By Marcus Uhe
Emerging Casey South Melbourne star Harry Hoesktra produced a fine all-round performance to guide the Swans home in a thrilling final ball win over Footscray in Victorian Premier Cricket on Saturday.
The key figure in a 40-run final wicket partnership with number 11 Jack Stevenson, Hoesktra’s vital 36 from 21 deliveries dug the Swans out of immense trouble with an upset looming at Mervyn G Hughes Oval.
When Akshay Ramkumar departed with 40 runs outstanding from the final 30 deliveries, Hoekstra asserted himself on the contest with a match-winning performance.
He farmed the strike, ran hard between the wickets and crunched a pair of sixes and fours, manipulating the chase to perfection as he and Stevenson (11 from 14 deliveries) steered the Swans home with a single on the last ball.
With the scores tied and the Footscray fielders all on the ring to prevent a single, a late cut from Stevenson bounced perfectly for the hands of the backward point fielder, but his failure to grasp the ball allowed the batting pair to comfortably complete the single without fear of a run out.
Earlier in the day, the seamer played a key role with his primary skill, striking with the second ball of his opening spell on his way to taking 3/43.
A century for Victorian-listed opener Dylan Brasher helped Footscray reach 9/283 in the first innings of the contest, a score inflated by some late-innings hitting from batter Dylan Kight.
Kight hit five sixes in his innings of 54 from 29 balls and was the main cog in the late onslaught, where the Bulldogs added 57 in the final five overs.
Stevenson and Ruwantha Kellapotha took two wickets each but both Stevenson and fellow opener Nathan Lambden were expensive.
The Swans ran into early trouble in the chase, with Luke Shelton and Kellapotha both dismissed in the opening over to leave the Swans reeling at 2/4.
Ashley Chandrasinghe and Yash Pednekar were forced to pick up the pieces and added 44 for the third wicket before sharp fielding caused a mix up between the pair in the middle of the pitch, and Pednekar was run out on 11.
Chandrasinghe and Devin Pollock both upped the tempo with 61 and 68 respectively but both fell in the middle overs after building momentum.
Pollock’s wicket was followed by Matthew Calder’s later in the same over for 21, meaning two new batters needed to find their way at the crease.
History repeated in the 43rd over when both Nathan Lambden and Vinu Mohotty made way after getting themselves set, leaving the tail to finish the job in the final seven overs.
Hoekstra, Ramkumar and Stevenson proved to be the men for job, keeping the Swans within one point of fourth-place Dandenong.
The Swans host Geelong as Casey Fields this weekend in round 17.
