ROCKINGHAM-MANDURAH is one win away from its second senior flag after an eight-wicket semi-final rout of Subiaco-Floreat last Sunday.
The Mariners will battle Claremont-Nedlands on March 6 for the 50 over title with the Mariners’ home ground Lark Hill a possibility of hosting the match due to the WACA ground’s unavailability and by virtue of Rockingham-Mandurah’s top qualifying placing.
Brendon Diamanti (3/12) immediately set the Lions back with the key breakthroughs of Alex Malcolm and Callum How, making it 2/7 in the third over.
The visitors elected to bat first at Lark Hill but never gained traction as left-arm paceman Joel Marion (2/25) took a pair of wickets.
The spinners then wrapped the handcuffs on Subiaco’s middle order as Craig Simmons (2/19), Dane Ugle (2/19) and Kyle Gardiner (0/25) kept the run rate at just over two runs per over.
Methodically, Rockingham-Mandurah’s top order made sure the chase of the Lions’ 131 was worry-free as Mitch Green coolly guided the innings.
He and Ugle (28) put on 56 for the second wicket and then the opener combined with Brayden Sutton (27*) for the last 61 runs as the landslide win came with 80 balls to spare.
Green’s 62 not-out in the one-day semi came as the exclamation point on a fantastic personal and team weekend with the first grade cruising to first innings points on Saturday in the chase of South Perth’s 205.
The opener’s innings underpinned the effort as he fell after the winning runs were struck, scoring 85 as he hit 11 fours in his 189 ball stay.
Earlier, Ugle got momentum moving the maroon and blues’ way with a brisk 43 and captain Simmons struck a run-a-ball 47.
All-rounder Diamanti put the polish on the result with an unbeaten 52, his third half-century of the season, as Rockingham-Mandurah’s 7/307 helped them move seven points clear in first place with two matches remaining in the Western Australian Premier Cricket season.
First grade will play third-placed Perth at Fletcher Park in Round 14 starting this Saturday, as a win would put a stranglehold on a first minor premiership for the club.
The Mariners recorded a comprehensive 162-run victory in the second grade at Richardson Park as Liam Mead had a superb match to bag five wickets following his 81 on day one.
South Perth were bundled out for 199 trying to get near Rockingham-Mandurah’s mammoth 9/361 as Mead took 5/58 off 23 overs after Adam France (2/18) made early inroads.
Third grade dropped out of the top six at Lark Hill after a potentially costly 15-run loss.
Trying to overtake Souths’ 162, most of the top order got starts but after slipping from 1/58 to 5/107, things got jittery.
Cary Green top scored with 34 and Craig Anderson made 27 while youngster Joel Humble tried to hold things together with 25.
An angry Mariners bowling line-up blew through the visitors a second time round taking 7/74 with Sean Guppy the pick of the bowlers with 3/15.
Fourth grade fell to an outright loss as South Perth declared with a 119-run lead after bowling out Rockingham-Mandurah for 137 on the first day.
The Mariners made a measly 51 in the second innings in a loss that sees them moored at the foot of the table.
The under 17s sit on top of the ladder after a 179-run smacking of South Perth at Lark Hill.
The Mariners’ team-first ethos served them well as seven bowlers struck successfully with Damien Burrage leading the way with 2/13.
Kai Harrison and Byron Blevin made short work of South Perth’s 134 in the Under 15s at Richardson Park. The openers got to the home team’s total by themselves, piling on 159 runs for the first wicket as the Mariners finished at 9/208.
Harrison smashed 105 from 91 deliveries, including 11 boundaries as he proved the difference in the match after taking 4/19 last week.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Blevin played the anchor role to perfection with 49 as he rounded off a fine game with a couple of catches.
The fortunes were not as good for Rockingham-Mandurah’s junior girls as both teams missed out.
South City Storm were too good in the under 18s winning by eight wickets while the under 15s made a good fist of chasing down Wembley Districts’ 1/128, finishing at 3/85 in the Twenty20 contest.
