An imposing and dominant bowling attack from Kooweerup powered the Demons past Upper Beaconsfield on Saturday on day two of round six of the Casey Cardinia Cricket Association (CCCA) Premier Division.
After being bowled out for 180 on the first day, Kooweerup came right back and tore through the Maroons on their own home deck.
Cooper Davey took two quick wickets to strand the hosts at 2/5 before Charith Keerthisinghe took full control of the contest.
Keerthisinghe, Kooweerup’s new captain/coach, continued to bowl one end while the others changed.
The skipper then mowed down Upper Beaconsfield’s middle and late order, claiming 5/16 from 14.3 overs.
Suddenly, the Maroons were all out for 45 and sent into bat again as the Demons hunted the outright result.
A brave Will Haines (25 not out) effort in the second innings ensured the hosts avoided handing Kooweerup the extra points, ending the day at 7/54.
Farhan Hussain did all he could for the Demons, posting 4/19 off 10 overs in the second innings, with Keerthisinghe claiming a further two wickets to finish the match with seven.
Kooweerup was confident in its total heading into day two despite missing star bowlers Luke and Adam McMaster and Jess Mathers.
“It was always going to be tough with Luke, Adam and Jess out, they’re probably our three strike bowlers,” Demons wicketkeeper Chris Bright said.
“We still had a good bowling attack with a few out, so we’re always confident going in.
“It was slow, so we looked at that 180 being more 275-plus on any other ground.
“But we know we’ve got some good all-rounders that can bowl as well, we’re confident in their ability and our depth.
“Charith is a fantastic bowler and he can bowl all day, which he pretty much did.
“And that’s what we did, Charith bowled one end and we rotated the other to keep the pressure on them.
“With the experience we’ve got and what we’ve done over the past 10 years, he (Keerthisinghe) really backs us in to do what we do as cricketers and he’s really good like that.
“His bowling is next level, we haven’t had a spinner like that in a real long time.”
Kooweerup currently sits a game clear in third with a tricky run home to close out the new year.
But the Demons have one thing that is growing amongst their group that holds them in good stead.
“We’re starting to build some belief,” Bright acknowledged.
“We’ve taken it up to Tooradin and Cardy and we’ve lost both but either could’ve gone the other way as well.
“We always knew we had the ability to bounce back.
“Over the last few weeks we started to go through the motions and it started to show in our cricket, but we’ve started to get back that enjoyment.
“The guys have seen what Charith can do with the ball at one end and it gets them excited so if they just work on their own game and put in 10 percent more, it’s going to go a long way to us posting totals and bowling sides out.”
Pakenham comfortably held off Officer in the Bullants’ chase of 310 at Toomuc Reserve.
An inspired Lions performance with plenty of previous premiership heroes in attendance boosted Jack Anning’s side to bowling out the visitors for 177.
Jason Williams and Marcus Martini each took three wickets, while Anning decided to take the ball and picked up a pair of poles in his first time bowling since November 2024, with Pakenham picking up the 132-run triumph.
Tooradin also cruised to victory over Devon Meadows, posting a 156-run win after knocking over the Panthers for 107 at Booring Reserve.
Lucas Ligt provided majority of the scoring with a fearless 59 off 127 balls but a five-fa including a hat-trick from tearaway Brad Butler was more than enough for the Seagulls to secure the 12 points.
