By Marcus Uhe
A hark back to school cricket days was the inspiration for Springvale South to improvise with Nick Boland at the top of the batting card against Narre South in round 12 of the Dandenong District Cricket Association’s Turf 1 competition.
Springvale South named a bowling-heavy line up as they continue to tweak with their batting card before finals get underway, with Boland, one of the standout bowlers in Victorian Premier Cricket in recent summers, asked to open the batting with Mitch Forsyth.
With just 45 runs to his name this summer and a highest score of 14, the decision on face value speared one of desperation for the Bloods, still searching for the right batting combination in the absence of Ryan Quirk.
But captain Cameron Forsyth said the idea spawned on the back of playing alongside each other growing up when the hierarchical roles were reversed.
“We both went to St Bede’s (College) and he was my school cricket captain when I was in year 11,” the captain explained.
“At the time he had a back stress fracture and was playing exclusively as a batter.
“When we recruited him at the start of the year, a few of the boys and I knew that he was more than a handy batter.
“In terms of the decision to open with him, it’s probably come about with Ryan’s injury and trying a few different guys at the top of the order.
“Obviously Jordan Wyatt opened in the one-day games but I think in two-day cricket he’s more suited to the middle order with the way he plays.
“I think with Nick’s technique and knowing that he’s quite a solid batter, has a good technique and had done it before at junior level, we thought ‘why not give it a go?’.
“I spoke to him at the start of the year about potentially floating up the order at some stage during the season, whether that be opening or at the number three slot.
“He’s probably had it in his mind for a little bit that he might get a chance so he was very keen to give it a go, like he is with all things.”
It proved a masterstroke decision from the Bloods’ brains trust, with Boland reaching 65 on a lively batting surface that saw both Forsyths and Wyatt fail to build upon their respective starts.
Baxter (23) and Andrew Staude (43) contributed vital stands lower down the order to help the Bloods reach 208, before returning on Sunday to secure the six points with an excellent bowling display.
It was important for the Bloods to press on and pass 200 despite their main batters not firing, having at times relied on that trio too heavily this summer.
Narre South lasted just 53 overs in reply, dismissed for 126 with Vineth Jayasuriya making 63.
Boland added excellent figures of 4/8 from 12 overs to his runs in the first innings in an excellent all-round display.
Boland’s batting success comes with a double-edged sword, however, with Quirk enjoying his first innings at the crease since returning from a major wrist injury that has sidelined him for much of the year against Lynbrook in Turf 4 on Saturday.
With matches against Hallam Kalora Park and Buckley Ridges to come in the final two rounds, selecting Quirk, who will require a permit to be eligible for finals selection, may upset a formula that worked on its first deployment.
Cam Forsyth and coach, Paul Hill, will have some interesting discussions in the coming weeks.
“At this stage of year and given how tight the ladder is, we’ll just be picking our best team every week,” Cam Forsyth said.
“Ryan is obviously a quality player but he’s coming back from a pretty significant injury.
“Having a few games under his belt would be best for him and if he’s fully fit, each win is going to be important in terms of the finals ladder and the top four being so close.
“I think we’ll just take it on a game-by-game basis.
“If he is fully fit, I don’t think that will hold him back from being selected, even if he’s not available for finals.
“It will hopefully be helpful, playing against teams that you’re likely to play against in finals in the coming weeks
“I think the next couple of games in particular are going to be like mini finals given team are playing off for top two positions, essentially.”
