The clash between Springvale South and Hallam Kalora Park was shaping up to be the game of the round … but it wasn’t as evenly-matched as many predicted.
The Bloods destroyed and demoralised the Hawks, staking their claim as one of the hot premiership favourites to win by 10 wickets.
It was the first time that the teams had met since Hallam Kalora Park piled on 359 runs at Hallam Recreation Reserve to advance to last year’s grand final against Buckley Ridges (Second innings was washed out so the Hawks won through).
After falling short in the big dance in 2024/25, it was widely assumed that they would get back there this season, and maybe even go one better.
But their first outing of the season left a bit to be desired as Springvale South ripped through their lineup on a slow turf wicket at Alex Nelson Reserve.
Springvale South skipper Cam Forsyth won the toss and sent the visitors in to bat first, a decision that paid dividends.
“It was a difficult one because the wicket looked pretty good, but a few of the boys told me that at this time of the year, all of the wickets are a little bit softer underneath, and that’s how it played to be honest,” he said.
“It was probably as good as most wickets this time of year, but it did hold a bit and when you are trying to hit the ball over the top and playing in the air, it makes things a lot more difficult.
“We had the benefit of seeing what worked and what didn’t when they batted, which made it a lot easier for our boys to go in with a plan.”
Forsyth said it was nice to get one back against the Hawks, after going 0-3 against them last season.
“I was pretty happy with the solid performance from the team” he said.
“Hallam beat us a few times last year and had the wood over us, so it was good to get a comprehensive victory – I couldn’t have asked for a better start to the year.”
The Hawks were always going to bring some intent and look to score rapidly in the early parts of the innings, with start recruit Jawid Khan shaping up to be the player who could change the game if he was out there long enough.
The side did play its ‘Coxball’ style of game, taking on the bowlers and scoring at a healthy rate for the first six or seven overs before Leigh Booth (nine) slashed at a wider ball outside off, edging it behind – Dasun Opanayaka got the breakthrough for the Bloods.
Khan was the next man back to the pavilion and while he provided some fireworks, including a huge six off Josh Dowling’s second ball, he was back in the sheds with 24 after Opanayaka trapped him LBW.
Dowling got his revenge soon after to take his first wicket, removing the dangerous Jagveer Hayer (13) after he mistimed an aggressive stroke down the ground, finding the safe hands of Nicholas Boland at mid-on.
Once Springvale South had removed the top three, the rest of the team collapsed, only Ryan Hillard (10) making double figures beyond that point – the team was soon all out for 86 off only 28 overs.
Opanayaka, who came to the club from Elsternwick, was impressive with the new ball for the Bloods, removing both of the openers.
“The last few years in particular, we had quite a bit of pace on the ball, so we thought getting a bowler who is a bit slower and swings it around more would add another string to our bow … Dasun bowled really well,” Forsyth said.
“I had played with him previously and I knew what he was capable of, it was great to see him bowl well at the top of the order and he has fit in seamlessly.”
Left-arm spinner Jarryd Straker was a wrecking ball, creating all sorts of problems for Hallam Kalora Park.
Straker finished with 5/18 off seven overs in what was a brilliant start to the season from both an individual and team perspective.
Forsyth said getting the Hawks out for 86 was a brilliant way to start the season after an aggressive start.
“They got out to a decent start in the first four or five overs, but we created enough chances and probably started to pick up how the wicket was playing,” he said.
“We adjusted our lengths and made it difficult for them to score, building a lot of pressure – hopefully that is the blueprint for how we play those conditions throughout the year.”
In reply, the Bloods made light work of the run chase as opening pair Ryan Quirk (44 not out) and Mitchell Forsyth (41 not out) belted the leather around with conviction.
At the end of the day, it couldn’t have been a better start to the year for Springvale South who chased down the runs with 10 wickets in hand, and inside 16 overs to upset last year’s grand finalists.
In other games, Buckley Ridges started its premiership defence perfectly, defeating Beaconsfield by six wickets after posting a huge total of 4/262.
The top four were brilliant for the Bucks, with captain Jayson Hobbs (48) setting the tone, while Dale Tormey (89) backed up last week’s knock of 74 for Pakenham.
Hobbs would’ve been pleased to get a few out of the middle after a lean individual season in 2024/25 – his 48 runs was his highest score in his past 23 innings since he made 83 in 2023/24 – also against Beaconsfield.
New recruit from HSD, Triyan De Silva (45) and Ben Wright (45) continued to push the Bucks to a big total of 262.
Seeing two early front foot no-balls from Buckley Ridges star Ishan Jayarathna was uncharacteristic, but last year’s Wookey Medallist bounced back and soon found his line and length.
De Silva showed that he is well and truly up for the challenge of Turf 1, and will be one of the recruits of the year, knocking over former Buck Jake Cronin for a duck, and Jack Steel for 12.
Mitchell Tielen (36 not out) top scored for the Tigers in the run chase, but another Bucks recruit Harry Snowden did some damage with the ball as he took three wickets to keep Beaconsfield to 9/142 off the 45 overs.
As was expected, Parkmore Pirates found things tough against Dandenong West, getting bowled out for 95 as they attempted to chase 216.
The Bulls batted first and were actually in a spot of bother at 5/84 before skipper Riley Siwes (54 off 82) and Dinesh Kulasekara (79 off 55) contributed a 100-run partnership which helped the team to a strong total.
Duck, duck, duck, 12, duck, is how the scorebook looked for the Pirates’ top order as Joel Zietsman (2/25), Kulasekara (2/2) and Siwes (2/11) impressed with the ball.
One of those was even a diamond duck, with Pirates’ Jordan Gwynne involved in a running mix up before he even faced a ball.
In fairness to the Pirates, they did well to even get to 95, given their nightmare start which saw them 2/0, 4/4 and then 5/12.
Berwick posted a big score of 7/228 to set itself up for a victory over Narre South, who was bowled out for 115 in reply.
Bears captain Michael Wallace (66) led the way for his side, while Jake Hancock (52), Jarryd Wills (32) and Lachlan Brown (39) all performed well – Tom Arnold took three wickets for the Lions.
Jeevan Mendis was the only Narre South player to look comfortable at the crease, making a half century, but it wasn’t enough to see his team home as James Trodd (3/27) and Tom Davis (4/31) were brilliant for the Blues.
TURF 1 RESULTS
R1 Results: Buckley Ridges 4/262 def Beaconsfield 9/142, Springvale South 0/87 def Hallam Kalora Park 86, Berwick 7/228 def Narre South 115, Dandenong West 7/216 def Parkmore Pirates 95.
Ladder: Buckley Ridges, Dandenong West, Berwick, Springvale South 6, Narre South, Parkmore Pirates, Beaconsfield, Hallam Kalora Park.
R2 Fixture (Two-Day): Buckley Ridges v Dandenong West at Dandenong Park, Narre South v Springvale South at Strathaird Recreation Reserve, Hallam Kalora Park v Berwick at Hallam Recreation Reserve, Parkmore Pirates v Beaconsfield at Frederick Wachter Reserve.
