Year 8 Boys not enough in LMR cricket

SCHOOL SPORT VICTORIA – LODDON MALLEE REGION

CRICKET

Year 8 Boys

The Year 8 Boys team arrived in Donald in good time for an early start and were poised to put on a competitive show, with a few new faces joining the team at this stage of the competition.

Game 1 vs St Mary of the Angels Secondary College (SMOTA), Nathalia
At the toss of the coin, SMOTA won and opted to bat. The bowling early on was a little difficult for the boys with the narrow pitch contributing to them bowling an excessive number of wides down leg side. This really hurt, gifting twenty-four free runs during the planned fifty minutes for the batting innings. The fielding wasn’t up to the usual standard either, but the boys did well to keep SMOTA to 4/92 after thirteen overs. Charlie Macumber was the pick of the bowlers with 2/21, with Patrick McNamara and Ari Sawyer taking a wicket each.

The batting started on a positive note with Ari Sawyer and Beau Butler ticking the scoreboard over. Jaxon Kelly and Charlie Macumber then increased the run rate; however, this was at the cost of a few wickets. Jamison Westley came to the crease and was able to hit some big shots towards the end of the innings. Unfortunately, it was too late as the opportunity to put pressure on the fielding team had passed, leaving the team an agonising six runs in arrears on 6/86.

Batting (6/86)
Jamison Westley – 33*
Ari Sawyer – 14
Beau Butler – 8

Bowling (4/92)
Charlie Macumber – 2/21 off 4 overs
Paddy McNamara – 1/5 off 1 over
Ari Sawyer – 1/13 off 2 overs

Game 2 vs St Joseph’s College, Mildura
After a lengthy break, CMCB played their second game against St Joseph’s College, Mildura. St Joseph’s had beaten SMOTA convincingly in their previous game so a strong performance here by the boys could potentially see them still qualify for the next round.

St Joseph’s only had 8 players, so the boys were keen to take advantage of this, especially in their batting innings. After St Joesph’s won the toss, CMCB was sent into bat with Ari Sawyer again hitting the ball around strongly, accompanied by Miller Evans. Jaxon Kelly and Jamison Westley kept trying to up the run rate at the back end of the innings, but as with the first game, the score closed off at 86 runs, after 14 overs. This very short format of cricket proved to be challenging for the team, and the adaptation of going hard at almost every ball was a new concept that the boys, in hindsight, could have done better.

St Joseph’s came out to bat and played some confident cricket shots. Again, the boys gave away too many extras which they couldn’t afford. St Joseph’s were always looking to score and took full advantage of the fast outfield. Declan Kirke was economical as the opening bowler, while Tayte Frawley and Miller Evans picked up the only wickets of the game. St Joseph’s finished on 2/102.

Batting (7/86)
Ari Sawyer – 25
Jaxon Kelly – 19
Jamison Westley – 13
Miller Evans – 11

Bowling (2/102)
Tayte Frawley – 1/23 off 3 overs
Miller Evans – 1/9 off 1 over

That ends the Year 8 Boys’ campaign for 2024. We thank all the players who were part of the squad that made it this far. The assistance from Callan Orr and Chad Mannes was appreciated. And a special thank you to Mrs Speed for organising everything and driving the bus. Good luck to everyone in their future cricketing endeavours.

TEAM: Chad Mannes (Helper), Callan Orr (Helper), Beau Butler, Miller Evans, Ari Sawyer, Declan Kirke, Charlie Macumber, Mr Alex Code (Coach), Keelan McInerney, Patrick McNamara, Darcy Tyler, Tayte Frawley, Tobias Jelbart, Jaxon Kelly