Mooroopna proved the old adage correct in the field on Saturday, executing the simple matters to a tee as it bowled Old Students out 78 runs shy of the target in its opening two-day affair.
Held catches, run outs and vast improvement on groundwork was crucial in holding Students well short of 227, the set score, as indicated by winning coach Luke Zanchetta.
“I thought it was a really good overall bowling performance and we fielded really well which, from last week, is something we wanted to be improved,” Zanchetta said.
“We’ve put a big focus on it the last couple of weeks; we’ve probably done more fielding than batting and bowling.
“It’s something we pride ourselves on as a club, we want to hold a high standard in the field.
“We feel that we haven’t done that this year as of yet, so it was good to put a performance on the board.”
One man defied the game from being wrapped up well ahead of schedule.
With a Students capitulation ensuing at the top of the order, vice-captain Felix Odell gritted his teeth and kept his side’s chances alive by a thread.
He faced 110 deliveries on his way to a hard-earned 61, but the 111th ended his ― and Students’ ― lifeline with Nick Breslin claiming the crucial wicket.
Zanchetta paid credit to his opposite, admiring Odell’s innings.
“Felix is a class bat, he’s obviously scored a lot of runs in his time in Shepp,” he said.
“We were sort of lucky to get him when we did, he was just starting to get into gear and start to really put us to the sword.
“He probably got put under a bit of pressure from his teammates, not ticking the strike over enough and he might’ve thought he had to do it all by himself.
“That’s probably a lesson for them to learn, it’s really crucial to bat in partnerships and take pressure off each other.”
Earlier, classy quick Henry Barrow had removed the scalps of Sam O’Brien and Oscar Lambourn, following it up with Mohammad Shahid’s dismissal.
Liam Callegari (22 runs) provided some late-order hitting, but was the last to go, spelling the sixth consecutive defeat for Students.
The architects behind Mooroopna’s triumph on day two were Barrow (3-52), Zanchetta (2-10) and Joel May (2-28).
Zanchetta reserved praise for his star fast bowler while also providing plenty of support for youngster May.
THE GAME
Mooroopna 226 (Henry Barrow 53, Joel May 48, Felix Odell 3-28) d Old Students 148 (Felix Odell 61, Noah Muir 26, Henry Barrow 3-52)
STAR PLAYER
Henry Barrow (Mooroopna): It’s a flip of the coin to hand the merits to either Barrow or May, but the lightning Englishman edges it for his first innings half-century. Three wickets ― and big ones at that - were important in leading Mooroopna to its third win on the trot.
“Henry is going to do what Henry does, we sort of expect him to do that,” he said.
“It’s probably a bit unfortunate for him that he plays that and we just see it as the standard game for him.
“The one who’s really jumped out for me is Joel May.
“The way he batted, in the position he got sent in at six, I think we were 5-50 and he batted unbelievably ― two away from his maiden 50.
“And then he was really crucial with the ball, he picked up a couple of good wickets and really put pressure on them.”
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