Sport
13 November, 2023
A Word From The Captain — Matt Smith speaks on Laanecoorie Dunolly's T20 premiership success
There was more of a sense of relief than one of celebration from Matt Smith after Laanecoorie Dunolly took out the first grand final of the year on Sunday. After all, Matt felt a little bit downtrodden after he lost his wicket to a good Lachlan...
There was more of a sense of relief than one of celebration from Matt Smith after Laanecoorie Dunolly took out the first grand final of the year on Sunday.
After all, Matt felt a little bit downtrodden after he lost his wicket to a good Lachlan Morganti delivery, which left Laane in a bit of trouble at 4/55.
Nevertheless, the job was done, and Matt was able to sit back and relax after a tense afternoon’s work.
“It’s fantastic to win these games. It’s what we always hope to do and it’s another step to where we want to be at the end of the year,” he said.
“Clunes fight out each game, and it’s something they can hold their heads up high about. Over the years, they grind and grind themselves to a solid score and get themselves into the game.”
That grind he references saw the Magpies recover to make 100 after they spent the first 10 overs struggling to make runs, having been 3/30 at the half way point of their innings.
Regardless, Matt was happy to restrict Clunes to 100.
“We bowled well at the start of the innings to get ahead of the game, which allowed us to push the field back and take the boundaries out of the game,” he said.
“We know it’s a good batting wicket at Dunolly, and a quick outfield. So, while Clunes got 100, it’s still very hard to defend.
“Sam Bartlett and Zach Graham bowled very well at the start, with the run-rate sitting under three to start with.
“We didn’t give them too much to get away with. Every bowler can hold their head up high throughout the day.
“The last few overs, we lost our way a little bit with what we were trying to do and how to execute it, and they scored 20 off the last two overs. We’ll look over it and look to execute our last few overs a little bit better moving forward.”
When it came time to bat, Matt admits after their bright start that they did lose their way a little bit, and was disappointed to have lost his own wicket to leave Laane delicately poised at 4/55.
“We were on 28 off the first two overs, which gave us momentum and got us ahead of the game with the run rate required,” he said.
“We know against Clunes we can’t let them get their tail up and get emotionally involved, but we allowed them to do that.
“One of the things we try and pride ourselves on is not losing consecutive wickets, building partnerships and get a run on.
“A few of us are disappointed with our output, to lose 4/20 and, for myself, being part of that collapse.”
Matt credited Clunes’ strike bowlers, with Ash Gunn and Lachlan Morganti taking two wickets apiece as they tried to will the Magpies into the game.
“They played their trump cards early. Ash Gunn was brilliant, he bowled fantastically well and got key breakthroughs, and Lachlan Morganti came on and bowled in good areas to put pressure on us,” he said.
“They played their hand early, and it worked for them. Luckily, we were able to come out the other side.
“However, there is a reason why we recruit a lot of batsmen and bat so deep, because if a collapse happens, we still have people in the sheds that can come in and do the job.
“For Zach to come in, and to bat as well as he did by going at a run a ball and putting 50 on the board with Luke Smith is a credit.”
Matt was thrilled with the efforts of his recruits, particularly Luke, who took home the best on ground medal.
“We’re happy with how our recruits are going. Bartlett has had a terrific impact with bat and ball, we brought Luke over to bat for us and deliver, and he has certainly delivered. While Sergio Rosier hasn’t got the runs he wanted to get, he is performing week in and week out with the ball,” he said.
“Luke is a quality player. He came over with a good record behind him and we were optimistic and positive about what we were going to get, and he had a fantastic weekend of cricket. He has held up his end of the bargain.
“We believe we still have an ace up our sleeve — Ben Gunn has played minimal cricket so far and we know that he’ll come back after Christmas, and he’ll beef up our batting order and shore up our bowling as well.”