By Tyler Lewis
Devon Meadows has surpassed Officer at the top of the West Gippsland District ladder.
The Panthers courageously sent the Bullants in on their home deck, but it immediately paid dividends for the visitors.
The Bullants – who were flawless in the opening half of the summer – crashed to 4/15 in the early stages of the afternoon.
Jamie Cape was tremendous for the Panthers, snaring the first two wickets of the day on his way to 4/18 from eight.
Ben Hussey (4/30 from 7.2) picked up from where Cape left off, as the Bullants were castled for 89.
Hussey has been in rare touch in the past fortnight; from his last 15.2 overs (two outings) the Panthers star has compiled figures of 7/69.
While 90 should ordinarily be a walk in the park, the Bullants unquestionably made the Panthers fight tooth and nail to claim victory – and top spot.
The Panthers lost steady wickets, including at one stage dropping 3/1.
The final wicket of the afternoon came when the Panthers needed just three runs for victory, making for a tense finish.
But it was ultimately the Devon Meadows side that carried out a famous one-wicket win.
Though it wasn’t top score, Cape again proved a thorn in the flesh of the Bullants, with the number nine nudging 11 from 63 balls after walking out to bat after the aforementioned 3/1 (7/54).
While two run outs was the major cause for the Panthers losing three wickets for a solitary run; Jonty Bennie was excellent for the Bullants, snaring 3/15 off seven.
In another top-four shaping clash, Upper Beaconsfield earnestly claimed the points over Pakenham Upper Toomuc.
The Yabbies won the toss and elected to bat, setting a competitive total of 8/149.
Andrew McDonald was – as always – sensational with the ball at the top of the innings.
He bowled tidy areas and came away with a strangling eight overs, three maidens, 2/20.
Daniel Brennan was also impressive for the Upper Beaconsfield side, not only collecting the clean figures of 0/16 off eight, but also being involved in two run outs.
In reply, the Maroons sent a statement, passing the 150 mark in the 33rd over with seven wickets in hand.
Brennan was against amongst the action, carving 53, while opener Will Haines blazed 68.
While it was classified as the side’s fourth win of the year and they sit just inside the four by percentage, the Maroons are hardly an outfit a top-placed team wants to draw in the first week of finals.
In the match between the two sides that sit outside of the top four – Emerald and Lang Lang – Emerald registered a hard-fought win.
The Bombers set a meek 127 in the first innings, despite at one stage being 2/70.
Later in the piece, the Bombers proved 127 was more than enough, as they sank the Swamp Tigers for just 90.
Lang Lang had an extremely difficult day with the bat, as 19 was the highest partnership shared by two bats in the middle.
Each and every Bombers bowler had a day to write home about, however, Trent Rolfs was beyond remarkable.
In just his third game this summer, Rolfs walked off the ground with figures of 2/15 from eight overs, and most impressively, bowled three maidens.
In the upcoming week, Officer is expected to bounce back when it travels to Lang Lang; Pakenham Upper Toomuc will again be tested when it hosts Devon Meadows and Emerald and Upper Beaconsfield will settle its scores, and fourth position on the ladder.
