FOR the eighth time in the past 10 seasons Strathdale-Maristians will play in the Bendigo District Cricket Association grand final.
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The top-of-the-ladder Suns put an end to Bendigo’s season of improvement with an 85-run in their semi-final at Bell Oval at the weekend.
The Goers were beaten, despite a sensational bowling performance from Alex Pearson on Saturday.
Pearson bowled like a seasoned finals campaigner, rather than a player in his finals debut.
The opening bowler orchestrated a late Suns’ batting collapse as he bagged 7-50 off 19.1 overs.
Pearson at one stage had 2-44, before he ran through the Suns with 5-6 to produce the third best bowling figures in a BDCA final during the 2000s behind Strathdale-Maristians’ Ben Smith (8-35 in 2000-01) and Bendigo United’s Miggy Podosky (7-49 in 2013-14).
RELATED – DAY ONE PHOTOS
And only Nathan Fitzpatrick’s 8-29 last season are better bowling figures by a Bendigo player during the 2000s.
Pearson took the last five wickets to fall as the Suns collapsed from 5-181 to all out for 208 in the 65th over.
Five of Pearson’s seven wickets were catches by wicket-keeper Shane Koop, while the other two dismissals were both bowled.
It’s the third time this season Pearson has taken at least five wickets in an innings.
Apart from a 100-run partnership for the fifth wicket between Cameron Taylor (64) and captain Ben DeAraugo (53) in another key finals knock, the Suns struggled to build any momentum throughout their innings.
As well as losing 5-27 late in their innings, the Suns had also been 4-45 in the 20th over as they again fell victim to the loss of early wickets for the third game in a row.
Taylor’s 64 off 103 was his highest score of the season, while DeAraugo’s 53 off 89 featured nine boundaries and one six in what was his sixth score above 50 in his past 11 finals innings.
Daniel Clohesy (43) in his maiden finals innings and opener James Vlaeminck (22) were the only other players to reach double figures for the Suns, who had five players dismissed for under five.
RELATED – DAY TWO PHOTOS
One of the highlights of the day was a superb one-handed diving catch by Will Collicoat at cover off Ryan Trickey (1-12) to dismiss Jack Neylon (4).
The Goers were all out on Sunday in reply for 123, having started the day at 2-45 in their chase.
Bendigo’s Kyle Humphrys had gone into the game looming as a major dangerman to the Suns and that proved the case as he had already scored 37 of the Goers’ 45 runs in the 17 overs they faced before stumps on Saturday.
However, once the Suns claimed the vital wicket of Humphrys on Sunday, it signaled the beginning of the end for the Goers in their return to the finals for the first time since 2010-11.
Humphrys scored 72 off 103 balls with six fours and three sixes, with the score on just 83 when he was dismissed lbw by Taylor.
Apart from Humphrys – who ended his debut season for Bendigo with 706 runs – only Pearson (15) and Mark Ryan (11) reached double figures for the Goers.
Before the weekend Ryan was the only Goers’ player in the team to have played in a first XI final for Bendigo.
In comparison, Clohesy was the only Suns’ player who hadn’t previously played in a BDCA first XI final.
The Goers lost their last six wickets for just 22 runs as their premiership drought that extends back to 1994 will continue for at least another season.
The Suns’ successful defence of their total was spearheaded by Taylor and Jacob DeAraugo, who both bagged four wickets.
Taylor snared 4-61 off 24.1 overs to cap a solid all-round game as he lifted his tally of wickets for the season to 37, while DeAraugo claimed 4-15 in what was his best bowling performance in a final.
Like the Suns on Saturday, the Goers also had five players dismissed for less than five.