Hutt River 241 def Jerry's XI 127
Hutt River have qualified for the final of Willowfest 2016 after a convincing win on the penultimate day of the carnival.
Losing the toss for the fourth time this week, Dedication were sent in to bat, and got off to a slow start. The unusual opening combination of Tyler Hankinson (5 from 29 deliveries) and Jarryd Mills (14 from 48) were solid in defence, seeing off 13 overs without loss of a wicket. Once Hankinson fell, however, Hutt River quickly tumbled from 0/35 to 3/35 in the space of three overs. Fears of a traditional Hutt River collapse swelled up into the hearts of the Dedication faithful, but on this occasion those fears proved unfounded. Jack Leo (39), full of confidence after yesterday's final ball heroics, partnered with debutant Mitch Rogerson (66) for a 144 run stand, taking the game away from the opposition. Both were scoring freely, until Leo was bowled from a no ball, at which point he appeared to realise he was in fact mortal, and went back into his shell. The damage was done, though, and by the time Rogerson was dismissed, the score had reached 4/179, and the opposition were struggling for enthusiasm. Mitch Smith chipped in with a useful 28 to finish off the innings, leading Hutt River to one of their highest scores in history.
The Dedication defence got off to an inauspicious start, with three players apparently deciding that a meatball sub was more important than being on time for the start of the innings. Tyler Hankinson, Jakob Sluiter, and Jason Harris didn't rock up until well into the second over. As a result, for the first time in Dedication history, the first ball of the innings was bowled with fewer than nine slips. The first two balls of the innings were dispatched to the boundary for four, no doubt due to the lack of available fielders. Even under this extra pressure, however, the Hutt River fielders never lacked dedication, and broke the opening partnership thanks to a Haydn Falconer run out in the second over.
With a full complement of fielders for the third over, specialist opening bowler Geoff Pascoe (2/36) struck twice to place himself on a hat trick and the Jerry's XI run chase in tatters. Keegan Macdonald (4/21) followed up with two more wickets in the next over to put the score at 5/19 and the result almost beyond doubt. Hutt River's first successful fake wicket celebration for the tournament thoroughly confused the umpire, and appeared to make him think he had miss something - he unceremoniously triggered the batsmen for LBW just a few balls later. The Jerry's XI tail put up a solid fight, but some solid shenanigans in the field kept the Dedication players' spirits up. Jakob Sluiter was forced to run from deep long on to deep point to chase a ball as designated fielder, a wonderful sight for the children on the boundary that had been terrorised by him.
When Jason Harris (2/13) rattled the stumps to take the score to 9/86, even the umpires started to talk about having an early day. The batsmen, however, were determined to see out the innings for as long as possible, and frustrated the Hutt River bowlers with a partnership of 40 runs. Fearful of an unprecedented comeback, Hankinson brought back the opening bowlers, and it took Macdonald just three balls to finish out the innings with a simple catch to Jarryd Mills behind the wicket.
Hutt River have qualified for the final of Willowfest 2016 after a convincing win on the penultimate day of the carnival.
Losing the toss for the fourth time this week, Dedication were sent in to bat, and got off to a slow start. The unusual opening combination of Tyler Hankinson (5 from 29 deliveries) and Jarryd Mills (14 from 48) were solid in defence, seeing off 13 overs without loss of a wicket. Once Hankinson fell, however, Hutt River quickly tumbled from 0/35 to 3/35 in the space of three overs. Fears of a traditional Hutt River collapse swelled up into the hearts of the Dedication faithful, but on this occasion those fears proved unfounded. Jack Leo (39), full of confidence after yesterday's final ball heroics, partnered with debutant Mitch Rogerson (66) for a 144 run stand, taking the game away from the opposition. Both were scoring freely, until Leo was bowled from a no ball, at which point he appeared to realise he was in fact mortal, and went back into his shell. The damage was done, though, and by the time Rogerson was dismissed, the score had reached 4/179, and the opposition were struggling for enthusiasm. Mitch Smith chipped in with a useful 28 to finish off the innings, leading Hutt River to one of their highest scores in history.
The Dedication defence got off to an inauspicious start, with three players apparently deciding that a meatball sub was more important than being on time for the start of the innings. Tyler Hankinson, Jakob Sluiter, and Jason Harris didn't rock up until well into the second over. As a result, for the first time in Dedication history, the first ball of the innings was bowled with fewer than nine slips. The first two balls of the innings were dispatched to the boundary for four, no doubt due to the lack of available fielders. Even under this extra pressure, however, the Hutt River fielders never lacked dedication, and broke the opening partnership thanks to a Haydn Falconer run out in the second over.
With a full complement of fielders for the third over, specialist opening bowler Geoff Pascoe (2/36) struck twice to place himself on a hat trick and the Jerry's XI run chase in tatters. Keegan Macdonald (4/21) followed up with two more wickets in the next over to put the score at 5/19 and the result almost beyond doubt. Hutt River's first successful fake wicket celebration for the tournament thoroughly confused the umpire, and appeared to make him think he had miss something - he unceremoniously triggered the batsmen for LBW just a few balls later. The Jerry's XI tail put up a solid fight, but some solid shenanigans in the field kept the Dedication players' spirits up. Jakob Sluiter was forced to run from deep long on to deep point to chase a ball as designated fielder, a wonderful sight for the children on the boundary that had been terrorised by him.
When Jason Harris (2/13) rattled the stumps to take the score to 9/86, even the umpires started to talk about having an early day. The batsmen, however, were determined to see out the innings for as long as possible, and frustrated the Hutt River bowlers with a partnership of 40 runs. Fearful of an unprecedented comeback, Hankinson brought back the opening bowlers, and it took Macdonald just three balls to finish out the innings with a simple catch to Jarryd Mills behind the wicket.