By David Nagel
Sport…just like life…well it has its ups and downs!
Life was good for Officer – the flowers were blooming – at the start of February, after staving off a brave round-12 challenge from Clyde (238 to 219) to basically assure itself a place in the CCCA Premier Division next season.
Near relegation contender Merinda Park looked a basket-case, having been rolled by Kooweerup for just 23 on the same day…and the Bullants positive destiny really did look assured.
With just two rounds remaining, and Clyde and Merinda Park playing in round 13, the bottom three looked like this:
W L D % PTS
Officer 4 7 1 0.66 54
Merinda Park 3 8 1 0.69 42
Clyde 2 9 1 0.63 30
Well, fast-forward to the start of March and those clear blue skies have turned to a dark shade of grey with an extraordinary set of circumstances consigning the devastated Bullants back to District Division after their first season back in the top flight.
So, how did it all unfold?
After day one in round 13…the Bullants looked even more safe!
Merinda Park had rebounded from that poisonous 23 to make an antidotal 8/303 against Clyde…with the Cougars needing to hunt down that intimidating score to keep their season alive.
The Cougars looked cooked, 10 wickets away from certain relegation.
But guess what, they did it, making 4/304 – and people that have been around sport for a long time could feel something brewing!
After round 13, with one round remaining, the battle for relegation looked like this:
W L D % PTS
Officer 4 8 1 0.62 54
Clyde 3 9 1 0.69 42
Merinda Park 3 9 1 0.69 42
The Bullants were up against it in the final round of the season, hosting third-placed Kooweerup, but it was an assignment that paled into insignificance compared to the bottom two.
Clyde would pay a visit to top-of-the-table Tooradin while Merinda Park had an equally difficult road-trip against Tooradin’s nearest pursuer in Pakenham.
The bottom two would need to defeat the top two for the Bullants to be at risk!
Heading into day two Clyde, chasing 151 against Tooradin, and Merinda Park, defending 197 against the Lions, were both in contention.
As for Officer, a top effort in the field left its destiny in its own hands chasing 177 against the Demons.
It leads us to final day full of drama.
Half centuries from Michael Vandort (67) and Trevor Bauer (53) led Clyde (4/161dec) to a six-wicket victory over Tooradin (151 and 2/21), while a six-wicket haul from left-arm finger spinner Sasindu Perera (6/45 off 29.5) guided Merinda Park (197 and 2/13) to a comfortable win over Pakenham (145).
Rob Elston (49) and Jack Anning (32) had the Lions on track early, before the persistence of Perera gradually wore the home side down.
The efforts of Vandort, Bauer and Perera deserve more recognition – but there’s a bigger story to be told here!
It was now over to Officer, cruising at 0/122 against Kooweerup.
The revised target…55 runs with 10 wickets in hand.
Just five kilometres away from Starling Road, at Toomuc Reserve, the Cobras, Merinda Park, – despite being winners – had almost accepted their fate.
The Cobras need Officer to implode, and implode badly.
Officer openers Kane Hawkins (94) and Chathura Imbulagoda (41) appeared to stave off Kooweerup’s best shot, with damaging left-hander Hawkins in imperious touch, crunching seven balls to the boundary and four over the ropes in a devastating 79-ball vigil.
It was a season-saving innings if ever there’d been one.
The Bullants were not only going to win, but going at almost a run a ball…the cans were going to be cracked early.
But in the 22nd and 24th overs, Adam McMaster (2/37) would claim the wickets of Imbulagoda and Hawkins – trying to get to his century in one hit – to change the course of the match.
The revised target…42 runs with eight wickets in hand.
Adam would then hand over to his brother Luke – a player capable of anything – who would soon become a name that will send shivers down the spines of Officer players for a very long time to come.
Remember the day Luke McMaster (7/44) broke our hearts!
McMaster knocked over the castle of Jack James (0) with the last ball of the 25th over, before having Aidan Pipicelli (1) caught, and Bullants’ skipper Ash Smith (0) trapped in front with the first and fifth balls of the 27th.
Panic, well it had now set in – the Bullants revised target…35 runs with five wickets in hand.
The Bullants needed a calming influence, a circuit-breaker, and it came in the form of Nick McLennan (23) who shared a vital – considering the circumstances – 12-run partnership with a nervous and tentative Nick Whitelaw (3).
But in the 35th over, McMaster struck dual blows again.
In the space of three balls he had Whitelaw inspecting his damaged timberwork, before striking Taj Beddows (0) on the pads for a second-ball duck.
It was now 7/151…26 runs required with three wickets in hand.
McLennan (23) then took charge for the Bullants, who fought back to 7/167 courtesy of a 15-run partnership with Jonty Bennie (1).
The Bullants needed just 10 runs, with three wickets in hand, to be playing Premier Division cricket next season.
But McMaster struck again, removing McLennan, caught by Jess Mathers, in the 43rd over, to leave a vulnerable tail exposed.
Bennie became the ninth wicket to fall, trapped in front by McMaster, his seventh wicket, before Mathers (1/42) hit the stumps of Leigh Boyle (2) with the very next ball.
Just like that it was over…game and season…the Bullants six runs short of their target.
Batting collapses are oner thing, but the Bullants only have themselves to blame after being the only team to have won just one game in the final six rounds of the season.
That aforementioned win against Clyde in round 12 appeared to save their season, but their brittleness through the middle-order was one of the most glaring weaknesses in the competition.
It was identified and exposed by opposition captains, who played the waiting game and waited for the Bullants to crack.
They eventually did, in extraordinary circumstances, losing 10/49 – including 9/36 – on the final day of the season to refund their hard-earned ticket to the top-flight.
Will they bounce back?
Only time will tell, but it will only be done on the back of a significant restructure of their batting line-up.
Officer’s stunning collapse completely overshadowed the other main battle on Saturday, that between Tooradin and Pakenham for top-spot on the ladder.
Tooradin held the minor premiership until the final overs of the season, before losing two wickets in their second innings (2/21) against Clyde – while Pakenham claimed two simultaneously against Merinda Park (2/13) – to see the Lions finish on top.
Tooradin, second, will now host Kooweerup in one semi-final, while Pakenham will host an in-form Cardinia.
The Bulls defended their first-innings total of 203 brilliantly, holding Carlisle Park (78) to its lowest score of the season, with skipper Jake Prosser (5/14 off 10) backing up his half-century from day one with a five-wicket haul.
Josh Grogan (2/30) and Lachie Volpe (2/12) played solid support roles for the Bulls.
Cardinia (3/70) then batted for a second time before declaring and chasing outright victory.
The Bulls made early inroads, having the Vikings 3/9 after three wickets to Dean Henwood (3/14) but had to settle for first innings points.
Senal De Silva (18) and Ben Perry (12) were the not out batters for the Vikings who finished at 3/38 and in fifth-position on the ladder.
They finished level on 54 points with Clyde, Merinda Park and Officer, but were spared the final round drama due to a superior percentage.
