UNITED steamrolled its way to the Emu Valley Cricket Association premiership at the weekend, belting Spring Gully by 143 runs.
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The win was the 17th division one flag in the past 36 years for the powerhouse club.
Defending a score of 9-228 at JG Edwards Oval, the Tigers strangled the Crows with the ball on Sunday, with Spring Gully crawling its way to 85 before it was all out in the 58th over.
Daniel Francis and Layton Ross combined for nine of the 10 wickets for the Tigers, whose premiership win capped a season in which they lost just one game.
Ross bagged a grand final five-for with his 5-13 off 6.4 overs. He took five of the last six wickets to fall, while man-of-the-match Francis took the first four wickets.
Francis finished with 4-16 off 13 overs, with all four wickets coming between his seventh and 10th overs when he snared 4-3, while he also took two catches.
While he didn’t take any wickets, United veteran Keiran Nihill was superb in keeping the clamps on the Crows with his remarkably economical 0-21 off 23 overs that featured 12 maidens.
It seems unjust Nihill doesn’t feature in the top performers graphic.
While the Crows were all out for 85, the Tigers had to work hard for their first wicket – Shaun Makepeace (23) – which didn’t fall until the 32nd over.
But the score was just 35 as Makepeace and fellow opener Jayden Mannix (10) struggled to make inroads into their target.
Once Makepeace, who was bowled by Francis, was dismissed, it signaled the beginning of the end for the Crows as the rest of the wickets tumbled for just 50 runs.
Apart from Makepeace and Mannix, the only other player to make double figures for the Crows was captain Alex Sutton (20).
Meanwhile, on Saturday after winning the toss, United posted 9-228 off its 75 overs.
The Tigers had been 8-182 and the Crows were up and about after grabbing three quick scalps, before the last two United wickets combined to add a valuable 46 runs.
EVCA Cricketer of the Year Alex Collins proved the mainstay of the Tigers’ innings with another crucial big-game innings.
Collins top-scored for the Tigers with 85 in what was his seventh score above 50 in 11 innings this season.
Collins began his innings in the sixth over when Tigers’ captain Josh White (17) was caught at fine leg by Des Gilmore off James Fox with the score on 22.
It became 2-30 three overs later when fellow opener Seb Greene (4) was caught and bowled by Crows’ paceman Saheed Akolade.
But from 2-30, Collins – given an early life when Crows wicket-keeper Brannon Stanford spilled a tough leg-side chance – and Xavier Walsh batted the Tigers back into a strong position heading towards tea.
The pair – the only two players to make more than 30 in the grand final – had the Crows under pressure as they advanced the score to 103, before Spring Gully broke the partnership in the 35th over when Walsh was caught at mid-off by Sutton off Liam Pilcher (1-29 off 8).
Walsh made 31, striking four boundaries in his innings.
The Tigers went to the tea break at 3-107 off 38 overs with Collins and James Smith at the crease and United threatening for a score of 260-plus.
However, the Crows were able to stem the tide after tea with wickets at regular intervals, starting when Smith (1) was run out by Makepeace from the boundary going for a third run, which was soon followed by the dismissal of Patrick Hartney (1) that had United 5-133.
The Crows claimed the big scalp of Collins in the 51st over when he was caught by Liam Crapper at mid-wicket off Fox with the score on 166.
Collins cracked 11 boundaries in his knock.
Within the space of five overs, Spring Gully also removed Nihill (8) and George Hartney (15) – who got off the mark by hooking Fox for six – and all of a sudden the Crows had the momentum and the Tigers were in danger of being bowled out for less than 200.
However, coach Andrew Duguid (8 n.o.), who survived several lbw shouts from Akolade early in his innings, combined with Ross (14) and No.11 Francis (21 n.o.) to bat the remaining 19 overs and push the score to 9-228 at stumps.
Fox finished as the leading wicket-taker for the Crows with a haul of 4-71 off 19 overs, claiming the scalps of Collins, White, George Hartney and Patrick Hartney.
Akolade took 2-56 off 16 overs, while Sutton was economical in his 1-27 off 18 overs.
The Tigers were denied a premiership double after Mandurang beat United by eight wickets in the division two grand final.
WHAT THE CAPTAINS SAID:
Josh White (United) – “To get 230-odd on Saturday was terrific, and then the way we bowled early today was something I didn’t expect.
“Nihilly bowled 23 overs for 21 runs and from there I was confident we’d win.
“We knew if we stuck to our gameplan today, 230 would always be a long way away for them, which it was.
“Today is testament to the effort we’ve put in all season. Everyone has worked really hard to improve their game and get to today.”
Alex Sutton (Spring Gully) – “I thought we did well to keep them to a score of under 250 from where they had been at tea on Saturday.
“We felt today that we could get 230, but unfortunately, they just bowled really well, were disciplined, fielded well and we weren’t good enough. It’s disappointing, but we feel we’re in good stead to continue on next season.”