Right: Shaun Tongue fell just five runs short of a deserved ton in Endeavour Hills’ controversial tie with Mount Waverley at Sydney Pargeter Reserve on Saturday.By Marc McGowan
ENDEAVOUR Hills captain-coach Ben Maroney has lashed out at the umpiring in his side’s controversial tied Victorian Sub District Cricket Association result with Mount Waverley at Sydney Pargeter Reserve on Saturday.
The match ended with Hills wicketkeeper Jason Williams’ dismissal on the final delivery of the day, which, according to Maroney, was a bump ball.
“It was the last ball of the day, and we needed one to win,” Maroney said.
“They brought the field up and Jason hit the ball and ran. The person (Matthew Galbraith) who was alleged to have caught it threw the ball at the stumps to try to get a direct hit.
“The central umpire ran for the run out and then said it didn’t matter because it was caught anyway.”
When the time came for Maroney to sign the captains’ report, all the Endeavour Hills mentor wrote was for the head umpire to call him.
The contentious finish failed to overshadow the brilliant contest between the two teams.
A swashbuckling innings from former Victorian Bushranger Rob Bartlett (87) and a typically watchful performance from captain Craig Ferguson (70) helped Mount Waverley to 277 on day one.
It left the Hills requiring a season-best effort to chase the tally down, and it began to do so in steady fashion.
Maroney had instructed his squad to reach tea with no more than three wickets down and his players were able to go one better.
Only openers Ryan Pearson (38) and Justin Merlino (20) succumbed in the first session as Endeavour Hills cruised to 2/110.
The fireworks began after the interval.
Englishman Karl Turner (27) was out stumped charging the part-time bowling of Bartlett (2/33) to bring Maroney to the crease at 3/153.
Maroney (21) immediately signalled to partner Shaun Tongue (95) that they must lift the run rate and the former was removed doing just that.
All-rounder Matthew Hutchinson was moved up the order to do some damage, but unfortunately fell cheaply for the Hills.
Anchor man Tongue, in what Maroney described as his best innings for the club, was then finally dismissed just five runs from a deserved 100 to leave Endeavour Hills at 6/223 and still with plenty of work to do.
But veteran Peter Edwards (34), in his 2007 debut, and Williams (24) produced a quickfire 35-run partnership to put their side in a position to pull off a win.
The Hills was left needing nine runs from the final over and then five runs from the last two deliveries.
With every fielder on the boundary, Williams cracked a magnificent four that pierced two fielders only five metres apart.
That led to the drama-packed completion to the game and leaves both sides with a win and a draw from four fixtures.
Despite the disappointing result, Maroney was full of praise for his players.
“Every batter contributed and it was a really good team performance – the best I’ve seen here at Endeavour Hills,” he said.
“It was an excellent all-round team performance to chase 277.
“We were losing those close ones last year and we won a close won over Broadmeadows this season already, so hopefully we’ve turned the corner and know how to win these games now.”
Endeavour Hills faces Werribee in a two-day encounter at Chirnside Park beginning at 1pm on Saturday.
