‘Easy-beats’ no more

By Paul Pickering
CASEY-South Melbourne coach Mark Ridgway believes his once-fragile Swans are finally ready for the rigours of finals cricket.
The Swans chased down Richmond’s total of 260 at home on Saturday, resuming at 2/29 and surviving a mini-collapse just before tea to win by three wickets.
Ridgway later praised his players for displaying a greater level of maturity and patience than he had become accustomed to in his time at Casey Fields.
Twenty-year-old technician Jake Best led the way with an anchoring innings of 72 from 179 balls, sharing partnerships with Michael Hansen (33) and Damien Wright (57) worth 67 and 96 respectively.
Craig Entwistle (33 not out) and Jayde Herrick (48) then came together as the Swans fell to 6/174 on the eve of the second new ball, ushering their side away from trouble in an 86-run seventh-wicket stand.
Ridgway was delighted to see his troops knuckle down in pairs when challenged.
“That’s something that we’ve been missing,” he said, reflecting on the darker days at Casey Fields.
“Usually when we lose one wicket we lose four, but the results (this year) show that we’re a bit more mentally resilient than we have been in the past. People are prepared to put their heads down, work a bit harder and get through those tough times.”
Herrick’s innings on Saturday was a glaring example of that.
The firebrand fast-bowler, who has been below his best with ball in hand, overcame a hostile reception from the Tigers’ quicks before turning defence into attack in a 78-ball knock that included seven boundaries and a six.
Wright survived a similarly tricky period – albeit from the leg-spin of Brenton McDonald – before launching his innings with a pair of lusty swipes over mid wicket minutes before lunch.
“Our team’s full of confidence now,” Ridgway said. “Everyone’s contributing and now we know we can win from any position.
“Rather than being the easy-beats of years gone by, they know they can mix it with the best teams, because we’ve done it this year.”
Casey-South Melbourne remains in fourth place on the ladder, but will probably be without its in-form skipper for Saturday’s clash with Footscray-Edgewater at Merv Hughes Oval.
Wright flew down to Tasmania with the Bushrangers on Tuesday, and Ridgway expects him to play – alongside clubmate Matthew Wade – in the Sheffield Shield match beginning on Friday.
All-rounder Tim Dale would seem the logical replacement for day one against the Bulldogs.