By Marcus Uhe
Four wickets and a half century to playing-coach Chris Cleef helped Devon Meadows secure a 78-run win over Upper Beaconsfield in the CCCA District grand final.
The Panthers were dismissed for 225 in oppressive conditions at Glover Rec Reserve batting first on Saturday thanks to a six-wicket haul to Andrew McDonald, before rolling the Maroons for 147 in a cooler climate on Sunday afternoon to secure promotion to Premier Division next season.
Coming in when his side was wobbling at 3/58, with Lucas Ligt, Steven Robinson and Trent Delaney all having departed for scores of 10 or less, Cleef set to work resurrecting the stumble with wicketkeeper Will Halton, as Chad McDonald and Daniel Brennan charged in with their tails up.
The two only added 15 for the fourth wicket before Halton had to go for 39, but Cleef remained steadfast, putting on 61 with Nathan Worsteling to restore some calm to the line-up.
61 from 101 with eight fours from Cleef top-scored for the Panthers, followed by 53 from captain Lucas Carroll.
Upper Beaconsfield would have felt optimistic about its chances of chasing 226, having kept danger-man Ligt to just 10.
But their chase could hardly have begun worse, with Corey Joyce run-out for a duck, having only faced one delivery.
Ligt whipped the bails off from a sharp Nathan Worsteling throw to the non-strikers end, sending the Panthers into a frenzy.
When Ligt had Brennan and Wellwood dismissed by the 19th over, Upper Beaconsfield had crawled to 3/31, and the Panthers were right on-top.
Imesh Jayasekara shaped as the big wicket, and he looked a class-above his teammates, hitting seven fours on his way to 43.
A brilliant return catch from Lucas Carroll jumping to his left to remove Taylor Joyce at the end of the 34th over increased their ascendancy even further, and from there the batting fell-away.
The final seven wickets fell for 68 runs, with the Maroons made to pay for some reckless batting that provided catching practice for Devon Meadows fielders.
Nathan Worsteling held-on to a juggling catch at cover to dismiss William Haines, and appropriately it was Cleef, who had bowled unchanged for the duration of the innings, who bowled Jayden Joyce for the final wicket to secure the grand final victory.
Carroll said it was an unbelievable feeling to win the District premiership, having suffered heartbreak with the same squad in previous years.
“It feels as good as it can feel,” he said.
“We lost a grand final a couple of years ago and then lost to them in the semi last year, so to get it done this year and be back up with the big boys next year, it’s bloody fantastic.
“At the start of the day, (we were) probably not (happy with 220), but when we were six for not much, to eek-out 220, we were pretty happy with.
“Runs on the board are always hard to chase, I think on our ground you want at least 250/260 but it’s always hard to chase on the second day of a grand final.”
Devon Meadows and Upper Beaconsfield had been the benchmarks all season, jostling for first and second position on the ladder and only losing twice each.
In the case of Upper Beaconsfield, those two losses came against the Panthers, who were out to make-amends after the Maroons booted them the finals series in 2021/22.
Ligt would finish with a remarkable 916 runs at an average of 91, nearly doubling his next-best teammate, while Cleef’s 38 wickets set the benchmark among the league’s best bowlers.
It was the culture and the tight-knit bond between the squad that made the premiership extra special, according to Carroll.
“Going through the grand final loss a couple of years ago, hurts,” he said.
“People can either pull-apart or they can come closer, and we became closer.
“We’re a really tight group and if you’re close, you want other people to succeed with you.
“You don’t care if you make a duck, if someone else makes the runs, you’re happier for them than you are yourself.
“Even through the lower grades, it’s always been pretty close-knit this club. Once you come here, people don’t tend to leave.”
Securing promotion to Premier Division, Carroll said he’s excited about what lies ahead.
“I got to play (in Premier) a few years ago for a couple of years and it’s where you want to play; you don’t want to be in the second division, you want to be up with the big boys and competing with them.
“We’ll see how we go.”
