WALLAN came up four runs short in a thrilling run chase against Bacchus Marsh as the first round of the Gisborne and District Cricket Association’s McIntyre Cup two-day matches concluded on Saturday.
Playing at their Greenhill Reserve home, the Magpies were set a daunting task by the visiting Bulls, who batted throughout the first day to make 8/266 from their 80 overs.
Wallan’s run chase got off to the worst possible start on Saturday when opener Todd Keenan and first drop Hamish Mullavey-Clark each fell to the bowling of Bacchus Marsh’s Ian Spiteri without a run on the board.
But the Magpies dug their heels in, and new batsman Ryan Bonner partnered with remaining opener Kieran Atkin to steady the side with a 58-run partnership.
Bonner eventually fell for 20 runs, but Atkin and skipper Bryan Vance built what looked to be a match-turning stand of 76 for the fourth wicket.
Atkin’s innings of 89 included nine fours and three sixes, but he was brought undone short of a century by Brenton Payne.
Vance batted patiently on, notching an unbeaten 83 from 161 balls, but began to run out of partners as Spencer Whittingham, 25, Matthew Clayton, 13, Archie Moore, 16, and Ben Mullavey, duck, came and went.
Vance tried to retain the strike to protect tailender Campbell Fowler, but the team ran out of overs, finishing 8/263.
The loss saw Wallan drift to eighth on the McIntyre Cup ladder, two places outside the finals.
Romsey remains in finals contention despite dropping its two-day match against undefeated ladder leader Gisborne.
The Redbacks were defending a relatively meagre total of 134 after being bowled out on day one, but an early wicket just before the close of play gave the team hope.
But the loss of Wilhem Mackay proved little more than a blip on the radar for Gisborne, as opener Matthew Barake, 62, and middle-order batsman Michael Allen, 120, put on a batting masterclass.
Gisborne batted all day to finish 9/305, easily surpassing Romsey’s total.
Jake East, 4/71, and Chris Marienfeld, 3/75, were the lone bright spots in a Romsey bowling attack that struggled to silence the Gisborne bats.
Wallan and Romsey will both play away in the next round of two-day matches starting this weekend, with the Magpies to play Sunbury United and the Redbacks to take on Bacchus Marsh.
Johnstone Shield
Kilmore continued to shore up its credentials as a premiership contender in its first season in the Johnstone Shield competition, holding off Sunbury United to conclude its first two-day match.
The Blues were bowled out for 211 in the first innings but defended the total well after a worrying start.
Sunbury United’s Adam Tanner fell for just one run, but fellow opener Aaron Wright, 40, and David Falzon, 69, put on 95 for the second wicket.
Kilmore veteran Brett Buttler’s breakthrough for the wicket of Wright proved to be a match-turner, as he followed up with the wickets of Raees Alam, 5, Jarrod Bottomley, duck, and Falzon to account for the entire Hornets top order.
Buttler struck once more to remove Sunbury United captain Daniel Furnell, 15, while his son Josh Buttler picked up the wickets of tailenders Bradley Wilson, 16, Phillip Allen, 1, and Ben Falzon, 11, to have the Hornets all out for 173.
Brett Buttler finished with season-best figures of 6/49 while Josh had 3/44, with Blake Munari-O’Dwyer picking up the final wicket.
Kilmore will return home to host Aintree in a two-day match starting on Saturday.
Women
Kilmore took less than five overs to score a comprehensive victory against Aintree in the women’s competition on Saturday.
Aintree batted out its 20 overs to finish 4/62 after losing the toss and being sent in, but Taylah Logie, 26 not out, and Megan Farrell, 37 not out, guided Kilmore to a winning total without loss.
Logie also took 2/11 bowling to underline her importance to the team, which has a bye in the penultimate round of the season.
Lancefield Black defeated Macedon to retain its spot atop the ladder and will play Darley this weekend, while Lancefield Yellow will return from a bye to take on Aintree.
