“I'm half and half, me dad’s a muggle, me mam’s a witch, bit of a nasty shock for him when he found out.” - Seamus Finnigan.
Not witches and wizards, but still half and half, the Men’s XI’s claimed the points in 2/4 against the Tigers over the weekend.
FIRST XI
Last week was a day for the old pro. As the students bowled first, Mark Stafford made the ball talk more than his real-estate colleagues at a Christmas party. Diligent, patient and immeasurably skillful, Squid danced around both edges, hit pads and even received a compliment from the umpire. Although he’ll bowl worse for more wickets, his 1/37 from 16 overs held Uni’s bowling innings together.
To that end, Doug Warren happily toiled through the afternoon heat, his fiery left-arm spin nabbing four vital wickets as he sent down 26 overs. An effort that was duly rewarded, Doug was called up to the Shield team in last week’s match against SA. There, he claimed five for the match and added another red ink score to his First Class tally.
Yuvi Singh also pocketed two tigers, his box of tricks proving invaluable in favorable batting conditions.
Set 310 to win, Uni were never able to get going in the chase. After losing four wickets in the first hour and a fifth before lunch, there was simply too much work to be done for the middle and lower order. That said, Barno chalked up his first half-century of the year – perhaps a sign that we should all start batting in a shooting sleeve.
Rolled for 161, Uni will be keen to bounce back against the Bombers.
SECOND XI
Bowling first at Central Reserve might buck one of Premier Cricket’s most recognised trends, but TY and his Second XI are happy to do things a bit differently.
One trend they would be happy to maintain, however, is the bowling form of 17-year-old Krish Kumar. When he is not scrolling on Tik-Tok, KK is making a good habit of bowling a line and length that keeps all modes of dismissal in play. A great strategy at Central, Secret Santa claimed 5/54 as he went about dismantling the Tigers. A wonderful effort, Krish happily put his feet up and donned a pair of hot pink Pit Viper sunnies once his work was done.
Wizard – whose fact of the day was “cash is king,” also pocketed 3fa, as Uni rolled Richmond for 177.
Always comfortable in the chase, Uni got to 1/65 overnight, and steadied first thing on day 2 to suck the life from the Tigers. Emms (52), Young (38) and Dragon (38) all got going, but Saturday was all about Salman Afridi.
After hosing one heck of a dinner party during the week, Afridi clocked up his maiden MUCC century, a composed and classy innings of 100* more than enough to see the Students home. While opposition teams try to wrap their heads around the fact that Afridi bats in his old Pakistan helmet, the right-hander happily picks them off to all parts; his season tally already sitting at a handsome 200 runs.
The Second XI are now sitting pretty in third place on the ladder.
THIRD XI
Almost at an equivalent rate, the grass is bedding down in the outfield of PP3 and the Third XI are finding their rhythm. A comprehensive win over the Tigers putting them just percentage outside of the top 8.
Bowling first, captain and fearless leader Fridge felt a twinge in his groin, but it was no matter, for Scotty Kremer-Curler (That’s Hunter Kremer-Slevin), had a red ball in his hand. As such, he claimed two of the first three wickets, turning the top order inside out. From the other end, Rowan Jesper hustled, bustled and broke through multiple times, too. Ably supported by aforementioned Fridge in the cordon (who swallowed three catches), Jespo finished with a stunning 4/30 from 19 overs to ensure Uni would never be chasing too many.
Again, Brodie O’Donnell (1/18) and Big T (1/24 off 14) were instrumental, and Uni would need 120 to win.
Although they were 2 down overnight, some measured, sensible and skillful batting ensured that the Tigers were without a sniff come day 2, as Edward Schultheis and Brick Forwood knocked off the chase. Edward – who thankfully wears pants baggy enough to carry around all the runs he is making – finished with 81, while Brick fired a quick 46 to secure the points.
Batting the day out, Uni were happy to grind Richmond into the Park’s ever present sand, finishing at 9/224.
FOURTH XI
Although Elliott Durrant was disappointed to learn that Central Reserve North was not the former VFL Park, it was home to a see-sawing game of cricket over the last fortnight.
Batting first, Uni were in all sorts of trouble – at one stage 4/14. As ever, Shen Dias stuck his nose over it, his 36 from 75 balls providing some comfort. As it relates to comfort, the dismissed batters could happily put their feet up in comfort and enjoy the show put on by Torren Arthur. Known as Lefty due to his sidedness (political leanings TBC), Torren blasted 52 from just 58 balls to haul Uni up in excess of 150. A handy innings, it was followed by some steadfast resistance from the last wicket pair of Oli Greenhill (20) and Tom Uhr-Henry (26), who got Uni to a respectable 188.
After grabbing two wickets before the close of play on the first day, Uni had the upper hand, but steady batting in the second week saw Win-Viz favour the Tigers.
Not to go down without a fight, Uni – predominately through young spinner Ethan Yates went about making things interesting. Ethan bowled beautifully late in the afternoon to claim his maiden MUCC 5fa, finishing with figures of 5/41 and dragging the Students back into the game.
Unfortunately, Richmond rallied, and did manage to pass the total with two wickets in hand. A fine effort nonetheless, Uni will be keen to get on the board next week against Essendon.