RELATED – KANGAROO FLAT V STRATHFIELDSAYE | PHOTOS
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CENTURIES to three new players in the Bendigo District Cricket Association this season highlighted Sunday’s round of one-day matches.
Sandhurst’s Nayana Palamandadidge, Bendigo’s Kyle Humphrys and Huntly-North Epsom’s Russell De Groot all plundered tons.
The weekend’s matches were scheduled as a Saturday-Sunday two-day game.
However, with another day of extreme heat on Saturday where the temperature reached 43, the BDCA made the decision on Saturday morning to revert the first XI matches to one-dayers on Sunday.
At Weeroona Oval, Palamandadidge and the Dragons put Bendigo United to the sword with a brutal display of one-day batting where they scored at 7.3 runs per over on the way to a 181-run shellacking of the Redbacks.
The Dragons crunched 7-329 off their 45 overs batting first, with Palamandadidge’s century the standout as his impressive season continued.
In what was his second ton of the season – both of which have come in one-day matches – the Sri Lankan blasted 132 off just 105 balls, helping the Dragons to the highest score in a BDCA one-day match since Eaglehawk made 5-338 against Sandhurst in January of 2009.
The opener got off the mark with a boundary off the bowling of Miggy Podosky (0-76) and took just 70 balls to bring up his ton.
Palamandadidge – who now has 510 runs – and fellow opener Darby Semmens (29) took just 15 overs to bring up 100 for the Dragons, while their next 100 runs came off a mere 11 overs after another hard-hitting innings from the explosive Ash Gray, who posted his fourth half-century.
Gray smacked 59 off just 28 balls, with his intentions signalled early when the first three balls he faced all raced to the boundary.
On what was a tough stint in the field for the Redbacks, Jake Thrum’s 4-47 were the best bowling figures, with his dismissals including both Palamandadidge and Gray.
The Redbacks battled their way to 8-148 in an innings where they were already batting one short following a back injury to Corey Daniels, but then had captain Leigh McDermott forced to retire on 18 with a calf injury.
Having got to 42 without loss, the Redbacks lost 5-22 to fall to 5-64 as the Dragons further tightened their grip on the contest.
As well as producing his side’s best bowling figures, all-rounder Thrum (43 n.o.), who batted at No.3, was also the Redbacks’ leading run-scorer.
Todd Murphy – one of the array of spinners in Sandhurst’s side – gave little away with the ball for the Dragons in taking 3-14 off nine overs.
• Bendigo has taken a major step towards a return to the finals for the first time since 2010-11 with a one-run win over Eaglehawk at Canterbury Park.
The result has turned up the heat on the reigning premier Hawks, who are now 12 points outside the top four with three rounds remaining.
The Goers’ 8-209 – which featured 107 from Kyle Humphrys – proved just enough as the Hawks were bowled out for 208 in reply.
The Goers took 4-12 late to dismiss the Hawks, with the final wicket a run out of Shaun Knott (12).
With Knott on strike to Matt Gray, the Hawks needed three off the last ball to win, or two to tie. Knott hit the ball out to deep cover where it was fielded by Will Collicoat.
Collicoat threw the ball into keeper Shane Koop, who ran out Knott attempting a match-tying second run.
Earlier, Humphrys plundered his third ton of the season with what proved to be a match-winning 107 off 113 as he played the leading hand in rebuilding the Goers’ innings from 3-31 early.
Humphrys – who now has 506 runs – cracked 12 boundaries, one of which brought up his ton, and two sixes in his fine innings.
Richard Tibbett (2-31) and captain Cory Jacobs (2-53) picked up two wickets apiece for the Hawks, who had also been under early pressure in their chase at 3-38 at which point Aaron Monro began his innings.
Monro top-scored for the Hawks with 74 off 93, but his dismissal when bowled by Gray (2-40) to leave the Hawks 7-196 opened the door for the Goers, who had spinner Tom Hart (3-58) add another three wickets to his season tally.
• Russell De Groot’s century wasn’t enough for Huntly-North Epsom to make a winning score against Golden Square at MyJet Oval.
In just his second innings of the season, De Groot showed why he was so keenly sought-after during the off-season with a knock of 103 off 120.
The opening batsman scored half of the runs for the Power, who compiled 9-206 batting first.
De Groot struck five boundaries and three sixes, with the next best score Sandun Ranathunga’s 18. Troy Young (10) was the only other player to reach double figures.
De Groot’s knock ended late in the innings when he was one of the three wickets for Scott Trollope (3-28).
With captain Ben Gunn in dashing form early, Square’s innings got off to a flyer – the side already 64 after just 10 overs, of which Gunn was already 54.
However, the Power fought back after the early onslaught, starting with the dismissal of Gunn (59 off 43) by captain Elliott Massina, with it taking Square until the 44th over to get over the line, with young gun Zane Keighran bringing up the winning runs with a six.
Square answered with 4-211 to win by six wickets and keep hold of second position on the ladder in its centenary season.
Teenager Keighran’s class was on show as he finished unbeaten on 92 (nine fours, four sixes).
Massina (3-23) took three of the four wickets to fall for the Power. While Massina claimed the wicket of Gunn – who smacked eight fours and two sixes in his 59 – Peter Moore (0-49) was unlucky not to get it after he had Gunn caught off a full-toss no-ball when he was 49.
• Strathdale-Maristians retained its position at the top of the ladder with a comfortable win over White Hills at Scott Street.
After winning their first Twenty20 title during the week, the Demons came crashing back with a thud in a 104-run loss.
There was plenty of air-time in the Suns’ innings. Strathdale struck 10 sixes in its tally of 9-228 after winning the toss.
The Suns looked like they could be bowled out inside their 45 overs when they were 8-181 in the 37th, but Jacob DeAraugo (32) and Dylan Bailie (7 n.o.) ensured their innings went the distance.
Captain Ben DeAraugo (49) and opener James Vlaeminck (46) were the two top-scorers for the Suns, while skipper Mitch Winter-Irving’s 3-28 were the best bowling figures for the Demons, who were all out for 124 in reply.
The Demons had been 9-80 before the last-wicket pair of Ben Daley (30 n.o.) and Corey Dickins (14) added 44.
Ryan Haythorpe gave his bowling average a boost by taking 3-4, while Bailie (3-21) also claimed three wickets in what was a clinical performance by the Suns.
• Kangaroo Flat’s bowlers set up the Roos’ seven-wicket victory over Strathfieldsaye at Dower Park.
Led by a four-wicket haul from skipper Brent Hamblin, the Roos bundled the Jets out for 147.
The Jets had been 3-103, before their last seven wickets tumbled for 44 runs.
Hamblin bagged 4-18 off 7.4 overs to take his season tally to 20 wickets.
Jets’ opener Mitch Cheesman worked hard for his 46.
Kangaroo Flat opener Nathan Stubbings carried his bat in the Roos’ innings as the home side chased down its target in the 35th over.
Stubbings finished unbeaten on 69 in the Roos’ 3-148, which included an 83-run partenrship for the second wicket with Jake Klemm (38). Michael Curtis (2-32) was the only multiple wicket-taker for the Jets.