Noble Park (6), Balwyn (2) v Hoppers Crossing (5), Altona (3) v Spotswood (4).
