On Tuesday 15 October, the West Gippsland Wombats over 70s cricket team played the previously undefeated Warrandyte over 70s team at Warrandyte.
The ground was in excellent condition and it appeared that 200 runs would be a par score.
Warrandyte won the toss and sent the Wombats into bat.
The Wombats opened with the captain Fred Debono and Carl Muscat.
They both retired by the 10th over with the score on 43, with Muscat making 13 (30) and Debono 22 (30).
Keith Houghton retired after a well compiled 31 off 30 balls.
In the 18th over with the score on 98, Pieter Loos was bowled by Warwick Davidson on 23 (16).
The score had progressed to 132 by the 27th over when the Wombats lost four wickets for four runs.
Neil White (24 from 27) and Basil Kehayas (zero from three) were both caught by Ian Coutts off the bowling of Bob White, Russell Ferguson was LBW to Noel Sharpe for 16 from 29 and next ball, Sharpe bowled John Moore on his first ball.
Mike Newton (five from seven) became Coutts’ third victim, when he was stumped off the bowling of Paul Denton.
Jim Gregory (two from nine) was bowled by White and White went on to claim his fourth wicket when he bowled Jon Martindale on 14 (23).
The score was 168 when the Wombats lost their ninth wicket, as Jim Armstrong was run out by Sharpe on five from 17.
Debono (28 from 34) and Muscat (27 from 43) returned and batted until the end of the 40th over to take the score to 9/184.
Warrandyte Bowling: Man of the Match White 4/29 (eight overs), Sharpe 2/34 (eight overs), Denton 1/39 (eight overs), Davidson 1/10 (two overs), Steve Pascoe 0/23 (seven overs), John Ryan 0/28 (five overs), Charman 0/10 (two overs).
John Ryan and Norm Barnfield opened the batting for Warrandyte and both retired by the 10th over with the score on 46; Ryan adding 24 from 30 deliveries Barnfield 18 from 30.
Charman was the first wicket to fall, when he was brilliantly run out by a return from Kehayas to Ferguson on four, before Kehayas showed his fielding prowess again by running out the next batter, Bob Rogers on 12 from 19 with a throw to Neil White.
The batter at the other end during these run-outs was Ray Baird (24 from 21) who was bowled by Kehayas.
With the score 3/98 in the 19th over, the totals were very similar at the halfway mark.
Bob White was bowled by Newton on 18 (14) and Pascoe (12 off 13) became the third run out when Loos’ direct-hit found Pascoe short of his ground.
With the score on 173, Warrandyte lost three wickets for one run when Denton and Davidson, who both failed to score, were both bowled by Debono and Coutts was bowled by Armstrong.
The opening batters returned and were able to pass the Wombats’ score at the end of the 35th over.
John Ryan (25 from 31) and Norm Barnfield (27 from 33) finished unbeaten and Warrandyte were 8/185.
Therefore, they have kept their unbeaten record, but only just.
Wombats bowling: Gregory 0/27 (five overs), Keith Houghton 0/15 (three overs), Carl Muscat 0/13 (three overs), Pieter Loos 0/30 (eight overs), Neil White 0/18 (two overs), Mike Newton 1/32 (seven overs), Kehayas 1/16 (three overs), Jim Armstrong 1/12 (one over) and Man of the Match Debono 2/17 (three overs).
The Wombats’ next match is on Tuesday 29th of October against Mornington/Canterbury and is a home game at Outtrim.
-John Moore
