An understrength Rockingham-Mandurah has overcome the absence of three key players to claim just their fourth WACA Premier Cricket win of the season with a narrow two-wicket victory over Perth on Saturday.
The Mariners got the job done at Fletcher Park despite missing captain Teague Wyllie, key bat Corey Wasley and opening quick Jye Donald, sneaking home with nine deliveries remaining in their return to 50-over cricket.
The visitors lost the toss and were asked to bowl in their final game for 2022, getting off to the best possible start with a slew of early wickets to Jay Collard seeing the Demons fall to 4/18.
Collard dismissed both openers, having Samuel Fanning caught behind for a duck off the third ball and then bowling Joel Curtis for 1, while Jake Pattison claimed skipper Sean Roberts for 1 to leave the home side reeling at 3/8.
Collard claimed his third wicket soon after, Connor Blaxall-Hill caught by Cooper Dehring for 9, as Perth faced an uphill struggle to post a decent target rattled at 4/18.
Jacob Snadden and Joshua Harris bedded in and moved the host's total along to 73 before Mitch Oliver dismissed Snadden for 26, and then made Harris his second victim for 40.
Jack Baker (24) and Harry Zimmermann (35 not out) helped push the Demons towards a defendable total, but they were eventually all out for 162 in just the 45th over.
The Mariners response mirrored Perth's start, with openers Ronan Hogarth trapped in front for a third-ball duck and Wesley Steele also out leg before for 8 to leave the visitors' run chase in disarray at 2/15.
However stand-in skipper Damien Burrage and English import George Bell combined to put the visitors back on track, adding 65 for the third wicket before Bell was removed for 44 off just 47 deliveries.
Jaxon Cornford and Burrage fell in quick succession to Claxall-Hill for 4 and 36 respectively, but Dehring (39 not out) and Oliver (22) pushed on, and despite Ethan Carrington taking wickets three and four - Oliver for 22 and Collard for a golden duck - the Mariners secured victory with nine balls of their 50 over remaining.
Rockingham-Mandurah returns to action on January 7 when they host Willetton in a one-day game at Lark Hill.
