Sport
13 February, 2026
Colts comeback and Habib’s hundred star round 14
An extraordinary 164 from Avoca’s Eyan Habib wasn’t the most awe-inspiring moment in a memorable round of A reserve, with Colts Phelans completing one of the most improbable comebacks in MDCA history on Saturday.
MKM 148 def by Colts Phelans 152
Despite MKM needing five runs with five wickets in hand, a mesmerising bowling spell from Aaron Balzan allowed the Colts to snatch a miraculous victory from MKM’s fingertips.
After a rollercoaster start heavily assisted by a valuable 25 from opener Mathew Henderson, middle order knocks from Balzan and Luke Patterson helped buoy the Colts innings after they won the toss and elected to bat.
MKM’s bowling attack did a brilliant job of limiting the visitors to 152 after being 4/112, with Muhammad Haseeb Khan and Tristan Tack ending up with two wickets.
Even with Patterson and Ethan Chaplin removing both their openers rather cheaply, a 60-run partnership between Chris Freeman and Jarrod Nedelkovski placed the hosts in the driver’s seat.
A handy 24 from Jithin Aby Thomas alongside the in-form Nedelkovski seemingly would place MKM over the line, sitting pretty at 4/141 with overs to spare.
With the game all but over, the Colts threw the ball to Balzan, who only bowled one over all season before this match. That decision sparked a chain reaction that will live long in the memory for the Colts faithful.
It started innocuously enough, with Balzan dismissing MKM’s captain Tack for one with the host’s still needing 12 runs.
After Joshua McDonald removed Nedelkovski just shy of his fifty, Balzan castled Jonathon Knight, sending a pit of nerves into the host’s camp, who still needed five runs with three wickets remaining.
What they were unaware of was that Nedelkovski’s wicket was the beginning of a stunning 5/0 collapse, with Balzan taking the last two wickets to end with figures of 4/7 and bowl his team to a stunning win.
Avoca 5/303 def Laanecoorie Dunolly 161
After Avoca suffered back-to-back losses, Eyan Habib ensured the ladder-leaders returned to their dominant best, smashing an unbeaten 164 against Laanecoorie Dunolly in a 142-run win.
Habib’s stunning knock is the second score above 150 this season in A reserve, with the first coincidentally coming from Avoca’s weekend opponent in Steven Dellavedova back in round one.
With solid contributions from captain Cameron Holland and Glen Cosgriff, the Bulldogs were already in a healthy position when Habib strolled into the middle and proceeded to take Avoca into a new stratosphere, guiding them to 5/303.
Laanecoorie Dunolly refused to lay down in the face of an improbable challenge, with Lachlan Jackson scoring a half-century and Dellavedova, Callum Liddicoat and Daniel Beveridge all producing solid knocks.
It still wasn’t meant to be for the visitors, with Cosgriff taking his fifth three-wicket haul of the season and Holland, James Collicoat and Matt Drummond all picking up two wickets.
Beaufort Blue 76 def by Clunes 6/212
Clunes flexed their premiership credentials with an impressive 136-run away victory over Beaufort Blue.
The reigning premiers found themselves 4/104 thanks to 41 from Brendan Ingram before a 92-run stand between Fred Penhall and Josh Dunn really got the Magpies soaring.
Both Penhall and Dunn went on to secure their half-centuries, ensuring the Magpies reached a strong total of 6/212.
Brad Stevenson and Harrison Blomeley ensured Beaufort Blue’s run chase got off to a rocky start, gouging the hosts to 3/23.
David Kiely and Nathan Elford provided some resistance with 16 and an unbeaten 14 respectively, but Killian McDougall and Eric Downs kept the Clunes train chugging, mopping up the tail to bowl their opponents out for 76.
Beaufort Red 4/158 def Maryborough 8/155
Across the road from Goldfields Recreation Reserve, Beaufort Red fared better than their fellow Bulls, chasing down Maryborough’s 155 with three overs to spare to build a nine-point advantage inside the top four.
Lachlan Bursill, Ben Robertson and Paul Jardine all got off to solid starts after the Owls elected to bat, but Beaufort’s Benjamin and Harrison Grant combined to remove all three before they striked game-changing scores, placing the visitors at 5/69.
A 70-run partnership between Anthony Sequeria and Jacob Glen rescued Maryborough’s innings, with Sequeria top-scoring with 44 after hitting five fours and a six.
Despite quickfire wickets from Daniel Petter and Paul Jardine, Beaufort Red’s reply always seemed one step ahead of the Owls thanks to a stabilising stand from Joshua Lofts and Issac Jantzen.
After his game-winning 38 not out versus Clunes a fortnight prior, Jantzen was once again the hero for Beaufort Red, guiding the hosts to their target with an unbeaten 50.
Round 15
With A reserve quickly approaching the tail end of the home and away season, every point matters for the seven teams very much in the finals discussion.
Two teams currently on the outside looking in on the top four are Colts Phelans and Maryborough, with both teams striving for a massive victory at Jubilee Oval as they look to repeat last season’s finals berth.
Avoca will look to take advantage of Clunes’ bye and increase its lead in first place by cooling the red-hot Beaufort Red, who have won five of their last six matches.
While they remain in the finals places, MKM can ill afford to let their heartbreaking defeat to the Colts dwell when they travel to play Carisbrook, who can draw level on points with the Mill with a victory.
With both teams sitting 18 points behind the aforementioned MKM in fourth, Beaufort Blue and Laanecoorie Dunolly will hope to provide a needed boost to their waning finals chances when the two sides meet at Beaufort.