Inspired by a classy bowling performance on a tricky wicket at the Waaia Recreation Reserve, the Bombers were relentless with their pressure in the field, restricting the Lakers to just 5-107 from their 45 overs.
They then took an attacking mindset into the small chase, with 36 off 31 from Luke Quinn lifting Waaia to the target in just 30 overs.
Bombers captain Brayden Carey said banking a win against a side of Nagambie’s stature would do his side wonders as it approached the Christmas break.
“It was a really fantastic performance from our boys, and to chalk up our first win in the A-grade over Nagambie, we are all thrilled,” Carey said.
“I thought we bowled really well to restrict them (to just 107) and then came out with great intent with the bat. Banking wins at this stage of the season is so crucial and puts us in a good position moving forward.”
Winning the toss and batting fast, Nagambie was keen to make amends for its stunning collapse at the hands of Tatura last week, with a re-jigged batting line-up seeing the class of Luke Nolan promoted to the top of the order.
However, coming up against Jesse Trower and Mitch Cleeland when searching for form is no mean feat and early signs did not appear promising for the visitors as James Auld and captain Mark Nolan departed in the opening stages to have them reeling at 2-8.
Faced with a consistent stream of excellent bowling, the Lakers needed someone to dig in and prevent them from another collapse, with Luke Nolan taking the responsibility head on for his team.
In an innings full of grit and determination, the opener carried his bat, making 57 off 132 deliveries to take some sting out of the game and get his side to triple figures, with no other teammates passing 15.
Carey said his side took an aggressive mindset in to the chase after seeing how tough the wicket was for scoring in the first innings.
“Watching Nagambie bat, it was clear the pitch was quite bowler-friendly, with Luke (Nolan) the only one able to get away to a start, so we thought the best way to go about it was play aggressively,” he said.
“In those type of low-scoring games there is always going to be a ball with your name on it, so it is about making the most of your time in the middle and I thought we did that quite well in our batting innings.”
Liam Evans was critical in setting up the platform for the Bombers, with his 25 at the top of the order steering them out of trouble after losing Brenton Low for a duck.
The power hitting of Quinn then took over, with his aggressive stroke play yielding seven boundaries as Waaia cruised to the target with four wickets in hand.
The Lakers suffered a similar fate in B-grade, going down to Waaia by 24 runs in an intriguing contest at Nagambie Recreation Reserve.
Forced to bowl first on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, it appeared Nagambie was set to chase a big score as opener Damian Atkins (43) and number three Grant Parker (30) got the Bombers off to a quick start.
But the Lakers rallied with the ball in the latter half of the first innings, as Travis Blackwell (3-18) and Cain Murray (3-22) were introduced to the attack with great effect, combining for six quick wickets to force a Bombers collapse of 7-45 heading into the main break.
Needing 153 for victory, it was a shaky start for Nagambie as a flurry of early wickets had it well and truly behind the eight-ball at 4-39.
In dire need of a spark to keep the game alive, the Lakers once again turned to Blackwell, who backed up his work with the ball with a commanding 36 with the bat.
Unfortunately for Nagambie, nobody in the middle to lower order could go with the captain, as Waaia completed a clinical bowling performance to wrap up the Lakers’ innings for just 128.
In E-grade, Nagambie fell just short of claiming its fourth victory of the season, going down to ladder-leaders Old Students by four wickets.
Batting first under blue skies at Nagambie Primary School, the Lakers were carried by opener Jonathan McKeown, whose 46 lifted the Lakers to a competitive first innings total of 133.
Restricting the firepower of the Old Students’ batting line-up was no walk in the park, as the competition’s only undefeated side began its chase brightly.
Ryan Ezard ensured Nagambie stayed in the contest, taking multiple key breakthroughs to finish with impressive figures of 3-20.
But it wasn’t be enough when it came to the crunch, as Students reached the winning target in 37 overs.
In the juniors, Nagambie’s under-14B side fell agonisingly short in a thrilling encounter with Mooroopna at Nagambie Primary School.
The Lakers were felled by tight bowling from the Cats, with Ryan Ezard the only player from the home side to reach triple figures as it finished with 4-53 from its 25 overs.
Needing to execute perfectly to secure a win, the Lakers just couldn’t quite restrict the Mooroopna batting line-up – with Flynn O’Brien’s 2-4 the highlight as the Cats finished at 9-61 from 23 overs.
