Harper Sercombe
Back-to-back wins for Taylors Lakes in the Victorian Sub District Cricket Association season holds the club in a strong position heading into the mid-season break.
For the first time this season captain-coach of the Lions Aamir Raza won the toss and elected to bat, sending St Bernards to the field.
After a shaky start at 1-0 and then 2-34, the Lions began to get into their work with batsmen three to five all contributing with half centuries without being able to go on and make a massive score. Steffan Roberts made 58 while Nilan Fernando and Raza made 51 each.
The runs kept coming later in the innings with the Lions putting up a solid score of 9-243 from their 45 overs.
“It was good to bat first and set a good score, in one-day cricket if you’ve got a good score on the board there’s always pressure in chasing,” Raza said.
“If we could put anything north of 220 on the board will always be tough to chase with our bowling.
“None of us actually had a day out we performed to probably half our capability and that goes for all three of us and that was good enough to think that we weren’t even at our best and we still did that sends a message that when this team are at their best they are going to be a formidable opponent.”
In the chase, St Bernards was never able to really get their innings moving with wickets falling consistently throughout their innings as the run rate required climbed.
It was bowled out for 177.
“In one day cricket the scoreboard pressure plays such a big factor in the game,” Raza said.
“The run rate went up from six to seven to eight and when there were 15 overs to go and they needed eight and a half an over that’s when the wickets began to fall.”
Now the Lions have a chance to reset and rest to hit the second half of the VSDCA season hard in the new year.
“I think it’s brilliant now that we’re still training, we’re still practicing so a couple of weeks off and back to it after Christmas, I think it’ll be good for our fast bowlers to have a little break.”
