Sport
4 November, 2025
A grade double dose sees gripping action
A tied match, multiple nail-biting run-chases and potential season-altering victories were the highlights of an action-packed double header weekend in the MDCA’s A grade.
SATURDAY
Clunes 4/182 tied with Colts Phelans 8/182
Clunes’ long-standing losing streak has ended in the most unusual of circumstances, finishing tied with the reigning premiers, Colts Phelans, in a captivating game of cricket.
After the Colts won the toss and elected to bat first at Bull Millgate Oval, the Magpies’ fast bowling attack of Brett Coon, Dylan and Noah Davies ripped through the visitors’ vaunted top-order.
Sitting at 4/31, Abdaar Ishaq, Asim Akhtar and Rhys Wagstaff tried to turn the tide for the Colts.
However, in his debut for his new club, former Carisbrook spinner Ritik Yadav wasted no time making an impact, grabbing the big wicket of Akhtar to have the title holders reeling at 6/77.
Desperately needing the tail to wag, Ben Evans delivered a valuable lifeline for the Colts, scoring a brilliant 71 to get his team to a very defendable total of 182.
Nick Henderson got Clunes’ reply off to a rocky start, removing openers Anthony Ellis and Coon rather cheaply as part of a devastating spell which finished at 2/4 from eight overs, including four maidens.
Building from a solid 31 from Brenton Jones, Ahmed Rehman and Mitch Coppick provided stability to the Magpies’ innings, each bringing up their half-centuries, including Rehman’s top-scoring with 58.
Their 70-run partnership brought the Magpies to the precipices of victory, but the Colts’ fielding did enough to restrict the runs the hosts required, with the match ending in a tie.
Laanecoorie Dunolly 139 def Maryborough 120
An outstanding bowling performance allowed Laanecoorie Dunolly to escape a major scare from Maryborough by 19 runs.
The hosts looked like they would recover from early wickets from Oliver Cassidy and Jason Hunt and place a difficult total for the Owls to chase with Nafis Shaikh and Josh Fitzpatrick looking in fine touch.
However, three quick wickets from young spinner Jasper Trickey, including two in two balls, turned the game on its head, with Laane suddenly at 5/81 with 13 overs to go.
A well-made 50 from Matt Smith helped salvage Laane’s innings to 139, but Maryborough were bullish about their chances of knocking off the one-day premiers.
Despite Fitzpatrick causing some early hiccups by removing Oliver Bennett and Mitchell McClure, Maryborough were still in the driver’s seat at 2/33 after 10 overs until Will Chamings came into the attack.
After taking two wickets in two balls versus Beaufort, Chamings did the same against the Owls in his first over.
While he didn’t complete the hat-trick, he did grab the wicket of Elliot Ashburn for a duck with his fifth ball, a three-wicket maiden which completely changed the complexion of the match.
Opener Ben Hoban tried his best to keep the Owls’ run chase alive with a well-made 46 off 122 balls, but his wicket sealed the result for Laane.
Alongside the heroics of Chamings, Steven Dellavedova excelled for the hosts with figures of 3/23.
Beaufort 5/131 def Carisbrook 9/130
Beaufort made the most of home-field advantage for the first time this season, able to chase down Carisbrook’s total of 130 with seven balls to spare.
Following two early break-throughs from Theo Trevelyan-Clark, Carisbrook looked to be in a good position thanks to a 59-run partnership between the in-form Martin Mark and returning captain William Coutts.
When Andrew Grant and Brandon Walsh brought an end to Mark and Coutts, it was the beginning of a late batting collapse from the visitors, losing their last seven wickets for 33 runs.
Benjamin Grant did the bulk of the damage late for the Bulls, taking 4/25 off eight overs.
With openers Kriss Ellis and Joshua Lofts getting the run chase off to a stabilising start, the visitors did an outstanding job limiting the run rate as the pressure slowly built for the Bulls to up the aggression.
That led to Jordan Hooper and Brayden Wright taking two vital wickets each, setting the stage for a gripping finish with Beaufort needing 21 runs from the last 24 balls.
Walsh and Nick Stabbins got the Bulls over the line late, while Lyle Aichroth top-scored with 32.
SUNDAY
Colts Phelans 8/185 def by Laanecoorie Dunolly 9/186
Laanecoorie Dunolly made it two nail-biting wins on the trot, with youngsters Thang Nguyen and Lachie Condie the heroes in a run chase that came down to the final over.
Laane remained dominant with the ball early, putting the Colts at 3/28 thanks to wickets from Josh Fitzpatrick and Sam Bartlett.
A 46-run partnership between Rhys Wagstaff and Asim Akhtar got the Colts out of trouble before Akhtar and Ben Evans smashed the hosts to 185 from their 40 overs.
Akhtar scored a team-high 66 after hitting nine boundaries, with Evans close behind on 42. Fitzpatrick was the pick of the bowlers for Laane with figures of 3/33.
Despite Nafis Shaikh anchoring Laane’s run chase, the Colts’ balanced bowling attack was chipping through the hosts’ batting lineup with efficiency.
It looked as though Shaikh would lead Laane to victory until rising star Tate Williams caught the big fish of Shaikh for 66 to leave Laane with one wicket remaining, still needing 13 runs.
With all the pressure on their shoulders, Nguyen and Condie were as cool as the other side of the pillow, reaching the Colts’ target with the second last ball of the innings.
Maryborough 245 def Beaufort 213
Despite a valiant run chase from Beaufort, a hard-hitting first innings from Maryborough overpowered the Bulls bowling attack on their way to a 32-run victory.
Clearly disappointed with Saturday’s batting performance, the Owls came out swinging at Ron Sinclair Oval, with Oliver Bennett and Martin Dell making quickfire half-centuries while Ben Hoban and Brad Rowe added handy contributions at the top of the order.
Theo Trevelyan-Clark and Brandon Walsh tried to limit the damage for the Bulls with four wickets each, but nothing was stopping the Owls from flying to an impressive total.
After having their opponents at 2/29, there were times where 245 looked like it wouldn’t be enough for Maryborough, as Jarrod Blandford and Lachlan Oddie smashed a 114-run partnership.
Jasper Trickey ended Blandford and Oddie’s innings at 55 and 74 respectively in the nick of time, ending the innings with top figures of 4/45 as the Bulls finished all out on 213.
Carisbrook 6/193 def Clunes 189
Last season’s runners-up registered their first win of the season in the most dramatic of fashions, holding on to a four-run victory against Clunes.
Following quick wickets from Brett and Paul Coon, a stabilising partnership between William Coutts and the debuting Alex Sutton put Carisbrook in a controlling position.
That allowed Dean Nalder to cut loose late in the innings, complementing Coutts’ leading 54 with a quickfire 53 off just 35 balls, hitting six fours and three sixes as Carisbrook ended on 193.
Noah Davies maintained his outstanding form for Clunes early in the season, finishing with three wickets, including the break-throughs of Nalder and Coutts.
With Clunes reeling at 3/37 following quick wickets from Leigh Koop and Sutton, Ahmed Rehman and Mitch Coppick threatened to lead another Magpies run chase to a strong result.
Even after Carisbrook got rid of Rehman and Coppick for 60 and 15 respectively, Brendan Ingram and Mark Allen picked up where they left off as Clunes neared the total.
However, after Brayden Wright got rid of both Ingram and Allen, a mesmerising late spell from Sutton steered the hosts to a memorable victory, finishing with 5/28 from 6.5 overs as he led Carisbrook to bowl Clunes out in the 39th over four runs short of the total.