By Tyler Lewis
It took just 59.1 overs for Officer to snare victory on Saturday.
The Bullants have been stupendous all summer and continued its jolly form with a sensational win over Emerald.
The Bullants sent in the Bombers and torpedoed the visitors for just 98 in the final over of the innings.
While 10/98 has the alarm bells well and truly ringing for Emerald, it could’ve been significantly worse with – at one stage – the Bombers 7/53.
In a sight no cricket side wants to see, extras was the most prominent scorer for the day, with the Bullants donating 20 free runs.
Riley Clark wasn’t among one of the generous bowlers for the Bullants, claiming 4/16 from his eight.
In reply, the Bullants cantered to their seventh win of the summer, passing the required target in just 20.1 overs with only two blemishes.
Each of the four Officer bats used reached double-figures, with Jack James (31 not out) and Ash Smith (29 not out) both boosting their average after being first-ball victims of Nick Kyval’s hat-trick last week.
The win has the Bullants a win clear of Devon Meadows in pole position for the District flag.
Devon Meadows claimed its sixth win of the season after a rock-solid batting performance set the Panthers up in its clash with Upper Beaconsfield.
The home side carved out 7/213 after winning the toss and electing to set.
Openers Lucas Ligt (86 from 90) and Ben Hussey (31 from 32) really set the Panthers up from ball-one, putting on a 54 run opening stand at a streaming clip.
While the platform was perfectly placed, the Panthers managed to lose 3/30 in the middle overs, before Nathan Worstelling nudged his way to 52.
With contributions everywhere, the home side blazed its way to 7/213 from its allocated overs.
Upper Beaconsfield made a decent fist of the total, making its way to 10/175, but with the required run rate over five from the get-go, everything needs to go to plan.
While the required rate is a glaring factor in the run chase, the difference between the two sides was the batters ability to convert starts into scores.
The Maroons had four players reached 20 or more, but none reach a score over 35.
After playing his important role with the blade, Ben Hussey also stood up with the ball, snatching 3/29 from his eight overs.
In the final match of the District competition, Lang Lang secured its third win of the summer, with a terrific win over Pakenham Upper Toomuc.
The Yabbies – fresh off a win against first-placed Officer last week – were right on top early, having the Swamp Tigers 2/1.
But a masterclass from Rajind Dassanayake (94) pulled his side right back into, then ahead of the match.
Dassanayake was the final wicket of the innings as the Swamp Tigers posted 7/153.
It came down to the wire in the end, with the Yabbies falling just four runs short of a winning score in the final over.
Nathan McLean cleaned up for the home side with figures OF 3/27 off 7.1.
Next week’s District fixture looms as a finals taste-tester, with Officer (first) hosting Devon Meadows (second), Upper Beaconsfield (fourth) welcoming Pakenham Upper Toomuc (third) and Lang Lang travelling to Emerald (fifth and sixth respectively).
