Raiders romp to premiership glory CRICKET CLV A GRADE BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT   RAIDERS players perhaps broke out their best Joe Cocker, now that they’re up where they belong. In garnering immediate promotion a year on from being dropped, the team from Yinnar made sure to grab the Cricket Latrobe Valley A Grade premiership on its way out after defeating Rovers at Toongabbie Recreation Reserve. Day 1 of the Grand Final forced players to wait more than two hours after the designated start time of 11am due to light morning rain, ensuring that when teams arrived onto the field for the contest, the energy was bursting at the seams. Once it was game time, Raiders won the toss and sought to monitor the wicket, electing to bowl. Rovers openers Liam Little and Tyler Pearce were faced against Keenan Hughes and Will Robertson. Pressure was assuredly at a high to begin, and just as the Traralgon batsmen began to get themselves moving ever so slowly five overs in, a colossal, quick-time error occurred for Rovers. A square cut from Little forced the Raiders slips on the move, and as Little pushed for two runs, a split second hesitation gave the fielders time to get back to wicketkeeper Tom Griffiths, forcing a run out. While that was one down already, it was still early days – but the Raiders continued to work sharply. Determination: Raiders wicketkeeper Tom Griffiths slides in to collect the ball. Simon Duff and James Hayter were sent almost instantly, with Robertson delivering a well-timed edge to the former and then Hughes belting the ball into the pads leg before against the latter. Within the first nine overs, Rovers supporters and players alike had to be wondering what was going on as they sat 3/8 after just 30 minutes of play. It appeared as though vice skipper Ewan Williams began to right the ship for Rovers at second drop. Williams attempted to break the tide by sending across the first boundary of the match, managing a few cheers from the crowd and easing some of the mounting tension on his side. His partner, the lonesome opener Pearce, continued to keep it safe, especially when facing the rampaging Hughes, who entered the Grand Final with an astonishing 62 wickets to his name. Pearce eventually succumbed to the Raiders tall via a fine edge, pushing Rovers to 4/23. Williams continued to be the only one to truly take it to Hughes and Robertson, securing additional fours when on strike. It seemed as though, singlehandedly, he was quieting the Raiders, who were lively from the moment they stepped onto the field and remained just as chirpy as they earned four early scalps. In another troublesome turn for Rovers, Williams attempted a sweep shot that went horribly awry and was caught just before the drinks break. Navdeep Singh and Will Coad were then undone soon after at the hands of Robertson and Hughes respectively, and the atmosphere was sucked out of Roger Reis Oval, as Rovers already looked ahead to a reverse outright attempt if they could hold up with the ball in hand. Darion Duncan added some spice with a cracking hit that sent the ball over the fence, only for two balls later to be dismissed as Harri McColl smashed the wicket in half. Weapon: Will Robertson earned man of the match honours in Raiders’ Grand Final win, with figures of 3/22 and 4/15. Rovers finished the innings all out with just 47 runs to their name, as all three Raiders bowlers achieved multiple wickets, through Hughes (4/14 and seven maidens), Robertson (3/22), and McColl (2/8). The Raiders innings didn’t start all too well, as Williams quickly sent opener George Cheshire packing. While Griffiths was also exited early, the likes of Michael Higgins and captain Liam Maynard truly moved the needle for Raiders. Higgins tallied 31 runs off 60 balls in his opening stand, but an unbroken half-century from Maynard lit a spark that was weirdly needed for his side, despite being put in a commanding position following their fielding effort. No other teammate made more than 17 (coming from Hughes), as Raiders made 140 all out just before midday on Day 2. Due to the late start on Saturday, the following day’s play began earlier, offering a chance for Raiders to celebrate in the blistering sun in the wee hours of the afternoon if they could repeat their bowling effort from Day 1. Given that Rovers entered its second innings needing to set up a reverse outright, it would be assumed that they’d go down swinging. The team from Traralgon never got going however, as Hughes and Robertson again ripped the heart out of Rovers in quick succession. McColl caught Ewan Williams trying to drive Hughes at the end of the 11th over, which was followed by Robertson blitzing Hayter for just eight and then smashing the wickets the very next ball to remove Duncan, thrusting himself on to a hat-trick. Duff (who took 7/41 off 30 overs) was able to handle the next ball from Robertson to move off strike, but soon after he was trapped absolutely plumb from Hughes, meaning the result was almost written in stone. One final wicket from Robertson when he bowled Coad saw Rovers admit defeat and the two teams shook hands. The score by that stage was 7/75 off 17.1 overs, giving Raiders a win on first innings. Cue celebrations: Raiders premiership players belted out the club song after securing the flag on Sunday. Given how the match ended, along with Raiders being in control seemingly from the moment it began on Day 1, celebrations were relatively subdued, bar the blurting out of the club song inside the rooms. Cricket Latrobe Valley Umpires Association President and gameday umpire Leon Langstaff noted that the decision for man of the match was difficult, before announcing Robertson as the deserved recipient for his seven wickets across two innings. He took 3/22 and 4/15. Hughes equally had the right to be bestowed the honour with seven wickets and seven maidens overall, as did Maynard for his unbeaten 50. The Raiders skipper acknowledged that halfway through the season it wasn’t looking too great for his outfit, in which they sat with just one win from their first six games before rebounding in the home stretch. “To turn things around the way we did, (we) had a lot of guys put their hands up and get it done with the bat or the ball and got us back into a position where we could be here today and get the job done,” he said when accepting the perpetual shield and premiership cup. Both Raiders and Rovers now move into the Premier A competition for season 2026/27, while Centrals and Toongabbie drop back. Rovers earnt promotion as the Grand Final team given Raiders were the premier and minor premier. The premiership team was; Liam Maynard (captain), George Cheshire, Tom Griffiths, Michael ‘Juice’ Higgins, Tom Hood, Keenan Hughes, Tim Hutchinson, Harrison McColl, Tom Robertson, Will Robertson, Harvey Rogers-Collen, Ray ‘Razor’ Stanlake (scorer) and Jason ‘Jock’ MacFarlane (president).

LV Express: Raiders romp to premiership glory #Sport #Centrals #CLV

Get those calculators out in CLV CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   NO play was possible in Cricket Latrobe Valley at the weekend. The league made the early call to cancel all Saturday senior cricket on Friday after huge thunderstorms rolled in. Games will now revert to one day fixtures for the last round of the regular season. Latrobe cricket legend Anthony Bloomfield raised a good point, asking if the last round would be played as a Saturday/Sunday to enable teams to snare maximum points. As it is however, teams will only be able to get a maximum of five points for a one day win this weekend, as opposed to potentially 10 for a two day outright. Teams get four points for a one day win, and a bonus point if a result is achieved inside 30 overs. Day 1 washouts had ramifications for a number of teams, and also officially sealed the fates of others. Centrals and Toongabbie will be relegated from Premier A, while Raiders are assured of promotion given they cannot lose top spot in A Grade. Moe Cricket Club’s Robert Blunt has crunched the numbers heading into the final round. Posting to the league’s socials: “The final round before red ball finals will be white ball contests. Four points for a win but with two points separating third to sixth, any bonus point wins could be the difference, including in the minor premiership race. “Ex Students go to relegated Centrals. The washout confirms Centrals to finish bottom. The one day meeting on January 24 saw the Sharks bowl out Centrals for just 34 in reply to 6/256. Another bonus point win again would lock up top spot but the Lions will be buoyant after their win over fellow Lions Moe last time out. “Morwell host Churchill with the Cobras finals hopes on the line. A win would see Churchill qualified, whilst a loss would see them needing both Imperials and Moe to also lose. Morwell will host a final though can finish minor premiers with a win if Ex Students lose or Morwell get a bonus point win and the Sharks don’t. “Glengarry host Imperials with a complex scenario on the cards if Imps win. Whilst the Magpies will progress with a victory, an Imperials win will see them overtake the Magpies, that’s guaranteed. They will also overtake Churchill and play finals with a win if the Cobras lose to Morwell. If Churchill win however, then Imperials will need Moe to not get a bonus point victory over Toongabbie. “Speaking of that match, Moe must win over the Rams to give themselves a chance to play finals. The Lions will overtake the loser of Glengarry and Imperials, then require Churchill to lose to Morwell to make finals. If Churchill win, then Moe need to pick up a bonus point victory over the Rams and Imperials beat Glengarry without a bonus point. The Rams will finish seventh and go down to A Grade, however could finish their season with two wins on the bounce and impacting finals chances of their opponents after beating Imperials last round. If Moe fail to make it, they will rue their last two results, Churchill winning from 5/53 to chase down 247 and falling to relegated Centrals in the last round.   IN A Grade, there is four points separating second to fourth and third to fifth, meaning bonus points could play a factor. “The washout ends Latrobe’s finals hopes, secures Traralgon West’s finals and sets Mirboo North and Gormandale’s ladder positions in stone,” CLV posted. “Traralgon West will secure a home final with a win over Rovers. A loss will see them away in the post-season. Rovers must win. A loss will leave them relying on other results. A strong quotient would see them stay ahead of CATS (fifth) with a regular win, but a bonus point win to CATS would see them overtake Rovers. “Willow Grove need to win (against Mirboo North) to secure finals without relying on Latrobe to beat CATS. Rovers’ quotient (0.965) sets a very high mathematical bar for the Wolves to overcome if they were to pick up a bonus point win and Rovers lose. Paired with the washout, Mirboo North ultimately ended Latrobe’s finals chances and the Tigers could do the same again, finishing with two wins and costing Willow Grove finals if Latrobe beat CATS. “Whilst the result is inconsequential, Gormandale will aim to finish their season on a high against Raiders. With Raiders likely to automatically go up regardless of result, a Tigers win would give them the ‘last time they met’ victory status over Raiders for at least 18 months in First XI action”. With most games in both divisions still live in the last round, those involved in bringing the two leagues together are surely sitting back with a great deal of satisfaction once again. The Traralgon District-Central Gippsland merger was all about creating the most competitive cricket possible. Players and clubs have seen it every season for three years now.

LV Express: Get those calculators out in CLV #Sport #Cats #Centrals

Lifetime of service recognised CRICKET BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT   STALWART of the Gormandale Cricket Club and Traralgon and District Cricket Association, Gavin Foenander was recognised for his contributions to the game with an Order of Australia medal (OAM). The lifelong cricket volunteer played north of 400 games during the course of his career and served on both club and league committees for close to four decades. Foenander was “extremely proud and honoured” by the recognition. “I actually couldn’t believe it, I was pretty surprised,” he told the Express. “I think for cricket and local cricket, for someone to get recognised is fantastic. I loved playing, I loved being able to help the game … I always felt that if you had a well-run comp, your clubs would benefit, and I felt we all can.” At seven-years-of-age, Foenander played for Centrals throughout most of his juniors with his whole family established there. His father and former Traralgon Journal and Latrobe Valley Express cricket writer, Roy Foenander served as secretary of the TDCA for many years. The junior Foenander recalls when World Series Cricket arrived in the Latrobe Valley in December 1978 when Australia and the Cavaliers clashed in Traralgon and Morwell. “As a 12, 13-year-old, that was just massive,” he said. “It packed the (Traralgon) showgrounds out. Kerry Packer put a turf wicket in … and I just remember dad helping put that in.” This gave Foenander the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of meeting his cricketing heroes, such as Greg Chappell, Sarfraz Nawaz, Ray Bright and Wayne Daniels. After spending two years at Traralgon Rovers, making his A Grade debut, Foenander arrived at Gormandale in 1982 and never looked back. He has served virtually every role at the club over his time, including vice president, junior coach, curator for 36 years, and most importantly, club president from 1994 to 2021. Foenander received Gormandale life membership in 1996 and has been named best clubman on five occasions. As a player, he was initially 12th man for Gormandale’s first-ever A Grade premiership in 1982/83 – his first year at the club. On that day, Gormandale set a record grand final total against Traralgon Imperials, putting on 496 and winning the flag on the fourth day. Foenander played in three A Grade grand finals before getting over the hump in 1992/93, and then later captaining an additional grand final side in 1997/98. Instrumental in seeing Gormandale establish a turf wicket in the early 1990s, by the time he took over as president, Foenander led the club during the biggest decision in its history. The cricket club moved out of town from Gormandale Recreation Reserve and formed a new home at Stoddart Oval in Traralgon. “Around 2004, we were looking over the numbers and there was only one player who was actually living in Gormandale,” Foenander said. “The school was very, very small, and we just thought (that in the) juniors there was no future … our wicket bench was in desperate need of a full renovation. “No one objected to it. Everyone was a bit disappointed about it, but there was no official objection, and the biggest part of it was that we got to keep our name. “It was probably the biggest and best decision ever because we went through an absolute purple patch once we shifted to Traralgon of sustained success and attracting some of the best players (in) country Victoria that the league had seen.” In 2004/05, Gormandale broke a 13-year A Grade premiership drought during its last season in town, before seeing a further five A Grade flags captured finishing in 2013/14. That included a three-peat of A Grade premierships from 2007 to 2009. Foenander played his 400th and final game at the age of 54 and did so in A Grade competition. In 1989, he also joined the TDCA committee, going along all the way until the league merged with the Central Gippsland Cricket Association to become Cricket Latrobe Valley. Foenander points to seeing his father undertake those responsibilities at a young age as to why he felt compelled to follow in his footsteps. “Certainly the influence of dad doing that sort of league community work was a massive reason why (I took up administrative roles),” he said. Serving as vice president of the TDCA for five seasons, Foenander has played the role of secretary (2010-2018), publicity officer (2010-2016), and undertook umpiring duties for three seasons. He was awarded league life membership in 2011 and served additional roles at Gippsland Cricket as a board member for seven years, match coordinator, umpire and vice president. Foenander still plays his part behind the scenes at Gormandale, and acknowledged the “great ride” he’s had in cricket. “From a club-level, there’s too many people to mention – the friends and the great hard workers – but I think that my time at Gormy … I’ll cherish (those) times and the friends I’ve made,” he said. Leongatha and District Cricket Association legend Gary Adams was also a 2026 OAM recipient for his 50 years of service. He also taught Foenander at Liddiard Road Primary School.

LV Express: Lifetime of service recognised #Sport #Centrals #CricketLatrobeValley

Mr Kearns, he cricket bat good CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   Glengarry 6-d/151 & 0/54 def Centrals 10/42 & 10/162 GLENGARRY jumped into third on the Cricket Latrobe Valley Premier A ladder after the completion of Round 12. The Magpies, looking like a possible finals miss only a fortnight ago, catapulted a few rungs after defeating Centrals outright. Centrals had already lost on first innings heading into Day 2 at the weekend, and were 1/32 on resumption. The Lions redeemed its first innings of 42 with 162 second time round. Skipper Tye Hourigan played well for 86, yet most others fell victim to Cam Graham, who took 5/31 on his home deck. Glengarry needed only 54 runs to take all 10 points, and got them in 11 second innings overs. Graham completed a solid day’s work with 27 not out off 31 balls. The Magpie match reports may have been entertaining back at the sheds, after one batsman suffered a classic meltdown in Premier B upon being triggered by a teammate.   Churchill 9/251 def Moe 10/247 GOOD players are always good. A sublime century from Ben Kearns saw Churchill to victory over Moe. Chasing 248, the Cobras survived a late scare to win by one wicket. The home side was 9/244, yet Kearns batted through to finish unbeaten on 118. While he hasn’t played as much in recent seasons, his effort was another class act from what could well be the best sporting family in Gippsland. Fellow Churchill stalwart John Keighran also had a big say in the result, scoring a brisk 58 off 70 balls. Keighran, who by his own admission is “getting too old for this”, has well and truly earnt the right to now come in and bat at number seven. Moe will be disappointed not to close, especially after having Churchill 5/53. By all reports however the Lions didn’t bowl overly well, reflecting a possible poor start to the day with the bat. Moe batted on into Day 2, but lasted only four overs. Matt Hibbs was dismissed for 62, and the last three wickets fell for just three runs. As tends to happen, that can have a deflating effect on the team once it comes time to field. Hibbs (4/47) and Royce Colgrave (2/59) ended with multiple scalps. Moe players still had a good story to bring back to the rooms, after its Premier C won a thriller by two runs against Ex Students. Speaking from experience, any Moe win against Traralgon is memorable regardless of what grade.   Morwell 10/207 def Traralgon Imperials 10/109 MORWELL had 100 runs too many. The Tigers left Catterick Crescent content with first innings points. The visitors shot Imperials out for just 109 in 37.4 overs. Just 33 overs were completed on Day 2, yet Morwell was happy to shake hands and have an early beer. Imperials’ innings fell apart once Ryan Morley was dismissed with the score on 50. He made 39, while fellow Imps veteran Brett Chapman made 35 not out, watching wickets fall from the other end. Tim Ford returned insane figures of 8/50 to single-handedly drive Morwell to victory. His effort was the best-ever bowling for a Morwell player against Imperials (trick stat). How lucky you can get at times. Ford arrived at Morwell a few seasons ago simply as a mate of Brendan Brincat’s. Morwell is now top of the table, and looking to have a healthy squad to choose from at the right time of year. Their depth is so strong that genuine A Graders Dylan Day, Lachlan Day and Joel Mason played B Grade at the weekend. Mason has made runs against Ex Students in the ones this season, while Day took a seven-fa against a Glengarry team that played in the Premier A grand final last season. With this in mind, it is often pointless to debate how good the standard of a particular grade is, because you never quite know who is going to front up.   Toongabbie 10/99 & 5/154 def Ex Students 5-d/310 TOONGABBIE blocked out to avoid an outright. The Rams started the day 1/31 chasing 310 against Ex Students, but were bowled out for just 99. The Sharks enforced the follow-on, and saw the visitors get to 5/154 second time around. By then the damage had already been done, thanks mainly to Jimmy Pryde taking crazy figures of 7/9. His spin partner Lee Stockdale chipped in with 2/17. Only Amal Athulathmudali and Rob Wheildon made contributions for Toongabbie. Athulathmudali perhaps showed where his desire was at, getting to 34 off just 20 rocks. Wheildon meanwhile displayed what playing for the club means, seeing off 115 balls, and then 120 in the second dig. Athulathmudali made it 100 runs for the day, smacking 83 off 75 balls. Stockdale took 3/29 in the second innings.   A Grade Traralgon West 10/51 & 10/161 def Raiders 10/107 & 10/44 POOR Razor must be having a heart attack. Raiders lost reverse outright to Traralgon West, in what ended up being a complete reversal of form inside seven days. Truthfully, the team from Yinnar did well to lose reverse. The Eagles started the day at 4/43, still 13 runs shy of making the home side bat again in A Grade. A half-century to Hayden Kimpton (adding 21 runs to his overnight score), and scores of 35 and 31 to Josh Monacella and Alfie Peck took Traralgon West to 161. With half the day still to go, Raiders were set 105 to take all 10 points. Little more than 20 overs later however, they’d been shot out for 44. Peck ran riot with 5/19, while Connor Hughes took 4/20. Perhaps most damming for Raiders – nine batsmen were either bowled or lbw. The win was arguably Traralgon West’s most memorable since doing a similar job on CATS earlier this decade. The result could destabilise Raiders meanwhile, and further reinforce the message that Keenan Hughes can’t do it all himself.   CATS 10/161 def Mirboo North 10/138 & 4/145 WHAT a time to step up. Josh Bellingham made a name for himself, after peeling off 67 batting at 10 for CATS against Mirboo North. He partnered with Ben Hagley in a 113-run partnership for the ninth wicket, rescuing CATS and completely demoralising the Tigers. There is honestly nothing worse than a nagging lower order partnership (still have nightmares of Roger Henry coming in at eight that time). CATS started Day 2 in all sorts at 8/48 chasing 138 at John Black Oval. Bellingham however showed incredible poise, to get through amid the most severe amount of pressure imaginable, knowing that one mistake could have led to defeat for his team. Hagley was 31 not out overnight, and got to 55 after the match was won. The Tigers batted again to try and manufacture something, but ended at 4/145 after 48 overs. Ben Heath scored 63 not out and George Fairbairn 28 red. Zach Hollis (4/10) and Frankie Ingram (2/61) were unable to add to their Day 1 wicket tallies for Mirboo North.   Latrobe 10/216 def Rovers 10/180 BORING cricket is a good tactic at this level. Latrobe defeated Rovers by 36 runs at Duncan Cameron. Defending 216, made after 80 overs on Day 1, the Sharks kept Rovers to 180 off the same amount. Jacob Bloomfield (3/24), Rhys Noble (3/53) and Rob Webber (2/18) ensured the screws were tightened, as Rovers lost wickets at semi-regular intervals. Rovers veteran Simon Duff kept the Sharks nervous with 40 batting at number nine, yet his dismissal by Ed Hopper (2/12) sparked a sigh of relief from the visitors. The home side was 8/126, before a 50 run partnership kept the game alive. James Hayter also scored 40 for Rovers.   Willow Grove 8-d/247 def Gormandale 10/64 & 4/137 GORMANDALE was another team forced to block out. The Tigers were destroyed on first innings, but put up a good fight second time around against Willow Grove. Taking to Moe Racecourse Turf, the Wolves picked up from 3/104, and declared with 247 on the board. Luke Payton made a run-a-ball 79, while Dylan van der Stoep struck at the same rate in his 34 not out. Buddhima Dissanayake got one for the mantlepiece, taking 5/95. Yohan Soyza snared 2/70 off 29 economical overs. Soyza then scored 85, batting for a period with Cal Polo, who went through the innings with 36 red.

LV Express: Mr Kearns, he cricket bat good #News #AGrade #Centrals

Strange and predictable days across CLV CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   ON the home stretch to finals. Cricket Latrobe Valley saw out January with two day cricket making a return as Round 12 commenced. Cricketers are in the midst of a busy schedule, as the Gippsland Cricket League season just wrapped up, and Country Week begins next week. Back at club land, there was some good moments in the lower grades. Rob Semmler scored a century for Morwell, and Jesse Berryman-Lambert took five fa for Raiders. Both have been absolute warriors for their clubs. Semmler’s ton was perhaps made even more satisfying given it was against a CATS team that included former Morwell coach Rory Hare. Some discussion has already started generating for next season as well. Jeeralang-Boolarra are reportedly seriously considering re-joining A Grade, much to their credit. The Panthers have only been out of A Grade for three seasons, and have maintained a desire to field an A Grade provided it is sustainable. Now appears a good time – Jeeralang-Boolarra is fourth on the Premier B ladder and first on the C Grade ladder with good junior players coming through from under 16s and 14s. If the Panthers do enter A Grade, one imagines a player like Brendan Mason will commit more often, while it would also make the task of recruiting players easier. Former CLV club Trafalgar has also been brought up in the annual discussion of a possible return (death, taxes). The Express can confirm the Ships will be staying in Warragul, unless of course a mutiny is being planned the current sitting secretary is unaware of.   Premier A Moe 6/234 to Churchill THAT’S just how Moe plays. The Lions batted for 90 overs against Churchill, ending the day 6/234. Lions skipper Matt Hibbs had an easy decision at the toss, and saw most of his top order make decent contributions at Andrews Park West. The man with the same first name as the venue scored 64, with Andrew Philip putting in a typically methodical innings. That he faced more than 100 balls without scoring provides an important lesson. Hibbs made 59 not out, and will surely be tempted to try and slog a quick 40 in 10 overs on Day 2. Anu Anubhav (30) and Ben Zomer (28) also took the Lions’ total past 200. Most of Churchill’s front liners showed equal patience, going at one and two an over. Matt Harvey had the most success, taking 3/38.   Glengarry 6-d/151 to Centrals 1/32 IF Centrals has a batting coach, they might be using Mad Monday as their farewell party. Another diabolical performance with the bat saw the Lions routed for 42 against Glengarry. The home side quickly won on first innings, declared with 150 on the board, and already have Centrals one down in its second dig. Cam Graham and Max Merton took four wickets each in the first innings, while Brandon Mayberry snared 2/1. Graham then got to work with the bat, scoring 32, along with Hamish Busk, who made 28. Al Jenkin however ensured a declaration could be made, getting 60 not out off 66 balls. Marc Fenech at least took 4/55 and Tyron Gamage 2/29 for the Lions. Centrals are looking at an outright defeat, needing to score 77 runs just to make the Magpies bat again. Amazingly, after being well out of finals contention before Nat Freitag returned, Glengarry can leapfrog Churchill and Imperials into the top four if it takes 10 points on Day 2. Maybe the curse wasn’t broken after Centrals won the 2023/24 A Grade premiership.   Morwell 10/207 to Traralgon Imperials 1/7 MORWELL has the advantage against Imperials. The Tigers have the home side 1/7 chasing 207. Imperials made the surprise decision to bowl first, and while the Tigers slumped to 3/36, runs to Jordan Campbell (38), Luke Gettings (36), Tim Ford (35), Blair Clymo (32) and Todd Dixon (32) showed a pleasing sharing of the load as far as Morwell was concerned. The Tigers had a four over skirt at Imperials before stumps, and managed to prize out one wicket. Todd Mann will be very sore this week after sending down 32 overs and taking 4/85. Perhaps unlike Mann, Scott Aitken (3/42) and Charlie Pilling (2/27) will now turn their attention to batting.   Ex Students 5-d/310 to Toongabbie 1/31 YOU just can’t buy this experience. Ex Students declared at 5/310, and has Toongabbie 1/31 in reply at Terry Hunter Oval. The same formula again proved successful for the Sharks: bat first, keep wickets in hand and go at a reasonable rate. Lee Stockdale top-scored with 69 and Rick Battista made an unbeaten 66 off 65 balls. Youngster Fletcher Graham played his breakthrough innings, scoring 51 batting first drop. This followed openers Matt Dyke (35) and Jimmy Pryde (30) giving the team an ideal platform, followed by Michael Stockdale coming in later to score 31 off 37. Amal Athulathmudali collected 4/70 for his toils. Ex Students batted for 69 overs, giving the Rams a tricky 16 overs to see out.   A Grade WHAT on Earth happened in Cricket Latrobe Valley A Grade at the weekend? Extremely low scores were recorded across most games, as wickets tumbled on Day 1 of Round 12. The one game that did buck the trend was Rovers versus Latrobe.   Latrobe 10/216 to Rovers 0/17 THE Sharks batted first at Duncan Cameron after being sent in. Latrobe skipper Steven Freshwater led from the front with 57, and received good support from fellow veterans Adam Duncan (32 not out) and Jamie Coltman (26). The trio faced a combined total of nearly 300 balls. Say what you will about Latrobe’s batting over the years, one thing you can’t deny is most of the older blokes put a very high price on their wicket. Duncan came in at 11 after Steve Hanning scored 33 off 23. The wicket-keeper is certainly not a Number 11, although that position does hold some strange reverence at Latrobe. Former skipper Brendan Evans always coveted the position. It ended up being a day for the veterans, with Simon Duff taking 4/49 for Rovers. Liam Little, representing the younger generation, took 4/51, including the key wicket of Anthony Bloomfield. Rovers got through seven overs before stumps without any damage.   Mirboo North 10/138 to CATS 8/73 THIS has got Mirboo North classic written all over it. The Tigers have CATS 8/73 chasing 138. The visitors scraped to a seemingly small total at John Black Oval, after Tinashe Panyangara (4/22), Jamie Cochrane (2/6) and Aaron Fawcett (2/18) ran riot. CATS however were reduced to 4/18 when it was their turn to bat. Four globes by the time stumps were called made for a very sorry scorecard. Zach Hollis already has insane figures of 4/2, while Frankie Ingram has 2/34 for Mirboo North. Ben Hagley is on 31 not out, but Mirboo North will know full well Callum Stewart still has to bat. That being said, the drop in performance from CATS just after Christmas has been astounding. After beating Willow Grove reverse outright in the last game before the break (which could technically still be counted as something of a loss), CATS have not won a game.   Gormandale 10/64 to Willow Grove 3/104 LONG day for Gormy coming up. The Tigers have already lost on first innings, and Willow Grove is 40 runs ahead with Luke Payton still at the crease. The Wolves elected to bowl first at the toss, and knocked Gormandale over for just 64. Nimesh Soyza made virtually half the total with an unbeaten 29. Dylan van der Stoep (3/8) and Nick Sallee (3/11) did most of the damage with the ball, as at one stage Gormandale was 6/20. With only half the day done, Willow Grove won on first innings with all 10 wickets in hand, and then set about building a lead. Ben Edebohls scored 70, continuing what has been a coming-of-age season for him with the bat – at least from a strike rate point-of-view. Yohan Soyza bowled 22 very economical overs, conceding just 18 runs and taking two wickets. As the bowling team heading into Day 2 for these sort of games, you know precisely what is going to happen and are therefore dreading it all week. It’s rather like Christmas lunch, so maybe it’s early practise at least.   Raiders 10/107 to Traralgon West 10/51 & 4/43 HE’s just too quick for most blokes at this level. Raiders have catapulted into premiership contention, mainly because of Keenan Hughes. The left arm quick took his second seven fa this season, in a somewhat farcical game at Yinnar Turf. Bowling first against Traralgon West, Hughes delivered 15.5 overs of pace that netted figures of 7/17. Harri McColl meanwhile took 2/14 to see the Eagles rocked and rolled for 51. Raiders made a meal of its innings, slapping 107 off 39.2 overs. The home side had first innings points in the bag with six wickets in hand, and lost its last four wickets for two runs. Mick Higgins was there at least to provide some stability with 37 off 50. Adding to the subplots, Hughes’ brother Connor took 5/22 playing for Traralgon West. Alfie Peck also claimed 4/30. The Eagles had 14 more overs to bat before stumps, and lost 4/43. Hayden Kimpton is 29 not out, and McColl has all four wickets. So, in the washup, Traralgon West needs to score 13 runs to make Raiders bat again, and has six wickers remaining to post any sort of total.  

LV Express: Strange and predictable days across CLV #Sport #Centrals #Churchill

Morwell’s unimaginable comeback CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   CRICKETERS made the sensible decision to start early at the weekend. With temperatures forecast to reach close to the 38 degree cutoff, games commenced around 11am in order to try and beat the heat. In the end, conditions weren’t stifling hot for the last one day round of the season. The league also made the sensible decision not to play third grade matches over the Australia Day long weekend. Interestingly, Bairnsdale Cricket Association did not play at all, likely due to the huge influx of people heading to Lakes Entrance (was it not an opportunity missed though to host a cricket carnival?) Round 11 of Cricket Latrobe Valley presented another interesting case study as the season moves closer to finals. Teams are getting some key players back for the right time of year, and it is likely going to come down to the last couple of rounds to determine who makes up the final four in each division. Generally speaking, teams sitting mid-table simply have to keep winning in order to qualify.   Premier A Morwell 9/162 def Toongabbie 10/160 THIS is truly one of the most bizarre games imaginable. Morwell survived a huge scare against Toongabbie in Round 11 of Cricket Latrobe Valley Premier A. It took a Todd Dixon four in the 45th over for the Tigers to win nine down. The ending was in keeping with what was something that had to be seen to be believed. Chasing 160 at Keegan Street, the home side was 7/136, but managed to sneak the runs required, much to the relief of all wearing yellow and black. Incredibly, all nine Morwell dismissals were bowled (no word of a lie). Blair Clymo (43) and Blake Mills (39) provided the backbone of the innings, but could only watch on helplessly as Nathan Farley (3/26) tore through the middle order, backing up Gayashan Munasinghe, who took 4/17 across his spells. Rams legend Rob Wheildon had earlier batted through the entire innings to finish 88 not out, in one of the great individual knocks. Just to add another layer to such a strange game – the next highest score after him was extras on 17. Wickets were shared in the Morwell camp. Ross Whelpdale took 3/13 with his off breaks, and fellow spinners Blair Clymo 2/8 and Mark Cukier 2/34. The evergreen Brendan Brincat took 3/47. First the footy and netball club play in a game against Traralgon when the scores are exactly the same, and now this. The stuff historians dream about.   Moe 3/132 def Traralgon Imperials 10/131 MOE scored arguably its most important win in the context of its Premier A season. The Lions defeated Imperials, who have just started to wobble over the last couple of weeks. Making the very un-Moe like decision to bowl first at Burrage, the Lions dismissed the visitors for 131. Brett Chapman and Scott Aitken were the only Imperials batsmen to really get going, scoring 32 and 31 respectively. Spinner Callum Grant led the way for Moe, taking 4/16, supported by left arm quick Royce Colgrave with 2/41. Moe was then methodical as ever chasing down the runs without too much risk. Philip/Phoenix CC returned, with Andrew Philip making 45 red and Rob Phoenix 41 off 37 balls. Dilshan Thilakarathne had some joy with the ball, snaring 2/32 for Imperials. Another blast from the past appeared on a Moe team sheet, with Joel Jacovou having a hit in the twos.   Glengarry 4/148 def Churchill 10/146 HE really makes a world of difference. Nat Freitag helped Glengarry to a win over Churchill. The gun left hander scored 64 not out in a 150 chase at Andrews Park West. Sam Marks hung around for 31 off 70 at the top of the order. Jordan Higham was the pick of the Churchill bowlers with 3/21 off 10 overs with three maidens. Earlier in he day, the Cobras card was plagued by only two scores of significance and a heap of single digit returns. Higham top-scored with 43, while skipper Ryan Ayres made 36. New ball bowlers Max Merton (3/27), Cam Graham (3/24) and Frank Marks (2/15) did the damage for the Magpies.   Ex Students 6/256 def Centrals 10/34 CENTRALS batting like its 1995. That is the supposedly how long epic batting collapses have been happening at the Lions. The team from Apex Park took it to new levels last Saturday, getting blasted out for just 34 against Ex Students. The Sharks perhaps showed just how big the gap is between top and bottom, after closing at 6/256. Perhaps the only saving grace for Centrals was that this game wasn’t played in the old days when teams could bowl twice in one dayers (how ridiculous was that). Such a pummeling appeared some way off after Ex Students were reduced to 3/22 at Terry Hunter Oval. Yet again though, Rick Battista showed just how important he is, scoring an unbeaten 122 off 137 rocks. He combined with skipper James Pryde, who made a run-a-ball 56. Michael Stockdale also helped the total with 33. Centrals may well have been thinking 150 was on the cards thanks to the bowling of Tyron Gamage (3/49). Cameron Whitehead took two wickets, but went at more than seven an over. The Lions’ batting resembled a telephone number, and they were shot out in 20.2 overs. The visitors were in early trouble at 2/15, and then further up the proverbial without a paddle when two more wickets fell for no runs added. Extras (11) was the only double figure score. Ex Students only needed to use three bowlers. Pryde (4/4), Lee Stockdale (4/11) and Mitch Harris (2/16) cleaned up.   A Grade Willow Grove 3/223 def CATS 10/221 THAT would have to be the greatest win in Willow Grove’s history. The Wolves defeated CATS by seven wickets at home, thanks to a mighty hand of 132 from Luke Payton. Willow Grove officials have banged on about how good this bloke is for two years. After showing glimpses last season, there is now no denying he is one of the most destructive batsmen, not just in Latrobe Valley, but in Gippsland. His innings at the weekend came against an attack that had former Zimbabwean Test bowler Tinashe Panyangara. (From the MCG in a World Cup to the hard deck of Willow Grove, how much further apart could you get). Opening up, Payton struck at 159, sending six balls over the fence, including one into a nearby house – quite a feat given there aren’t many surrounding the Willow Grove oval. Wolves captain Ben Edebohls played a perhaps forgotten innings of 55, striking at 80 as well, in a winning chase of 3/223. Panyangara had earlier blasted four sixes for CATS, while Cal Stewart (37 off 24) and Jamie Cochrane (36) also contributed. CATS had Aaron Fawcett playing, brother of Dane, who has joined the club this season. The experience would have undoubtedly been strange for the Neerim South local, playing cricket against the club he plays football for. Aaron scored 33 batting in familiar territory, although changing in the unfamiliar environment of the visitor’s rooms. Edebohls took 3/50, while youngster Logan Walsh (2/26) and Nathan Wheildon (2/32) chipped in. The Wolves will surely feel vindicated, after losing reverse-outright to CATS in the two dayer. Technically speaking, Willow Grove has actually defeated CATS 1.5 times this season. CATS player Shane Mustoe suffered an unfortunate injury in the Premier B match against Thorpdale, after top-edging a bouncer into his head. Mustoe wasn’t wearing a helmet, and had to retire hurt. He was taken to hospital and is recovering from a broken eye socket.   Rovers 5/169 def Gormandale 6/165 JUST one or two wickets shy of making things really interesting. Rovers chased Gormandale’s total of 165, although half the side was in the shed when the game was won. Batting first at Duncan Cameron, top-scorers for the Tigers were Campbell Peavey (50 not out) and Cal Polo (32). Liam Little was the best of the Rovers bowlers with 4/28 off his 10. Ewan Williams then did most of the scoring, making 62, although his dismissal changed the complexity of the game. Rovers appeared to be cruising at 0/75, yet were precariously placed at 5/127 not long after. Yohan Soyza gave little away, claiming 4/15 off 10 overs with four maidens.   Latrobe 6/172 def Traralgon West 10/171 LATROBE secured a vital win. The Sharks made sure of things, taking 46.2 overs to chase Traralgon West’s total at Moe Racecourse. A number of starts punctuated the Eagles’ innings. Josh Monacella scored 31, Bohdi Bright 30 and Sam Treasure 28. Bright suffered the slight misfortune of going out to Rob Webber – his coach for the Gippsland Under 21s team. Webber showed how its done, taking 3/28. Ed Hopper helped out with 2/25, and then made 45 opening the batting. Import Rhys Noble got 43 to his name, while Anthony Bloomfield saw the team to victory with 34 red. Alfie Peck (3/45) and Connor Hughes (2/39) were the multiple wicket-takers for Traralgon West.   Raiders 5/270 def Mirboo North 8/180 POOR Mirboo North would have been cooking in their black one day kit. The Tigers suffered a loss in 35 degree heat at home, going down to Raiders by the best part of 100 runs. Raiders put up 5/270 batting first, with the top five all doing their job. Runs came to Harvey Rogers-Collen (58), George Chesire (57), Tom Robertson (45), Harri McColl (37) and Liam Maynard (36). George Fairbairn made a half-century in reply, and veteran Chris Anders finished on 38 not out, as Mirboo North closed at 8/180 after the 50 over allotment. Raiders threw the ball around, giving 10 blokes a bowl. Rogers-Collen grabbed 3/13 and Keenan Hughes 2/23.

LV Express: Morwell’s unimaginable comeback #Sport #BairnsdaleCricketAssociation #Centrals

Masterful Mills’ magnificent ton CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   VICTORIA’S wild weather again played havoc with local cricket. With Gippsland sandwiched between bushfires in the north and flash flooding in the south, the result saw heavy rain fall last Friday night before Round 10 of Cricket Latrobe Valley. The rain was enough to leave a couple of games abandoned, continuing what has been a frustrating and equally bizarre season. Granted there is always a few washouts a season, there has barely been a dry month in 2025/26 so far. (There has seemed to be more washouts since COVID, maybe there is something in that?) The situation may also play havoc with aggregates, and eventual winners may have noticeably lower returns than the norm. People may look at club honour boards in years’ to come and think the standard wasn’t overly strong, without realising there was in fact just half as many games played. It will admittedly be farcical at the current rate, with some clubs on track to have blokes win aggregates with 200 runs and 15 wickets.   Morwell 7/218 def Ex Students 9/216 FIRST time’s a charm. Morwell secured its maiden victory over Ex Students at First XI level. Another team was added to the list (surely the most comprehensive in local cricket existence) at the weekend, after the Tigers defeated the Sharks by three wickets following a Blake Mills masterclass. The left hander compiled what is surely his best knock for the club, scoring an unbeaten 104 against the league-leaders. He capped it off by hitting the winning runs, shortly after tucking two off his hip to reach triple figures. Perhaps most tellingly, he celebrating the winning runs more than his hundred, making an arc toward his jubilant teammates amid claps and cries of “come on”. Travelling to Terry Hunter Oval, the visitors decided to bowl first, and made use of the overcast conditions, reducing Ex Students to 2/7 early. A few partnerships formed around the Stockdale brothers from there, with Lee scoring 54 and Michael 67 to take the total to 9/216 after the 50 over allotment. Skipper Jimmy Pryde made a counter-attacking 30 off 27 balls, coming in down the order at eight. All six Morwell bowlers used took wickets. Spinner Ross Whelpdale took the two key wickets of Lee Stockdale and Rick Battista once set. The Tigers took the chase right to the penultimate over, but had Mills there at the end to see the team over the line. He received support from skipper Blair Clymo (39) and veteran Mark Cukier (25). Ex Students were somewhat uncharacteristic, sending down 22 extras, but that should not detract from Morwell’s performance, nor the fact Mills struck at close to 90 (seven fours, three sixes). Pryde (3/34) and Michael Stockdale (2/33) were multiple wicket-takers for the Sharks.   Moe 2/98 def Centrals 10/97 A WIN for Moe and surely huge concerns for Centrals. How the Traralgon Lions could do with Nuwan Pradeep (the former Sri Lankan international played a few games for the club last season). Centrals were routed by eight wickets at Burrage, after folding for just 97. Moe lost just two wickets chasing the total, capping off a special day for the club hosting its first-ever Indigenous round. Players from both teams walked through a smoking ceremony pregame, as acknowledgements were made. Centrals could hardly blame the pitch (which historically had a home team advantage due to low bounce) after electing to bat first on Saturday. The visitors were 2/5 after some ordinary shots saw one opener back away to a length ball and another play a dirty hack across the line to get out lbw. Centrals captain Tye Hourigan had little choice but to dig in, and scored 38 off 104 balls. The lighter blue Lions at least saw out 46 overs, meaning the party pies and sausage rolls had a chance to cook through. Moe bowled well as a unit, with wickets shared. Spinners Callum Grant and Anu Anubhav took five between them. Moe chased the win and the bonus point, getting both before winning beers were consumed. Rob Phoenix played the percentages as always, making 44 off 88 in the maroon clads. He hit just three boundaries, demonstrating a valuable lesson. The win keeps Moe in finals contention and all but condemns Centrals to relegation. How quickly things can change – Centrals looked for all money like making the grand final last season after rolling Glengarry for 85 in the semi. Now they haven’t won a game this season.   Churchill 4/102 def Traralgon Imperials 10/100 CHURCHILL might just be peaking at the right time. The Cobras backed up winning the T20 final on Friday night by smashing Imperials by six wickets. Imps were second on the ladder heading into the match, but were perhaps given a reality check that night after being skittled for just 100 at Catterick Crescent. Double figure scores from the top three Imperials’ batsmen told the story, after the home side elected to have a hit. Churchill’s bowlers executed well, and were able to control things under defensive one day batting. Steve Warr took 2/9, John Keighran 2/12 and Chris Williams 2/19. Keighran and another familiar Churchill name in Ben Kearns then got most of the runs, remaining not out on 33 and 27. Todd Mann finished with 2/11 off his 10 overs, while Charlie Pilling snared 2/28. The audio picked up someone saying “three certainties in life” before Mann snicked off Jordan Higham at first slip.   Glengarry v Toongabbie – ABANDONED THE match between Glengarry and Toongabbie did not get a start. Damp conditions at Fred King Oval left the ground unplayable. The draw might spell the end for the Magpies’ finals chances, as they are now eight points off Churchill in fourth. The bigger story might be Glengarry possibly fighting relegation. While it is long odds, Glengarry is six points adrift of seventh-placed Toongabbie with four games to go. From playing in five consecutive grand finals to potentially getting relegated – how good’s cricket.   A Grade Mirboo North 9/232 def Willow Grove 10/1668 THAT’S more like the Mirboo North people know. The Tigers snapped an indifferent run of form to blitz Willow Grove by 64 runs in A Grade. Batting first at Willow Grove Rec, the visitors made the home side pay for sending them in, chalking up 9/232. Zach Hollis top-scored with 57, followed by George Fairbairn (37), Frankie Ingram (35), Linc Chila (34) and Nila Thillekarathna (32). The Walsh brothers, Darcy and Logan, took a pair of wickets each for the Wolves, along with Nathan Wheildon. Ingram and Will Lawrey then did the damage with the new ball, reducing Willow Grove to 3/27. Ingram took the big wicket of Luke Payton cheaply, although the Wolves found runs from Adam Forth (who?) with a sublime innings. Forth batted through the carnage, to end the 168 innings on 93 not out off 111 balls, running out of partners for what would have been a memorable century. Lawrey (3/27) and Ingram (3/39) set the platform for Dale Banks to clean up with his leg spin. Banks took 3/28, clean bowling the two Walsh boys and Hamish Phoenix, whose dad Banks played in premierships with. Despite their fates, the three youngsters would have surely taken some notes on how to play quality spin dealing with one of the best to ever do it. Mirboo North is still last on the ladder, 12 points behind fourth and finals. They couldn’t could they?   Rovers 1/121 def CATS 9/120 ARE Rovers really good or CATS not as good as everyone thinks? A nine wicket win would suggest the former. Rovers completely dismantled the team from Traralgon South – on their home turf no less, chasing 120 one down. CATS won the toss and batted, but struggled under a sustained bowling effort that saw all six bowlers used take wickets. Mitch Leslie was the pick with 3/21, although Simon Duff and Liam Little deserve a mention, going for less than 20 runs across their 10 over spells. CATS leader Nathan Harrup had to bat through most of the 50 overs for an unbeaten 55 off 150 rocks. Rovers secured a win and a bonus point, after chasing the total in less than 25 overs. Ewan Williams fell just five runs short of a ton, but his effort single-handedly won the match. He struck 12 fours and four sixes in a 76-ball 95, that was every bit 95 made rather than 100 lost. Rovers are now four points clear on top of the ladder, and surely daring to dream.   Traralgon West 3/142 def Gormandale 10/141 TRARALGON WEST in the top two – who honestly would have thought? The Eagles defeated Gormandale by seven wickets – which given history of a previous generation, would have been very sweet to any long time ‘Westies’. Chasing 141 at Stoddart Oval, the visitors kept things interestingly enough, eventually crossing in during the 46th over. The Tigers possibly denied themselves a few runs, after Campbell Peavey (43) and Connor Bettsworth (29) were dismissed against the run of play. Ben Fleming (3/26) continued his wicket-taking ways, backing up the efforts of Connor Hughes with the new ball (3/16) and Alfie Peck (2/23). Matt Griffiths played the opening anchor roll, scoring 48 off 100 balls, while Josh Monacella played a similar hand in the middle order with 45 red off 107.   Raiders 7/179 def Latrobe 9/177 RAIDERS are starting to come good. Except that they bowled 44 extras. The team from Yinnar defeated Latrobe by three wickets at home after chasing 178. Taking the punt to bowl first, the home side went through 50 overs, which became 56.1 following a startling display of inaccuracy as 37 wides were recorded. Finn Mahoney was the main offender with 14, while beanpole quick Harrison McColl had his radar off, sending down nine. Moments of madness were intertwined with moments of brilliance however, with the top five Latrobe bats all returning single digit scores. Sharks skipper Steven Freshwater made 35 and Ronnie Chokununga 31 until adjudged lbw by Mick Higgins. These Yinnar blokes just never fully retire. The man known as ‘Juice’ took 3/32, Keenan Hughes 2/24 and George Cheshire 2/27. Raiders captain Liam Maynard again took matters into his own hands, scoring an unbeaten 67 to see the team to safety in the third-last over. Cheshire helped out with 28. The home side was seemingly swimming at 1/59 and 4/130 before things pivoted thanks to none other than Anthony Bloomfield. Bowling for the first time at Shark level this season, he took 2/30 off nine overs with his left arm seamers. Opening quick Rhys Noble also took 2/41.

LV Express: Masterful Mills’ magnificent ton #Sport #Cats #Centrals

Premier A thrillers on return CRICKET CLV PREMIER A By LIAM DURKIN   LOCAL cricket returned after the Christmas break at the weekend. Players battled high winds and smoke from nearby bushfires out on the field. Round 9 matches of Cricket Latrobe Valley were played as one dayers, as all concerned got back into the swing of things. Another good innovation saw Centrals and Glengarry play a double header at Apex Park. The day started with Premier B at 9am, before moving into the Premier C twilight match from 3pm. Premier A returned some very competitive matches – one decided in the last over, and another by one wicket.   Ex Students 9/199 def Churchill 9/194 GOOD teams find away. Ex Students got up by one wicket against Churchill in a Terry Hunter Oval thriller – but not after one of the most astonishing knocks from a player in a losing cause. Chasing 195, the Sharks took it to the 48th over, requiring the years of experience from Adam Brady and Michael Stockdale to see them through. Ryan Ayres had earlier played the innings of his time at the Cobras, making an unbeaten 105. Such was the magnificence, the next highest score was 24 (any danger boys). He also came in when the score was 2/9, and was out in the middle when it read 4/13. Ben Kearns and John Keighran provided support down the order, needing to rein in their usually attacking nature to do the team thing and get Ayres on strike. He single-handedly gave Churchill a decent total, up against an attack led by Jimmy Pryde, who took 4/33. The total appeared insignificant when the Sharks got to 1/138, thanks to a 101-run second wicket partnership between Daniel Trease and Matt Dyke. Both men registered half-centuries, before the match took a dramatic turn from the most unlikely of sources. Cobras top-order bat Ric Velardi was introduced into the attack, and ended up ripping through the middle order, taking up after Matt Harvey dismissed Trease and Dyke with his left arm orthodox. Velardi snared three consecutive wickets to all of a sudden leave the game precariously placed at 7/174. A run out thereafter only added to the mayhem, and when Ex Students veteran Andy Matthews was trapped by Cobras equivalent Chris Williams, the Sharks still needed nine to win with one wicket in hand. Going for broke, the Cobras were denied victory after a no ball was hit to the boundary. Velardi took 4/28 off his six overs, while Harvey and Williams returned identical figures of 2/21.   Traralgon Imperials 5/197 def Glengarry 6/195 IMPERIALS kept its winning form up. Glengarry was the team’s latest scalp, after winning by five wickets at Catterick Crescent. The margin did not reflect the closeness of the game however, as the match was not decided until the last over. The return of Nat Freitag had immediate affect for the Magpies as far as run-scoring went, with the superstar left hander making an unbeaten 57. He was however more subdued than usual, striking at 60, likely because of a lengthy layoff following injury. Frank Marks played in a similar fashion, scoring 62 off 80, taking off from Cam Graham who opened with 31 off 57. Wickets proved hard to take at Catterick for both sides. Dilshan Thilakarathne bobbed up with 3/29 for Imperials. The home side saw double-figure scores from the entire top six, and breathed a sigh of relief when the total was eventually reached. Lewis Blake top-scored with 65, followed by Thilakarathne (40 not out) and Leighton Shuttleworth (31). Freitag bowled eight overs, in further encouraging signs for his recovery. Graham completed a decent all-round game, taking 3/43. The game will likely provide the competition with a couple of references: that Glengarry is every chance to come home with a wet sail as finals approach, and that Imps might have been lucky to scamper over the line.   Toongabbie 10/197 def Centrals 10/160 TOONGABBIE secured its first win of the Premier A season. The Rams won by 37 runs against Centrals, meaning the Lions remain as the only winless side in 2025/26. Batting first at Roger Ries Oval after being sent in, the home team recovered from 3/23 to post 197. Toongabbie legend Tom Shippen rescued the innings, along with Kyle O’Reilly, putting on 51 for the fourth wicket. Shippen reached his half-century, while O’Reilly played a busy hand of 35 off 38 balls. This paved the way for Jason Veneman to come in at eight, although he was certainly not taking the mickey, scoring an unbeaten 30. Tyron Gamage threatened to capitulate the Rams’ innings after taking two wickets with the new ball. The Centrals spearhead was the best of the bowlers with 4/39, in a card that saw all six bowlers used take wickets. Tarkyn Shankland was next best with 2/26. The Lions looks set for victory at 1/55, yet Toongabbie’s big guns then swung the match. Skipper Tim Dunn took the decisive wicket of Jaxon Murdoch for 32, before Shippen and Amal Athulathmudali joined in. Centrals fell in a heap, losing 3/6, the result of which meant the middle to lower order was left with too much to do. Dunn collected 3/17, Brady Hood 2/18 and Shippen 2/20 off his 10 overs with two maidens.   Morwell 3/168 def Moe 10/165 MORWELL was methodical in its chase against Moe. The Tigers chased 165 in 38.3 overs at Keegan Street, losing just three wickets in the process. The visitors had a less than ideal start, with the top four batsmen struggling to get going. Moe captain Matt Hibbs was forced to rebuild, and made a patient 49 off 95 rocks. He found a willing ally in youngster Brodyn Blandford, who hung around for a defiant 33 off 70 – sure to give his confidence the world of good against a quality attack. Morwell’s new ball bowlers Tim Ford and Brendan Brincat got the ball talking, and ended with three wickets each. Tigers skipper Blair Clymo picked up 2/16 and was then out in the middle as the winning runs were hit. The Morwell top order did the opposite to Moe, with Kris Fortuin (37), Mark Cukier (50) and Blake Mills (46 off 32) all contributing significantly. Ben McCartney had some success for the Lions, nabbing 2/22.   A Grade Traralgon West 6/105 def Rovers 10/104 TRARALGON WEST raised a number of eyebrows after defeating equal top-side Rovers. Chasing only 104, the Eagles won with four wickets in the shed at Duncan Cameron. The visitors bowled very well, hardly allowing Rovers to get the run rate moving. Liam Little made 29 opening the batting, yet most of his teammates returned scores in single figures. Things were looking dire for Rovers at 5/42, and ultimately, they just had to try and get to triple figures. Ben Fleming bowled an economical spell of 3/16 off 10, as did Alfie Peck, who took 2/27 off the same amount. The Eagles got the required runs without too much hassle, at one stage being 2/60. Kane Scott and Little took a pair of wickets each for Rovers.   Willow Grove 9/181 def Latrobe 10/145 HONESTY is the best policy – even though it can sometimes cost you. A terrific act of sportsmanship from Latrobe captain Steven Freshwater saw him recall Willow Grove batsman Ben Edebohls at the weekend. Edebohls had been given out lbw, yet the Sharks skipper, feeling the wrong decision had been made, graciously allowed his opposite number to take his guard again. Edebohls was on 30 at the time, and went on to score a match-winning 88 not out for the Wolves. Willow Grove closed at 9/181at Moe Racecourse, and then bowled Latrobe out for 145. Anthony Wilkes helped Edebohls with 26 at the top of the order up against Rob Webber, who took 2/26. Sharks youngster Liam Duncan had his coming-of-age moment, taking 5/30 with his off spin. His uncle, Michael Duncan, is best mates with former Australian quick Peter Siddle, who would have surely delighted in hearing about another Latrobe cricketer taking a bag of wickets. The Latrobe response was in danger early at 2/16, before Rhys Noble (35) got things around parity. The Sharks however were always a partnership short, and Freshwater (38 not out) was out in the middle when the last wicket fell with the score 145. Darcy Walsh continued his wicket-taking ways, grabbing 4/32 with his leg breaks. He bowled in tandem with his brother Logan, who took one of the biggest wickets in Gippsland, that of Anthony Bloomfield. Dylan van der Stoep (2/13) also had a major say in the result, dismissing Webber cheaply.   Raiders 10/254 def CATS 10/124 THAT’S why they recruited him. A whirlwind innings from Keenan Hughes propelled Raiders to a commanding victory over CATS. The big-hitting allrounder smoked 115 off just 80 balls after coming in at number seven. He hit seven sixes and 10 fours, showing absolute disregard for the fact CATS had a former Test bowler in its line-up. His performance was such that Raiders did not even bat its entire 50 over allotment at John Black Oval, as the visitors registered 254 in 46.3 overs. Hughes’ innings was made even more special given Raiders were in deep trouble at 5/38. Hughes and Tom Robertson however got together for one of the more astonishing middle order partnerships imaginable, putting on 180 for the sixth wicket. Robertson took something of a back seat to the Hughes onslaught, but still made 71 off 91 balls himself. Equally amazingly, a lot of the CATS bowlers still returned reasonable figures. Sam Gissara took 4/58, Josh Moore 3/45 and Dane Fawcett 3/47 with two maidens. With his confidence sky-high, Hughes then took the first two wickets with the new ball, before coming back to walk off with 4/29. Fittingly, he took the last wicket, that of Callum Stewart, who went down swinging with 34 off 28. Not to be outdone, Hughes also caught Tinashe Panyangara, the one player on CATS’ team who could have potentially played a similar innings to Hughes. Other wicket-takers for Raiders were Harvey Rogers-Collen (3/35) and Robertson (2/15).   Gormandale 6/194 def Mirboo North 10/140 GORMANDALE scored a much-needed victory. The Tigers of Traralgon defeated the Tigers of Mirboo North by four wickets at Stoddart Oval after posting 6/194. Batting first, Cal Polo and Nick Scammell put on a near-century opening stand to put their side in a promising position. Polo made 47 and Scammell 38, before Patrick Brooks came in down the order and blasted 40 red off just 23 balls. Wickets were shared in the Mirboo North camp. Dale Banks (2/20), Darien Matthews (2/25) and Max Woodall (2/45) all chipped in. Linc Chila played his best innings in the top grade, scoring 54 off 60 deliveries opening the batting. His effort was in vain however, as the rest of the order struggled to either convert or get started. Mirboo North was bowled out for 140 in less than 40 overs, thanks to the work of Gormandale bowlers Buddhima Dissanayake (3/31) and Scammell (2/6).

LV Express: Premier A thrillers on return #Sport #AGrade #Centrals

One-sided results in Premier A CRICKET CLV PREMIER A By LIAM DURKIN   LOCAL cricket wrapped up before the Christmas break at the weekend. The calendar was not entirely kind this year, with the last game of 2025 falling just five days before Christmas, leaving clubs with a host of unavailability’s. Many players also had work breakups last Friday, meaning a few rocked up to park cricket not in the most desirable state. Cricket Latrobe Valley’s A Grade divisions completed Round 8 two day matches, and players now have three weeks off before the resumption.   ALWAYS good to have an early beer – provided you are on the winning team. Morwell decided not to play on after getting past Centrals’ first innings total at Keegan Street. The Tigers were only 73 runs behind with all 10 wickets in hand when play resumed, and ended up winning by seven wickets. The home side completed the task in little more than 20 overs, and could have pressed on to set up an outright, but decided to bank six points for a first innings win. Blair Clymo added a handful of runs to his overnight score of 54, while Kris Fortuin registered a half-century in his 300th game, Blake Mills whacked an unbeaten 40 off just 27 balls. Tyron Gamage had some success for the Lions, taking 2/57 off 19 overs – one of only two Centrals bowlers to bowl more than 10 overs.   IMPERIALS had to make do with first innings points, after going for an outright against Moe. With the game already won heading into Day 2, the team from Catterick Crescent resumed at 7/169 – a lead of 36. The lower order took the score to 215, with Aaron Johnstone making 28 against his old side. With a lead of 82 and around 60 overs left in the day, the home team decided to bowl again. The Lions however negotiated the remainder of the day, although not before a scare after being precariously placed at 4/77. Moe gave a better account in its second dig, with five players reaching scores above 20. Anubhav Anubhav was subbed in for Day 2 and made 33. Chris Robinson came in at eight and stroked an unbeaten 29 (six fours), while skipper Matt Hibbs (30), Benn Zomer (28) and Callum Grant (27) got some valuable time in the middle. Todd Mann however led the honours, taking 5/58 off 22 overs. It wasn’t a cheap second innings five-fa either, with the veteran quick taking the first five wickets, including a genuine snick-off of Andrew Philip to the keeper, which doesn’t happen often.   EX STUDENTS annihilated Glengarry. The Sharks opted not to bat into Day 2, giving the Magpies all day to chase 261. A procession of wickets played out at Terry Hunter Oval, with the visitors routed for just 99. Only Cam Graham (44 off 123) was able to provide any resistance, as all five Ex Students bowlers used took wickets. Adam Brady added to his career tally with 4/23, alongside new ball operator Mitch Harris (2/12) and spinner Lee Stockdale (2/28). Perhaps most alarmingly for Glengarry, five players were bowled. Thanks mainly to Graham, the Magpies faced 58 overs, and while Ex Students enforced the follow on, players shook hands after 12 overs in the second innings as it became clear no outright result could be achieved.   CHURCHILL won by more than 100 runs against Toongabbie. The Rams entered the day already 1/1 at Roger Reis Oval, and despite starts from five players, the task soon became insurmountable. Rob Wheildon essentially ensured the home side only had to bat once, making 31 off 180 balls, while opener Sam Moran did his best with 29 off 76. The approach was perhaps tailor made for Steve Warr, who cashed in against the defensive batting, taking 4/32 off 21.5 miserly overs. Ryan Harvey (2/23) and Chris (Willow) Williams (2/40) also chipped in. Perhaps spare a thought for Toongabbie’s Tom Hood, who was already dismissed and had to rock up on Day 2 after fielding for 80 overs on Day 1. Surely the epitome of ‘wasted Saturdays’.   EX STUDENTS heads the ladder at the halfway mark on 30 points. Only two points behind however is Imperials – something not many would have predicted upon their promotion to Premier A. Churchill, also promoted to the top grade this season, is fourth on 22 points, four behind third-placed Morwell. Moe is fifth on 21 and Glengarry sixth on 17. The Magpies may need to get a move on to play finals, although are expected to welcome Nat Freitag back after the break. Toongabbie and Centrals are both winless, and could unfortunately already be headed for relegation.

LV Express: One-sided results in Premier A #Sport #Centrals #Churchill

Finally some good cricket weather CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   BOWLERS generally had more success than batsmen in Cricket Latrobe Valley at the weekend. Across the two first grade divisions, there was five five wicket hauls taken on Day 1 of Round 8. This was likely attributed to rust from most players, who hadn’t had a hit for the best part of a month due to poor weather. MORWELL should wrap up first innings points against Centrals. The Tigers are 0/100 chasing 174 at Keegan Street. Blair Clymo has found form, and is unbeaten on 54 for the home side, partnering with Kris Fortuin on 39, in what could technically be classed as his 299.5th game. The Lions’ innings was plagued by starts, as five players reached double figures. Only Tyron Gamage (53 not out), who was dismissed off a no ball, and Jaxon Murdoch (32) were able to make an impression. Morwell bowled well as a unit, with five of six bowlers taking a wicket. Todd Dixon snared 3/9 and off-spinner Ross Whelpdale 3/41 on return to the club. IMPERIALS hold all the aces against Moe. The boys from Catterick Crescent have already won on first innings, and lead by 36 runs with three wickets in hand. Imperials have the option of going for quick runs to set up an outright, or batting long enough to make the Lions shake hands at arvo tea. Given Todd Mann is at the crease, with Aaron Johnstone to come, it appears a safe bet Imperials will hit out. All this said, outrights are hard to achieve, and Moe could well shut up shop in its second dig if it doesn’t feel a reverse outright is worth risking. Imperials off-spinner Charlie Pilling did the damage early in the day, taking 5/21 off eight overs. Moe was cruising at 2/90 before collapsing. EX STUDENTS batted all day. The Sharks put up 7/261 against Glengarry, headlined by Matt Dyke scoring 118 in a marathon 252-ball stay at the crease. The opener hit 13 fours at Terry Hunter Oval, but was mainly featured in application and deft touches to get off strike. Ex Students can bat into Day 2 if they wish, although a score of 260 should be enough. A few Glengarry players might have a light week on the track, especially Al Jenkin, who sent down 28 overs for 2/93. TOONGABBIE might be staring down the relegation barrel already. The Rams are 1/1 chasing 259 against Churchill at Roger Reis Oval. Cobras skipper Ryan Ayres fell just eight runs short of a ton batting at four, backing up the good work of opener Brae Kelly, who made 68. Ric Velardi featured in the side for the first time this season, and played his role with 29 off 94 balls. Gayashan Munasinghe bent his back for 20 overs, and was rewarded with a five wicket haul. TRARALGON WEST got past 200 against Latrobe in A Grade. The Eagles were asked to have a hit at Jack Canavan, and responded through Hayden Kimpton (65), Alfie Peck (57) and Chris Glynn (42). Of concern however was the number of bowled dismissals – six all up. Rob Webber and Liam Duncan were the chief destroyers for Latrobe, taking eight poles between them. The Sharks are 0/23 in reply, after negotiating 18 overs before stumps. ROVERS declared at 8/254. Travelling to Stoddard Oval, the team from Duncan Cameron made the most of the opportunity to bat first on Gormandale’s deck. Openers Simon Duff and Tyler Pearce both registered half-centuries, paving the way for Darion Duncan to come in and make a run-a-ball 64 not out. Yohan Soyza was the pick of the Tigers bowlers, saluting with 5/50 off 25 overs. DOES this say more about Raiders or Mirboo North? Raiders has already won on first innings, and is primed to roll the Tigers outright. The team from Yinnar made 178 batting first at home, before left arm quick Keenan Hughes ran through the Mirboo North line-up, to see the visitors skittled for 40. Hughes took 7/26, following the lead of his skipper, Liam Maynard, who made 63 earlier in the piece. Raiders enforced the follow on, and Mirboo North will resume at 0/10, still 128 runs shy of even making Raiders bat again. IF Willow Grove wins this, it will surely be one of the greatest wins in the club’s history. The small town club has a fighting chance to beat the well-resourced CATS on their home turf. CATS are 6/82 chasing 134. Willow Grove captain Ben Edebohls has so far taken 3/16 and made 43 with the bat, and could hold the key to what happens this Saturday. Equally however, CATS still have Cal Stewart and Tinashe Panyangara to bat. If ever there was a reason to show why CATS recruit players of this calibre, now is surely the time. Stewart has three wickets in the game, as does Dane Fawcett, who can certainly bat. Josh Keyhoe gave CATS a good look at victory opening the batting, scoring 51.   T20s THE last pool games of the Cricket Latrobe Valley Twenty20 competition have been completed. Round 1 matches were rescheduled to Tuesday, December 9 after poor weather forced an abandonment of the original schedule. The competition then moved into the quarter finals, played last night (Tuesday, December 16) after the Express went to press. MOE went undefeated during its qualifying games in Pool A. The Lions beat Morwell by four wickets and with seven balls to spare chasing 113 at Keegan Street. Chris Robinson made a return to cricket, scoring 26 off 28 balls opening up for the visitors. Ross Whelpdale (2/18) and Todd Dixon (2/25) were the multiple wicket-takers for the Tigers. Leading lights with the ball for Moe were Ben Zomer (3/18) and Callum Grant (2/13). Raiders easily accounted for Mirboo North. The team from Yinnar posted 3/129 at home, before bowling the Tigers out for 60. Harri McColl was given a licence at the top, and dashed to 53 off 56 balls. Liam Maynard made a busy 39 not out off 32 balls. McColl completed a productive Tuesday night, taking 3/17, while Keenan Hughes returned somewhat bewildering figures for a T20, taking 4/3 off four overs with two maidens. Despite the margin of victory, it was not enough to propel Raiders into the quarter finals. TRARALGON WEST accounted for Jeeralang-Boolarra to qualify in Pool B. The Eagles chased the 96 needed on the Boolarra hard stuff. Panthers veteran Glen Smith was his side’s top-scorer, noodling 35 off 44 balls. Wickets were shared among the Traralgon West trundlers. Ben Fleming (2/13), Hayden Kimpton (2/17) and Jack Cooke (2/24) all chimed in. Alfie Peck (43) and Josh Monacella (30) then did the work with the bat. Young gun Cooper Stanton took 2/18. No scores were published for the Toongabbie/Churchill game, which saw the Rams win with a handful of balls to spare. EX STUDENTS defeated Glengarry in Pool C. Matt Dyke led the way with 60 off 49 balls opening the batting at Terry Hunter Reserve, in a total of 132. The Magpies used six bowlers, five of whom took wickets. Andrew Winter finished with 2/26. Paul Henry again showed he is an A Grader playing B Grade on Saturdays, making 49 off 47 balls flaying the new rock to all corners of the oval. Glengarry however fell short of the target, finishing at 6/118 after their 20 overs. Michael Bentley took 2/24 for the winners. Willow Grove had an easy win over Gormandale. The Tigers were reduced to 5/14, and from there, scrapped to 68. Rob Fiddelaers (3/15) and Ben Edebohls (2/6) ran riot with the new ball for the Wolves, before Nathan Wheildon (2/8) came into play later in the innings. Luke Payton then hit five sixes at Stoddart Oval, making his half-century as the game wrapped up just after 10 overs. Matt Dykes had some joy for Gormandale, taking 2/14. ROVERS defeated Imperials by six runs in Pool D. Batting first at Duncan Cameron, the home side closed at 6/126. Skipper Dougal Williams made an unbeaten 58 off 48 balls. As is the nature of T20 cricket, the match could have easily gone either way, with Imperials finishing at 8/120. Leighton Shuttleworth batted the entire innings, making 65 not out off 54 balls. Rovers threw the ball around to eight players. Liam Little nabbed 2/24. Centrals defeated Latrobe in a low-scorer. The Sharks batted first at Apex, but managed just 69. Ed Hopper scored 26 not out, yet struggled to rotate the strike, chewing up 45 balls in the process. The Lions got the points inside 15 overs. Tye Hourigan played smartly, getting to 40 not out off 35 balls. Express quick Rhys Noble provided an early hope for the visitors, taking 2/7. Round 3 of Pool D was completed last Thursday (December 11). Rovers defeated Centrals in a one-run thriller at Apex. Defending 126, the visitors took a wicket off the final ball, with Alexander Rathbone executing under the most extreme pressure. Ewan Williams had earlier made 38 against the new ball, as wickets were shared among the Lion’s line-up. Daniel Doble delivered a maiden in figures of 2/19. Lachie Speairs registered a half-century up top, as he and Tye Hourigan (35 off 23) did all they could to see Centrals to victory. Rathbone however enjoyed his moment of glory, finishing a two-over stint with 2/8.

LV Express: Finally some good cricket weather #Sport #Centrals #Churchill

Limited standard cricket, but local T20s underway CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   THIRD time lucky. The trade-off for hardly missing any cricket during October has been an unseasonably wet start to summer. All matches across Cricket Latrobe Valley were rain affected at the weekend, making for consecutive damp Saturdays. Unlike the previous weekend however where not a single ball was bowled, some teams still got on, and even had enough time to win. Rovers defeated Raiders by Duckworth-Lewis-Stern at Duncan Cameron. The Round 7 match, previously scheduled as a two dayer, saw Rovers given 88 to chase in 23 overs. Raiders made 7/113 from 38 overs before the calculator came out. Liam Maynard again did most of the heavy lifting, scoring 56 not out for the visitors. His responsibility has increased markedly in recent weeks, due to injury from all-rounder Keenan Hughes (back at the weekend), and the defection of fellow all-rounder Rob Webber to Latrobe. Rovers captain Ewan Williams nabbed 3/19 from eight overs. His brother Dougal then made a run-a-ball 26 to see his team maintain a stronghold in the top two on the ladder. Finn Mahoney took 2/19 for Raiders. Mirboo North batted for 7.3 overs against Traralgon West, before rain made its way up the Strzelecki. Just one over was bowled at Traralgon South, with CATS 0/2 against Gormandale. There was no start between Willow Grove and Latrobe at Moe Racecourse Turf, yet a full game was played on the opposite oval on the astro in C Grade.   EX STUDENTS batted 30 overs, putting up 153 against Imperials at Catterick Crescent. Jack Robertson showed he is as reliable as ever, making an unbeaten 46 off 43 balls. Youngster Zac Bastin continues to take huge strides, this time scoring 37 off 39 balls. Wickets were shared among the Imps boys. Tylah Donoghue grabbed 3/30 and Aaron Johnstone 2/25 following his promotion. No other Premier A matches got a start, except Centrals, who batted five overs at Apex against Churchill. That 30 overs were bowled at Catterick and hardly any at Apex showed just how diverse local weather can be. A couple of clearances have also come through before the Christmas deadline. Off spinner Ross Whelpdale has gone back to Morwell from Churchill, and was named in Premier B at the weekend. Given matches at the weekend were reverted to one dayers, all teams split the points. Clubs will now play a two dayer to see out 2025.   AS the welcome screen on Stick Cricket states: Hit out or get out. Cricketers across the Latrobe Valley have channelled such thoughts in recent weeks, with the local twenty20 competition getting underway. Matches are played on Tuesday nights, breaking up the usual monotony of training. The fixture has been compromised slightly due to teams struggling for numbers as blokes can’t get to games by the 5.30pm start time due to work. As a result, some clubs have done gentleman’s agreements and arranged to reschedule games among themselves. With this in mind, it is important to remember that midweek T20s are largely hit and giggle affairs. The competition has been divided into four pools of four teams. The top two teams from each pool will play quarter finals next Tuesday (December 16) before the rest of the finals series is completed in the new year. Round 1 was rescheduled to be played yesterday (Tuesday, December 9). Results at time of print (Monday, December 8) were: Pool A Round 2: Morwell 0/76 (J Mason 40*, B Mills 26*) def Mirboo North 74 (T Dixon 3/7, D Day 3/19, B Clymo 2/13), Moe 5/149 (A Philip 69, N Kane 45, H Rogers-Collen 3/24, T Robertson 2/22) def Raiders 6/126 (H Rogers-Collen 44*, L Maynard 34, C Grant 2/14, B Zomer 2/29) Round 3: Moe 3/102 (N Kane 47*, C Grant 35) def Mirboo North 5/101 (F Ingram 32, D Freitag 2/13, R Colgrave 2/26), Morwell vs Raiders (washout). Pool B Round 2: Churchill 4/154 (B Kearns 83, R Ayres 32, J Cecil 2/20) def Jeeralang-Boolarra 7/83 (B McCormack 29, B Kearns 2/5, C Williams 2/22), Traralgon West vs Toongabbie (no scores entered) Round 3: Churchill 8/139 (R Ayres 68, A Peck 3/24, J Cooke 2/24) def Traralgon West 63 (B Kelly 3/2, R Harvey 2/7), Jeeralang-Boolarra def Toongabbie on forfeit. Pool C Round 2: Glengarry 8/142 (S Marks 64, J Armstrong 5/30) def Gormandale 9/119 (C Graham 2/18), Ex Students 6/123 (J Pryde 34, R Battista 29) def Willow Grove 83 (M Bentley 2/2, A Matthews 2/9, M Harris 2/10). Round 3: Ex Students 5/116 (J Zappulla 42, Z Bastin 30, A McCormick 28, B Dissanayake 2/17) def Gormandale 8/115 (Y Soyza 35, Z Bastin 3/8, M Harris 2/20), Willow Grove 6/120 (D Walsh 50*, S Marks 2/24) def Glengarry 6/119 (P Henry 47*, B Marks 36, D Walsh 2/11). Pool D Round 2: Imperials 5/137 (A Johnstone 36*, A Spowart 35, L Shuttleworth 29, J Donovan 2/23) def Centrals 6/135 (T Shankland 65, A Johnstone 3/20), Rovers 7/159 (D Williams 77*, R Noble 3/27, S Rasool 2/26) def Latrobe 9/111 (S Freshwater 28, K Scott 3/13, E Williams 2/5). Round 3: Imperials 3/119 (A Johnstone 45*, C Pilling 38, R Noble 2/23) def Latrobe 7/116 (R Noble 28, T Dhawan 26*, J Jones 2/4, C Pilling 2/19).

LV Express: Limited standard cricket, but local T20s underway #Sport #Cats #Centrals

Jenkin does it all in Glengarry win CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   THE last lot of one dayers for 2025 were played at the weekend in Cricket Latrobe Valley. The league will now move into red ball cricket on the run to Christmas. The Cox Plate left a few teams decimated, as players felt a sudden twinge in their punting muscles. Wedding season is also upon a few clubs, meaning it’s time to hit the phones to field XIs. Premier B side Thorpdale perhaps pulled off the most country of all selections at the weekend, with one player working in a paddock near the town’s oval, and only leaving the tractor when it was their turn to bat.   BRAE Kelly played a breakthrough innings of 81 off just 43 balls to help steer Churchill to 8/234 against Centrals. The opener whacked six sixes and just as many fours to strike at 188.37. Runs continued to flow at Andrews Park West, with Matt Harvey reigning himself in, making an unbeaten 45 off 88 balls. Ben Kearns played an attacking hand of 31 off 35, and John Keighran contributed 28 off 42. Young gun Nethul Gamage had some success for the Lions, snaring 2/16. Tye Hourigan played an equally impressive knock to Brae’s for Centrals, yet the skipper was bereft of any support. Hourigan made 84 off 97 rocks, but only one other player reached double figures, as the visitors were rocked for 143. Ryan Ayres did the damage for the Cobras, taking 5/39, working with off spinner Ross Whelpdale (5/39).   GLENGARRY returned to form, thanks mainly to a sublime century from Al Jenkin. Batting at four, the spot usually occupied by injured skipper Nat Freitag, the fellow left hander did the position justice, making a virtual run-a-ball 118. Jenkin hit three bombs during his stay, partnering with Frank Marks in a 119-run stand for the sixth wicket. Marks made 51 for good measure, helping the Magpies to 8/215 off their 50 overs at Fred King Oval. Wickets were shared in the Morwell camp. Brendan Brincat was effective as ever, taking 3/17 off 10 overs. The Tiger response looked promising at 2/119, yet the dismissal of Mark Cukier for 48 led to a steady loss of wickets. Tim Ford did his best with 77, yet every batsmen from five to 11 registered single figures. Morwell was not totally disgraced, making 177, yet Jenkin could do no wrong in the field either, taking the crucial wickets of Cukier and then Blake Mills to end with 2/24 from 10 overs.   MOE was methodical as ever chasing 216 against Toongabbie. Taking to Roger Reis Oval, the Rams found output from club legend Tom Shippen, who knocked them around for 50 at number seven, along with Gayashan Munasingge who scored 71. Callum Grant made inroads with his finger spin, taking 3/24 off nine overs, including the prized scalp of Amal Athulathmudali, and completing the run out of Toongabbie captain Tim Dunn. The Moe middle order then all contributed runs, headed by captain Matt Hibbs scoring a run-a-ball 59. The dependable duo of Benn Zomer (45) and Andrew Philip (34) also pitched in. A rare sight was seen when Philip was bowled – a dismissal that wouldn’t have featured too often in his career (genuinely bowled at least, discounting chop ons or when hitting out).   EX STUDENTS survived a bit of a scare against Imperials. The team from Catterick Crescent did what not many sides have done in recent years – bowling the Sharks out. A depleted Ex Students (who had a bucks do) batted through most of the 50 allotted overs at Terry Hunter Oval, and posted 190. Double figure scores from Matt Dyke (33), Rick Battista (28), Fletcher Graham (26) and Jack Robertson (25) saw the home side get close to 200. Sensing the chance of an upset, Imperials started brightly, but failed to see many partnerships materialise in a final score of 167. Leighton Shuttleworth batted a long time for his 40, while Ryan Morley made 25 alongside him. In a game decided by 27 runs, five double figures scores from Imperials batsmen told the story.   GORMANDALE pulled off arguably its best win in recent history, defeating a highly touted Raiders in A Grade. The Tigers batted first at Yinanr Turf, and defended a seemingly below-par 152. Nimesh Soyza did most of the scoring, making 48, before an extraordinary Raiders collapse saw the home side fold for just 88. Things started so well for Gormandale with the ball, Campbell Peavey had a wicket first ball of the innings. He took the first two, and was quickly joined by Patrick Brooks, who knocked over Raiders captain Liam Maynard for 26. It was then Nick Scammell’s turn, as he ran through the middle order, picking up Raiders linchpin Keenan Hughes cheaply. Cooper White then finished Raiders off, ending with figures of 3/14. The win was memorable for Gormandale, and conversely, could send early warning lights off at Yinnar. Raiders, after being relegated, have now lost their last two games.   TRARALGON WEST won its second game on the bounce. The Eagles defeated Mirboo North in a competitive game at Jack Canavan. Defending 158, the home side bowled the Tigers out for 131. Josh Monacella (33) and Hayden Kimpton (33 off 28) gave Traralgon West a chance, up against Darien Matthews, who claimed 4/23 with his left arm swingers. Mirboo North was in a reasonable position at 1/43, but were then 5/80 following a middle order collapse. Matthews had to make do with 31 not out at number seven, while Ben Heath was forced to hold up an end and make 30 off 70 balls. Ben Fleming bowled terrifically for the Eagles, taking 3/20, as did Alfie Peck, who returned silly one day figures of 2/9 off 10 overs.   LUKE Payton again scored heavily for Willow Grove, this time with 72 off 94 balls with four maximums. He made up most of the 194 total against Rovers at Willow Grove Recreation Reserve, although it wasn’t enough as the visitors won by four wickets. Nathan Wheildon played an uncharacteristic patient hand of 32 off 106 balls for the Wolves, in the face of some economical bowling from Rovers veteran Simon Duff (1/24 off 10). Rovers took until the 45th over to win, but got there thanks to James Hayter (86 off 94) smoking six sixes. Nikhil Reddy also kept the runs coming, with 36 off 47.   CATS lost eight wickets chasing the bonus point against Latrobe. The team from Traralgon South got what they wanted, although not without a few nervous moments. Electing to bowl at home, CATS rolled the Sharks for 81. Josh Moore cleaned up with 4/25, while Sam Gissari took scarcely believable figures of 4/8. CATS did as most club cricket teams do when chasing low totals, making life extremely hard for themselves. From 2/40, the score was suddenly 7/67, before the winning runs were negotiated. Paul McGill ensured a positive start making 27.

LV Express: Jenkin does it all in Glengarry win #Sport #Cats #Centrals

Citizen Kane delivers for Moe CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   THIS is why you should never read too much into season previews. Players you are told either aren’t playing or who clubs haven’t heart from suddenly rock up, much as they did at the weekend. Cricket Latrobe Valley made a start for Round 2 after the opening weekend was washed out. Inclement weather still played havoc, with a couple of games decided on DLS and some lower grade matches abandoned. While early days, the number of players appearing as ‘Fill in’ on PlayHQ might be an early cause for concern. Clubs across Gippsland appear light on for numbers, and will be hoping they pick up in coming weeks. Three of four Division 5 games were forfeited in the neighbouring Warragul District Cricket Association at the weekend, while Hallora’s Third XI was virtually made up of players from Blackbridge Cricket Club. Blackbridge, based at Rythdale, offers winter cricket and monthly social matches for many local players. Gippsland Goannas Over 50s veterans also won their match at the weekend via forfeit.   Premier A NEWLY promoted Imperials got its Premier A campaign off to a promising start, defeating Centrals in a competitive match at Apex Park. Chasing 177, the visitors won with two wickets in the shed. A host of double digit scores helped Imperials, led by Ryan Morley at the top (27), Tylah Donoghue in the lower order (27) and Todd Mann in typically no-nonsense fashion, smashing an unbeaten 33 off 32 balls from number nine. For someone who says he hates batting, he has a pretty good record (having scored multiple A Grade tons). Centrals captain Tye Hourigan had earlier top-scored with 75, while Lachlan Speairs dug in for 48 off 123 rocks. Marc Fenech did as he has done for countless years, hooping the new ball around, and took three top order wickets for the Lions. MORWELL technically won on Duckworth Lewis Stern, although the match against Churchill would have been decided in regulation time anyway. Posting 5/175 at Andrews Park West, the Cobras were given a ‘revised’ total of just two runs and two overs less (48). It mattered little, after the Cobras were bundled out for 116. Only Jordan Higham with 32 made an impression, after Brendan Brincat (3/24) and Tim Ford (3/29) did the damage up top. Usual one day dasher Kris Fortuin showed his adaptability with the stick for Morwell, batting the entire innings to make an unbeaten 61. IF you’ve got Jordy Gilmore batting five, you’re going to take some beating. Ex Students easily defeated Toongabbie by more than 100 runs. The Sharks put up 9/258 on Roger Reis Oval, with Gilmore (71), Mitch Harris (61), Andrew Matthews (38 not out) and Matt Dyke (26) all contributing. Rams veteran Tom Shippen sent down 10 overs, returning figures of 3/40 (to think of the number of overs that man has bowled in his time). A few starts punctuated the Toongabbie response, but in the end, they were dismissed for 131. Gayashan Munasinghe made 33, yet his teammates had little answers for the collective effort so synonymous with Ex Students in the field. Harris (3/51), Adam Brady (2/13) and the star of last season’s Premier B final, Fletcher Graham (2/13) took seven wickets between them. IN Kaney we trust. On a day when the rest of the order struggled to hit off the square, Noah Kane delivered arguably the best innings of his career. The Moe wicket-keeper scored 91 off 100 balls batting at number six, taking the Lions to 231 against league heavyweights Glengarry on their home deck. Kane hit 10 fours and two sixes, partnering with Callum Grant (30) in a 112 run partnership for the fifth wicket. The Magpies were later bowled out for 205, with Kane again a thorn in their side, collecting four catches. Sam Marks (41), Jay Francis (36) and Brandon Mayberry (30) all made scores of note, yet dual wickets from Ritvik Mahajan (2/4), Grant (2/7), Ben McCarthy (2/28) and new Moe captain Matt Hibbs (2/40) gave the visitors impetus. While Glengarry was without Nat Freitag, there is absolutely no guarantee he would have made the 26-run difference the game was decided by. Anyone who has played cricket for long enough will have seen even the absolute best players go out cheaply.   A Grade THESE blokes have more runs and wickets than most of their teammates have had hot food dinners. Latrobe legend Anthony Bloomfield and his counterpart, Dale Banks of Mirboo North, wound back the clock at the weekend. Bloomfield struck 90 not out off just 51 balls against Gormandale at Stoddart Oval, in a team total of 4/246. The Tigers very nearly won however, given a target of 99 to get in 20.1 overs on DLS. Ultimately, Gormandale closed at 3/90 after putting up a grand chase. Connor Bettsworth’s 36 and Cal Polo’s 30 not out contributed significantly. Bloomfield’s son Jacob ensured his dad didn’t get all the glory, snagging 3/38 with the ball. The Sharks also found runs from Ed Hopper (46), Rhys Noble (36) and Ronnie Chokununga (48), who suited up despite most believing he wouldn’t play this season. (Bloomfield recently returned from national duty. Full story in next week’s paper). BANKS took 4/15, all unassisted, in the Tigers’ nine wicket win over Rovers. Mirboo North chased a meagre total of 101 inside 25 overs, thanks to Frankie Ingram (41 not out) and Jed Alexander (29). Compounding the issue for Rovers was the fact the home team actually got away to a solid start, after Liam Little and Tyler Pearce (34) put on 55 for the first wicket. That being said, the run rate barely hovered above 2.5, so the Tigers wouldn’t have felt much, if any, pressure. God Banksy would have a lot of wickets. LUKE Payton again stood out on the batting card for Willow Grove. His 68 (nine fours, one six) wasn’t enough against Raiders, who won by seven wickets at Yinnar Turf. Raiders chased 145 inside 30 overs, with new recruit Keenan Hughes smacking an unbeaten 58 off 43 balls (three sixes). Akila Silva also joined in the fun, making 31 not out off 38, after Rob Webber set things up with 27 against the new ball. DON’T think CATS will be in A Grade too much longer with this team. The boys from Traralgon South, with the inclusions of Josh Keyhoe (Moe), Dane Fawcett (Neerim) and Jamie Cochrane (not retired as it turns out), ran past Traralgon West at Jack Canavan. The Eagles were knocked over for 122, although Alfie Peck (38) and Matt Griffiths (36) offered some resistance. Having a Test match bowler in your line-up does help however, and Tinanshe Panyangara snared 4/2 from just 20 balls. Keyhoe (41) and skipper Nathan Harrap (a patient 29 not out) then guided CATS over the line.  

LV Express: Citizen Kane delivers for Moe #Sport #Cats #Centrals

Opening round washed out CRICKET CLV By LIAM DURKIN   DAMNED if you do, damned if you don’t. Cricket Latrobe Valley officials were made to look somewhat foolish after cancelling the opening round of the season at the weekend, only to see every other league in Gippsland go ahead. While skies cleared by Saturday, the decision was made to abandon Round 1 following heavy rain last week, leaving curators with very little time to prepare adequate wickets. The league made the call last Friday night, which at least gave players the chance to get away for the weekend. With races at Flemington on Saturday, it is doubtful anyone really minded not playing cricket. Regardless, the situation may have again reinforced calls for a later starting date given the winter sports season only finished a fortnight ago. Volunteer-run cricket clubs are generally scrambling at this time of year, and would certainly welcome more time to have everything in order. Players meanwhile often take a few weeks to get fully into ‘cricket mode’. A football preseason goes for five months. A cricket ‘preseason’ often commences five minutes before the first game. It is possible to start a cricket season in November and still get a full allotment of games in, provided players are prepared to play a few Saturday/Sunday rounds. Given those serious about their cricket would put up their hand to play Sunday GCL, and juniors often play Sundays anyway, it doesn’t seem an overly unreasonable proposition. There was some backlash over the cancellation, especially given Saturday was bathed in mid-20s sunshine. The league’s board has since declared lower grades playing on hard wickets will go ahead in the event of adverse weather cancelling the all-turf higher grades. Dare I say it, hard decks have benefits. If you are playing cricket in Victoria, you are going to encounter poor weather. Hard decks at least allow you to play through, and at grade level, surely that is why people pay their subs – to play. CLV will hope for better weather this weekend, to allow its all-turf competition to get underway. The Premier A match between Churchill and Morwell offers intrigue, to see how the Cobras fare upon promotion. The same applies to A Grade premier Imperials taking on Centrals. Pundits may also get an early indication as to whether or not there will be a sizeable gap in the A Grade competition when Raiders and CATS (both relegated) take on Willow Grove and Traralgon West respectively. New Raiders recruit Keenan Hughes could unleash some damage with the new ball, while Callum Stewart is sure to provide a handful darting it around off the seam against the Eagles.

LV Express: Opening round washed out #Sport #Cats #Centrals