By David Nagel
Tooradin (9/184) has broken a long-suffering finals drought and booked a place in the WGCA Premier Division grand final with after an emphatic 66-run win over Kooweerup (118) in the major semi-final at Tooradin on Saturday.
The Seagulls – who finished on top of the ladder – survived a sluggish finish to their innings to overwhelm the Demons with the ball, and win their first final since claiming the 2012/13 premiership against Merinda Park.
The Gulls have finished top four in seven of the eight seasons since, but have been found wanting in semi-finals against Cardinia (twice), Kooweerup (twice) and Pakenham (three times).
But this Seagulls outfit has the look and feel of something special, with its three champions, Russell Lehman (63), Cal O’Hare (32) and Tom Hussey (28) orchestrating a batting innings that failed to ignite late.
Some inspired bowling from Luke McMaster (2/27), with great support from John Bright (2/23) and Matt Davey (2/23), saw the Seagulls lose 6/47 in their last 10 overs.
But the Demons’ momentum – built from those late exchanges – soon evaporated with the Seagulls tying the Demons down with some exceptional bowling of their own.
Kallan Braid-Ball (3/14) set the tone early, sending Chris O’Hara (2) and McMaster (5) back to the sheds, to leave the Demons reeling at 3/28 from their first 10 overs.
And when the pace of Brad Butler (3/24) caused Chris Bright (16) to chop on, the contest was effectively over at 4/46.
Cody Miller (14 off 54 balls) chewed up too many balls in his hour-long vigil, leaving it to Davey (46) and Matt Bright (7 not out) to churn out a 28-run last-wicket stand just to get the Demons to triple-figures.
Dylan Sutton (2/30) joined Braid-Ball and Butler as the Seagulls best with the ball.
The Seagulls will now host the grand final at Tooradin on Saturday 26 March, against either the Demons or reigning-champions Cardinia (8/110), who won a low-scoring contest against Pakenham (109) in the elimination semi-final at Toomuc Reserve.
Cardinia was back to its defensive best with the ball, with the Lions batting themselves into a hole.
Rob Elston (25) and Chris Smith (24) gave the Lions a solid start, and Zac Chaplin (27) top-scored through the middle-to-late overs, but the normally free-scoring home-side was always behind the run-rate.
At different stages the Lions were 4/68 off 27, and 6/86 off 34, before being bundled out for 109.
The Bulls’ bowlers were all effective, with skipper Jake Prosser (3/7) and leggie Lachlan Volpe (2/16) stealing a bulk of the limelight.
Patrick Lawson (3/16) and Tom Brennan (2/33) then sent several scares through the Bulls’ camp, at one stage 5/42, but steadying innings from Matt Welsh (24) – who was dropped early – Jacobus Hynes (19) and Leigh Paterson (15) saw the visitors across the line with 19 balls to spare.
Pakenham is now eliminated, while the Bulls charge on to a preliminary final engagement against Kooweerup at Denhams Road this Saturday.
For full reviews and previews – and the announcement of the WGCA Premier Division Team of the Year – grab a copy of Wednesday’s Berwick-Pakenham Gazette.
MAJOR SEMI-FINAL (1) v (2)
Tooradin 9/184 (R Lehman 63, C O’Hare 32, T Hussey 28, M Davey 2/23, J Bright 2/23, L McMaster 2/27) def Kooweerup 118 (M Davey 46, K Braid-Ball 3/14, B Butler 3/24, D Sutton 2/30). Tooradin Rec Reserve.
MINOR SEMI-FINAL (3) v (4)
Pakenham 109 (Z Chaplin 27, R Elston 25, J Prosser 3/7, L Volpe 2/16) def by Cardinia 8/110 (P Lawson 3/16, T McDermott 2/7, T Brennan 2/33) Toomuc Reserve.
THIS WEEK – PRELIMINARY FINAL – Saturday, 19 March.
Kooweerup v Cardinia at Kooweerup. 1pm start.
