Whilst the past players at the Mt Evelyn Cricket Club celebrated the 40th Anniversary of their A Grade premiership, the present day Mounters celebrated some vital wins in their quest to feature in finals action.
The Community Bank – Mt Evelyn 1st XI scored a season defining win against arch rivals, and fellow finals aspirant, Seville in a hard fought contest at Gary Martin Oval. Entering day two of the clash, things were evenly poised as Mt Evelyn left a few runs on the table being dismissed for 259, before Caleb Hrabe made a mess of the Burras’ top order to have them teetering at 3/36 at stumps. With several stars still to bat, the visitors knew that if they could get themselves into the contest on day two, anything was possible.
Bailey Humphrey and Caleb Frankovic would navigate their way through the first dozen overs, and add some 30 runs, to give the Burras the steady start they strives for. Hrabe would make it four from four as he would dislodge the determined, and dangerous, Humphrey, but the visitors would continue unperturbed as Jon Williams would join Frankovic at the wicket. Another ten overs and 30 runs would pass, and with the score closing in on three figures, and plenty of batting still to come, the game had hit ‘go time’ for both teams. It would be the home team who would break it open.
Frankovic’s stout defence would be broken when he was inexplicably run out by the quick thinking Dan Giblin, whilst the Mounters were appealing for an LBW, and the game swung rapidly towards the home team. Bohdie Jones would remove Williams and his explosive uncle Kane Jones in successive overs, and the Burras were decimated, falling to 7/104. The visitors’ tail would show valiant resistance to string the game out, but the middle order collapse proved fatal. Seville managed to limit the final damage, but would still fall well short of the chase, falling for 181.
The Professionals Outer East 2nd XI missed a golden opportunity to consolidate themselves in the top four as they were outlasted by a determined Seville outfit. After posting a competitive total of 9/241, the Mounters would’ve entered day two full of confidence that their recent form with the ball would see them chalk up another victory.
Young gun Billie Laird would snag an early wicket with the score on 8, but a century partnership between Leigh Atkins (63) and Elkin Croydon (41) would deliver the momentum that the Burras required against a bowling attack struggling to deal with the tricky conditions. Kynan Yates would come on and capture wickets in consecutive overs to give the fielding team a much needed boost, and with the support of veteran Luke Jones, the pair would put in a marathon stint with the ball to keep the visitors in the contest. An unbeaten 64 run 8th wicket stand between Jarrod Carroll (62*) and Macca Hardy (26*) would finally break the Mounters as Seville would chase down Mt Evelyn’s total with four overs remaining. Jones (4/67) and Yates (2/80) would be the pick of the bowlers.
The loss has left the 2nd XI in a precarious position going into the final round, as a loss to Bayswater Park, could spell the end of a finals position.
The Rhead Group 3rd XI’s season has been hanging by a thread after slipping up against some beatable opponents. It has left the team the task of winning the last two games to give themselves any chance of going beyond the final round. After day one of this split innings contest, both Mt Evelyn and Warrandyte would be relatively comfortable with their respective positions, as Mt Evelyn held a slight advantage at 1/164 just ahead of Warrandyte’s 2/139. The Mounters would continue their innings first, and would go about amassing a total too great for the Bloods to chase.
Dickie Hearn and Alex Brisbane-Flynn continued their century stand and both cashed in. Brisbane-Flynn would plunder 74 runs, before getting too adventurous when he was stumped within sight of a century upon his return to cricket. Hearn wouldn’t be denied his maiden century as his marathon 199-ball innings would take him to a match winning score of 133. Great reward for a great contributor to the club. With captain Graeme Foster adding a quick fire 58, the Mt Evelyn innings would be closed with the score on an imposing 7/375. Warrandyte would make a fair fist of the chase, but would struggle to maintain the run rate once Tom Ellis (137) and Banjo Smyth (79) were dismissed. Eventually, the Mounters would bowl the visitors out for 281, claiming an important 94 run victory. The win now has the 3rd XI within sight of a finals birth, with a win against Heathwood in the final round a must.
The Hop Hen Brewing 4th XI have finally clinched their position in the finals after outlasting a determined South Croydon outfit on ‘The Postage Stamp’ at Mt Evelyn. The game would prove to be an unusually low scoring affair as the batsmen would struggle to assert dominance. Mt Evelyn would win the toss and send South Croydon in to bat with some doubt on how long the weather would hold out. The Mounters bowlers would do well to contain their opponents, and would bowl them out for 175, a more than attainable target on the small surrounds. All the bowlers would contribute with Mark Shepherd (3/23), Jake Rigg (2/23), Angus Van Hoogstraten (2/30) and Mike Leonard (2/34) sharing the wickets.
What should’ve been a relatively easy chase proved to be a real struggle as the Bulldog bowlers would heap the pressure on the Mounters limiting the boundaries and taking regular wickets. Captain Chris Doyle (51 not out), and young stars Jake Rigg (31) and Mason Jones (23) would contribute vital runs to the cause early, but it was left to cult hero Robert ‘Robdog’ Wilson to notch up the winning runs, in driving rain, on his way to an unbeaten 20. The win now locks in a finals birth for the 4th XI.
The Mt Evelyn 5th XI entered Round 15 with a point to prove after to succumbing to Kilsyth for their second loss of the season last week. Their clash against Seville couldn’t have filled them with great confidence as father/daughter duo Matt (4/6) and Kaylen Tilney (1/15) cut a swathe through the Mt Evelyn top order to have them decimated at 6/56. The Mounters have built their success this season through contributions throughout their team, so it was no surprise that the visitors dug in their heals courtesy of steadying knocks from Ezra Joyce and Paul Flavel who notched up unbeaten half centuries, whilst the rest of the batting order would push the score to a competitive 7/187.
The Burras would show great resistance with the bat, but they would never challenge Mt Evelyn total, and their innings would be closed at 4/127 after their allotted overs. Andy Cummins would carry his bat in an innings of 48, whilst Mark Kuhne would be the pick of the Mt Evelyn bowlers taking 2/24.
The Flowtec 6th XI, would field five new players in their lineup for their clash against Lusatia Park, and they found the task to great to overcome the Tigers. Batting first, the Mounters could only manage 123, being bowled out in the 30th over. Braidyn Doyle would show his fight scoring his best score of 35 not out, whilst Chase Missen (23) and Brett Hartman (21) would add some beef to the low total. Mt Evelyn’s total would prove to be light on, as despite some tidy bowling, the Tigers would reach the target with relative ease, losing just two wickets along the way.
