CSB Mens - Round 4 Recap

CSB Mens action continued with round 4 over the weekend, with South Caulfield, Mckinnon and Cheltenham all recording wins to solidify their position at the top of the first-grade ladders.

In another high quality, unpredictable, Championship Division round, we saw Bonbeach upset Bentleigh at their home venue to allow South Caulfield to slip away to outright first in the competition.

In what would have been a highly followed contest, the Sharks were able to secure a win that will eliminate any doubt in their place at the top of the CSB.

Bentleigh entered the match as ladder leaders, but started the game on the backfoot as the Sharks got away to an 89 run opening partnership, spearheaded by captain Tom Smith (57 off 64). Once Smith eventually fell to young leg spinner Satija, Sean Gales (80 off 120) displayed poise and grit, carrying his bat to lead the visitors to a total of 5/183.

In response, the Demons struggled to get going, and were ultimately dismissed for 158 off 38.5 overs. Recruit Harley Dale led the bowlers for the day with 4/30 (7.5).

Beaumaris prevailed over Carnegie in another final over thriller, chasing down chasing the total of 6/186 with four balls remaining and three wickets in the shed.

Batting first, Mayank Srivastava (60 off 62) and Rahul Chauhan (50 off 85) led the home side to a defendable total, while Ben Earney (3/35 off 8) was again the pick of the Sharks bowlers.

The Sharks were able to get themselves into a strong position early thanks to Sam Coates (54 off 53) and Lachie Fryer (41 off 58), reaching 3/127. Carnegie fought back with crunch time wickets to stem the flow of runs, but were unable to keep the Sharks from reaching their total and notching up their second thrilling win in as many weeks.

Murrumbeena defeated Hampton for their first win of the season, in what was a crucial match for both teams. Batting first, Beena were able to post a total of 7/187 off their 40 overs, led by youngster Alex Ross (79 off 99).

In reply, the Seahorses fell 29 runs short, losing 6/27 to collapse from 4/131 to all out for 158 in the 38th over. Manjula Guruge led the Murrumbeena attack with 3/24 off 7, while Jackson Cooper was the only shining light for the home side, batting superbly for 76 off 116.

South Caulfield recorded another close but controlled victory against Mordialloc, chasing their opponents score in the final over with four wickets in hand.

Batting first, the Bloodhounds could only muster up 155, as star recruit AK Tyrone (55) notched up his first half century for his new club.

In reply, South Caulfield showed their experience and class, building their innings at the right pace to reach the target with five balls remaining. Skipper Will Russell top scored with 43, leading his team to take pole position on the ladder. South Caulfield will go into Round 5 undefeated, and without hitting their straps yet, it’s hard to think they will venture far from the top end of the ladder.

In a Division 1 top of the table clash, McKinnon proved too strong for Dingley, outclassing them to go to outright first spot. From their alotted 40 overs, the Heat set a large task for their opponents, posting 8/196. McKinnon had multiple contributors throughout the top and middle order, with the top score belonging to Jack O’Shea (45).

Luke Spears continued his form from last weeks century to put together another classy innings of 60 from 66 balls, but it wasn’t enough for his team to get over the line. The Dingoes fell to 168 (38.2) in return, as the total proved too much. The wickets were split all round by the heat bowlers, with King (3/25 off 7.2) and Kulasena (3/32 off 8) coming away with the lions share.

Mentone showed character to immediately bounce back from last weeks loss, recording a win in a high scoring affair against local neighbors Parkdale.

Batting first Parkdale managed to post a winnable total of 8/206, off the back of some individual brilliance courtesy of their captain and star all-rounder Dale Elmi. Elmi finished on 90 runs from just 72 balls, as the Two Blues entered the break confident in defending their score.

Despite the early wickets of Walker (0) and Cormie (4), the Tigers looked unphased by the chase, and again were led by their star duo in Edgeworth (45 off 55) and Heverin (90 off 96). Parkdale’s total proved well short of the mark, with Mentone securing the points in the 37th over, only four wickets down. Tigers youngster Will Peake earns a mention with a solid 36 off 48 balls, putting on an 80-run stand with the skipper to get them to the win.

St Brigids St Louis early season woes continue, notching up their third consecutive loss, this time to their rivals from across the Mordialloc River, Parkdale United.

The saints could only muster up 145 in their 40 overs, with Trae Love-Linay (47) again showing his talent as he continues to show improvement in his clubs top flight.

The Pythons, despite losing a couple early wickets, made light work of the chase, finishing the match in the 30th over 6-wickets down. Ravesi (37) and Marsh (33) led the way for home side.

Clayton District hosted Brighton District in another high scoring affair. Wining the toss and batting, Clayton District set a total of 8/196 off their 40 overs. The Clays had contributors across the board but were led by Singh at the top of the order with a quickfire 48 off 23.

In response, the Dragons took things right to the very end, completing their chase with just two balls to spare and eight wickets down. Paul Lasky top scored with 55 while Clayton District Coach Jak Jowett performed with the ball as usual. A great early season win for the dragons, who in previous years have fallen victim to their own hand.

Division 2:

Middle Park 110 (C Fagan 30, T Woolnough 4/26) def by Cheltenham 9/217 (L Wintle 101, L Dinger 53)

Bayside 3/158 (DJ Andrews 63*, A Rodda 2/19) def Bentleigh 9/157 (A Mcinness 43, R Hunter 3/33)

Chelsea 129 (J Symons 43, AC Welcome 3/23) def by South Caulfield (D Ford 72, S Hassen 2/24)

Aspendale 7/192 (MJ Walker, A Suresh 3/18) def Carnegie 7/148 (A Suresh 35, M Quinnell 3/36)

Batting Performances of the Week:

Matthew Hayes (St Brigids St Louis) 109 vs Kingston Hawthorn (Division 4)

Luke Wintle (Cheltenham) 101 vs Middle Park (Division 2)

Dane Heverin (Mentone) 90* vs Parkdale (Division 1)

Bowling Performances of the Week:

Adrian Adams (Bentleigh) 5/9 vs Mickinnon (One Day D1 Saturday)

Liam Radford (Mt Waverly) 5/33 vs Hampton (One Day D2 Sunday)

Akhill Gangavarapu (Clayton District) 4/15 vs Hampton (One Day D3 Sunday)