Bees just sting the Dogs, but Dogs bark in T20s
Round 4 Belvidere Cup and Rounds 1 and 2 Kingsgrove Sports T20 Cup
In another hard-fought game at Bankstown Memorial Oval the Bnakstown Sports Club Bulldogs just failed to chase down the Uni of NSW total of 299. Bankstown lost by 31 when the side was bundled out for 268. Opener Peter Dignam looked in good touch before he was stumped for 29. Versatile night watchman Ben Taylor certainly did his job with a handy 23. It was a severe blow to the Bulldogs when Brendan Smith was run out for 17 just as he was slipping into top gear. Belligerent all-rounder Nathan McAndrew hammered 79 to get the Bulldogs barking. He was at his attacking best with 10 sparkling boundaries and two imposing sixes. Nick Carruthers provided defiant support with a spirited 35 whilst Englishman Matt Waite chimed in with a defiant 20 with skipper Michael Stretton also adding a handy 20. Rhys Williams hit four boundaries in his determined 18 whilst Liam Marshall remained unconquered with 10 not out. Next Saturday Bankstown will take on Fairfield at Rosedale in a Limited Overs match.
Kingsgrove Sports T20 Cup
Last Sunday The Bankstown Sports Bulldogs played matches in the Kingsgrove Sports T20 Cup at memorial Oval and were victorious in both. In exciting news about the competition, it was announced last Friday that NSW Premier Cricket clubs will now be playing for a chance to represent NSW at the Fox Sports National Premier Twenty20 Championships in Adelaide on 5-6 March 2018.
In game one the Fairfield Lions batted first and scored an impressive 8-161. Bankstown was well served by all the bowlers who were backed up by some classy fielding. Mitch Brown claimed 2-31 and the rest of the wickets were evenly spread. Ben Taylor intercepted a potential boundary with a stunning caught and bowled. The evergreen and ever alert Aaron Bird chimed in with a handy run out and skipper Michael Stretton was impressed with his sides enthusiastic fielding display. In reply Bankstown cruised to victory with 4-162 in just the 17th over. The irrepressible Nathan McAndrew continued his purple patch of great batting form with 68 from a mere 32 deliveries. He brought the crowd to its feet with five boundaries and five stunning sixes which silenced the Lions roar. Brendan Smith hammered 30 in just 22 minutes whilst Matt Waite hit out boldly to score 26 from I8 deliveries.
In the second game the Bulldogs scored a competitive 7-165 against the Blacktown Warriors. Another stellar performance from the ‘run accumulator’ Daniel Solway tamed the Warriors The invincible opener plundered 78 runs with five stunning sixes several of which soared out of the ground. Brendan Smith added a delightful cameo with 35 in 28 entertaining minutes. Matt Waite added 24 hard hitting runs and is certainly enjoying his time in Australia. The Warriors lost wickets regularly in their faltering run chase. Young speedster Liam Marshall continues to improve and is responding to the mentoring of former NSW representative Aaron Bird. Marshall claimed 2-24 and Bird 2-32 whilst ever alert Mitch Brown chimed in with two vital run outs which added to the Warriors woes. His rocket like returns caught both batsmen well short of their ground. Wily left arm spinner Ben Taylor was accuracy personified with 2-20 from his 4 over spell. The visitors capitulated for just 143 under the persistent Bulldogs pressure.
Second grade
The seconds did a mighty job to take the points at David Phillips South last Saturday. Chasing the Bumble Bees 324 the Bulldogs raced to 6-325 in a magnificent effort. A 72-run opening start got Bankstown off to a flier until Ethan Leten fell for a useful 37. Joel Brockley hammered a dashing 56 which kept the Doggies barking. He faced just 74 deliveries and his 10 boundaries plus a towering six set up the run chase. Chris Ridley carried on the good work with a superb 87. His four-hour vigil guided the side to victory and included 11 majestic boundaries. Mitch Hinds continued the run spree and his fighting 50 was a timely knock. All-rounder Ben Le Bas completed the run chase and his 49 not out came off just 69 deliveries with six forceful boundaries and a towering maximum. Jacob Malcolm completed the victory with 14 not out. Captain Tony Clark was very pleased at the fine effort with the willow and the spirited batting.
Third grade
Bankstown’s 8-246 was not enough to trouble the Bumble Bees at Jensen. The visitors raced to 6-248 and victory. Off spinner Matt Smith was the pick of the Bulldog bowlers and claimed 4-52 from 21.1 excellent overs. He used plenty of flight and guile to trouble the Bumble Bees but the bowlers did not have enough runs to defend.
Fourth Grade
The fourths held on for an honourable draw at David Phillips North. University amassed 6-356 but Bankstown were tenacious in their reply with 8-187. Sanjiv Weerasingham was the mainstay of the Bulldogs batting and his fighting 54 took the sting out of the Bumble Bees. Bilal Ali also provided stubborn resistance with a defiant 30. Brendan Clark wore down Uni with a useful 27 whilst Mohammad Abir Hossain held on tenaciously for 23 not out.
Fifth grade
Uni of NSW had scored 8-334 at Grahame Thomas on week one and the Bulldogs replied with a hard fought 252. Bryan Handunnethti who sells his wicket dearly batted for a crucial three hours. However, Johann Perera took the batting honours with a magnificent 94. The stylish stroke maker plundered 16 boundaries which really rocketed to the fence. Skipper Alex Kouventaris chimed in with 25 as did the enthusiastic Manoj Weerasingham. All-rounder Mat Kelly scored 20 in even time but the young Bulldogs could not reel in the Bumblebees.