James Murphy
PENOLA v WEST GAMBIER 9/264
THERE is no denying the best batting performance during Saturday’s Round 10 Barber Shield action.
West Gambier visited Penola for the round and the Roos impressed on their way to a 264-run total at McCorquindale Park.
They were the only team to see out the full first innings on the day, with the decision to bat proving fruitful.
Only two batsmen did not make double figures, showing the depth in West’s batting order.
Justin de Jong and Nuwan Gunawardana opened proceedings, with their partnership lasting 41 runs before the latter was caught in impressive style by Lewis March off a Michael Waters ball.
Heading on its way to the boundary, March chased down the high ball with impressive speed and caught the ball in front of him on the run to send Gunawardana back to the pavilion.
Jayden Prior was next to pad up and he helped the total out to 66 before de Jong was also caught out off Waters for 31.
Prior went on to score 19 off 48 balls, before he was caught off Joshua Doyle.
That left Bray Stephenson and Jake Blackwell at the crease and theirs was another strong partnership.
The duo added 53 runs before Stephenson was Waters’ third victim of the day, caught by Gerard Merrett.
Sam Willis entered the fold and made a quickfire 21 runs off 23 deliveries, finding the boundary four times.
He was then judged LBW off a Finley MacColl ball, bringing Sujith Nikethana to the crease.
The runs continued to pile up and when Blackwell was caught off Waters, West was 6/172.
Samuel Coxon was next to go, dismissed cheaply for three runs.
He was Waters’ fifth and final wicket for the day, with his bowling feats the highlight for the Eagles.
Shane de Jong also had a short visit to the crease, gone for a solitary run, before Bailey Rothall joined Nikethana to see out the 80 overs.
Rothall finished with 11 runs, while Nikethana’s 42 was the top score of the day.
When all was said and done, the Roos finished 9/264, setting a daunting target for Penola heading into Day 2.
Waters’ bowling figures were 5/57, while Merrett was the only other Eagle to take multiple wickets with 2/60.
