Hills struggle for a win

By Justin Robertson
ENDEAVOUR Hills lost a nail-biter to Croydon and now dangle three points above the bottom of the ladder.
The Hills posted a competitive 5/183 (45), but couldn’t quite claim the crucial final scalp as Croydon won by one wicket off the second-last ball.
Hills coach John Hayes said, bowling 19 wides and not using the new ball as well as they could have, cost them a potential win.
“It was disappointing. We’ve had a couple of close games so far this year – this one and one against Werribee – which could have gone either way,” he said. “I thought we batted quite well, probably could have made another 20 runs, but our opening spell wasn’t the best and we leaked quite a few.”
Winning the toss and batting first, it was Richard Evans who held the innings together like glue, crafting a patient 71. He was supported with the bat by Chris Peake (28) and John Hayes (18), while Croydon amassed 25 extras that helped them reach their 183 total.
Even though the Hills struck early (1/8) through Matthew Aslett, Croydon still managed to score at a cracking rate, being 1/40 from the first eight overs.
“We let them get away from us early and that set the tone for them,” Hayes said. “They were able to play their shots and they looked very comfortable.”
At 2/96 Croydon was in control, but then collapsed and lost 7/57 thanks to a crucial spell of bowling by Dale Manson (4/38) and sharp bowling by M.Aslett (2/15).
The Hills clawed their way back into the match, but fell at the final hurdle.
Hayes said the next two games were make or break for his team.
“We have some work to do before the break. We have two games and we need to win both,” he said. “If we can be 3-3 at the break, we are still in with a small chance of finals. If we lose both I think our season will be over.”