By Russell Bennett
WARRAGUL & DISTRICT CRICKET ASSOCIATION
DIVISION 1 REVIEW – ROUND 6 (DAY TWO)
Hallora’s batsmen will look to get the ship back on course in Round 7 against Yarragon after a troubling outing against Western Park.
Despite steamrolling through the Warriors for just 159 on day one, the Kangaroos spluttered badly before stumps – sitting on a precarious 3/25 at the end of the first day’s play.
And the situation just went from bad to worse for the visitors at Western Park on day two – demolished for just 80 in a shade over 40 overs as Asantha Singappuli and Warriors captain-coach Sam Batson had a field day with ball-in-hand, continuing on from their strong day one work to finish with 6/30 and 3/36 respectively.
The situation could have proved even more dire for the Kangaroos had Grant Duncan (11 not out) and skipper James Williams (16) not put on 27 for the final stand.
Then, forced to follow on – despite Western Park only scoring a relatively modest total of their own – Hallora finished the clash on 5/133 from the remaining 44 overs of the contest. Former Zimbabwean Test player Natsai M’Shangwe finished not out on 44, with three sixes to his name.
At Bellbird Park, the visiting Eagles were unable to dig their way out of their own hole they dug themselves after stumbling to 3/13 early in their chase of reigning Premier Drouin’s 206.
Ellinbank slid to 3/17 in the final, action-packed 10 overs of day one and continued to lose wickets at a steady rate on day two – dismissed for 127 in 69 overs, with only Gihan De Zoysa (37) and Sean Masterson (20 not out) offering any real resistance.
The even contribution from Drouin’s bowlers was once again a significant standout, with Brad Glover snaring 4/30, Mitch Smith 3/17, and Sam Van Der Zalm 2/40.
Meanwhile, heading up for day two of their clash with the Stags, it’s no secret that the visiting Lyrebirds had their work cut out for them.
With Neerim District enjoying the better of the ground conditions, the home side amassed an impressive 9/287 on day one courtesy of an even spread of contributors – led by Nathan Bayne (62), Rhys George (44), Ash Lockett (80), and Aaron Fawcett (28 not out).
It would have been easy, or even somewhat understandable, to see the Lyrebirds go into their shells on day two, but that wasn’t at all the case – as they gave the Stags’ total a real shake, before ultimately being dismissed for 274 in the 79th over.
Jack Armour (69) was strong at the top of the order with his highest score of the season to-date, while Wilson Pollock (98) fell agonisingly short of a richly-deserved ton and skipper Corey Jagoe finished unbeaten on 41.
In the remaining game of the round, the hometown Yarragon proved far too strong for Garfield-Tynong at Dowton Park – courtesy of yet another triple-figure score from superstar Panthers all-rounder Gamini Kumara (119 not out). The Yarragon skipper is in an incredible run of form, having scored an unbeaten 92 against Drouin in Round 5.
