By Marcus Uhe
Saturday’s Battle of the Creek in the Dandenong District Cricket Association’s Turf 1 competition is now a must-win for Berwick after a winless opening to its season.
Slated with one of the tougher opening three-game sequences in the division and combined with a pair of washouts, the Bears are languishing at the bottom of the table as the only side yet to get off the mark in this summer’s action.
A gap appears to remain between them and the competition’s upper bracket, having missed finals qualification in the previous two seasons.
It’s been the Bears’ bowling that has brought them unstuck, having taken just 14 wickets in three bowling efforts – comfortably the lowest mark in the competition.
Corey Bevan, a mainstay in the attack last summer, has yet to take a scalp this season and even found himself in the reserves last week, while a pair of 2023/24’s highest wicket-takers in Lachlan Brown and Jarrod Goodes have just one wicket each to show for their efforts thus far.
Their batting, meanwhile, is also yet to reach any great heights, with their highest team score for the year (213) the second-lowest of all sides’ best marks through the opening five rounds, only trailing North Dandenong (202).
Jarryd Wills has provided the ideal tempo at the top of the innings but needs more from his fellow batters if they are to break their duck to open the year.
By contrast, their geographical neighbours are one bad hour away from being undefeated to open the season, having disastrously fell away in a short run chase against Hallam Kalora Park in round five.
Their wins have come in convincing fashion and have come on the back of excellent bowling performances, with no side able to breach 150 runs against the new-look attack to date.
The Tigers are the only side to have taken 30 wickets in the new season, with spinning pair Mitchell Tielen and Ashan Madhushanka leading the charge.
Berwick thrashed Beaconsfield in a two-day contest last summer with the white-ball offering abandoned due to wet weather with the Tigers on the ropes.
Perc Allison Oval is the venue for this week’s contest, one which could prove pivotal in both sides’ fortunes for the summer ahead.
At Alex Nelson Reserve, a pair of perennial finalists will battle it out for a 3-1 record in Springvale South and Hallam Kalora Park.
The Bloods will be smarting after a rare loss last week while the Hawks appear to have discovered some form with a pair of important wins in the last fortnight.
Springvale South massacred the Hawks in the corresponding contest back in January, wrapping up proceedings in near record fashion thanks to a perfect bowling effort and swashbuckling innings from Jordan Wyatt.
Wyatt looks to have lost none of that attitude in early knocks this summer, with his strike yet to finish below 100 in his three innings to date.
The Hawks have been forced to grind wins in their last two performances as they bridge the gap in the playing stocks between the old and the new, with Damith Perera looking excellent behind the stumps and Austin Fardell crunching an excellent half-century against Buckley Ridges in round two.
Expect a fierce contest between two teams with high expectations this season that have displayed perennial excellence in recent summers.
Park Oval, meanwhile, will play host to Buckley Ridges’ tussle with North Dandenong.
Expect balls to be flying into the Dandenong Creek on Saturday afternoon when the enigmatic and dangerous Maroons come to Pultney Street, eager to kick-start their season against the reigning champions.
The Maroons can be dangerous on their day but face a side that has barely put a foot wrong in its premiership defence so far.
Even with premiership heroes Troy Aust, Wes Nicholas and Michael Davies yet to feature for the Bucks this summer, their embarrassment of riches has meant their absences have hardly been noticed.
North Dandenong should not be taken lightly, particularly in white-ball cricket, but the Bucks should be too strong on their home turf – a venue where they seldom lose.
There will only be three Turf 1 contests this weekend, with Dandenong West and Narre South having played on Sunday.
Tips: BUCKLEY RIDGES v North Dandenong, SPRINGVALE SOUTH v Hallam Kalora Park, BEACONSFIELD v Berwick.
