Tigers' showdown could go either way

OVENS Valley United’s A grade squad needs to make just 55 more runs to hand Beechworth Wanderers a shock upset in their two-dayer. Bowling first at McNamara Reserve, the Tigers limited Beechworth to just 98 runs all out, but sit at 6/44 in reply. Up against a very strong top order, the Tigers didn’t take long to strike, with James Neary trapping Clancy Ellet in front of the stumps, dismissed LBW in the third over of the day. Neary would pick up his second wicket thanks to Kane Fitzpatrick at cover, with the dangerous Kayde Surrey back to the sheds for a duck. The pressure kept building with Bailey Wyatt bowling from the other end, with an edge coming from the shoulder of Beechworth skipper Brenton Surrey taken supremely in the gully thanks to a diving effort from Gregor Fraser. The Wanderers limped their way to 3/20 when left-arm offspinner Geeth Alwis entered the attack, and managed to draw opener Jackson Cull down the pitch and turned one back into the waiting gloves of Conner Forde, who completed the stumping. Alwis would continue causing headaches for the Wanderers, ripping through the middle order on his way to incredible figures of 5/24 from his 14.3 overs. Beechworth’s Matt Ryan (23 from 63 balls) and Campbell Fendyk (20 off 44) produced some fight late in the day, but they were no match for the Tigers’ attack. Wyatt (2/15) and Gregor Fraser (1/17) were in the wickets, while Neary finished with extremely frugal figures of 2/2 from his set of four overs. While they were in the box seat before their innings began, a game of cricket can change in a heartbeat. Chasing 99 for victory, opener Seamus Phillips lasted seven deliveries before a leading edge saw him dismissed for just four runs. Bursill only registered nine runs before he was back in the sheds, with the Tigers faltering at 2/19 from the first nine overs. The damage was amplified when Alwis, the highest-scoring batter of the competition by some margin, misread a straighter one from Kayde Surrey and was given out LBW for just one run. Conner Forde (11 from 30) and Noah White (golden duck) failed to build any meaningful innings, with Cooper Thomason (2*) and Kane Fitzpatrick (4*) at the crease when stumps were called after the 24th over, the chase at 6/44. The match is set to resume from 1pm this Saturday at McNamara Reserve.

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