Sport
22 January, 2024
MDCA’s perfect preparation for Melbourne Country Week yields 53-run win over Grenville
The Maryborough District Cricket Association’s (MDCA) preparation for Melbourne Country Week has gone perfectly, maintaining their hold of the Sharp Shield thanks to a 53-run victory over the Grenville Cricket Association at Princes Park on...
The Maryborough District Cricket Association’s (MDCA) preparation for Melbourne Country Week has gone perfectly, maintaining their hold of the Sharp Shield thanks to a 53-run victory over the Grenville Cricket Association at Princes Park on Sunday.
The victory arrived thanks to a supreme batting performance from Laanecoorie Dunolly’s Sergio Rosier and Beaufort’s Lachlan Oddie, while fellow Crow, 15-year-old Ben Grant, lit up Princes Park with a brilliant bowling display.
The MDCA elected to bat first on what looked to be a good pitch to do so, and Laane duo Sam Bartlett and Tom Hannett came out to make inroads on putting together a good total.
Together, the duo put on 38 runs after Grenville asked some questions of the pair early with the ball, before Hannett was first to go, caught at cover from a spooned shot.
Clunes wicketkeeper Jude McGuire was in next, and was immediately looking to push the pace with Bartlett, with the pair putting on 11 runs before Bartlett skied a shot to mid-wicket.
That meant Magpies duo McGuire and Lachlan Morganti were set to bat together, and the pair did well to put on 32 for the third wicket, with both playing some good shots as they looked to push the run-rate.
But that came to an end a heartbeat before the drinks break, with Morganti bowled to leave the MDCA 3/81.
Immediately after the break, Grenville arguably had their best passage of the game. First, they claimed the wicket of McGuire after trapping him plumb in front for LBW, before they soon had Mitch Coppick caught, which left the MDCA teetering on 5/103.
Enter Rosier.
Knowing he and Oddie had 13 overs to make a defendable total, Rosier played some expansive shots which, at times, left the Grenville fielders befuddled.
Highlights included an expansive reverse sweep for four, as well as a superb cover drive which cleared the Princes Park fence.
Oddie, at the other end, was holding up his end of the bargain with some good stroke-making of his own.
Rosier passed 50 as he put together his best performance with the bat so far this season, and would eventually finish on 69 not out.
It took until the last ball, but Oddie also made 50, and together, the duo put on 119 runs for the sixth wicket as the MDCA finished on 5/222.
The MDCA were hoping to get early wickets in order to make things comfortable, but it wasn’t quite smooth sailing in the opening stages, with the Grenville opening duo of Andrew Doolan and Shaun McArthur putting on runs at a brisk pace.
But Morganti was able to steady the ship with the score on 36, and that triggered a top order collapse.
Morganti collected the wicket of Doolan, who was caught thanks to a sharp dive from Jack Smith, before McArthur went shortly after off the bowling of Rosier, who lured him into a shot straight to Hannett.
That was the first of two wicket-maidens in a row, with Morganti bowling James Porter with the next ball to leave Grenville teetering on 3/36.
Ned Uren and Kirk McDonald negotiated some good bowling to go into the drinks break at 3/61, but they desperately needed to pick up the pace like the MDCA did, requiring 162 off the last 120 deliveries.
That wasn’t forthcoming, as some good work from McGuire behind the stumps gave Grant his first wicket, removing McDonald for 28.
Uren picked up the pace, largely contributing to a 49-run partnership, Grenville’s best with the bat.
Oddie was next to strike, however, clean bowling Alex Miller for 13.
With time running out for Grenville, the MDCA were having a good time, and Grant in particular was responsible for cleaning out the final few wickets of the match.
He bowled both Aidan Graham and Brad Adams, before combining with Oddie to take a good catch to remove Max Uren.
Grenville finished on 8/169, with the Sharp Shield staying in the MDCA’s hands in their first meeting since 2019.
Grant finished with impressive figures of 3/18, while Morganti and Oddie impressed, taking 2/17 and 2/41 respectively.
The MDCA’s Andrew Oddie was thrilled with the result.
“It was great to see a rep game back in the region. Two associations so close together should be playing each other every year,” he said.
“There were some impressive performances. I loved the way Sergio Rosier batted, and Ben Grant bowling for a 15-year-old to take 3/18 in a rep game is brilliant stuff.”
Andrew said Grant was extremely impressive after his late call-up.
“He was a late fill-in as we had people out injured or working, so we needed people to play, and he didn’t take much convincing. He was ready to go and he has a big future,” he said.
Andrew added that Rosier looked a class above with the added competition at rep level.
“If he can continue to bat like that, it will give a massive boost to the boys as he has an extra layer of class,” he said.
With the likes of Country Week captain Mitch McClure and Daniel Romeo still to come in, Andrew says there will be plenty of competition with both bat and ball.
“We still have Daniel Romeo to come back in, and Sam Bartlett didn’t bowl, as he was a bit sore. I don’t envy the captains having to pick batting lineups and who will bowl, as we have a lot of depth in both. It should be really good,” he said.
“The further the day went on, the more connected they were, which was another reason I was keen for this game, to get the boys in one place at one time instead of just having words from one end of the pitch to the other when they play against each other. The more time they spend together, the more chat there will be.”
The MDCA’s path to Country Week glory has also been unveiled, with their first game to be played against Ballarat at Eastern Oval on Monday, February 12, before travelling to Melbourne.
They’ll then play Sunraysia at Greenvale on February 13, Kingston Hawks under 18s the following day at Essendon, and South West to conclude the round robin matches at Greenvale on February 15.
Andrew said it was a great result to play games close to the MDCA’s accommodation for the week.
“The organisers wanted to match the draw to where we were staying so there wasn’t massive drives, but they are doing their best to make sure more associations are in and looked after,” he said.
