Solway haunts Ghosts all day
Premier Cricket Round 7 vs Campbelltown-Camden
Week 1
A stellar innings from the irrepressible Daniel Solway enabled the Bankstown Sports Bulldogs to reach 310 at Memorial last Saturday. Campbelltown skipper Phil Wells won the toss and invited the home side to bat. Bankstown openers Peter Dignam and Daniel Solway put on a formidable 73 until Dignam was stumped for a fighting 24. His debut season in the top grade has been a successful one and he has consistently got the side off to a solid start. The classy left-hander is still searching for the really big score which is hopefully just around the corner. Brendan Smith hammered a useful 34 which kept the Bulldogs barking whilst all-rounder and Sydney Thunder recruit Nathan McAndrew chimed in with a timely 32. The personable rep player is a vital cog in the Bulldogs wheel and always seems to be amongst the runs and wickets. Mitch Brown his fellow all-rounder kept the Dion Bourne scoreboard ticking over at a rapid rate with a fine 37. However, the day belonged to super stroke-maker Solway. He is always in the thick of all things batting and plundered the spiritless Ghosts with 146 majestic runs. He delighted the crowd with 17 sizzling boundaries and 3 huge sixes. One of them soared high over mid-wicket and out of the ground taking some time to retrieve the ball! The Ghosts were vanquished but have a useful batting line-up next week spearheaded by former Bulldog Phil Wells.
Second Grade
At Raby 1 the Ghosts batted well to compile 302. Ryan Clark kept the Bulldogs in the hunt with 3-74 in a marathon 26 over spell. Wallace Marshall was his usual enthusiastic self and claimed 3-69 from 17.2 lively overs. Ben Le Bas was also on target and claimed two wickets in his spell. At stumps Bankstown were 0-7 in reply.
Third grade
Bankstown amassed 5-307 at Jensen with run machine Mansuhk Singh continuing his wonderful season with a dynamic 82. He drove and cut superbly as the Ghosts were vanquished and dispirited. His batting heroics have been lauded throughout the district and he really is an outstanding prospect. Fellow opener Matt Dedes hammered an eye catching 58 which helped lay the foundation for the big score. Daniel Hayes threatened to take the game away from Campbelltown as he plundered an unconquered 72 not out. He hammered the hapless bowlers to all parts of the ground with his vast array of strokes.
Fourth grade
At Raby Oval 2 the hapless Ghosts collapsed to a paltry 145. Koby Layton was the epitome of accuracy with 3-35 from 18 overs which included 9 maidens. He continually applied pressure to the haunted Ghosts as he beat the bat repeatedly. Jehan Bilimoria also was right on target and claimed 2-15 in his threatening spell. Hayden Barrett completed a fine all-round bowling effort with 2-23 from 12 most economical overs. In reply, the Bulldogs were at their belligerent best with 0-54. Harry Brett was cruising along with 24 not out whilst Brendan Clark was in great touch with an unconquered 28.
Fifth Grade
The fifths have already chalked up first innings points against the Ghosts at Grahame Thomas. The visitors collapsed for a paltry 79 whilst Bankstown replied with 7-157. Brady Polkinghorne is at the start of his career but may never beat the figures he produced on Saturday. Brady had the dispirited Ghosts at sixes and sevens as he ripped them apart with an amazing 4-4 from 6 overs. Ryan Freeman slipped in with 2-10 in his penetrating spell whilst Morgan Dutton claimed 2-10 to make sure there was no lower order revival. Johann Perara made short work of this paltry target with a dashing 48. He brought the crowd to its feet with 9 sparkling boundaries and a stunning six. Mahsen Narvel continued the Ghostly woes with a very classy 42 in the run spree. Umair Khan has already made inroads into the Ghosts second innings as the visitors finished with 3-33. Khan claimed 2-9 and is looking forward to more wickets next week.
Kingsgrove T20 Cup
Bankstown lost to the Australian Capital Territory last Sunday at Manuka Oval in Canberra. The home side batted first and scored 9-126 after the 20 overs. In reply, the Bulldogs struggled and were also only able to post 7-126. The tie required the bowling of a Super over which was won by the Territory. Rhys Williams was the pick of the Bulldog bowlers and claimed 3-19 from his 4 fiery overs. Former Blues paceman Aaron Bird showed he has lost none of his sparkle with 2-26. Top class all-rounder Matt Waite showed his unerring accuracy conceding just 1-19 from 4 containing overs. Ben Taylor appreciated Manuka and took 1-19 from his allotted overs. In reply opener Nick Carruthers top scored with a quick fire 28 with 4 boundaries and a big six. Aaron Bird kept the Bulldogs barking with a hard hitting 24 not out which almost got the Doggies home. Kyle Brockley was unfortunately run out for 19 but impressed on his promotion. The Bulldogs have finished fourth in the Thunder Conference of the T20 Cup and will play the number-one ranked Penrith at Howell Oval in the semi-final next Sunday at 2.30pm.