By David Nagel
Two genuine superstars of Casey Cardinia cricket smashed their way to the precipice of 500-run seasons on the weekend as the composition of this year’s finals series takes a familiar shape.
It appears – for the seventh time in 10 years – that Cardinia, Kooweerup, Pakenham and Tooradin will battle it out for this year’s premiership cup after undefeated innings to Chris Smith (140) and Morteza Ali (105) put the final nail in the coffin.
The big four have won 15 of the last 17 flags, with Catani (2007/08) and Beaconsfield (2010/11) the only other clubs to taste success.
Pakenham (4/250) opener Smith basically ended the hopes and dreams of a first top-flight finals appearance for Devon Meadows (8/220) since 2019 after a sparkling innings that was impressive from the outset.
The classy right-hander smashed his 17th century since records were kept in 2008/09, with 28 of his first 34 runs coming in boundaries.
Smith opened his innings with a single before going whack-whack-whack…hitting six, four and six to put the Lions on the front foot.
He shared an opening stand of 23 with Jack Anning (10), before taking a backseat in a swashbuckling 94-run partnership with his skipper Dale Tormey (56 off 57).
The bludgeoning left-hander opened his account with a six, and looked set for a triple-figure score himself until becoming the first of three wickets to an expensive Riley Worsteling (7-0-63-3).
Smith, 43 not out at the time, then took charge, scoring 97 of the remaining 133 runs.
An 86-run union with Stuart Johnson (25 off 30) ensured the Lions were in the box seat heading to the dinner break.
The Panthers began steadily in reply, with Will Halton (37) and Lucas Ligt (23) going at a tick over four-an-over in their opening stand.
But the run out of Ligt, from the last ball of the 13th over, put a different spin on proceedings.
Jakeb McVicar (21) and Steve Robinson (32) both played stylish knocks, but when Tormey (8-0-45-3) claimed three-consecutive wickets the Panthers were behind the eight-ball.
The home side was 6/150 after 30…requiring 10 runs an over with only four wickets in hand.
Lucas Carroll (42 not out, off 33) kept the fire burning bright with an entertaining innings that contained five boundaries and a six, but the imposing target proved a task too much.
The Panthers scored 2/70 from their last 10 overs to fall 30 runs short of the Lions.
Tormey was best for Pakenham, while Jason Williams (8-2-23-0) went wicket-less but did a great containing job early.
While Smith’s knock was magnificent…it’s almost scary to think what Morteza Ali (105 not out, off 81) could have made if Cardinia (2/146) decided to bat first against Clyde (142) at Gunton Oval.
Bulls’ skipper Dean Henwood won the toss and elected to field first…and things went pretty much according to plan.
Only Michael Vandort (42 off 56) played an innings of any real substance as Travis Wheller (8-24-3), Josh Browne (6-3-15-2), Ryan Little (8-0-31-2) and Matt Welsh (3.1-0-8-2) combined for regular breakthroughs.
Then Morteza emerged from the dinner break and went nuts!
He hit the first ball for the innings for six; the third ball for four; and the game was over as a contest.
When Morteza gets going he’s unstoppable.
That’s three big innings he has played this season, and all have remained unbeaten.
He hit 99 against Carlisle Park in round four and then produced an epic 154 against Devon Meadows in round seven.
He didn’t strike a boundary between overs two and six on the weekend, but then really got his eye in.
Ali hit a boundary or a six in nine of the next 15 overs, with four of those multiples.
His best effort was in the 19th, with an early boundary followed by consecutive strikes of four, six and four to finish off the over.
But he saved his best for last…smashing Nick Miles over mid-wicket for his seventh six; ending the match and bringing up his second century for the season.
It’s a great win for the Bulls, who now kick a game and percentage clear in fourth spot.
Everything went perfect; but it just would have been nice to see how deep Morteza could have gone!
A very even batting performance has propelled Tooradin (5/237) to a comfortable victory over Merinda Park (164).
Mick Sweeney decided to bat first, with the Gulls leading run-scorer Cal O’Hare (2) an early victim.
But from there it was all smooth sailing for the Seagulls, with Josh Lownds (69) chalking up his second half-century of the season and Pete Sweeney (44), Dylan Sutton (27) and Tom Hussey (46) all contributing well.
Hussey was aggressive, hitting three sixes in his vigil, his sixth score between 38 and 58 this season.
He then handed over to Brad Butler (25 not out) and Russ Lehman (15 not out) to apply the finishing touches.
Classy conveyances in Mick Sweeney, Tyler Evans and Ben Parrott weren’t required to bat…in a clear sign of the Seagulls impressive depth.
Dan McCalman (8-0-55-2) was the Cobras only multiple wicket-taker.
Pete Sweeney (6-4-24-1) then claimed an early scalp for the home side, before Butler (6-1-29-3) ran rampant.
Putting his express pace to good use, he took three consecutive wickets to make a meal of the Cobras’ top order.
Cambell Bryan (70) and Rumesh Ranasinghe (25) restored some pride with a 76-run stand for the fifth wicket, before Lownds (7-1-23-3) made an impact with the ball.
He removed Bryan, Ranasinghe and Harkamal Singh (10) in the space of 14 runs to lock away the 12 points.
Dylan Sutton (4.4-0-16-2) then finished off the job, making it back-to-back hauls of two.
And Kooweerup (7/241) has fought off a brave challenge from a rapidly improving Carlisle Park (223) in a high-scoring shootout on the artificial outfield at Carlisle.
Players were greeted by graffiti on the pitch before the match, but that didn’t stop batters from having a field day.
Batting first after winning the toss, Chris Bright (78 off 69) led the way for the Demons, smacking 11 boundaries in his opening salvo.
The Demons had consistent contributors from there, with Adam McMaster (35), Suchintha Lakshan (33), Steven Dillon (30) and Mitch Davey (29 not out, off 22) enjoying the pressure-relief valve from Bright.
Vikings skipper Ben Perry (6-0-33-3) was best with the ball for the home side, and then also delivered with the bat.
After a solid start from Hasintha Jayasuriya (25 off 22), Perry (57 off 61) and Kasun Balasuriya (38 off 49) applied pressure on the Demons with an 87-run partnership for the third wicket.
But three strikes in quick succession from Cody Miller (6-1-29-2) and the run out of Senal De Silva (0) put the Demons back in control.
A fighting knock from Mark Henry (40 off 36) ensured the Vikings would pass the 220-run barrier for the first time this season.
ROUND 11 MILESTONES
BATTING
Chris Smith Pakenham 140*
Morteza Ali Cardinia 105*
Chris Bright Kooweerup 78
Cambell Bryan Merinda Park 70
Josh Lownds Tooradin 69
Ben Perry Carlisle Park 57
BOWLING
Josh Lownds Tooradin 3/23
Travis Wheller Cardinia 3/24
Brad Butler Tooradin 3/29
Ben Perry Carlisle Park 3/33
Dale Tormey Pakenham 3/45
Riley Worsteling Devon Meadows 3/63
