YVCA
WITH CHRISTMAS dinner packed away, the men in white hit the pitch across the Yarra Valley for the first time in 2015 with their eyes firmly fixed on finding form at the right time of the season with finals action only a mere five rounds away.
The weather man had predicted an extended break with forecasts of torrential rain, but the skies cleared for a full days play for everyone concerned.
Round nine of D.J. Strachan Shield offered a tantalising trio of matches, as the top four teams battled it out against each other in key one-day clashes which will shape the rest of the season.
Seville hosted the emerging Woori Yallock, with keen eyes on maintaining their position as association powerhouse.
The Blues batted first and after some early wobbles against the pace of Jackson Wright (3/33) and the swing of Daniel Mock (2/38), the experienced pair of Tim Dwyer (51) and Ryan Akers (41) guided the home side to a competitive total of 6/155 off their allotted overs.
The total was a chase the Tigers would’ve been confident of chasing down and making a statement to the rest of the competition.
Captain Daniel Mock (52) made the most of the early going, but he lacked the support from the rest of the batting order as Dean Troyhan (4/33) and Matt Hadlum (2/17) took wickets consistently to keep the home side on the front foot.
With Mock’s eventual dismissal, the last hope of the Tigers’ resistance, the innings petered out and wrapped up for 121, some 35 runs short of their target.
With the win securing their position at the top of the ladder, Seville will use their round 10 clash against Yarra Junction as an opportunity to put another upstart to the sword and dispel any thought they’re not top dog. Meanwhile, Woori Yallock must make short work of a struggling Hoddles Creek if they are to keep the chasing pack at bay.
The other top-four clash was held at Yarra Junction as the Eagles hosted Warburton-Millgrove, with the home side viewing the game as an opportunity to consolidate their position in the top four, while closing the gap on the top couple of teams.
The visitors batted first and battled to build their innings as they continually lost wickets to the probing bowling of the Eagles, particularly to the consistent slow bowling of Cam Spaulding (4/39).
With the Burras on the ropes, the Eagles let the big fish off the hook, as the master finisher, Mick Walker (39 not out) made the most of an early dropped catch to guide his side to a competitive total of 8/151.
The Eagles had their destiny in their own hands, and made short work of the early going as influential knocks from Quinton Hodgkinson (40), Stephen Flutter (39), and Cam Spaulding (22), had the Eagles well in front in the chase.
As has been a recurring nightmare for teams across the Valley, if batsmen ‘in’ can’t capitalise on their starts, then it can leave the remainder of the batting line-ups in risk of collapsing, and the Burras seized on their opportunity.
After cracking the Eagles’ top order, the visitors ripped through the middle order, at one stage capturing 6/10 in a devastating collapse.
In the end, the chase and the Burras attack became too overwhelming for the remainder of the Yarra Junction batsmen and they found themselves 16 runs short of the winning target.
After relinquishing their top four position, Yarra Junction must bounce back in a tough match up against Seville, whie Warburton-Millgrove will view their clash against Healesville at home as a great opportunity to put a deposit on a top two finish.
In the final game of the round, Mount Evelyn capitalised on Yarra Junction’s slip up by displacing them in the top four after accounting for a dogged Hoddles Creek at home.
The visitors got out of the blocks in quick rate and raced to 0/60 in the 15th over of the innings. Sensing the innings slipping from them, the Rovers reverted to some tight bowling, and as a result were rewarded with three quick wickets.
One constant at the top of the Wombats’ order was Jeremy Derix (52), and despite losing the quick wickets Derix teamed with Cam Bell to put the visitors back in a position to attack a large total, at 3/100.
Under-bowled for most of the season, young left-arm offspinner Jed Thompson posed questions of the remaining Hoddles Creek batsmen, and he capitalised on their attacking press to capture an impressive 4/14. With the help of skipper Kane Jones (2/27), the pair ripped through the remainder of the order to close the innings swiftly for 103.
Mount Evelyn have wobbled with their batting this season, and the Wombats were keen to put some early pressure on the home side. Despite some probing bowling, they were unable to effect a collapse of significance despite capturing regular wickets. In the end, the Rovers cruised to a relatively easy six-wicket victory, on the back of a solid 38 not out from young gun Gareth Fraser.
Hoddles Creek captain Mick Batten (3/22) did his best to keep things interesting, but it was all too little, too late.
With the top four starting to get out of reach, Hoddles Creek will rely on their pride to extract the most out of the rest of their season.
They ran Woori Yallock close in their previous encounter, and they will be confident of giving it a shake next week. Having regained a position in the top four, Mount Evelyn now has a week off courtesy of the bye, to look forward to a tough run home in the quest to rejoin finals action.
D.J. STRACHAN SHIELD
Warburton-Millgrove 8/151 (M. Walker 39 not out, David Lever 32, C. Spaulding 4/39) d Yarra Junction 10/136 (Q. Hodgkinson 40, S. Flutter 39, C. Spaulding 22).
Seville 6/155 (T. Dwyer 51, R. Akers 41, J. Wright 3/33, D. Mock 2/38) d Woori Yallock 10/121 (D. Mock 52, D. Troyahn 4/33, M. Hadlum 2/17).
Mount Evelyn 4/106 (G. Fraser 38 not out, M. Batten 3/22) d Hoddles Creek 10/103 (J. Derix 52, J. Thompson 4/14, K. Jones 2/27).
R.A. FINGER TROPHY
Seville 8/214 (L. Roberts 67, R. Oates 54, T. Page 28) d Woori Yallock 6/162 (S. Morgan 41, A. Ferguson 28, D. Mock 26, H. Van Veen 2/17).
Healesville 8/118 (B. Binion 29, A. Pearce 28 not out, C. Dickshei 4/36, L. Doughty 3/26) drew Coldstream 6/118 (B. Fritsch 46 not out, R. Beverley 3/43, D. Kerr 2/21).
Warburton Millgrove 3/141 (C. Neale 51 not out, B. Clarke 44 not out, J. Coghlan 32, M. Hammond 2/21) d Yarra Junction 10/126 (A. Doolan 61, T. Appleton 4/23, J. Coghlan 3/34).
Hoddles Creek 7/197 (L. Rowe 102, J. Lawrence 26) d Mount Evelyn 10/103 (D. Westaway 42, S. Tipping 5/34, L. Rowe 2/18).
C GRADE
Wandin 9/130 (T. Thorne 28, J. McKenna 3/20) d Seville 10/62 (M. Proctor 22*, T. Thorne 2/3, J. Idema 2/7).
Gruyere 4/243 (J. Harding 105 not out, J. Carroll 97) d Yarra Junction 6/242 (G. Thompson 59, J. Harding 3/43).
Healesville 10/119 (M. Davern 50, L. Winter-Annette 3/30, A. Sequeria 2/23, M. McConnell 2/37) d Launching Place 9/88 (B. Taeuber 32, M. Fawdry 2/13).
KEITH MACKAY SHIELD – UNDER 16
Round 1 – Yarra Valley CA 8/149 (C. Gall 53, L. Pickett 29, D. Senior 18) d Ferntree Gully and District CA 4/142 (M. Arnold 2/21, L. Winter-Annette 1/10, A. Ferguson 1/17).
Round 2 – South East CA (D. Bailey 2/22, D. Senior 2/48) d Yarra Valley CA 10/139 (L. Pickett 50, D. Senior 39, F. de Vargas 16).
Round 3 – Yarra Valley CA 4/307 (L. Pickett 102, M. Dall 67 not out, A. Ferguson 44) d Southern District and Churches CL 9/105 (D. Bailey 3/13, M. Arnold 2/14).
Round 4 – Yarra Valley CA 9/179 (L. Pickett 42, B. Thorneycroft 38, M. Arnold 24) d Mornington Peninsula CA 10/139 (B. Thorneycroft 2/17, D. Whelan 2/25, D. Bailey 2/31).
DES NOLAN CUP – UNDER 14
Round 1 – Yarra Valley CA 4/89 (D. Colling 39, T. Bissells 26) d Ferntree Gully and District CA 7/82 (H. Keeling 4/12, T. Bissels 2/7).
Round 2 – Mornington Peninsula CA 6/92 (D. Colling 2/8, T. Spargo 2/37) d Yarra Valley CA 10/90 (H. Keeling 32, N. Andrueza 15).
Round 3 – Yarra Valley CA 3/99 (L. Chandler 30 not out, D. Colling 25, N. Andrueza 17) d Box Hill Reporter District CA 9/94 (L. Sinnott 4/11, J. Birnie 2/13).
Round 4 – South East CA v Yarra Valley CA – match abandoned due to weather.
JOSH BROWNE PLATE – UNDER 12
Round 1 – Yarra Valley CA 7/111 (J. Proctor 23, C. Frankovic 21) d Mornington-Peninsula 10/88 (L. Kay 3/7, A. Smith 3/8).
Round 2 – Yarra Valley CA 9/110 (A. Smith 27, T. Fraser 13 not out, M. Sinnott 13) d Ferntree Gully and District CA 10/101 (L. Kay 3/11).
Round 3 – Southern District and Churches CA 4/58 (N. Evans 2/9, M. Bradley 1/15, A. Smith 1/17) drew Yarra Valley CA 7/127 (C. Winter-Annette 25, L. Kay 23, J. Proctor 17 not out).
Round 4 – Yarra Valley CA 8/103 (A. Smith 34, L. Kay 16, J. Proctor 15) d Ringwood District CA 4/102 (L. Kay 1/4, M. Bradley 1/4, J. Proctor 1/14).
CLAUDIO FATONE SHIELD – UNDER 12 GIRLS
Round 1 – Ferntree Gully and District CA 2/203 d Yarra Valley CA 8/79.
Round 2 – Ringwood District CA 2/125 d Yarra Valley CA 5/60.
Round 3 – Yarra Valley CA 5/72 d South East CA 2/177.
