By Marc McGowan and Paul Pickering
THE Dandenong District Cricket Association finally managed a full weekend of action and there were highlights aplenty.
After a tough Saturday for local teams in Turf One, Narre Warren this week faces an uphill battle versus St Mary’s, and Berwick will need to bat well to defeat Parkfield.
Doveton endured a long day in the field against titleholder Springvale South, and Cranbourne is the underdog after day one of its encounter with newcomer Coomoora.
There were few surprises in Turf Two, with the murderous batting line-up of Hallam-Kalora Park leading the way, while HSD outlined its premiership credentials at Fountain Gate’s expense.
Maranatha Methodist registered a solid score against St Brigids/St Louis, and Hampton Park finds itself behind the eight-ball against Berwick.
TURF ONE
St Mary’s v Narre Warren
After two weekends of thumb-twiddling, St Mary’s finally made its way to the crease on Saturday, hosting Narre Warren at Carroll Reserve.
Openers Troy Cashman (25) and Scott Atkinson (19) provided a solid foundation for the Saints with a partnership of 48, before Narre Warren speedster Dave Wheeler (4/60) claimed both their scalps in quick succession.
Wheeler struck again after Luke Byron (49) and Nick McKay (41) had revived the innings, allowing Dwayne Scott (5/63) to tear through the St Mary’s lower order.
An explosive knock from tail-ender Paul Taylor guided the Saints to a respectable total of 228.
In an awkward twilight session of six overs before stumps, Narre Warren lost the crucial wickets of Michael Dennis and Omar Baker to the bowling of Emmanuel Coomaraswamy (2/12) – adding just 19 runs.
Berwick v Parkfield
Berwick has a challenge on its hands after Parkfield put up a competitive total at Arch Brown Reserve on Saturday.
Sporting a new-look opening attack of James Prendergast and Mark Dinnie, the Bears were unable to snare an early wicket.
English all-rounder Alex Roberts (2/52) made the initial breakthrough at 35 and Berwick then restricted Parkfield to 3/70.
But Tony Payne (51 not out) and captain Dale Harris (43) produced a 76-run alliance to guide their side into a strong position.
Introducing himself into the game, new Bears captain Ash Henry (4/77) took some important wickets in the middle order to bring Berwick back into the contest.
However, cameos by AFL rising star Beau Dowler (23) and junior prospect Nicholas Angelopoulos (17 not out) dragged the Parkfield score to 7/250.
Doveton v Springvale South
Springvale South’s promising premiership defence continued as it travelled to Doveton’s Robinson Reserve to amass a total of 8/305 on Saturday.
The innings was dominated by a 112-run second-wicket partnership between Steve Masterson (47) and new recruit Sam Delaney (59).
Having guided their team to a strong position, the pair fell in identical fashion – caught by Shannon Roscoe from the bowling of Glen Lothian (4/45).
Andrew Sharp then emerged to victimise the Doves attack, carving out an unbeaten 75 to go with 52 not out against Coomoora the previous week.
Sharp received plenty of support from the likes of Danny Law (34), Peter Ryan (24) and Damien Simmons (20), with only Brett Polson (3/50) troubling the batsman in the late overs.
Chasing a healthy total, the Doves will now have little option but to go after Springvale South’s deep bowling attack on Saturday.
Coomoora v Cranbourne
A supreme team bowling performance by Coomoora has Cranbourne hanging by a thread in the teams’ clash at Coomoora Reserve.
The Eagles were dismissed for 228 in 70 overs, but it could have been worse if not for the contributions of Shane Murdoch (69), Matt Moore (30) and Daniel Diwell (30).
Cranbourne slumped to 6/123 before the Murdoch and Moore combined for 87 runs to give their team some sort of chance.
Five Roos bowlers pocketed wickets, with Dillon Fernandesz (2/22), Rohan Paulpillai (2/32) and Rizan Mawzoon (2/55) claiming multiple victims.
In nine overs before the end of play, Andrew King (11 not out) and Dirk Solomons (10 not out) steered Coomoora to 22 without loss.
TURF TWO
St Brigids/St Louis v Maranatha Methodist
Maranatha Methodist went some way to making amends for a poor first-up display to the season by hitting 7/228 against St Brigids/St Louis at Bondi Oval on the weekend.
Outside of the squad’s opening pair, every other batsman reached double figures – an effort that was led by captain Jeff Thom (88 not out) and Liam Toole (41).
Maranatha Methodist still has a way to go, however, after collapsing to 4/64 before the lower order pulled it out of danger.
Stuart Berg (2/47) was the best of St Brigids/St Louis’ six wicket takers.
Hallam-Kalora Park v Lyndale
Hallam-Kalora Park’s batsmen look set to torture Turf Two bowlers again this season following a magnificent performance against Lyndale at Hallam Recreation Reserve on Saturday.
Steven Chapman (147) cracked a ton and team-mates Andre Peters (63) and John Hammond (62) belted half-centuries to pilot their club to an impressive 6/370.
A mammoth total was never in doubt, with Chapman and Peters accumulating 120 for the first wicket, and by the time the former was out the score was 3/300.
There was not much joy for Lyndale, but David McCarthy (2/87) was the pick of a sorry bunch.
HSD v Fountain Gate
Promotion fancy HSD made a mess of an under-strength Fountain Gate at Reedy Reserve on the weekend.
Missing strike bowlers Scott Mather and Nick Scanlon, Fountain Gate batted first and was embarrassed as captain Cameron Knight (20) led a dismal line-up that featured just three batsmen in double digits.
There were a host of quality performances with the leather, but it was HSD recruit Doug Loudon (3/21) who returned the best figures.
The other outstanding effort with the ball came from Paul Stockdale, whose 15.1 overs reaped 11 maidens and two wickets for just 11 runs.
HSD lost four batsmen for 12 runs or less, but thundered past Fountain Gate courtesy of the unbeaten knocks of Adam Semmens (85) and Scott Brandon (42).
It finished the day on 4/156 from only 24 overs and will look for an outright result this Saturday.
Hampton Park v Berwick
Hampton Park’s round one victory was a long way from the memory on the weekend, with Berwick putting its bowlers to the sword at Booth Reserve.
Matthew Lloyd (98 not out) and Sam Curtis (76) bludgeoned the Redback attack, but they were not alone as Damien Quinlan (39), Adam Watson (36) and Ayden Mills (30) all did well.
Chris Bateman (3/55) and Daniel Redfern (2/78) did their best to restrict the Bears, but there was little support as their opponents racked up 6/332.
After a great debut with both bat and ball, Englishman Doug Mulholland, while bowling tightly, could not snare a wicket this time around.
