ROUND six of Sale-Maffra cricket will be played tomorrow and Sunday.
With the AFL grand final played in October, the SMCA season began a week later than normal, requiring an extra day’s play be squeezed into the fixture.
First and second grade matches will be played across the weekend, while there will be one-day games tomorrow in third and fourth grades.
This weekend’s two-day games will be the last before a run of five one-day rounds.
FOLLOWING its high-scoring showing, Collegians will travel to Stratford.
Second-placed Collegians rebounded from its loss to Rosedale-Kilmany by outclassing Sale.
In reply to Sale’s 150, Collegians made a round-high 369, with captain Jack Tatterson scoring a century and Elliott Durrant falling short of a ton of his own.
Having lost its past two matches, Stratford is in fourth position on the ladder, narrowly ahead of Boisdale-Briagolong. Its 123 last weekend was never going to be enough against Rosedale-Kilmany.
This match will feature the top three first grade run-scorers this season.
Collegians’ Tatterson, with 289 runs at an average of 72, and Mark Nicholls, 196 at 49, are the only players to have scored first grade centuries this season. Tatterson will be facing his former club for the first time since leaving for Collegians this season.
Cormac Hassett has scored 195 for the Redbacks.
Nicholls’ efforts have not been restricted to the bat, as he has taken 17 wickets at a miserly average of 10.4.
Collegians enters the match in better form, but the Redbacks have the talent to stun it.
SALE could lose touch with the top four if it loses at home to Boisdale-Briagolong.
The sixth-placed Swans are two points outside the top four, while the Saints, in fifth, are outside it on percentage.
Only three Sale players reached double figures as Collegians bowled it out for just 150. Things got worse for the Swans, who then conceded a mammoth score.
Boisdale-Briagolong made a big score of its own, 332, in its defeat of Maffra. Tom Langshaw (who scored 97), Mick Roberts, Jordan Price and Toby Leeds all made half-centuries.
This followed the Saints restricting the Eagles to 121. Highlighting their depth, all six Saints bowlers used claimed wickets.
Win-less over the first three rounds, the Saints have won their past two matches.
The Swans have gone loss-win-loss-win-loss this season. Will the pattern continue with victory this weekend?
OUTCLASSED by Boisdale-Briagolong, Maffra returns home to meet Bundalaguah.
The Eagles have only had one victory this season, and were unlikely to add to that tally last round, when they were bowled out for 121 by Boisdale-Briagolong. The Saints passed that total for the loss of two wickets before scoring more than 300.
Maffra’s batsmen will need to step-up to give the bowlers something to defend.
With two consecutive victories, the Bulls have moved into third place. Four points ahead of third-placed Stratford, a win this weekend would position the Bulls more comfortably in the top four.
The Bulls last round had a solid win over Longford, declaring at 6-252 after the Lizards made 172. Adrian Burgiel scored 95 and Nathan Massey 67.
WIN-LESS Longford will host undefeated ladder leader Rosedale-Kilmany.
Against Bundalaguah, the Lizards put in a serviceable effort with the bat, not letting the Bulls bowl them out. However, the Bulls’ powerful batting line-up proved too much for their bowlers.
Rosedale-Kilmany’s bowlers again came to the fore last round, bowling Stratford out for 123. While their reply was shaky at times, the Warriors passed the Redbacks score with four wickets in hand.
The Warriors have been sharing the wickets around, with Hayden Glover taking 11, and Isaac Love and Brandon McDonald 10 each. Teams that have seen off one RK bowler, will need to contend with another who will take the challenge up to them.
