There is a fresh face in the top four and just one game separates fourth from seventh following an unpredictable batch of results in the Peel Cricket Associations 16th round.
Anuj Dal almost single-handedly lifted Mandurah to fourth on the ladder, after his sheer dominance with the bat secured them a victory over Halls Head.
Dal carved out a whopping 143 runs as his side posted 8/240. His singular total was five runs better than Halls Head’s team score of 138 from 35.3 overs.
Upset by Hillman, Baldivis also felt the brunt of Dal’s brilliance as Mandurah knocked the White Knights out of the top four.
Stefan Botha’s 36 teamed with Jacob Goodrick’s 28 saw Hillman post 145 before being all-out in the 44th over.
Baldivis needed 146 runs to stay in the top four but mustered just 130, putting their finals hopes in jeopardy.
They now share an even record with Mandurah but are behind on points. The White Knights’ last two results (discounting the washout) have been losses to Warnbro and Hillman, the league’s bottom two.
Round 16 was a more positive spin for the Singleton Irwinians, who will be hard to knock from first spot after creating a two-game gap on Shoalwater Bay with a win over Pinjarra.
The Irwinians’ batting display was by no means dominant, but a healthy 51 from 10th-in-line Chris Loveridge gave the side 145 before an early finish.
Pinjarra batted eight more overs than Singleton but some stringent bowling, particularly from Andrew Peckover (3/19, three maidens), kept the run rate down and allowed the Irwinians to come away with the win.
Pinjarra will need to win its next two games against Baldivis and Waroona to claim an unlikely finals spot.
South Mandurah did their finals chances no harm when a win over Warnbro saw them move from eighth spot to sixth.
Lewis Pegler’s bowling (4/19, three maidens) gave Souths the edge early as they dismantled the Warnbro attack allowing just 71 runs.
But the Swans refused to lie down and made a game out of what should have been a walkover.
Warnbro followed suit and mustered their own prolific bowling performance, but it wasn’t enough to lift them to victory as South Mandurah edged out a narrow win.
In the only battle between top-four sides for the round, Waroona moved into second after defeating Shoalwater Bay.
A brilliant opening stand from Jayden Derosa (52) and Ben Wright (80) gave Waroona all the fuel they needed to power on to a win and secure their spot in the finals.
Justin Rake
Sports journalist for the Mandurah Mail, Australian Community Media, Fairfax Media.
Sports journalist for the Mandurah Mail, Australian Community Media, Fairfax Media.
