By Tara Murray
It was a case of deja vu for Taylors Lakes in the Victorian Sub-District Cricket Association south-west on Saturday.
For a second straight week, the Lions did a lot right and could have easily come away with the points before falling just short in a one-dayer.
On Saturday, the Lions lost to Malvern in a high scoring affair with the teams the two highest scoring of the round in the division.
The Lions batted first and finished their overs at 6-239.
Lachlan Marr was the star of the show for the Lions with 106 off 103 balls. Nilan Fernando made another solid contribution, making 59.
Lions coach Peter Brasher said they made a good recovery to post that total.
“We were 3-20,” he said. “Lachlan Marr came out after a few quieter years and got 100 which was a fantastic innings.
“It put us in a good position and we were up and about.”
The Lions bowlers struggled for consistency early in Malvern’s inning and allowed them to get on top.
Brasher said the good start had allowed Malvern to control the run chase.
“They kept their scoring momentum up with the run rate for the whole innings,” he said. “We weren’t able to contain them.
“We didn’t field too badly, but dropped a catch in the second or third last over, which made a difference.”
Malvern hit the winning runs with four balls remaining, finishing 5-241.
Brasher said it was terribly frustrating to have the same result as the week before.
“The only difference this time was that we made a few more runs,” he said. “It was almost the same game.
“We batted first and made a good score but in the middle of the game it was a bit disappointing.
“We have done a lot right the past two weeks, but we lost both games.”
The Lions entered the match without Luke Denny, who won’t be back this season, and Chalitha Chamoda, who is set to miss the next couple of weeks as well.
Despite the loss, the Lions moved up a spot to fifth on the ladder.
Brasher said they know that their finals destiny is in their own hands.
“We need to win a couple of the next two and then it’s in our own hands against the bottom two sides in the final two rounds.
“If we don’t beat them, we don’t deserve to play finals.”
Taylors Lakes faces Werribee in a one-dayer this Saturday.
