Barrabool climbed into the Bellarine Peninsula Cricket Association A1 Grade top four after a superb run chase against reigning premiers Armstrong Creek.
Needing 191 for victory at Ceres Recreation Reserve on Saturday 7 February, the Bulls closed out round 12 with a six-wicket win with more than 12 overs to spare.
While the loss hurt the Titans’ finals hopes, they are still only half a game outside the four with two rounds remaining.
At 2/18 and then 4/60, Barrabool badly needed a partnership and it came in the form of champion Kane Pickering and Luke Clift, who passed 50 for the first time this season after some promising starts.
Clift was there at the end, showing immense concentration to be on 85 from 167 deliveries while Pickering was on 60 from 103. Pickering looks to have discovered his best form after a lean start to the season and looms as a major player in Barrabool’s quest for a finals spot.
Pickering said Clift batted intelligently and read the situation well.
“He picked up ones where he could and then got the odd boundary ball and he managed to put it away,” he said.
“And if they bowled a couple of nice ones, we were lucky enough not to be under any pressure to score quickly, so we could just let it go and wait until we could score.”
Pickering said the Bulls’ home ground at Ceres was a good venie to chase a total.
“It’s a nice ground to chase runs on when you know what you’ve got to do, especially if you’ve got wickets in hand and a couple of blokes set,” he said.
“You can really go at quite a rate to get whatever you need.”
Barrabool finishes the home and away season with tough games against Anglesea and Jan Juc, but destiny is in its own hands. Win both and play finals.
“I think Armstrong Creek, Anglesea, Jan Juc and us play each other, so it’s sort of a double points kind of thing,” Pickering said.
“Yesterday was a big win to push us in front of Armstrong Creek and then we play Anglesea and if we win two, we’re in, or if you win one, it’s going to come down to points and percentage sort of thing.
“So it’s going to be quite tight. The last game’s definitely going to be on the line to (see) whether you’re in or you’re out.”
Armstrong Creek toiled hard, but couldn’t break the unbeaten 131-run stand between Clift and Pickering. Ben Fary didn’t take a wicket, but conceded just 16 runs from 11 overs while Ryan Stoneley also went unrewarded, but yielded only 24 runs from 13 overs.
DRYSDALE’S season is still alive after knocking off Inverleigh by 37 runs.
The loss leaves the Kookaburras nine points outside the top four and finals are now out of the question.
Defending 196, the Hawks were superb and at one stage the score was 8/118, but some late order resistance from Austin Haygarth (31 not out) got the total up to 159 all out.
The wickets were shared around with star paceman Blake Dobbin snaring 3/43 from 16 overs while Ben Spencer’s crafty slowies netted him 2/26 from 15.
LEFT-ARM quick Dylan Taylor led Anglesea to a crushing win against Surf Coast rivals Jan Juc.
Taylor took 5/17 from 12 overs to have the Sharks all out for 80 after starting the day needing 205 for victory.
The win lifted Anglesea to second on the ladder while Jan Juc slipped down to fifth.
Tom Kearney was one of only two Jan Juc batters to reach double figures with 28 from 69 deliveries.
Taylor was well supported by fellow seamer Tom Eskrigge who took 3/22 from 11.1 overs.
THREE-WICKET hauls from a trio of Barwon Heads bowlers gave their side a hard-fought 35-run win against Queenscliff.
Left-arm quick Sema Kamea took 3/56 from 18 overs while leg-spinners Daniel Donaldson (3/9 from 14 overs) and Angus Mackie (3/32 from 11) were again top performers. Youngster Mackie has 16 wickets this season and is a player of the future.
Queenscliff didn’t make it easy for the Seagulls’ attack with Frank Mileto (38), Tom Bakker (33) and Jordan Monahan (28) playing well, but nobody could make that big score that would make the difference.
