CRICKET
GCL
Traralgon eked out victory against Central Gippsland with one wicket to spare on Sunday in a desperately close Gippsland Cricket League encounter at Duncan Cameron Park.
Set 220 to win in the round three, Traralgon fell to 9/191 before a dramatic last wicket stand between Robert Voss (34*) and an injured Ryan Delaney saved the day.
Voss was dropped over the boundary for six in the final throes of the chase, and the umpires threatened to penalise Central Gippsland 12 runs for a slow over rate with just a handful of runs left to defend.
Play was stopped to consider the penalty before Traralgon returned to the crease to hit the winning three runs.
“It was a very bizarre situation,” Traralgon captain Brad Knowles said.
Earlier in the day Central Gippsland recorded a blazing start of 52 from seven overs through international openers Henk Condradie (32) and Riyaz Pathan, who starred with an excellent 76.
After leaking early runs, Knowles was pleased to restrict Central Gippsland to 8/219 on the small ground.
“We thought 220 was well under par if we batted well which we didn’t do,” he said.
“Just over the line, it was a bit of a heart-stopper.”
Connor Sloyan (3/33) and Matt Golding (2/40) were Traralgon’s most successful bowlers.
The Tornados suffered a tumultuous start which saw guns Greg Munro (11) Knowles (9) and Lee Stockdale (9) depart cheaply.
John Keighran (41), Mick Higgins (34) and Ben Julin (34) all made solid contributions but it was left to Voss and usual middle order player Delaney, batting at 11 due to injury, to steer the team home.
Henk Conradie (4/30) showed his all round quality and Dermott Leys (4/43) also bowled well in a gallant losing side.
Traralgon finished at 9/221 off 46.1 overs and consolidated second place on the GCL ladder.
Round four will be played on Sunday, 12 January 2014
