It was a rollercoaster for Sunshine YCW on the opening day of its Victorian Turf Cricket Association Clark Shield match with Barkly St Uniting, ending in the side claiming first innings points.
The Cougars and Barkly St Uniting traded momentum on the first day of play as the bowlers took control.
It ended with the Cougars sneaking home for first innings points and putting themselves in a good position heading into day two.
Cougars’ secretary Rory O’Connor said it was a good day for the club and it had been a strong start to the season.
“The firsts got first innings points, the seconds are in a strong position and the thirds won,” he said.
“So far, so good. Last week we pushed it to the end and fought our way to get the win. Yesterday [Saturday] was a pretty rollercoaster day.”
The Cougars won the toss and decided to bat.
There were a lot of starts at the top of the order but no one went on with it and they were bowled out for 111 in the 36th over.
Heshan Umendra top scored with 30.
Barkly Street got off to a solid start and were looking good until Matthew Williams took control of the game.
He took 5-24 off his 13 overs to help skittle Barkly St Uniting out for just 91 allowing the Cougars to claim first innings points.
O’Connor said they thought they were done for and now they’re on top.
“We were in a bit of trouble,” he said. “Matthew Williams did what he does and took five wickets to get us back into the match around tea time.
“It wasn’t looking like that at the start. With this group of guys we’re never out of it and they fight until the final ball and make the opposition earn each run.”
The Cougars will resume at 1-8 after batting for two overs. Max Weise is the man out.
O’Connor said they would like to assess the conditions on day two and then decide whether they look at the outright.
“We’ll look to put a big total on the board and give ourselves every chance to get the 10 points,” he said.
“It’ll depend on the condition of the wicket and we’ll make the decision on the day.”
After making finals in their first season in the Evans Clark Shield, O’Connor said they wanted to go even further this season.
“We made an impact last year and we were one wicket away from a grand final and back-to-back grand finals,” he said.
“We want to go as far as we can. We’ve recruited really well and there’s guys with a lot of experience.
“It’s good for the whole squad and everyone’s competing for spots. We definitely think we can (have an impact).”
In other matches, Sunshine Heights was bowled out for 158 against East Coburg. East Coburg will resume at 2-87.
