Berwick City Cougar starting pitcher Jude Power prepares to fire one down against Springvale at Cyril Molyneux Reserve on Sunday. By Marc McGowan
THE Berwick City Cougars were outclassed 6-1 by the Springvale Lions at Cyril Molyneux Reserve on Sunday.
The defeat was the Cougars’ third in as many outings against the first-placed Lions this season.
Former Atlanta Braves minor leaguer and Springvale fireballer Glen Richards was the catalyst for the victory, throwing 11 strikeouts over six scoreless innings.
The left-hander’s dominance on the mound was not surprising, with the youthful Berwick City line-up coming up against a pitcher of his class for the first time.
Cougars starting pitcher Jude Power was solid, but by the time he exited the game after the sixth inning, the Lions led 4-0.
There was some drama, with Berwick City playing coach Wayne Porter claiming a catch on the makeshift boundary early in the contest, only for the Springvale dugout to protest that the ball had cleared the cones.
A short delay ensued before the catch was upheld.
The incident spiced up an otherwise routine game that was also highlighted by the hitting feats of Lions Rob Hogan and Richards, who scored a homer each.
The Cougars’ sole run came in the last inning off the relief pitching of Hogan after Ian Frost and Shaun Fahy completed the match for Berwick City.
Porter commended his players’ performance and said it was a good experience for his young side.
“It was admirable, but no-one wants to lose,” he said.
“You’re always a bit disappointed every time you lose, but it’s just consistency – we’re not performing consistently enough and that will come over time.”
With his squad out of finals calculations, Porter re-stated his team’s ambitions of giving more kids a chance as the season winds up.
“Our expectations at the start of the game, as they will be for the next four weeks, are to play as best we can, hit 100 per cent, and just play the game,” he said.
The Cougars travel to Latrobe University Field to take on Preston from 3.30pm on Sunday.
