Cougars deliver Port a mauling

By Russell Bennett
WHEN Berwick coach Wayne Porter first joined the Cougars, Port Melbourne was an evenly-matched opponent.
“They have definitely given us some trouble over the journey,” he said.
“But they’ve since lost their best pitcher to Preston and now their rotation isn’t that strong, overall.”
The Cougars thumped Port 11-0 on the weekend, showing the two sides are headed in different directions.
Porter was happy with the result but he was always confident of a win.
“We scored early and we scored often,” he said.
“Everyone got a hit, and really, the result was what I would expect.”
Porter praised the efforts of star import Josh Leite and rookie 16-year-old Dean McCort, who backed up their strong performances from Berwick’s 10-3 round-four win over Sandringham.
“They both got a couple of hits and the whole side played well, as a whole.”
The Cougars will be back in action tonight in Altona against Chelsea.
Again, Porter said he was confident of a strong showing.
“We’ll definitely compete in any game we play,” he said.
The one-sided results continued for the Cougars throughout their other grades last round. The second division reserves side had a crushing double digit win, while the thirds had a mammoth 36-3 victory – also against a struggling Port Melbourne outfit.
Coach Paul Quinn was quick to put the margin into context.
“It was more of a reflection of our opposition, rather than our game,” he said.
“They gave up 17 walks and they didn’t seem to have too much experience out there.”
Quinn said his side put in a strong all-around effort, with David Mulhall and Andrew Hemmes both scoring in-the-park home runs.