The B grade West Wimmera Warriors are comfortably on top of the B grade Twenty20 ladder after two solid victories on Saturday in the Horsham Cricket Association, and points from the bye were enough for the C grade team clinched a top-two finish and place in their Twenty20 grand final.
B grade
In the first of two B grade games, Rupanyup-Minyip chose to bat first on the Dimboola Road Oval upon winning the toss and finished with a total of 97 from their twenty overs.
The leading Warriors’ bowlers were Josh Lees and Liam Preston who took two wickets each and Mitch Dahlenburg took the remaining one to fall.
Only 15 overs were required to overhaul this target, with three batsmen making 28 runs, including Dahlenburg and Preston who both finishing not out and Luke Smith who was one of only two wickets to fall.
Following this game, the team had to immediately travel across town to Coughlin Park to take on Homers who also chose to set a target when their captain won the toss.
Their innings started slowly with both opening batsmen bowled by Ash Dickinson with only 13 runs on the board. Their third-wicket partnership of 34 gave some respectability but a procession of Homers’ batsmen late in the innings slowed the scoring and they had only made 112 by the end of their overs.
The two wickets to Dickinson and one each to Lees, Dahlenburg, and Preston were complemented by three runouts.
The Warriors also got off to a shaky start with two wickets falling with the total on 12, but a 104-run partnership between Dahlenburg, sho scored his seventh score over 50 for the season with 62 not out, and Dylan Webb who finished just three runs short of a half-century with 47 not out, comfortably saw them pass the total in the 18th over.
Above - Dylan Webb in action during his innings of 47 not out against Homers at Coughlin Park on Saturday.
Next week will see the remaining two rounds of Twenty20 rounds played after which the top two teams will have qualified for the grand final in this format, which is to be played at the City Oval on 16 February.
The ladder-leading Warriors will have a challenging day as they firstly take on Horsham Saints at Coughlin Park and then Jung Tigers on the Dimboola Road Oval, with both opponents going into next weekend in the top three.
C Grade
The C grade players enjoyed an extended break as they were scheduled to have the bye in what was the last round of Twenty20 games in this grade in which the grand finalists were decided.
Before this round, the West Wimmera team was in third place on the ladder, equal on points with the top two but with a slightly inferior percentage, and although they received full points for the bye they still needed at least one favourable result if they were to be in the top two at the end of the round.
Top team Laharum comfortably defeated Lubeck-Murtoa to remain in that spot, but a loss by Colts saw West Wimmera finish in outright second place and book a place in next month’s Twenty20 grand final.
Horsham Cricket Association - B Grade - Round 13 - Twenty20 Game
Rupanyup-Minyip
| L Funcke | ct. & | b. M Dahlenburg | 24
| | N McIntyre | ct. D Webb | b. L Preston | 17
| | J Weidermann | ct. J Crowhurst | b. J Lees | 16
| | G Young | | b. J Lees | 7
| | A Weidermann | ct. J Lees | b. L Preston | 7
| | J Funcke | not out | | 13
| | C Turner | not out | | 4
| | Sundries | | | 9
| | TOTAL | | 5 for 97
|
West Wimmera Warriors Bowling
| | O | M | R | W
| | A Dickinson | 4 | 0 | 26 | 0
| | J Crowhurst | 4 | 0 | 13 | 0
| | J Lees | 4 | 0 | 14 | 2
| | M Dahlenburg | 4 | 0 | 28 | 1
| | L Preston | 4 | 0 | 15 | 2
|
West Wimmera Warriors
| B Pollock | ct. C Turner | b. G Young | 3
| | M Dahlemburg | not out | | 28
| | L Smith | | b. J Weidermann | 28
| | L Preston | not out | | 28
| | Sundries | | | 12
| | TOTAL | | 2 for 99
|
Rupanyup-Minyip Bowling
| | O | M | R | W
| | J Weidermann | 3 | 0 | 10 | 1
| | G Young | 3 | 0 | 31 | 1
| | L Funcke | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0
| | C Brophy | 2 | 0 | 20 | 0
| | C Thandi | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0
| | J Funcke | 1 | 0 | 14 | 0
| | L Young | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0
| | W Mitchell | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0
|
Horsham Cricket Association - B Grade - Round 14 - Twenty20 Game
Homers First Innings
| B Hallam | | b. A Dickinson | 0
| | M Williamson | | b. A Dickinson | 2
| | D Seymour | run out (J Crowhurst) | b. | 28
| | A Hopper | ct. B Zimmermann | b. M Dahlenburg | 17
| | W Drummond | not out | | 26
| | B Hopper | run out (J Crowhurst) | | 13
| | J Nagorcka | ct. M Dahlenburg | b. L Preston | 6
| | S Peachey | run out (L Smith) | | 5
| | K Lang | | | 0
| | P Drumond | not out | | 7
| | Sundries | | | 8
| | TOTAL | | 8 for 112
|
West Wimmera Warriors Bowling
| | O | M | R | W
| | A Dickinson | 4 | 0 | 22 | 2
| | J Crowhurst | 4 | 0 | 26 | 0
| | J Lees | 4 | 0 | 14 | 1
| | D Webb | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0
| | M Dahlenburg | 4 | 0 | 22 | 1
| | L Preston | 3 | 0 | 15 | 1
|
West Wimmera Warriors First Innings
| B Pollock | | b. P Drummond | 1
| | M Dahlemburg | not out | | 62
| | L Smith | ct. W Nagorcka | b. P Drummond | 0
| | D Webb | not out | | 47
| | Sundries | | | 6
| | TOTAL | | 2 for 116
|
Homers Bowling
| | O | M | R | W
| | P Drummond | 4 | 1 | 11 | 2
| | J Nagorcka | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0
| | D Seymour | 2 | 0 | 16 | 0
| | B Hallam | 3 | 0 | 18 | 0
| | D McCann | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0
| | B Hopper | 3 | 0 | 24 | 0
| | W Drummond | 2 | 0 | 17 | 0
| | K Lang | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0
|
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