Having gone two-for-two at home in the opening fortnight with a pair of impressive batting displays ensuring victory over both Beechworth and Delatite, the Bushies hit the road for their first away game against Ovens Valley at Myrtleford at the weekend looking to maintain an unbeaten start.
But it wasn’t to be, despite a pair of half-centuries helping build a competitive total, as the Tigers blitzed the Bushrangers to hand Benalla its first loss of the campaign by six wickets.
Opting to bat after winning the toss, the Bushrangers got off to a steady start with James Carboon and last week’s centurion Jonty Priest at the crease, with the pair seeing off the new ball in an opening stand lasting nearly 10 overs and yielding 35 runs before Carboon (13) would depart.
Ross Cavill joined Priest in the middle and the pair combined brilliantly, with the in-form Priest scoring efficiently at one end while Cavill absorbed pressure at the other, turning over the strike whenever possible as slowly but surely the Bushies accumulated runs.
Priest raised the bat for his half century in the 20th over as the partnership neared a half-century of its own and, while it eventually did, it wouldn’t last much longer beyond that, as Priest was sent packing for 53, leaving the Bushies at 2-88, which soon became 3-88 with Cavill following suit in the very next over.
Skipper Tom O’Donnell looked to dig in alongside Vaughan Kirk as the latter looked to make quick runs late in the innings, moving along rapidly with a strike rate just under 97, though he was constantly welcoming new partners to the crease, with O’Donnell (14), Craig Williams (9) and Thomas Snell (5) all falling cheaply.
Still, the scoreboard advanced by 80 for those three wickets, most of those off the bat of Kirk, who finished unbeaten on 56 from 58 deliveries alongside Lee Brennan, who finished not out on two, with the Bushrangers reaching 6-176 from their 45 overs and setting the Tigers 177 for victory.
Thomas Osborne (1-21) got things under way for the Bushies with the ball, snaring the scalp of Ovens Valley opener Thomas Chettleburgh (2) in the sixth over to leave the home side down 1-13 and, while the Tigers mounted somewhat of a fightback, putting on 28 for the second wicket, the Bushrangers soon found the ascendancy again.
A caught-and-bowled effort from Ross Cavill (1-9) claimed the second wicket as Ovens Valley fell to 2-41 with both openers back in the sheds, while O’Donnell (1-25) and Brennan (1-31) struck in consecutive overs soon after, reducing the Tigers to 3-64 then 4-65, and looked to be in control of the contest.
But just as quickly as they had fallen, the wickets dried up, and the Tigers soon batted their way not only out of trouble, but into sight of victory, which they eventually achieved without further loss following an unbeaten stand of 113 runs for the fifth wicket, handing Benalla its first loss of the campaign.
The Bushrangers remain in touch with the top sides following three rounds, though, sitting third with four sides from second through to fifth all possessing the same record, while reigning premier Yarrawonga Mulwala sits at the top of the table unbeaten.
The Bushies return to Benalla Gardens Oval this Saturday to take on second placed Rovers United Bruck as they look to bounce back to winning ways.
