Steady Swans cruise to win- Swans skipper Damien Wright is congratulated by team-mate Jayde Herrick after dismissing Camberwell’s Tom Rickarby. 59533 Pictures: Donna Oates

By Paul Pickering
CASEY-South Melbourne is on track to secure a home final after cruising to a five-wicket win over Camberwell at Casey Fields on the weekend.
The Swans edged into Premier Cricket’s top four for the first time this summer after a convincing two-day victory – and coach Mark Ridgway is adamant that his side’s best is yet to come.
The home side ended up making light work of the Magpies’ first innings tally of 142, recovering from a shaky start on the back of a typically assured half-century from skipper Damien Wright.
Wright (57 from 50 balls) was ably supported by both Joel Leaver (44 from 88) and Clive Rose (37 from 75) as the Swans steadied to scoop first-innings points late on Saturday afternoon en route to a total of 201.
Earlier, pace spearhead Jayde Herrick (3/31) claimed three wickets in the morning session to put the Swans on top, but succumbed to a strained hip flexor and could not return after lunch.
That made Casey’s middle-session demolition all the more impressive, with unsung seamer Andrew Perrin (3/39) and in-form spinner Clive Rose (2/20) leading the charge.
The Swans’ tilt at an outright result never really got off the ground on Sunday as Camberwell opener Ben Howell (53) dug in.
The match was called off with the Magpies at 3/144, but not before the home side – still without Herrick – had exhausted all wicket-taking options.
Wright even threw the ball to gloveman Matthew Wade for a four-over stint. It worked, with the Bushrangers star trapping Howell in front to claim his first Premier scalp.
Wade and Wright will both be available again this weekend, while the Swans will also welcome English all-rounder Peter Trego back from his pre-season training camp with Somerset in the Caribbean.
Not surprisingly, Ridgway is sounding pretty confident about his side’s prospects as it prepares to take on last-placed North Melbourne at the Junction Oval. “You can never get too far ahead of yourself, but, with a full house (of available players), you’d think there’s a win there,” he said, adding that there was plenty of room for improvement on the weekend’s performance.
“We did a lot of things wrong, with bat, ball and in the field, but it turned out to be a pretty strong win.
“Our bowling troop was terrific – to take 5/50 after lunch was a great effort.”
Ridgway again praised the all-round efforts of Rose, but said it was Wright and Leaver who made the crucial contributions.
“Those two basically got us over the line,” he said.
“Damien came in when we were in a bit of trouble at 3/15, took charge of the bowlers and just allowed Joel to work into his rhythm.
“(Leaver) was outstanding. It was 20 minutes before he got off the mark, which tells us how patient he can be.”
Ridgway said Herrick is a chance to overcome his injury to play this Saturday, but would return the following weekend at the latest.