By RUSSELL BENNETT
WEST GIPPSLAND CRICKET ASSOCIATION
REVIEW – ROUND 6 (DAY 1)
THE weather was sensational for cricket on Saturday, but it took a perfect storm of circumstances for two of Tooradin’s finest to produce something truly special in their Premier clash with Upper Beaconsfield.
Reigning Terry Stephenson Medalist Aaron Avery hadn’t exactly been out of touch with the willow this season, but he’d been finding ways of getting out.
On the other hand, great mate and fellow league gun Cal O’Hare was only playing his second Premier game of the season since returning from a knee reconstruction.
They each had their own motivation for standing up to be counted; for putting on a dominant display to remind anyone who’d somehow forgotten just how brilliant they are.
And on Saturday at Tooradin Recreation Reserve, everything came together – from 2/26 and a shaky 3/62, the two combined for a 223-run stand – the biggest in Premier since the 246 put on by Pakenham pair Chris Smith and Jason Williams, also against Upper Beaconsfield in Round 4 last season.
It almost seemed as though with every run Avery and O’Hare scored, they fired a warning shot across the bow of the likes of fellow top-flight powerhouses Kooweerup and Cardinia.
Avery produced his highest ever score – 174 not out – as he guided the Gulls to 5/378 after their 80 overs, while O’Hare (98) fell just shy of a well-deserved ton.
Avery’s truly was an innings that had to be seen to be believed.
He was dropped on 20 but it almost doesn’t seem fair to call that a chance gone begging – with Maroons keeper Jake Serong diving at full stretch to his right to try and snare an absolute screamer.
But from that point on, Avery had the Midas touch.
He was ruthless on anything over-pitched – with a series of brilliant cover and off-drives – but he was also just as damaging on anything short.
The Maroons’ bowlers had all sorts of issues with their line and length but any attack would look ineffective against Avery and O’Hare when they’re settled and firing.
The issue was that they just weren’t bowling to their fields – with long-on and long-off in place, for example, they bowled far too short for long periods.
O’Hare took particular advantage – brutal with his cross-bat shots off the back foot but just as strong off his pads to anything full.
“It was just great to see them making runs,” said Tooradin skipper Tom Hussey.
“Azz (Avery) was definitely a man on a mission, and with Cal it’s just good to have him back.
“He’s still finding his way (with his knee), but he really opened his shoulders and went for his shots.”
Hussey said it was a key for his hide to bat the full 80 overs, adding “whenever we can do that, I’d back our bowlers any day”.
Ross Douglas also continued to impress with a quick-fire 49 not out to push his side’s total well past 350, but the Seagulls are under no illusions – it’s crucial they finish off their work with the bat with just as convincing a performance this week with the ball.
“We want to put a whole performance together,” Hussey said.
“We know we’ve got 380-odd on the board.
“The game isn’t won but we feel confident.
“We’ve just got to heap the pressure on right from the start this week.
“For them to chase that total they’re going to have to be scoring straight away.”
Ominously, the Gulls still have plenty of improvement to come – both with bat and ball.
O’Hare is still a little while off bowling and looked physically spent as he walked off the ground after his innings on Saturday, while the likes of Bodie Brown (hamstring) are still getting back to 100 per cent.
“This is probably the tightest (Premier) competition I’ve seen in my time at the club,” Hussey said, knowing his third-placed side has key back-to-back clashes with the seventh-placed Pakenham to come over the next two rounds.
“Last year we played our best cricket at the start of the season and the wheels fell off by the end.
“We’re all about improvement from week to week right now.”
In other local Premier scores from across the weekend, Kooweerup (0/16) is chasing Beaconsfield’s 186 for victory after former DDCA star Shameera Weerasinghe blasted 83 in his first game for the Tigers; Pakenham (0/31) is in the box seat chasing Emerald’s 194; and Cardinia (8/231) set a strong target for Merinda Park to try and overhaul.
In District division, centuries from Brent Murdoch (128) and Shannon Marum (102) have Cranbourne Meadows (285) in a strong position heading into day two against Pakenham Upper-Toomuc, Clyde’s (222) match-up with Devon Meadows is evenly-poised, and the Lyndhurst Vikings took the points in a walk-over after St Francis Xavier forfeited.
