James Murphy
ROUND 3 of the Dycer Construction Big Bash is pencilled in for tomorrow (January 11) – weather permitting.
The start of the 2023-24 short-format competition was impacted greatly by rain, with several reschedules for the opening two rounds.
However, at the time of print tomorrow’s forecast appeared more promising.
There will be two games in the Blue Lake City, while the third will be played at Penola’s McCorquindale Park.
All matches are scheduled for 5.20pm starts.
EAST GAMBIER v MIL LEL
Last year’s runner-up East Gambier will look to bounce back this round after a loss to Penola in Round 2.
This week the Bulldogs host Mil Lel at Scott Park.
The Bulldogs fell to the Eagles by 10 runs, with Alex Hill the top scoring with 23.
Marc Roberts was impressive with ball in hand and he will be out to replicate his four wickets from that clash, while Liam Turley was also solid with 3/14.
Mil Lel impressed in Round 2 with a strong run chase against reigning premier South Gambier.
South set a target of 7/104 and Mil Lel reached that goal in the 17th over to finish up 4/106.
Jack Miller topped the batting sheets with 35-not-out, while captain Will Rowland was undefeated on 20 runs.
The bowling attack was led by Mitchell Douglas who claimed 4/8 in an impressive display, ripping through the Demons’ batting order.
A good contest should unfold this week, but East will want to step up its run rate to match it with the surprise package which is Mil Lel this season.
WEST GAMBIER v SOUTH GAMBIER
Both West and South Gambier will look to rectify their Round 2 performances when they meet at Malseed Park this week.
The Roos fell to North Sportsman’s last round and despite a couple of good bowling performances, could not prevent the Tigers scoring an unbeatable 139 runs.
Kyal Chapman (4/25) and Sam Willis (3/18) were the best with the ball, while the former backed it up with the bat when scoring 44 runs off 23 balls.
With three fours and four sixes, Chapman was certainly in a hurry, but unfortunately when his wicket fell the runs also dried up for the Roos.
All out in the 19th over for 121, West will look to bounce back when hosting the Demons.
South had its own troubles, unable to contain Mil Lel’s run chase in Round 2.
A steady performance with the bat had five Demons in double figures, with the best of those Jaggar Geary’s unbeaten 18 runs.
Robbie Drenthen was the best of the bowlers, but only claimed two wickets as the Mil Lel batsmen stood strong.
Both teams are more than capable and South will look to rediscover some of its grand final-winning form, while the Roos have been almost untouchable in the longer formats and will hope to translate that to the short game.
PENOLA v NORTH SPORTSMANS
In a low-scoring affair, Penola bested East Gambier at home in Round 2.
Now the Eagles enjoy the comforts of McCorquindale Park again when hosting North Sportsman’s this week.
The Tigers will be a harder nut to crack, entering the round off a 139-run effort against West.
As such Penola will need to muster more than the 95 runs which were enough to hold off the Bulldogs.
Tom Moyle-Read did the bulk of the scoring for the Eagles on that occasion with 59-not-out.
George Kidman was the only other double-figure run maker with 12, while from a bowling perspective Joshua Smith’s 3/22 was the best return.
North had two standouts with the bat in Round 2, with Nick McInerney and Nicolas Brown scoring 48 and 40 runs respectively.
Elliott Fisher’s 21 runs also kept things moving along.
The Tigers are not short on depth and the Eagles will need to be relentless in their bowling attack if they are to stand a chance.
Also prolific with ball in hand, McInerney comes off a 4/18 bowling performance, while Tim Young had three wickets last round.
North will be favoured for the win, but the home-ground advantage could give the Eagles an edge.
