By RUSS HAYLOCK
THE Alpine Hotel Monaro District Cricket Association one-day competition reached its halfway point last Saturday, with Coffey's pushing further ahead on top of the table.
Their win over Rhythm was headlined by a star performance from representative all-rounder, Hunter Caldwell.
Caldwell’s return of 3/22 in the first innings was instrumental in keeping Rhythm to 9-159. Shri Veluru (2/17) was the next best with the ball, while Kasun Basnagoda made an unbeaten 63 with the bat to give Rhythm a decent score to bowl at.
Kel Macnab’s first spell put Rhythm right in the game, with his three wickets reducing Coffey's to 3/44. This brought Nathan Thompson and Caldwell together at the crease. Thompson (30 not out) provided the perfect foil to his partner’s attacking play, with Caldwell hitting nine fours and four sixes in his score of 76 not out to get his side comfortably home by seven wickets.
Latest Stories
There was plenty of big hitting at Dalgety as well, with Titans batter Aqib Abbasi blasting 90 from just 33 balls. The hosts had made 177 batting first, including a half-century to Nolan Holland.
Abbasi's onslaught included 10 fours and seven sixes, a total of 82 runs in boundaries.
Abbasi’s hitting was bought to an end by Rylee Holland (2-11) who helped inspire some quick wickets, but in the end the Titans eased to a four-wicket win.
Half centuries from Whitetails batters, Russ Haylock and Ben Hearn, trumped those made by Bombala’s Jason Cikos and Mick Sullivan in the match played at Berridale.
Sullivan (59) and Cikos (56) threatened to take the game away from the hosts, but three wicket hauls for Haylock (3-45) and Billy Small (3-27) helped them haul their opponents back in. Bombala fell from 3-157 to 179 all out as a result of this, and would require early wickets with the ball.
Brent Lucas provided just that, snaring the competition's form batter, Tom King, for six in the first over. Brad Claughton and Haylock then put on 50 to help recover the innings, with Hearn coming out at number four and putting Bombala to the sword.
He struck 12 boundaries in his score of 64*, and alongside Haylock (88*) they led their side to an eight-wicket victory.
This Saturday sees Jindabyne take on Coffeys at Rotary in a top-of-the-table clash, while Berridale travel to battle Bombala once again and Dalgety host Rhythm.
