By David Nagel
There will be more storylines to tell than an Agatha Christie novel when the last five hours of the CCCA Premier Division plots its course on Saturday.
Has fate already determined that Clyde will knock Pakenham from the top four; a result that would also see Tooradin take over top spot from Cardinia.
And will Kooweerup produce a helter-skelter final day of the season; winning outright against Devon Meadows to keep their top-two hopes alive?
It’s all about to unfold in a gripping and tense final day of the season.
The finals prospects of Clyde (226) are still flickering bright after the Cougars fought hard to build a competitive total against Cardinia at Gunton Oval.
The Cougars received a solid-start from openers Trevor Bauer (29) and Kane Avard (41), but were soon on the back foot as Bulls’ spinner Yohan Arumadura (4/59) went to work.
The classy-offie removed three of the Cougars big-four in a hurry, and threatened to bring the curtain down for the visitors, before Teddy Fonseka (73 not out) and Dev Narayan Brijesh (23) fought to keep their season alive.
Trishane De Silva (3/42) did some late damage for the Bulls; but things are delicately poised with 80 overs left to play.
If the Cougars roll the Bulls, and Tooradin defends its 184 against Pakenham; Clyde will be an unlikely participant in finals.
It’s an exciting prospect, heading into the final round of the season, that skipper Bauer couldn’t have predicted in October.
“Being realistic, I would have said probably not, because the top four are collectively a tough nut to crack,” he said.
“The biggest improvement we’ve made this year is the separation we’ve made away from the bottom three sides.
“We’ve managed to beat Devon twice; beat Merinda Park twice; we beat Upper Beaconsfield once and then had a washout on day two needing 160 to win with 10 wickets in hand.
“That’s been the biggest shift from previous seasons, where we’ve put ourselves in precarious positions because we dropped games against teams around us.
“To beat Pakenham in the last game before Christmas, gave us confidence and showed the improvement we’ve been making.
“I thought we were the fifth-best team coming in, but to be a chance of making the top four is pretty exciting.”
Clyde looked cooked mid-way through round-13, needing to chase down Tooradin’s 9/349 to keep their season alive.
Meanwhile, Pakenham, courtesy of Chris Smith, had posted 6/397 against Devon Meadows.
Both run-chases would need to be successful for the Cougars to have any chance of playing finals cricket.
But a Fire Danger Rating of ‘Extreme’ halted day two action and kept the Cougars within reach of the Lions in the top four.
“Honestly, I was disappointed we didn’t get to bat against Tooradin, because the top-four teams are the ones you want to stand up and be counted for against,” Bauer said.
“The outfield was quick, there would have been pace on the ball; it would have been an exciting run-chase to be a part of.
“You can call it a blessing in disguise; or fate or what not, but maybe it’s the cricket gods rewarding the hard work we’ve put in.
“If you’re good enough; here’s your opportunity…that type of thing.
“Win, lose or draw this Saturday, we’ve made a step forward, but if we do lose and Tooradin wins; we’ll be bitterly disappointed.”
Saturday’s innings showcased one of the Cougars strengths this season, with Fonseka holding things together after Bauer, Praveen Perera (0) and Michael Vandort (10) had failed to flatter.
Four century-makers this season, in the one team, carries with it some credence.
“We know within ourselves, when we get in, we get in,” Bauer said.
“For me, Praveen, Michael and Teddy to all make hundreds give you confidence that you can be the one on any given day to anchor the innings.
“It’s good for us and shows why we’ve been more competitive this year.”
So attention now turns to 1pm this Saturday, where the Cougars need to bring down the Bulls on their own deck to be a chance of making top four.
“I think we have to hit them hard early, but that can go both ways because (Alex) Nooy is an attacking batter and will look for anything loose, wide, or over pitched,” Bauer said.
“Our best opportunity to get into the game is early wickets, and what we’ve shown this year is we can also backtrack it and take some pace off.
“We can completely change momentum and the dynamic, but Plan A is to hit them hard with our front line and then work with Praveen, Teddy and Kane (Avard) as the left-arm option through the middle.
“As good as (Ankush) Rana is with the new ball, his strength is his second and third spells where he has done a lot of damage this year.
“That relentless death bowling is a real strength…it’s exciting.”
Bauer said he had one last message for his team.
“I sent a message before day one on Saturday saying our group has played good cricket to avoid relegation, and now we’ve got the chance to play good cricket to make the finals,” he said.
“We’ve been bonded and galvanised by a couple of tough matches that we just had to win over previous years, so hopefully we can take that, and the excitement, into this week against the top side and have a red-hot crack at them.”
And will he keep an eye on the path of the Pakenham v Tooradin game at Pakenham?
“Part of me doesn’t want to know, but I’m not sure how the boys would react if I said to shut-down Play Cricket for the day,” Bauer chuckled.
“But I’m sure if the Cardy boys know the game is going Pakenham’s way…they’ll be letting us know about it.
“It’s an interesting juxtaposition to be in; worried about another game and equally worrying about our own.”
Pakenham (0/5) slightly has the upper-hand over Tooradin (184) after a grinding afternoon of Pink Ladies Day cricket at Toomuc Reserve.
Jason Williams (4/55), James Close (2/32) and Sendhil Naidu (1/9) kept the pressure on for the Lions before Country Week teammates Tyler Evans (40) and Ben Parrott (43) dug deep through the middle order for the Gulls.
Marcus Martini (2/56) did some late damage for the Lions; who had a tricky two-over patch to survive just before stumps.
Skipper Jack Anning (2 not out) and Close (3 not out) will resume hostilities with the Seagulls with a huge prize on the line.
Merinda Park (9/157) is celebrating its first win of the season after performing a demolition job on Upper Beaconsfield (79) at Lochaven Reserve.
The Maroons were powerless to stop the onslaught as Sasindu Perera (4/29), Bevin Corneille (3/15) and Matt Dennerley (2/16) did as they pleased in 36 overs of carnage.
The Cobras then banked the 12 premiership points with the loss of only one wicket, with talented-pair Ash Slater (86) and Charl Van Den Heever (42) sharing a bright and entertaining stand.
Veteran Scott Pitcher (4/37) and youngster AJ Claxton (4/78) fought back well for the Maroons.
And Kooweerup (2/73) is well placed to push for outright points after a dominant day-one against Devon Meadows (135) at Denhams Road.
Lucas Ligt (75) and Nathan Worsteling (28) initially frustrated the Demons push; but the loss of those triggered a pretty startling collapse.
The Panthers lost their last six wickets in just 10 overs, with Chris Cleef (13 not out) watching the carnage unfold.
Luke McMaster (4/36) mopped up the tail for the Demons, while Adam McMaster (2/42) and Jess Mathers (2/40) also claimed key wickets.
McMaster (42), of the Luke variety, then made sure there were no nasty surprises in the chase.
Shiran Rathnayake (17 not out) will face first ball when play resumes this Saturday.
