A shocking batting collapse left Gunnedah’s first graders in a precarious position on day one of the two-day contest with the North Tamworth Redbacks at Riverside in the Tamworth District Cricket Association (TDCA) competition.
After being sent in to bat last Saturday, the hosts declared at 7-232 from 48 overs and then reduced the visitors to 9-34 in 19 overs on a wet wicket.
Gunnedah’s innings included the staggering fall of eight wickets for four runs, which included two byes.
Norths will seek to capture the final wicket quickly this Saturday, and then push for an innings victory.
Blake Scicluna and captain Devon Hamley gave Norths a strong start with an opening stand of 107 in the tricky conditions.
The 11th over cost 13 runs following a six and a four from Hamley, who then found the boundary with the first two balls of the following over.
The total went from 0-91 to 0-102 from the final three balls of the 17th over, before the visitors hit back as four wickets fell for 10 runs.
Hamley was caught by Sam Doubleday off Ash White’s bowling for 58 off just 57 balls, before Scicluna was caught by Izaak Merlehan from the final ball of White’s next over for 47 off 63 balls.
White’s subsequent over featured another catch, before Doubleday held a caught-and-bowled in the following over.
The experienced brotherly combination of Michael and Brendan Rixon consolidated, before upping the ante in a 92-run stand.
The Rixon brothers were stumped off Doubleday’s bowling in quick succession, with Brendan having hit 64 off 63 balls in contrast to Michael’s patient 33 off 66 balls.
Another 13 runs were quickly added before Doubleday bagged his fourth wicket, and the next four balls yielded seven runs before the Norths captain decided it was time to bowl.
Matthew Heit struck the fourth ball of the fourth over to the boundary before hammering the next two balls for six, off Hamley’s bowling.
Scicluna held a catch from the first ball of Hamley’s next over to dismiss Braith Winsor with the total on 22, before the score advanced to 1-30 in the following over.
What happened next was hard to believe, as the subsequent 30 balls featured four wickets for no runs.
The final ball of the seventh over triggered the astonishing fall of wickets, with Zack Basey accounting for Heit.
Kyle Gallen and Merlehan departed from the first two balls of the 10th over, before Justin Carter exited from the final ball of the 11th over.
Doubleday scored a single from the last delivery of the following over and the fifth delivery of the 13th over, and then the next ball contained two byes.
What happened next was even harder to believe, as the remaining six overs of the day also featured the loss of four wickets without a run scored.
Doubleday and Aidan King perished from the final two balls of the 16th over before Keaton Walters was dismissed from the first ball of the 17th over.
After Gunnedah’s first eight victims were caught, White was bowled from the final ball of the 17th over before Brad Swain and Lachlan King played out a maiden over each.
North Tamworth Redbacks 7-232 declared (Brendan Rixon 64, Devon Hamley 58, Blake Scicluna 47; Sam Doubleday 4-87, Ash White 3-33) lead Gunnedah 9-34 (Matthew Heit 18; Zack Basey 4-7, Thomas Holmes 2-0, Oliver Cordery 2-6) by 198 runs on the first innings.
