By JARROD POTTER
WGCA DISTRICT
REVIEW – ROUND 13 (Day 2)
OFFICER’S valiant fight for finals came to an end on Saturday at the hands of high-flying Devon Meadows.
DEVON MEADOWS v OFFICER
Three half-tons have all but secured Devon Meadows (6/237) the District minor premiership after pushing past Officer’s (230) last-ditch salvo.
An impressive tally Officer accrued last week was not enough to halt the Meadows men marching past it.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Panthers though as scant efforts in betwixt the strong 50s – David Carson (9), Kyle Salerno (5), Jamie Glen (3) and Lucas Carroll (5) – left it to the half-ton trio.
Bill Loudon (58) was in great touch – once he forced the boys to cover up the glare-ridden windshield of the umpire’s ute – and started solidly alongside Darren O’Brien (59no).
The Camel found conditions particularly pleasing in the Glover Reserve oasis and stood firm in the centre.
Putting aside the inclement mid-season form he’s recently had, O’Brien returned to his best as he anchored the chase, piling on the runs with Loudon, Sam Van Der Zalm (24) and the match-winning stand alongside Ash Adams (54no).
The O’Brien-Adams connection reaped 90 runs at a good clip to end the Panthers’ promenade early, with 13 overs still remaining.
David Collins (2/43), Brett Reid (2/42) and Adam Reid (2/46) took on the lion’s share of the work and broke plenty of partnerships, but Officer couldn’t shatter the effective Devon Meadows tandems, especially once they had set.
The Bullants’ final clash is away against Clyde while Devon Meadows can claim its crown without sweating on other results by knocking over Pakenham Upper/Toomuc.
CARLISLE PARK v CLYDE
Even with a threadbare bowling attack Carlisle Park (222) had enough in the tank to dispatch Clyde (162) in what will probably be a sneak-preview of the semi-finals.
No opening quicks with Jesse Fitzgerald or James Gilbert away? Aaron Straughair leaving halfway through the day to go off to the birth of his son? None of these obstacles stopped the Vikings’ onslaught.
It just meant different faces stood tall in the 60-run triumph. Mark Henry (1/26) rolled his arm in a miserly 20-over effort while the wickets fell at the other end to Ammar Bajwa (4/47) and Straughair (2/22) … before his departure that is.
The top order was chipped away gradually as Travis Canavan (1/14) took the new rock alongside Steven Henry (0/14).
From an established position, the wheels started to fall off after John Simpson (9) lost his wicket – which was the start of a 6/55 run that saw Clyde’s middle order succumb rapidly, especially to Bajwa.
Gav Adams (44) held down the fort as long as he could, but eventually ran out of team mates and Dean Williams (33) had a late smack to up the run rate, but the contributions were few and far between for the Cougars.
Carlisle Park can still take the minor flag with an outright over Nar Nar Goon/Maryknoll, as long as Devon Meadows lose against Pakenham Upper/Toomuc. The Cougars will battle to hold onto third with its clash against Officer this week.
PAKENHAM UPPER/TOOMUC v NAR NAR GOON/MARYKNOLL
Time was what Pakenham Upper/Toomuc (336) wanted to exploit on Saturday, not necessarily Nar Nar Goon/Maryknoll (174).
Making the most of the sunny Saturday, the Yabbies built their innings from start to finish as five men got great starts and one in particular cashed his third ton of the season.
Ben Spicer (131) was unleashed to devastating effect as he smashed the Marygoons’ attack to all points around Pakenham Road.
Such is the devastating form the opener has found – as he pushed past 500 runs for the season with the ferocious innings – that his amazing innings ended at 3/181.
While Spicer left a fair bit of the day remaining – and the chance at a double-century – on the table, there were plenty more willing and able combatants in the Yabbies’ order to carry it on. Ian Mortimer (10) was promoted to three as captain Scott Clark (37) and Nick Fairbank (35) started the next salvo.
The rampage went all the way down the as the likes of Rory Gilliatte (50) and Paul Dorbolo (42) cashed a 78-run stand to magnify the Marygoons’ suffering.
Adam Ciavarella (3/81) and David Macdermid (3/79) proved the main resistance – especially the skipper who rattled off 27 overs.
The Yabbies can bump up to third with a win over Devon Meadows – and a subsequent Clyde loss – while Nar Nar Goon/Maryknoll’s last District clash will be at home against Carlisle Park.
