Diggers have taken sole possession of the top spot in the GDCA first grade competition following a convincing 87-run win over Hanwood at Exies Oval on Saturday evening.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
After winning the toss and electing to bat, Diggers made a scintillating start when captain Theo Valeri and Luke Peruzzi made their way to the crease.
The pair were able to put on 61 before Valeri (34) fell to the bowling of Todd Argus (1/39), but the wicket did little to slow the progress from the Diggers outfit.
The ever-in-form Trevor Richards continued his run-scoring form, and alongside Peruzzi, the pair were able to push their side to 151 before Brendan Hicken made the breakthrough the side had been searching for when he picked up Peruzzi (35).
Richards continued to keep the runs ticking over however when Tom Valeri (6) fell to the bowling of Dean Wynne wickets started to fall in quick succession.
As Diggers looked to pile on the scoreboard pressure, Wynne (4/17) was able to pick up the wickets of Richards (66) and Ben Watts (4) while a couple of run-outs eventually saw Diggers reach the end of their 40 overs on 9/195.
The pressure was already high on Hanwood as they looked to chase down the target and it wasn’t made any easier by the loss of early wickets.
Brad Hornery (0) and Dean Catanzariti (0) fell without troubling to scorers while Isaac Campbell wasn’t too far behind when he was dismissed by Dean Villata (2/14) to have Hanwood struggling on 3/14.
Jason Bertacco and Micheal Crosato were able to offer some resistance during a tough side with a 40-run partnership before Crosato (19) became the first of Luke Peruzzi’s victims.
Peruzzi prove to be a difficult prospect for Hanwood as he picked up the wickets of Oliver Bartter (2), Hicken (14) and Argus (0) while Richards (3/8), not content with just performing with the bat, picked up the wickets of Bertacco (42), Charlie Cunial (0) and ended Hanwood’s innings with the dismissal of Ryan McWhirter (3) to bowl Hanwood out for 108.
Hanwood will look to pick up a crucial win when they take on Leagues next week while Diggers face Coro.
***
While you're with us, did you know that you can now receive updates straight to your inbox every Monday at 6am from The Area News? To make sure you're up to date with all the Griffith and MIA news you can sign up here.