Game 4
Hutt River Dedication 2/95 def. Willowfest XI 91
After a heartbreaking loss to end day two, Hutt River came out determined to make amends in their preferred 50-over format. Dedication again sent the opposition in to bat, and immediately made their presence felt. Joel McMahon took three early wickets to have the opposition at 3/21. At that point, however, some sloppy fielding let the Willowfest XI put on some decent runs. Four dropped catches, including yet another to Joel Thomas, had coach Ian McMahon furious. The lack of concentration in the field began to show, with the team taking five attempts to complete a successful silent over.
In his sixth over, Joel McMahon kicked it up a gear. The Willowfest XI were travelling reasonably smoothly at 4/59, but four quick wickets - one to Haydn Falconer and three to McMahon - had them in real trouble at 8/59. Joel McMahon finished off his 10 over spell fiercely, taking 4/0 from his last 25 deliveries. A final wicket partnership of 27 added a bit of respectability to the Willowfest XI score, much to the relief of Jarryd Mills, who was worried he wasn't going to get a decent chance to bat. Joel McMahon finished with Dedication record bowling figures of 7/19.
The start of Hutt River's batting innings nearly added a late nomination for the 'best fights' when Jarryd Mills believed he was not going to be given the opportunity to open the batting. Mills did eventually open up with Kale McBain, who set about batting in his customary manner of trying to smash everything over midwicket. McBain was soon dismissed for 16, made up of four boundaries. This brought Geoff Pascoe to the crease for the first time this tournament. The Pascoe/Mills partnership appeared to be sailing smoothly, until Mills let his simmering resentment of Pascoe for a misfield he was allocated on day one boil over, calling Pascoe through for a suicidal run, resulting in Pascoe being run out for 15.
The remainder of the run chase was fairly straightforward, with Mills and Jakob Sluiter batting for their averages, guiding Hutt River home to an 8-wicket victory in 27 overs.
In his sixth over, Joel McMahon kicked it up a gear. The Willowfest XI were travelling reasonably smoothly at 4/59, but four quick wickets - one to Haydn Falconer and three to McMahon - had them in real trouble at 8/59. Joel McMahon finished off his 10 over spell fiercely, taking 4/0 from his last 25 deliveries. A final wicket partnership of 27 added a bit of respectability to the Willowfest XI score, much to the relief of Jarryd Mills, who was worried he wasn't going to get a decent chance to bat. Joel McMahon finished with Dedication record bowling figures of 7/19.
The start of Hutt River's batting innings nearly added a late nomination for the 'best fights' when Jarryd Mills believed he was not going to be given the opportunity to open the batting. Mills did eventually open up with Kale McBain, who set about batting in his customary manner of trying to smash everything over midwicket. McBain was soon dismissed for 16, made up of four boundaries. This brought Geoff Pascoe to the crease for the first time this tournament. The Pascoe/Mills partnership appeared to be sailing smoothly, until Mills let his simmering resentment of Pascoe for a misfield he was allocated on day one boil over, calling Pascoe through for a suicidal run, resulting in Pascoe being run out for 15.
The remainder of the run chase was fairly straightforward, with Mills and Jakob Sluiter batting for their averages, guiding Hutt River home to an 8-wicket victory in 27 overs.