In DDCA Turf 2, HSD held off another gallant effort from North Dandenong to move to 4-2 for the season and sit third on the ladder.
It hasn’t been easy for the Cobras over the past fortnight, but they have secured two crucial wins which are crucial in the context of their season.
HSD’s damaging bowling attack again led the way, spearheaded by Sakuntha Liyanage, who now has 24 wickets for the season at an average of 8.83.
He took 3/23 to prevent any North Dandenong batter from pushing on, while Brett Hookey (3/30) and Luke Grady (2/31) also contributed strongly.
Imran Laghmani top-scored for the Maroons with 36 as the side was bowled out for 131, before backing it up with the ball to claim 3/43 off his nine overs.
Despite regular wickets falling, the Cobras dug deep to chase down the total in the 40th over, with Brayden Lambden (18 not out) and Hans Bell (10 not out) guiding them home – the top five all chipped in with scores between 10 and 25.
Narre Warren cemented its place in second on the ladder with an important win over Coomoora after last week’s washout.
Batting first, the Roos were lifted by an unbeaten 61 from number eight Liam Hard, pushing the team total to 164, while Mark Radhakrishnan was the pick of the Magpies bowlers with 4/23 off his nine overs.
Ted Kahandawala (37) set the tone in the chase despite losing Dulanja Silva for a duck, before Ben Swift starred with 67 off 60 balls, striking 10 boundaries to help Narre Warren win by four wickets.
Silverton edged Lyndale in a thriller, winning by just one run after bowling them out in the final over of the game.
Anmol Zakhmi (74) was in fine form with the willow as he carried the Bakers to 155, with Aditya Hettiarachchi taking two wickets.
Lyndale found itself in trouble before a lower-order fightback, with Girish Chopra (36), Manroop Singh (49) and Puyush Kant Banotra (10 not out) combining for 95 runs of the team’s 154.
Despite the surge and inspired performances, they fell short by just one run, as Rajeev Dhankar ripped through the batting order to take 3/31.
Parkfield remained undefeated on top of the ladder after another tight win over Cranbourne.
Batting first, the premiership favourites posted 172 thanks to Sam Beadsworth (43) and Sahan Jayawardana (41), with the Eagles bowlers sharing the workload.
Bailey Paroissien’s 70 gave Cranbourne hope in the chase, but once he fell, the Eagles lost their final three wickets for one run to fall 12 runs short.
Jayawardana (3/22) and Dishan Malalasekera (3/34) led the way with the ball.
LADDER: Parkfield 41, Narre Warren 30, HSD 29, Coomoora 24, Silverton, Lyndale 15, North Dandenong, Cranbourne 9.
FIXTURE (Round 8): North Dandenong v Narre Warren at Lois Twohig Turf, Cranbourne v Lyndale at Casey Fields 2, Silverton v Parkfield at Springvale Reserve, Coomoora v HSD at Coomoora Turf.
