By Jonty Ralphsmith
Merinda Park’s season of shortcomings and misfortune has continued, with weather leaving the Cobras heartbreakingly short of their opening win of the season.
There was 52 overs possible at Tony Way Recreation Reserve as Merinda Park looked to chase down Devon Meadows’ 9/247, with the Cobras reaching 5/239.
It was the only match in the Casey Cardinia Cricket Association Premier competition which had action on Saturday, with both teams keen to get a game played.
Action didn’t start until 3.30pm, after which the sides played until 7pm.
A 112-run opening partnership between Daniel McCalman and Ashley Slater gave the Cobras a strong platform.
It was McCalman’s third half century of the summer to go with a terrific 181 against Kooweerup which has him in third place on the competition runs tally.
Usually a hard-hitter, Slater, an English recruit, played a steady hand sensing the opportunity for victory.
Tobias Van Den Heever scored a quickfire 42 after the first wicket to keep the momentum in Devon Meadows’ favour, before a flow of wickets to quick Riley Worsteling and spinner Jakeb McVicar levelled the match out.
Bevin Cornielle and captain-coach Matt Campbell came together with the Cobras 40 runs behind, with the pair running hard between the wickets to try to sneak to victory.
Despite scoring 29 runs in the last three overs, the Cobras fell just short.
“We want to continue to prove people wrong and show that we’re not easybeats,” said the Cobras captain-coach.
“The weekend was a huge step forward – in years gone by, we would’ve collapsed in difficult conditions.
“The mindset has shifted and culture has definitely improved.”
The draw means Merinda Park now sits 18 points behind Upper Beaconsfield on the bottom of the table.
Yet, the Cobras have scored in excess of 400 against Kooweerup and nearly pulled off victories against powerhouses Pakenham and Cardinia.
As well as denying Merinda Park of victory, the unseasonal rain has created an 18-point gap between the top four and bottom four.
A pair of heavyweight clashes – Pakenham against Cardinia and Kooweerup against Tooradin – were set to shape the top four and likely weaken two teams’ grasp on a finals-bound position, but the split points has created the separation.
Pakenham was sitting 0/5 in pursuit of Cardinia’s 218 and Tooradin had been set 261 by Kooweerup.
Clyde, meanwhile, was in a strong position to continue its winning form, sitting at 0/26 in pursuit of Upper Beaconsfield’s 192.
