THE 2024/25 A grade season will come to an end this weekend for the Tigers. Looking to end on a high note with no chance of making the finals, Ovens Valley United were sent in to bat against the Magpies and dismissed for only 111 runs at the Wangaratta Showgrounds on Saturday. Gregor Fraser and Seamus Phillips started off well, digging in against the challenging Magpies’ bowling attack on a ground which offered little value for shots. Phillips lasted 36 deliveries before he was caught off the bowling of Oliver Andrew for 15 runs, with Noah White lasting just eight deliveries before he edged one to the keeper on six runs. Reeling at 2/42, the batting talisman of the season, Geeth Alwis, was at the crease. The Magpies’ bowling went to another level, peppering a difficult line and length and made it extremely hard to score freely. Alwis kept fighting hard to find the runs, cracking off two of only four boundaries scored in the innings. Unfortunately for Ovens Valley United, their leading run-scorer would fall for 18 off 49 deliveries. The middle order wouldn’t make much of an impact on the scoreboard, unable to pierce the field or get it to the rope with any sort of regularity. Cooper Thomason chewed up 57 deliveries for just five runs, Connor Forde was bowled for three of 31, while young Ben McMasters was dismissed for two off 16 balls. The Tigers were in trouble at 7/74, with just the bowlers to come. The tail wagged slightly, with Kane Fitzpatrick (14 off 40) and Glenn White (17 off 46) combining for 20 before Fitzpatrick was caught in the 55th over. Bailey Wyatt would remain unbeaten on eight from 35 deliveries. Alwis said while the scoreboard made for grim reading, it was a fairly decent score on a difficult outfield. “I think the batters did okay, but I was pretty disappointed with the outfield,” he said. “The wicket was okay but the outfield was very slow – for the whole innings, just four boundaries, because the outfield was very slow. “There was no real value, on a normal outfield, the score might be 180. “Everyone got themselves in, they played the majority of balls – the wicket was good, it was the outfield, and if we get the same outfield this week, we’ll easily defend the score.” The Tigers will need to be on song with the ball this coming Saturday, 15 March, if they want to come away with the win. The Magpies boast two of the top five batters in the league, with Cooper Matheson (471 runs at 36.23) and Oliver Andrew (374 runs at 28.77) sure to pose a significant threat. Alwis said it was about rounding out the year on a positive note. “Our mindset is to win the game and finish on a high, we want to finish on a win and take the positive into next season,” he said. “The boys know what could’ve been done right, we couldn’t make enough partnerships in the season, but is this game even with the slow outfield, the boys managed to get small partnerships. “We’re definitely heading in the right direction in the two-dayers, because compared to last year, we’re batting 60 or 70 overs the majority of the time.” Play is set to resume at 1pm at Wangaratta Showgrounds on Saturday, 15 March.
