A MONSTER knock from Mildura Settlers skipper Luke Stanbrook and a brilliant bowling performance from Mildura West all-rounder Jasper Presswell highlighted a brilliant final day for Sunraysia Cricket Association’s Melbourne Country Week team.
The SCA squad won their third-place play-off on Friday, cementing a strong performance at the Victorian Country Cricket League annual event with four wins from five games.
After finishing third on the Division 2 table, behind Mornington Peninsula and Ballarat, Sunraysia faced Bellarine in Williamston on Friday and secured a 134-run victory.
Stanbrook was superb for Sunraysia, coming in with the score at 2/10 and making 149 from 130 delivers, with 18 boundaries and three sixes to help the side to 8/303.
Riley Jobson and Adam Thomson, a century maker on Wednesday, capped good weeks with the bat with 34 and 32 respectively.
English bowler Presswell then took 5/38, his second five-wicket haul of the series giving him 14 total, as Bellarine were all out for 169.
Jason Morrison chimed in with two wickets alongside a late run out.
Day 1 started with a bang for Sunraysia as they claimed a four-wicket win over Wangaratta with eight overs to spare in Yarrambat.
Just two days after claiming 7/21 for Mildura West, Presswell struck again with 6/45 in the opening innings of the tournament, while Than Rajapakse also claimed two scalps as Wanagaratta were all out for 218.
A quickfire 58 from Jason Morrison got Sunraysia off to a strong start, and despite the next few batters being dismissed reasonably cheaply, knocks from Stanbrook (48) and Musa Ilyas (35 not out) got them across the line.
Round 2 went nowhere near as well as Sunraysia were rolled by eight wickets by Mornington Peninsula in Spotwood.
The SCA squad scored just 69 in just under 22 overs with Thomson the top scorer on 20, Peninsula opening bowler Cameron Moon taking 6/15.
While Liam Naylor and Cooper Aldridge took wickets, Mornington Peninsula were home in 11.4 overs with Sam Fowler top scoring on 39.
Round 3, however, was the setting for a superb knock from Thomson, who’s unbeaten 131 was the catalyst for a huge 127-run win over Hamilton in Doncaster.
Coming in at number five Thomson got off to a flyer with two sixes within his first 11 deliveries, bringing up the century from a leg glance in the 46th over.
Naylor was also superb with the bat making 72 and Jobson 27 as Sunraysia finished at 8/311 from 50 overs.
While Hamilton had been reduced to 5/75 the tail had some wag in it, but they still fell well short of the target being dismissed for 204.
The wickets were shared but youngster Lewis Dichiera finished with 3/8 to help clean up the tail, while Shaun Mathews took 3/31.
On Day 4, Ilyas was the main man with the bat, scoring a run-a-ball 82 as Sunraysia made 7/241 against Maryborough in Greenvale.
The Coomealla Wentworth import shared an 83-run stand for the seventh wicket with Mathews (36 not out), while Jobson (38) and Naylor (31) also made great starts.
Sunraysia completed the 34-run win after putting the top order on the back foot at 6/73.
While the lower order offered some resistance, the damage had been done early with all of Dichiera, Presswell and Morrison taking three wickets, as well as Aldridge from his solitary delivery to end the match.
