AS is always the case in sport, the minute you give someone a rap it comes back to bite hard. That’s what happened when I wrote last week that Delungra had firmed early in betting to take out the title this year in the Inverell District Cricket competition only to see the side fall to the Campbell and Freebairn Rebels by two wickets at Varley Oval.
Batting first, Delungra made 174 on a wicket that should’ve yielded so much more. In trouble from the outset, Delungra had few answers to the opening bowling pair of messrs Orchard and Mackie and no batsmen looked comfortable against the Rebels attack all day.
Captain Jack Cole went for two and at one stage Delungra were five for 76 and in real strife until wily veteran Eric Higgins lead the resistance with 37 before he was stumped by David Mudaliar off the bowling off Wilson. The tail failed to wag and within 40 runs, the remaining four wickets all fell without fanfare.
Set 175 to win, the Rebels got off to the worst possible start losing evergreen batsmen Mudaliar for a duck and his opening partner Tim Kolaczyk thereafter for the same score to be reeling at two for 21. The main destroyer Kyle Tonkin had suddenly breathed life into the Delungra side and the match was delicately poised.
Yet as is so often the case in these types of games that in pressing for quick wickets, Delungra began to seep runs and Tim Pilcher and Jon Orchard got the Rebels within 97 runs with six wickets in hand at four for 78. Even at that stage Delungra were still a chance but a timely stand in the lower order put pay to any designs Delungra may have had about an unlikely victory with Dave Walls top score of 36 and other useful contributions late, being enough for the Rebels to record a stirring win.
In the other first grade match of the round, Staggy Creek heaped more misery on Bundarra winning the contest by two runs.
Batting first, the undefeated Staggy Creek side made 257 and were lead well by the usual suspects of Trent Uebergang (46), Troy Brabant (49), Blake Uebergang (42) and Matt Groves (60). Wickets were shared among the bowlers., with no one bowler taking more than one on the day.
Set 258 to win, Bundarra lost Jay Sinclair for 10 before a solid third wicket partnership between Archer and Cook moved the home side within striking distance with the game on the line. A telling spell by Simon Donnelly proved the difference though when he bowled both players for 69 and 68 respectively to put a serious dent in Bundarra’s chances. Only Darren Pithers 28 late in the order had any real substance as the Bundarra side fell short chasing for the second week in a row by a mere two runs.
Chief destroyers for Staggy Creek were Baxter and Brabant with three wickets each.
In B Grade, Delungra accounted for The Invincibles due largely to a four-wicket hall from G. Youlle and an unbeaten century from L. Robinson while the Kaloona Colts enjoyed a good win over Bukkula in the juniors in a match that never really reached any great heights.
A hat-trick to Nullamanna’s Brad Leyton was enough to see his side win by four runs after only making a team total of 76. Leyton’s figures of four for three were the difference between the sides in the end.
Email a friend
Favourites
Del.icio.us
Facebook
Digg
StumbleUpon
MySpace
Reddit
Newsvine
LinkedIn
Kwoff
Twitter