Round 6 Wrap Up: 2nds Chase 195 at Plateau and Gold Reach the Top

1st Grade
1sts had a tough day in their Round 6 clash with Wakehurst at Melwood. Captain Tom Carden sent the opposition in to bat after winning the toss and was given headaches by a strong opening partnership of 133 which set the platform for a big 1st innings total for Wakehurst. Off their 35 overs they set Plateau 217 to win. Jeff Porter-Dennings ended with figures of 3/16 off his 6 overs. Other single wicket takers included Jason McLean, David Bennets and Nick Armstrong.
In reply, Club Captain Rob Minnet played a lone hand from number four with 56. But only two other Plateau batsman managed to reach double figures, with Plateau bailed out for 133.

2nd Grade
Plateau 2nds were back at home on Plateau Park against Long Reef in their second one dayer and looking for another victory for their 2-3 record for the season. Captain Brodie Elliott lost his 4th toss for the season with his team sent in to field on what looked to be a ground destined for runs. Opening bowlers Col Huxley and Matt Richards were pivotal to getting the team off to a an economical start, with Long Reef 1/60 off 18. Then when part time bowler Conrad produced a wicket maiden after the drinks break followed by another from Lachie Allomes, the game was slipping away from Long Reef. However still with wickets in hand, Long Reef were able to accelerate in the last 15 overs of their innings, reaching 9/195. Cam Baber finished with 3/26 off his 3 overs, and single wickets went to all other bowlers used- Conrad Meulman, Lachlan Allomes, Matt Richards, Col Huxley and Steve Caproni.
The run chase started well for the Plateau, with openers Conrad and Horstead taking 31 runs off the first 3 overs of the innings, aided by some wayward Long Reef bowling. But when both openers were out by the time the score reached 40, Long Reef were well back on top. From number 4 Cam Baber played a nice cameo of 29 to keep the runs flowing for the Plateau and went along well with his his 3 wickets and 3 catches for the game. Cam was given LBW when the score was at 79, bringing Aidy Caproni to the crease with Brodie. At age 16, Aidy showed the class and potential he has as an upcoming cricketer, with a knock of 45 and joining with Brodie for a 110 run stand. Aidy fell short of a much deserved half-century as he was dismissed with 9 runs to get and with 10 overs remaining. This brought Ethan to the crease, meaning the Elliott boys could hit the winning runs at the crease together to cap off a remarkable run chase. Brodie ended 61 not out, in the 6 wicket victory.

3rd Grade Blue
Blue were up against Terry Hills at Terry Hills on Saturday, with Matt Moore losing the toss and his team sent into the field. Once again late order runs stung for blue, with some late order hitting from Terry Hills allowing them to post a score of 7/204. Ewen Chung was the pick of the bowlers for Blue, taking 2/16 of his 7 overs, single wicket takers included Matt Moore, J Pollock, G Raj and Rob Steel.
In reply to the total, Adam Pressley and Damon Steel combined after the early wicket of Blake Conde to see the score to 77. But once Adam was dismissed for 35, Damon struggled to find a partner who could stick with him at the other end. He ended up being the 8th wicket in the innings, with 78(76) including 11 boundaries. However no one after the top 3 batsman were able to reach double figures as Plateau were bowled out for 164 in 32.4 overs.

3rd Gold
Gold’s game against Long Reef was an important one at Nolans 3 with a chance at reaching the top of the ladder in 3rds on the line for Plateau. Captain Darren McDermott won the toss and sent Long Reef into bat, once again backing his bowlers to get the job done. They were able to deliver, Gold bowling Long Reef out for 151. James Bourcier ended with figures of 4/22 off 5.5, Max Dudfield 3/30 off 7, Brad Baber 2/23 off 5 and Pat Koch 1/19 off 5.
Ryan Blackshaw starred for Gold in the run chase for Plateau from opener, posting his first half-century for the season with 54. He was well supported by Bourcier with 28 and Michael Wright who ended 40 not out at the end of the innings. Plateau reached the score in the 24th over and 3 wickets down to post a bonus point win and take top position of the ladder.
Fantastic from the boys, lets hope they can keep pushing to maintain that number 1 spot!

4th Grade
Collaroy 4ths were up against tough competition in their clash against Harbord at Harbord Park. Captain Andrew Davis won the toss and elected to bat. Unfortunately the boys were all out for 92, the top scorer Andrew Cameron with 18. Harbord then reached the total 2 wickets down and in 24 overs to take a bonus point win from the Plateau. Mark Woolf took the 2 wickets for the Plateau, with figures of 2/31 off 7.