By Lachlan Onions
KINGSTON 3/114 d RENDLESHAM 10/111
Kingston claimed a dominant victory over defending champion Rendlesham in Round 6 of Millicent/Naracoorte cricket.
Rendlesham won the toss and opted to bat first at the Kingston Old School Oval on Saturday.
The hosts took control early with some disciplined bowling and used the new ball to its fullest effect.
Mathew Cridland made his presence felt and claimed the first wicket of the game when he dismissed Ethan Bowman for a duck.
Cridland then struck again shortly after when Zach Jones was caught by Harrison Stenner to make it 2/11.
Dylan Clough took on the bowlers and began formed a promising partnership with Jake Wight before the latter was the latest to fall victim to Cridland.
Cridland continued to rip through Rendlesham’s top-order when he dismissed Clough for 20 runs.
At 4/40 the hosts were in full control but there was still a glimmer of hope for the visitors.
However, Cridland completed his five-wicket-haul soon after to make it 5/48.
Jacob Carger showed some fight and combined with Ayden Reid for 42 runs before the latter was adjudged LBW in the 23rd over.
This brought Riley Redway to the crease who was at the crease for two overs before he was bowled by Nicholas Dawes for a duck.
The 25th over was a double-wicket maiden for Dawes as he dismissed Tyson Smith for a duck two balls after he found the better of Redway.
After Dawes claimed a wicket with the final ball of the 25th over, Mark Collins sent Carger on his way with the first ball of the 26th over to make it 9/98.
This was after Rendlesham was at 5/90 just 15 balls earlier.
Ethan Murdock then claimed the final wicket of the innings to give put Kingston in a strong position with just 112 runs needed for victory.
Carger led Rendlesham’s fightback with 36 runs off 34 balls, while Cridland ended his eight-over spell with figures of 5/14.
Cridland was supported by Dawes who took 3/11 off five overs.
With the pressure on, Wight provided inspiration for his Rendlesham teammates when he bowled Cridland for a duck at the end of the first over to make it 1/0.
Dawes and Callum Paige responded effectively and combined for 46 runs before the latter was dismissed by Max Telfer for 25 runs.
Carger grabbed another wicket for Rendlesham when he sent Dawes on his way not long after to give his slight a faint glimmer of hope.
Kingston need 53 runs for victory, while Rendlesham faced an uphill task as it still needed seven wickets.
Mark Collins and Luke Watson ultimately proved too good and made it to the target score unscathed.
Collins scored 34 runs off 28 balls while Watson gave his side 21 runs off 37 deliveries.
Wight and Telfer were the best of the bowlers as they both ended with figures of 1/15.
NARACOORTE TOWNIES 5/215 d NARACOORTE WARRIORS 7/166
In the battle of the Naracoorte sides, the Townies came out on top with a comprehensive victory.
There was one player who shone above them all in this contest and it was Townies captain Bredon Smart, who scored an unbeaten 126 off 109 balls.
It was a dominant performance as he hit 16 boundaries and operated at a strike-rate of 115.59.
Smart made his way out to the middle with the game in the balance at 1/21 but quickly took the game away from the Warriors with a superb performance.
Loren Bald claimed two wickets to end with figures of 2/45.
With an imposing total set, the pressure was on the warriors from the opening and the Townies took further ascendancy when Jason McClure was bowled by Takbirullah Ahmadi for a duck in the first over.
Kieron Hicks looked to lead the charge with the bat but often lost batting partners at the other end.
Hicks was eventually dismissed for 92 runs off 96 balls which was the killer blow for his side as they found themselves at 6/133 with 7.4 overs left.
Smart backed up his strong batting display with a solid contribution of 2/39 with the ball.
FOOTBALLERS FURNER BEACHPORT 10/112 d LUCINDALE 10/59
Footballers Furner Beachport claimed 53-run win over Lucindale in a contest where bowlers reigned supreme.
Jase Bateman and Sam Kent started strongly as the opening pair looked to punish the Lucindale bowlers.
After the duo combined for 71 runs, Bateman was run out for 34, which sparked a major batting collapse for visitors.
Kent was the only other batter to score more than 10 runs as he added 35 runs to his side’s cause.
Lucindale claimed the final 10 wickets of the innings for 51 runs and the hosts needed just 113 runs for victory.
With just a small target to defend, the Footballers Furner Beachport bowlers needed to be at the top of their game, which they were.
Gerard McGrath took five wickets for just 13 runs, while Bateman took 3/23 off eight overs.
Sam Bell bowled one over and took 1/0 while Harry Rana ended with 1/21.
At Mount Burr, rain intervened in the clash between the Mozzies and Millicent.
The visitors were in a good position at 2/53 off 17 overs before the weather brought the game to an abrupt ending.
