CRICKET
CGCA
MORWELL left it until the penultimate over to claim victory against Latrobe, winning by four wickets in round two of Central Gippsland Cricket Association action.
Batting first the Sharks lost wickets regularly and struggled to build partnerships, with recalled veteran Tim Cranwell (39) the only bat to spend significant time at the crease.
Brandon McDonald’s three wickets restricted the Sharks to 8/138 with all the Morwell bowlers keeping it tight.
Morwell lost Rob Semmler early before Mark Cukier (64*) and Wayne Fleming (33) steadied the ship and laid a careful platform.
Latrobe captain Anthony Bloomfield then struck thrice, before a run out left Morwell six wickets down.
Cukier held tight and shepherded the tail across the line.
Bloomfield (3/18) and Kris Wells (2/24) gave nothing away during their 10 overs but were left to rue an injury to opening bowler Ash Halkett, which forced him from the field after just three overs.
Mirboo North v Yallourn North
MIRBOO North continued its strong start to the season with a convincing win over Yallourn North.
Bombers skipper Glen Sheekey won the toss and chose to bat but wickets fell regularly.
Aiden Vesty (24) was the only resistance as the side collapsed to 93 all out.
Liam Smit struck early before Peter Grima (4/14) and Rob Phoenix (3/10) combined to run through the middle order and polish the tail off in short order.
Mirboo North got off to a bad start losing Brett Pedlow for a duck, and the Yallourn North bowlers struck at regular intervals with Matt Snell (27) the sole top order batsman to get himself set.
Mirboo North ran out winners by four wickets and posted a total of 150 largely thanks to Josh Taylor’s fine 53.
Glen Sheekey (3/28) and Darren Wilkie (3/10) were the Bombers’ main attacking outlets, ably supported by Lucas Fry (2/23).
Moe v Thorpdale
MOE captain Andrew Philip had a field day against Thorpdale and fell just short of notching the first century of the competition with 93.
Philip’s knock propped up the Lions’ total of 8/182 as only three other bats made double figures.
Sean Spiteri was next best with 18.
Boyd Bailey (2/49) led well with the ball, supported by Jason Richardson (2/36) and Kayne O’Connell.
In reply Thorpdale struggled against disciplined, attacking bowling.
Ex-Newborough Bulldog Steve Hibbs top scored with 19 while Gavin Low was the only other bat to get a start with 18 in a disappointing total of 84.
Jayden Mathison bowled well with the new ball to take 3/21, and Philip continued his success with 3/17, while young legspinner Damon Bednarksi nabbed 2/21 to complete the rout.
Second Grade
Daniel Taylor and James Grande both hit 70 for Mirboo North but it was not quite enough to defeat a strong Trafalgar side.
The Ships batted first and posted 7/233, propped up by a calm 76 from Rhain Howorth-Ross, while James Blaser hammered 73.
The Mirboo North bowlers copped a battering with Jarrod Speed (3/54) the pick of the bunch.
Taylor and Grande then started the chase in fine fashion and at none for 125 looked to be in a great position, but after both were dismissed the middle order was left with too much to do and ended up 13 runs short.
Blaser (3/43) played a key role in restricting the Tigers’ chase.
Moe went down to St Vincents as the Lions struggled to restrain the Saints.
Chris Payne (34) and Paul Kane (35) were the only Moe bats to get going as the Saints kept it tight at the crease and in the field.
Come their turn to bat, Zayne Dowdell (42) and Duane Oldham (32) steered the Saints home by three wickets.
Alex Sword blazed a quick 70 with great support from Chad Williamson (61) and Ben Rotheram (34) as Rawson ran up 205 against Yallourn North.
Brendan Rooney with 3/16 from his 10 overs was the only real bright spot for the Bombers, with some support from Daniel Martini with 3/28.
Rooney was also the only real resistance with 47 as the Bombers were rolled for 66, Williamson (3/18) and Dylan Lee (3/28) were the main architects of the demise.
Latrobe knocked Morwell over for 79 with captain Jon Hayes nabbing 5/23.
Tony Spiteri with 19 was the only Morwell batsmen to show any form in the middle as Mitch Cowell (3/10) and Glen Steele (2/7) completed the destruction.
Latrobe was steady with the bat and passed the target four wickets down; brothers Matthew (26) and Nic Brewer (28) did the bulk of the work for the Sharks.
Kris Fortuin bowled exceptionally well to finish with 5/7 but did not get enough support as the Tigers leaked runs at the other end.
Third Grade
Morwell batted first against Latrobe with Craig White (28) the only bat to get going as the Tigers were rolled for 93.
Paul Dawson (3/20) and Tim Van Dyke (3/26) were the major bowlers for Latrobe.
In the run chase the Sharks made 6/107 with Dean Burridge (36) and Toran Patching (26) the men to guide the score past Morwell.
Moe defended a low total of 108 against Jeeralang-Boolarra as none of their batsmen really got going.
It could have been much worse for the Lions but Darren Mitchell hit 37 not out from number eleven in a last wicket partnership of 46 with Trent Baldi.
Adam Parker (3/16) and Paul Howes (3/3) were among the best for the Panthers.
In reply nobody stood up with the bat as Craig Veenman (3/20), Lachlan Francis (2/9) and Ryan Sim (2/24) ran through the batting to dismiss the Panthers for just 70.
Willow Grove had a win over Newborough as Ben Noy (4/11) ripped through the Bulldogs’ middle order to knock them over for 63.
In reply Brody Hams hit an unbeaten 50 as Willow Grove cruised to 1/76.
Hazelwood North defeated St Vincents Green, with Michael Tobin and Trevor Terrick (both 3/19) unable to restrict the Razorbacks to a chaseable total.
The total of 130 looked well beyond the Saints as they collapsed to 54 all out, with only two bats making it to double figures.
Jayden Hawkins (4/11) and Joel Mason (3/7) were the key contributors to the win.
