Collendina made a strong start at home against Newcomb as the side seeks to solidify a spot in the final four of the BCPA A2 ladder.
After Newcomb won the toss and elected to bowl the Cobras posted 6/231 in the first innings of the two-day contest.
Collendina opener Corey Walter, who has been in fine form all season, batted through 68 overs of the Cobras’ 75-over innings before losing his wicket just three runs short of a century.
Jackson de Jong also scored well for the home side, joining Walter in the 54th over and seeing out the innings unbeaten on 48.
Newcomb’s Naichese Lovett put in a hard-working shift, taking three wickets for 86 – including that of Walter – from 26 overs, while opening bowler Abhishek Sharma also took 2/31.
Cobras skipper Nathan Frye said he was very happy with his side’s performance.
“It’s probably the best we’ve done all year in terms of keeping partnerships going throughout the day,” Frye said.
“And on a very slow outfield, I think 230 is probably worth 270 or so at a different venue.”
Frye praised stalwart Walter, who was named captain of the BPCA Team of the Decade in 2020, saying Lovett made things tough for the batters all day.
“Naichese bowled a lot of overs right through the middle of the game, just bowling tight and quick overs,” he said.
“(He bowls) some darts, stump to stump sort of stuff that makes you play pretty much every ball, and he can be quite difficult to get away.
“So it’s really good to have somebody (like Walter) with that much experience and class at the top of the order to steady things the whole way through.”
Collendina have undergone something of a changing of the guard this season, with seven young players joining the ranks and losing a number of veterans from the team that competed in last year’s grand final.
Frye said Jack Wood “did well” on debut, batting at number three and making 30, while Wood’s fellow debutant Byron Hansford will get his chance this Saturday with the ball.
“We’ve had to ask a bit more of the young blokes, especially with the bat… but we’re pretty confident in what we bring to the table with the experience we got last year,” he said.
SURF COAST will hope to return to the winners’ circle after bowling out Winchelsea for 128 at Eastern Reserve. William Liddle led the attack, taking a spectacular 7/36 from 13.4 overs to give the Suns the advantage in the third-last game of the home and away season. Rowan Ferguson was Winch’s top scorer with 31 runs.
WALLINGTON made it hard going for St Leonards after winning the toss and electing to bowl. The Wallabies showed why they occupy second spot on the ladder, bowling out the home side for 10/167 in 51 overs. Mitchell Sleeman (3/26) and Billy Gravett (3/43) were the top bowlers, while Jack Jeffrey made 30 runs for St Leonards.
PORTARLINGTON made 10/208 away against Inverleigh, just enough to challenge a side that has not lost a match since round seven. Aaron Toole high scored with 55 for Port, while David Peel and Locke Perrett both claimed three wickets for the Kookaburras.
