By DEJAN Kalinic
SYDENHAM/Hillside secured a spot in the North West Cricket Association one-day final with a comprehensive 87-run victory against Campbellfield in the George Luscombe Shield on Saturday.
Storm’s unbeaten start to the season stretched to eight games after its total of 8/227 batting first proved too much for the hosts.
Captain-coach Bob Kunesevic said his team was adapting to being the hunted side in the competition.
“We always used to be the hunter and went out hunting the better sides,” he said. “But now they’re going to come and hunt us so we’re the hunted and we’ve got to really adapt to that.
“We’ve just got to prepare the best way we can and that’s all we can do at the moment. We’ve got to do the right things because there is some good sides out there.”
His team benefited from yet another fine knock from the competition’s leading run scorer Warren Hackney, who anchored the innings with a solid 66 in the hot conditions.
With the knock, Hackney took his season run tally to 269.
“He has been great,” Kunesevic said.
“When he’s batting well the other boys are just batting around him which is good.”
Kunesevic said the most pleasing aspect of his team’s unbeaten start to the season was the competition for places and the ability of members of his side to play their roles when needed.
Opening pair Terry Bayly (21) and Dean Allan (19) got Storm off to a flying start again, putting on 43 for the first wicket.
After electing to bat first, Kunesevic was pleased the pair contributed to the team’s plan.
“Their (Campbellfield’s) strength is their bowling and we wanted to put them on the back foot nice and early,” he said.
“To score 227 off 40 overs, I was pretty stoked.
“The boys all did their roles with the bat.”
Despite Campbellfield making a decent start with the bat, they were eventually bowled out for 140 in the 32nd over.
Kunesevic was delighted with the work of Alexander Hassett, who took four wickets bowling into the wind.
Although it looked as though Campbellfield was half a chance after 20 overs, a couple of quick wickets saw the innings to a close.
“At one stage it was going to be a lot closer but then the boys found something,” Kunesevic said. “We didn’t drop any catches and we didn’t misfield. It was hard conditions as it was warm out there.”
The win sends Storm two games clear atop the George Luscombe Shield table.
Of the remaining six fixtures, five are scheduled to be two-day games and Kunesevic said his team was excited about returning to the longer form of the game.
Kealba-Green Gully almost scored a remarkable victory before going down to a one-wicket loss against Pascoe Vale Central.
The Cougars were bowled out for a lowly 94 batting first with the 23 extras the biggest contributor to the total.
But they almost secured a win thanks to the bowling efforts of Matthew Scalzo (3/22) before Pascoe Vale Central scored the winning runs with one wicket in hand in the 37th over.
