Gunnedah’s first grade cricketers were outplayed in every facet of the game at Wolseley Park last Saturday, as they continued their horror start to the Tamworth District Cricket Association (TDCA) season.

The North Tamworth Redbacks crushed the home side by 10 wickets in the round three fixture, after Gunnedah had had losses by margins of 56 runs and 225 runs in the opening two rounds.

Much closer to full strength in round three compared to round two, Gunnedah batted for 36.3 overs but could scrape together only 103 runs before the Norths openers raced to the target in just 10.4 overs.

Gunnedah’s Hayden Doherty showed some form with 34 from 59 balls while captain Kyle Gallen made 28 off 39, but the rest of the scoreboard made for sorry reading as the openers tallied just three runs while the bottom six tallied a miserable 17.

The sub-standard total included 10 runs from wides.

The rot set in with the third ball of the second over when Ash White miscued a pull shot and was comfortably caught, before an edge to the wicketkeeper left Gunnedah 2-6 after 6.1 overs.

Gallen found the boundary in the 13th over and from the final ball of the 14th over, before Justin Carter chipped the fifth ball of the 15th over to mid-on to leave the hosts 3-43.

Doherty hit the third and final boundary of Gunnedah’s innings, during a fourth wicket partnership of 26. Just when it appeared the hosts may stage a recovery, Gallen and Izaak Merlehan were trapped lbw in successive overs as Gunnedah slid from 3-69 to 5-70.

The eighth wicket fell just after the 100-mark was raised, and little resistance followed as Thomas Holmes achieved figures of 4-17 from 5.3 overs after capturing the final three wickets.

Redbacks captain Devon Hamley’s five wicketless overs cost only nine runs, before he hammered 66 not out off just 34 balls while opening partner Blake Scicluna made an undefeated 33 off 31.

Hamley hammered five fours and three sixes, while Scicluna hit three fours.

Hamley struck the second ball of the innings to the boundary after Scicluna faced the first ball, and then the second over yielded 13 runs following a six to Hamley from the final ball.

Sixteen runs came in each of the eighth and 10th overs, before Hamley hammered the third ball of the 11th over for six and then scored a two off the next ball to end the contest.

This Saturday, Gunnedah treks to Riverside to oppose City United which had a bye last weekend and is also seeking a breakthrough victory.

North Tamworth Redbacks 0-104 (Devon Hamley 66 not out, Blake Scicluna 33 not out) defeated Gunnedah 103 (Hayden Doherty 34; Thomas Holmes 4-17, Max Judd 3-28) by 10 wickets.