1st XI
At home to local rival Knoxfield Murph won the toss
and elected to send the visitors in. The decision paid immediate
results with Adam Wild removing the opener with the first ball of the
day with a sharp catch by RI Marget in slip. Trent
Schofield played a typically aggressive knock until Scott McInerney
removed him with the score on 26. Wilba then claimed his second scalp
and the score was 3/28. Knoxfield steadied with an excellent
partnership that was eventually broken by Shannon Small
with the score on 78. Luke Scanlon batted extremely well with the
middle order but was running out of partners before finally chancing his
arm too many times and was caught for a polished 78. The tail didn’t
wag for the Knights and they were all out for 140
with best bowling figures from Adam Wild 4/42 (20) Shannon Small 3/20
(19) and Trav Mulder 2/19 (11). Shannon and Butch negotiated the final 5
overs of the day to be none down for 5.
Day 2 got off to a cautious start with Butch and
Shan negotiating some good bowling until Shannon fell to a sharp chance
with the score on 12, Butch fell next quickly followed by Nav and when
Josh Gregory fell for 0 Knoxfield were rolling
at 4/20. Rhys Marget came out and played only like he knows how,
punishing anything lose and lifting the run rate with Murph who was
determined to anchor the innings. Rhys fell with the score on 68 and the
game still in the balance. Mitch batted well against
his old club but fell with the score on 91, still 50 shy of the total.
Scotty Mac and Murph negotiated a tricky 10 minutes prior to tea that
was interesting to watch to say the least.
With all sides returning during the tea interval
the boys had the opportunity to do the job in front of a large audience.
Scott relished this and took the game by the scruff of the neck scoring
freely, Murph remained stoic in defence and
unfortunately fell 5 short of the total for a tremendously patient 35
that was the difference at the end of the day. Scott and Trav guided the
team home with Scott finishing unbeaten on 39. The win secures 4th position on the ladder and a shot at
3rd this week against Johnson Park.
2nd XI
With top position up for grabs the Gardens, led
again by undefeated Matt Young, travelled to Knoxfield. Losing the toss
and bowling Zach got the first breakthrough with the score on 21. Zach,
bowling in tandem with Adam Metherall tore through
the middle order to have the top side reeling at 6/51. A middle order
resurgence saw the Knights get to a defendable 163. Best of the bowlers
for KGCC – Adam Metherall 4/59 off 27 overs! And Zach who is bashing the
1’s door down with 4/41 off 19. Overnight
the score read 1/5 with Ben McLean back in the sheds.
Day 2 was the Morro show. Knoxfield threw
everything at him including 9 bowlers but he was determined to post a
big one and 3 figures looked done and dusted before he got the wobbles
on 98. Well batted to the old boy who is still leading
by example and is pivotal to the success of the 2’s this year. In the
end the score was passed 3 down and stumps were drawn upon Morro’s exit.
The victory sees the lads 7-0 and a game clear on top.
3rd XI
Boasting a strong percentage the 3rd XI
travelled to Dobson Park to tackle Ferntree Gully . Batting first and
brimming with confidence the boys were always going to be in for a tough
day with some good quality players in the
opposing side. Losing early wickets didn’t help the cause and at 3/34
things looked shaky. Josh Curnow & Nathan Montague tried to restore
some faith before Monty fell with the score on 60, this brought Dylan
Wylde to the crease who batted confidently with
the tail. Josh fell for a well made 21 and unfortunately the tail
failed to fire. Dylan fell on the 8th wicket for a well compiled 44. The total score of 136 never looked enough.
Having 2 wickets already in the bag at the end of
Day 1 meant there was still a glimmer of hope for the young side. Early
wickets were important and they were rewarding with the prize scalp
early on day 2. A solid partnership was formed
and was not broken until they had reached 102. A few more quick wickets
to Nixon Adcock saw a flutter run through the FTG camp but it was never
enough to defend with them being passed 7 down. Best bowling Nixon
Adcock 4/38 Monty 2/41 Cliffy Fisher 2/49.
The 3’s still sit on top of the ladder but their percentage may have taken a hit.
** The 4th XI took the points due to a forfeit this week – no match report.
Simon Wilkinson
Keeping a lid on it
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