Central Park-St Brendan’s dared Old Students to make this Cricket Shepparton Haisman Shield encounter competitive by boldly declaring at 3-76 after rolling their adversaries early on day one.
However, the plan backfired enormously.
Handed what initially looked like five token overs at the end of day one, Noah Muir and Sam O’Brien took on the task at the start of day two with an eventual 46-run partnership — the most prolific Old Students opening stand this season.
And though their second innings total of 104 was hardly the most impressive knock, what followed sent shockwaves through the league.
Andrew Cowen’s premature departure was not ideal, but hardly panic stations Central Park-St Brendan’s.
Ryan Ash stumped the very next ball? Perhaps start to worry slightly.
An inability to confidently see overs out became an epidemic through the Central Park line-up, with the following four wickets falling off the final ball of a given spell.
With a single over bowled on day one and just 12 balls faced on offence, the relatively fresh Liam Callegari put a second innings attack on his back in Herculean fashion.
THE GAME
Old Students 68 (Callan McCabe 13, Jarrod Wakeling 5-28, Ethan Baxter 2-18) and 104 (Sam O’Brien 33, Dwain Vidler 5-22, Jarrod Wakeling 4-41) d Central Park-St Brendan’s 3-76d (Tyler Larkin 31*, Jack McCarten 17*, Jake Sutherland 1-14) and 77 (Rhiley Lau 14, Liam Callegari 6-44, Mohammad Shahid 2-4)
STAR PLAYER
Jarrod Wakeling (CPSTB): For as much as his side fell apart with the bat in an embarrassing defeat, Wakeling, with his nine wickets, more than held up his end in constricting Old Students to a pair of totals that the Tigers will wonder how they didn’t mow down.
A ripping six-wicket display miraculously cancelled out the miracles worked earlier in the day by Tigers duo Dwain Vidler and Jarrod Wakeling, as the two have done many times before.
Before anyone knew what happened, Central Park was all out for 77 — one run more than its now-infamous first innings — and Old Students had escaped with one of the great upsets in recent Haisman Shield memory.
Needless to say Old Students veteran Gino Saracino was delighted.
“It was a sensational day. I haven’t seen a reverse outright win at this club ever in A-grade,” Saracino said.
“I think Central Park left the door open when they sent us back in and I know Callan and the group spoke about going for it.
“We set ourselves the target of getting 140, but while Wakeling and Vidler did the damage, we still bowled well enough.”
The batting has indeed let Old Students down on all but a small sample of occasions this season.
That’s not to say the bowling isn’t capable of bailing the side out on occasion and how about that Callegari fellow?
“I got down there to see the end after B-grade finished up and I got to see Liam Callegari bowl a phenomenal spell,” Saracino said.
“Credit has to go to the captain for setting aggressive fields and the keeper as well with an unbelievable stumping.
“Callegari was near on unplayable yesterday and it was just super from the boys.“
However, Saracino’s rosy outlook after a massive upset doesn’t come without its thorns.
He admits there is still much to do regarding righting the wrongs on offence. but that green shoots are well and truly emerging.
“We’re still a long way off where we want to be as a club, but it’s about reward for effort,” Saracino said.
“Sam (O’Brien) and Oscar (Lambourn) are in their third years of A-grade in Year 10, and when you compare them to guys like Kyle Mueller, Tim Arnel or Mark Nolan, they’ve put up decent campaigns.
“Hopefully, this gives the boys the message that we can compete and that our bowling is really strong when it’s on, but our batting has to improve.
“We’ve gotta start improving and yesterday’s result is a bit of vindication.”
