Gisborne District Cricket Association (GDCA)
Wallan and Eastern Hill will battle for a spot in next season’s McIntyre Cup, with both teams winning through to play at the Johnstone Shield Seniors grand final.
The Magpies’ win was a straightforward affair, bowling Aintree out for 100, before taking just 21 overs to run down the total with nine wickets to spare.
A significant collapse, which saw Aintree lose eight wickets for just 47 runs, had Scott O’Donnell’s fingerprints all over it, taking four wickets for 28 runs off 18 overs as he spearheaded the Wallan attack. Nathan Fowler also took 2/22 off nine overs.
On Sunday, the Magpies, and Ryan Cumberland in particular, were able to navigate their way around the wet weather.
Cumberland’s hitting frenzy saw him hit 11 fours and two sixes as he made 70 off just 51 deliveries, while Matthew Clayton did a good job in taking the shine off the ball in making 26.
Eastern Hill needed to battle to get over the line, but did enough on Saturday to stick it out on the crease before the rain thwarted East Sunbury’s charge.
Seamus Feery anchored the innings with 33 runs, while Dallas Bergowicz had some good late-innings hitting to finish on 25 as Eastern Hill finished day one on 8/145.
Their higher ladder position meant their trip to the grand final was secured on Sunday.
Romsey did enough to finish third on the McIntyre Cup Seniors ladder, and will travel to Gisborne with confidence after recording a 62-run win over Macedon.
Six Romsey players contributed by taking wickets, led by Louis Moor, Logan Collins, and Corey Day, who took two wickets apiece as they bowled Macedon out for 228.
Broadford fell three wickets short of ending their first season back in McIntyre Cup with a victory, with Woodend chasing down 259.
Jack Connell did what he could in taking three wickets, while Sikander Sharma took two.
Wallan will be in a grand final in both grades of the Johnstone Shield, with their win last week proving even more important as rain washed out the second day’s play against Diggers Rest Bulla Village.
Mitch Van De Duim took five wickets and Brenton Hanson took three, while Diggers Rest Bulla Village put together a competitive 250, but rain finished off any chance of a grandstand finish.
The Magpies, who moved to second on the ladder at the right time of the season, will play a showdown against Aintree in next week’s grand final.
Romsey will also be in a grand final, taking a win against Rupertswood to move to the McIntyre Cup Seconds decider.
Tim Dale’s 52 anchored the innings, while Joshua Wallace scored 39 as Romsey made 173 on Saturday, before Rupertswood got to 5/100 in response on Sunday, prior to the rain making an impact.
Chris Marienfeld took two wickets to lead the way for Romsey.
Seymour District Cricket Association (SDCA)
Tallarook will do battle with Yea in the grand final of the SDCA A Grade grand final.
It was a 129-run victory over Pyalong which helped Tallarook secure their passage, with Mitch Itter scoring 97 to lead the way. Joshua Rudge’s 66 and Lachlan Watts’ 46 also allowed Tallarook to score 2/227 off their 45 overs.
Watts did the job with both bat and ball, taking 4/32 as Tallarook simply overwhelmed Pyalong, bowling them out for 98.
Meanwhile, Yea progressed thanks to a victory over Seymour.
Seymour made 173 in their innings, with Jason Brown (27), Brett Gordon (21) and Lachlan Drummond (21) all getting starts.
While Drummond did the job with the ball as well, taking 2/19, Yea had enough in reserve to take a three-wicket win with 17 balls to spare.
The grand final will be hosted at Tallarook as they look to defend their title from last season.
In B grade, Tallarook and Pyalong’s seasons are over after being overwhelmed by the top two teams.
Tallarook took on Alexandra, but were unable to score at a good rate, finishing on 9/93. Hamish Melville scored 25 in their effort.
Despite Braeden Dundon taking three wickets, Alexandra did enough to take victory in just 12 overs, winning by five wickets.
Pyalong were rolled for 71 against Avenel, and were unable to stop their opponents from winning by eight wickets in the space of 17 overs.
