The relegation battle will come down to the wire on the last day of the season as Devon Meadows has plenty of work to do against Upper Beaconsfield in round 14 of the Casey Cardinia Cricket Association (CCCA) Premier Division.
The Maroons batted first at Booring Reserve and never really got comfortable, failing to create any momentum while at the crease with just one lone partnership of 50 runs.
Dominic Evans (9), Billy Gerrard-Kett (14) and Aidan Whitfield (2) fell in the first 25 overs to leave the visitors 3/57.
Josh Westra (28) then departed after a fighting knock opening the batting to be 4/63.
Upper Beaconsfield’s most productive batting stand then ensued, with captain Will Haines (18) and Josh Trembath (44 not out) adding exactly 50 runs before Lucas Ligt got the big fish of Haines.
It was followed immediately by the dismissals of Billy Williams (0) for a golden duck and Tyler Astle (1).
Kyle Gibbs (17) and Scott Pitcher (11) scored handy runs at the tail end, but when Ben Marsh claimed his third wicket of the day, AJ Claxton (2), the Maroons were all out for 160.
But the visitors got the last laugh, taking 2/20 in the remaining 18 overs to put a huge statement on the game.
It included Haines getting his revenge, dismissing Ligt (8) when the superstar hit it straight to mid on.
And Zach Bates (0) wasn’t far behind him, snicking off a Gibbs delivery to be 2/8.
Nathan Kleinig (0 not out off 37) was incredibly patient and ensured not to give away his wicket, while Connor Harmor (12 not out) survived alongside him and saw the Panthers through to stumps without further damage.
Devon Meadows needs 141 runs on day two on its home deck to stay up in Premier Division.
Pink Ladies Day at Pakenham was owned by the visiting Tooradin as the Seagulls posted 288 in their time at the crease.
The Lions jumped out of the gates as rising youngster Sendhil Naidu potentially spoiled Josh Lownds’ league runscoring title as he edged one through to Zach Flaxman for just two.
Cal O’Hare (13) couldn’t build on last week’s performance and Tooradin was 2/36 .
Lahiru Jayakody (54) then alleviated pressure and rounded out his magnificent home-and-away campaign with his fifth performance of a half century or better this season, paired well with a good score from Russell Lehman (21).
But Praveen Perera was seeing them like beach balls as the next man in, smacking his way past the half ton mark and into the 90s.
Unfortunately, he departed on 98 when he edged a Nicholas Sadler delivery, but his impressive knock included 12 fours and came from just 93 balls.
Momentum kept rolling with Tyler Evans (43) putting together his second-best batting performance of the season.
Jack Mannix (24) also chipped in and the Seagulls cruised to 288.
Pakenham didn’t make the most of its opportunities, dropping chances and stringing together a poor display in the field.
However, Jason Williams added another four wickets to his name, while Jack Anning would be pleased with teenage talent Mitch Varty bagging three poles.
At Gunton Oval, Cardinia will move towards the postseason with a victory as the Bulls require just 16 more runs to get over the top of Officer.
The Bullants batted first and looked in for a long day when they fell to 2/10 after Cooper Pursell (1) and Billy Carlyle (5) were gone early.
But an 89-run partnership between Ash Smith (52) and teenager Dylan Aluthwatta (40) provided some hope to the innings.
The positivity was short-lived however, as Lachie Volpe produced big wickets as he has all season, dismissing Smith and Aluthwatta, followed by Chandrika Wathukarage (23) and Adam Reid (3).
Jack James (15) was the last Officer bat to reach double digits and the visitors were knocked over for 165 inside 50 overs.
Volpe dealt most of the damage, taking 4/28 from 17 overs.
Agamjot Dhindsa got the first say of the chase, trapping Morteza Ali (7) in front to have Cardinia 1/7.
But brothers Travis (28) and Bradey Welsh (36) navigated the difficult period and piled on 62 runs as a duo.
Matt Welsh (37) and Travis Wheller (27) then solidified the deep batting effort before also falling, leaving the Bulls 6/150 overnight.
Lachie James’ impressive Premier season continues with the promising quick securing two more wickets.
There’s plenty to watch on the final day of the season, with Trevor Bauer and Imesh Jayasekara both very good chances at the league runscoring, while Charith Keerthisinghe is in a very strong position to take home the wicket-taking honours.
Bauer (555 runs) trails current leader Lownds (581 runs) by 27, while Jayasekara (507 runs) would need a knock of 75 or better to leapfrog Lownds (and hypothetically Bauer) and finish first.
Volpe’s four-wicket haul pushes him to the pinnacle with 36 on the year, but Keerthisinghe will need just one to at least tie the Cardinia spinner and two to take the title outright.
