WALLAN Cricket Club hosted Gisborne in its last match for the year in its league’s fixture and at Greenhills Reserve, the action was four-fold as across the venue’s two ovals the Magpies did battle with Gisborne in a suite of Twenty20 matches.
The McIntyre Firsts team played under lights in the match for the day where Gisborne won the toss and chose to field first.
Batting for Wallan, Hamish Mullavey-Clark made 24 runs and Archie Moore, 26. Joshua Mullavey-Clark finished on the pitch with 22 not out.
The innings was hampered by Gisborne captain Jarryd Vernon forcing an LBW onto Moore and also dismissing Hamish and Anthony Barker on 16, leading to a chase of 145 runs.
Wallan’s Campbell Fowler claimed the first wicket in the 11th over to see Spencer Jones dismissed on 55.
The chase was on and Riley Vernon’s innings included nine fours, finishing with 60 runs to match and defeat Wallan by eight wickets.
Elsewhere in McIntyre Cup, Broadford was defeated by Sunbury United by 34 runs, with United making 8/143, before Broadford was held to 9/109.
Romsey was no match for Rupertswood, losing by six wickets, 4/133 to 5/132.
In Johnstone Shield, Eastern Hill will go into the new year as the team to catch, scoring a comfortable 44-run victory over Kilmore, 6/153 to 109.
Lancefield kept alive its finals hopes, scoring a thrilling three-run victory over Harkness, 7/133 to 130.
The women played prior and Wallan won the toss and elected to field first.
Gisborne captain and opening batter Brianna Woodburn retired on 50 and she was assisted by Ava Hynes who left the pitch on 19 runs when Megan Farrell bowled her out.
Farrell also bowled and caught out Eden Boland after three balls and thus ended the visitors innings at 3/144.
Wallan batted first with Farrell and she also retired on 50 and due to the batting order being dismissed she returned at its end hoping to secure the win.
In between Kia Montgomery and Emily Telford (24) had a good partnership until Katie Muller, assisted by Brianna Woodburn’s bowling caught Montgomery out on 10 runs.
Gisborne’s Ava Burns was also damaging. Hynes ended Telford’s innings and also Terrie Haydens (4).
Farrell resumed her innings and hoped to get the team across the line alas Muller and Woodburn repeated their performances and Farell was dismissed on seven runs, all out for 135, just 10 runs short of a victory.
Wallan Captain Megan Farrell said; “It was very annoying [to get so close] and not get over the line”.
Gisborne Captain Brianna Woodburn said; “I was a little bit nervous, but we were in a pretty good stead. Magan coming back on after retiring in the last over made me extra nervous. But Katie stepping up with a great catch in the field saved the day. Her first catch was even better [Montgomery].
“Bacchus Marsh is the team to beat and that’s my goal for the season,” Woodburn said.
It was the only A grade game of the weekend, with Kilmore forfeiting against Lancefield Black, while in B grade, Lancefield Yellow survived a thriller against Broadford, winning by one wicket, 7/89 to 6/88.
McIntyre Seconds
Wallan won the toss and chose to bat first with Zac Bell facing the first ball and remaining on the pitch until Tom Mousley ran him out on 51.
Bradley Regan had a good innings (22) and Darien Blair made 20 not out.
Mousley had a field day. He also bowled out Josh Cumberland on 10 and Russell Whittingham on nine runs.
Gisborne, chasing 146 to win created hope with Paul Sammut’s innings of 82 and Mousley 30 until Andrew Barber bowled him out.
Kavindu Ratnayake bowled Joshua Brown out on 16 and Riley Evans on one but it wasn’t their day and Gisborne’s early chase amounted to victory, 5/159 to Wallan 7/146.
Elsewhere, Broadford was no match for Sunbury United, losing by seven wickets, 3/79 to 78, while Romsey scored a comfortable seven-wicket win over Rupertswood, 3/123 to 8/120.
In Johnstone Shield Seconds action, Kilmore kept its finals chances alive with an impressive eight-wicket win over Eastern Hill, 2/139 to 8/137, while Lancefield fell 12 runs short of Harkness, 9/122 to 8/134.
A Jensen hat trick
On the lower oval, Gisborne won the toss and elected to bat first.
Steven Freeth and Sam Wallace took to the crease and accumulated 34 runs together. Gavin Buskes was dangerous with 30 runs until Harkanwar Singh Sandhu caught him out assisted by Ekampreet Singh’s bowling.
The batting order was interrupted by Sandhu’s hat trick late in its order and its innings finished on 126 runs for Wallan to chase.
Big runs came from Chase Fowler (30) Robbie Fowler (34) and Sandhu, 32 not out and the side finished victorious by four runs, 130 to 126.
Sandhu was thrilled to take a hat trick.
“I’ve gotten hat tricks a few times overseas but this is my first time for Wallan. It was awesome for our team. I’m just bowling wicket to wicket. I’m just sticking to my plans,” he said.
Romsey was too good for Woodend, winning by seven wickets, 3/169 to 9/166, while in the Jensen Shield thirds, Kilmore’s match with Melton South was abandoned.
Club grade north saw Kilmore’s match with Woodend stopped, with Woodend 0/68, while Broadford took a five-wicket win over Gisborne, 5/145 to 9/141. Wallan were nine-wicket winners over Romsey, 1/134 to 8/133, while Eastern Hill was bested by Kyneton, losing by three wickets, 7/122 to 120.
