St Mary’s Nagle continued its good recent form, defeating Paynesville by 49 runs in round 10 of the Bairnsdale Cricket Association at Nagle College last Saturday.
Nagle has now recorded three wins for the season, but more importantly has been victorious in two of its last four matches, and tied another against the Gulls.
It’s only loss in that block of matches was to current boom side Wy Yung, who it went down to admirably after a spirited run chase led by skipper Ricky Tatnell.
Nagle won the toss and elected to bat but were quickly in trouble at 2/13 with Brayden McCarrey and Harvey Spaxman both dismissed cheaply.
Flynn Thompson (10), who has been a welcome addition through the turnaround in Nagle’s form, combined well with Tatnell (40) for a 64-run partnership before before both fell in successive overs, Nagle 5/81 when Jonny Lash joined them in the pavilion, courtesy of some inspired bowling from Gulls skipper Mitchell Wilmott (2/40).
But some sensible batting by the Nagle middle order led by 58-year-old veteran Tim Bull (35), who was supported by fellow veteran Scott Scicluna (12) and Ethan East (18), saw the Saints finish on a respectable 9/163 from its 45 overs.
Bull, with one good knee and dodgy hamstrings, turned back the clock with a lofty strike off the bowling Jordan Hegarty that went for six.
His 47-ball cameo was pivotal in the Nagle victory and a valuable lesson to many of the players of this era who don’t put enough value on their wicket.
Luke Bond (3/32) and Campbell Holland (2/22) were also among the wickets for Paynesville.
Paynesville was always in trouble in the run chase, 4/25 early as Tatnell (3/26) made early inroads, before Nathan Schoultz again showed his class with a hard hitting 59 from 51 balls, which include one boundary and six maximums.
Wilmott (10) and Holland (13) were the only other players to register double figures, the match over when Schoultz holed out to cow corner off Spaxman (4/17), reverting the score to 7/93.
Paynesville was bowled out in 36th over for 114, its chance to redeem the tie that it should have won the last time the two sides played, dead and buried.
Nagle currently sits in sixth place on the table, nine points ajar of third and fourth placed sides, West Bairnsdale and Wy Yung.
They will play Meerlieu (twice), Lucknow and Metung Swan Reach in the final four matches. A finals place does look forlorn but not impossible.
Paynesville now languishes in ninth place on the table with dangerous two-day matches against Wy Yung and Lakes Entrance to come, and two matches with a more than capable Lucknow.