By Marcus Uhe
Berwick’s ability to topple some of the best sides in the Dandenong District Cricket Association’s Turf 1 has finally been crystallised.
Springvale South and Buckley Ridges have levitated above the rest of the division for the past three seasons to shrink an eight-team competition into a two-horse race, with only a handful of losses on either side revealing minor chinks in the armour.
No longer do the Bears need to envisage or wonder what the emotions or validations would provide for their psyche – it’s here and it’s staring them right in the face.
They can see it, smell it, taste it, grasp it, feel it – and they only want more.
Berwick hasn’t beaten Buckley Ridges since December 2021, and Springvale South since the February of the same year.
In previous summers, from winning positions against the competition’s benchmark sides, the pressure and heat of the moment has brought Berwick unstuck – think last summer’s 9/25 capitulation against Buckley Ridges, Jordan Wyatt sinking them with his running between the wickets in a must-win contest at the end of last season, and losing 5/13 in a limp finish against the Bucks in a one-day match in round five.
So often the little moments have gone against them, but Saturday’s fiery contest was different.
“There wasn’t a plan to get under their skins, we’re just not going to tolerate being beaten up by them anymore,” victorious skipper Jarrod Goodes said.
“We’ve been beaten up by them for a couple of years and we’re not going to tolerate that.
“There was certainly no thought about getting under their skins, we just want to be hard to play against.”
A double-strike as the gladwrap came off the Tea spread and the party pies crisped to perfection in the Alex Nelson Reserve kitchen saw Goodes’ side sink their spines into the throat of Springvale South, and on this occasion, they never let up.
Toby Wills ended a dangerous 52-run stand between Forsyth brothers, Cameron and Mitch when he disturbed Mitch’s stumps, sending the competition’s best opening batter this summer on his way for 34.
After James Trodd’s double strike in the fifth over that sent both Cam Scott and Stephen Hennessey on their way for ducks, the brothers had rebuilt the innings to a position of stability with the firepower of Wyatt waiting in the wings.
The very next over was the most pivotal in the contest, with Matthew Hague sending Wyatt on his way for one.
The man who has caused sleepless nights for Berwick more than most was trapped LBW while attempting to sweep, and the zealous reaction from the Bears said it all.
They knew the danger man, the one they would build a chase of 285 around, the primary source of light for the Bloods, had been dimmed, with the electricity re-routed to the huddle of the hottest team in the competition.
They knew the game was theirs for the taking, and take it they finally did.
Cam Forsyth and Jackson Sketcher delayed the execution with a fighting 92-run stand for the fifth wicket, putting a high price on their defence as they both reached gritty half-centuries, but the required run rate continued to climb.
Cam’s dismissal was the beginning of the end, as the Wills brothers, Jarryd and Toby, combined, to take the points in the sibling rivalry.
Tempers flared upon his departure for 65 as insults were slung from both huddles, with the contest now slipping from the Bloods’ grasp.
Sketcher joined him on the sidelines for 51 not long after at 6/166, with too much left to the tail to see them home.
Cameos from Andrew Staude (18), Paul Hill (25) and Josh Dowling (21) weren’t enough, as Jarrad Goodes and Elliot Mathews put the finishing touches on an excellent showing, dismissing Springvale South for 235.
Had you asked the brains trust at Arch Brown Reserve during the preseason to articulate how a game like this would play out, this would be the blueprint; bat big in first innings, led by Michael Wallace and Jake Hancock, and spread the wickets amongst each of the uniquely talented bowlers after their import in Trodd delivers with the new ball.
Only Lachlan Brown finished without a wicket to his name, with each member of the six-man attack bowling between 11 and 14 overs.
Trodd, Goodes and Toby Wills each took two wickets with spinner Mathews snaffling three.
“It was probably as good an all-round performance as we’ve had,” Goodes said.
“I felt it was a four-quarter performance, I thought we were good all the way through from the batting last week to the bowling this week and our fielding was good other than (missing) some half-chances.
“It’s definitely nice to beat Springvale (South) now because as we know, in the last two years, they’ve had the wood over us and beaten us comfortably.”
It’s six wins on the trot for the Bears, scorching the earth on their way to a finals run.
The energy around the group is contagious, with nothing feeling out of the equation or asking too much.
With one hoodoo broken, there’s no better time to attack Buckley Ridges next week.
Despite sliding back one position to fourth, Saturday’s result means there’s just six points separating the Bears in fourth from Buckley Ridges at the apex of the mountain.
“When you get into that form, winning becomes a bit of a habit,” Goodes said.
“We’re confident that we can win any game we play now – the belief is there, that’s for sure.
“We’ve got Buckley next week, what a great opportunity to go level on the table with them if they win.
“It’s good to get the win against (Springvale South) and hopefully we get a win against Buckley next week, but it’s not the be-all and end-all.
“If we don’t beat Buckley, I still think we can beat them if we play them again later on in the year.
“We’ll take it on, (and) if they beat us, they beat us.”
Springvale South will need to put this result behind it ahead of a huge final three rounds, against a side that has won the last two head-to-head contests in Narre South, a side that knocked them off earlier in the summer in Hallam Kalora Park, and their bitter rivals in Buckley Ridges.
Blade Baxter’s absence left a gaping chasm in the middle order with too much falling to too few with the bat, following numbers two, three and five combining for a single run.
The Forsyth brothers and Sketcher combined for 150 of the Bloods’ 235 runs, a statistic that simply cannot develop into a trend.
The news of Ryan Quirk’s progression from a wrist injury is a welcome development for the Bloods, who would love their former captain back at the top of the order for the finals.
Round 11’s other contests saw North Dandenong finish 113 runs ahead of Dandenong West, and Hallam Kalora Park cruise to victory over Beaconsfield.
Dandenong West made a positive start to chase as Shaun Weir and Don Pulukkuttiarachchi added 76 for the second wicket, but both departed in the space of four deliveries to leave Riley Siwes and Anthony Brannan the task of starting again.
The task proved overwhelming for the Dandenong West, which lost regular wickets in pursuit of the monster score, dismissed for 237 in the 71st over.
Weir reached 65 and Nuwan Kulasekara 47 with contributions lacking from the rest of the card.
Imran Laghmani capped a stellar all-round contribution with 5/73, having decimated the middle order, with spearhead quick Sushant Gupta adding 4/50.
The Maroons’ win alleviates the pressure on their shoulders from the relegation fight at the foot of the ladder, as Narre South’s win leaves Beaconsfield bringing up the rear.
The Tigers had a huge ask, defending just 143, with the Hawks 38 runs into the target when play resumed.
They passed the score for the loss of three wickets before continuing to bat to boost their percentage, a wise decision that saw them swap places with Berwick and move into third.
Damith Perera was the chief beneficiary, reaching his second hundred of the summer and taking top spot on the leading runscorer’s table.
Mahela Udwatte, meanwhile, reched his sixth half-century in seven innings.
Beaconsfield’s papers are not yet stamped, but they have serious work to do to secure their spot in Turf 1 next summer.
This weekend’s contest against North Dandenong takes on extra significance, with a percentage discrepancy in the Tigers’ favour to play a crucial role if they can draw level on North Dandenong’s 24 points.
