There were good signs for the Bombers this week with wins across the grades and 1st registering their first win of the Season.
1st XI
Round 12 ECC 6-123 DEF ST KILDA 7-122
Up against an undefeated St Kilda at Junction Oval, skipper Liam Molloy sent the Saints in after a slight delay to the days play due a wet pitch. In a reduced sixteen overs a side match, Essendon’s twin towers Lachie Busk and Nick McGuane gave the Bombers a positive start dismissing both openers in quick succession. Busk who was clinical with the ball, claimed an exceptional 3/12 off three overs, with McGuane taking 2/24 off four, restricting St Kilda to 7-122 off 16. Leg spinner Jarrod Parsons (1-22) was also impressive snaring the key wicket of test star Marcus Harris.
A super start from Harry Duke (24 off 13) gave the firsts the boost they needed. However losing wickets in clumps and finding themselves at 5-59, the Saints looked to be back in control. Arriving at the crease with 70 to get off only 8 overs, the task was getting further out of reach. Enter Noah “clutch” Panaia. Taking it right down to the last but still requiring with 14 to win from the final over, the 21-year-old number six started the over with a six over backward point. With four required to win off the last ball and in true finishing style, he smashed a four over cover to get the boys over the line. Whacking a match winning 35* off 26 he handed the Bombers their first win of the year, as well as giving St Kilda their first loss.
Round 13 ECC 86 DEF BY PRAHRAN 4-87
Looking to round out a positive start to the day, the Bombers won the toss and elected to bat first. Losing the two openers in quick succession, Prahran looked on top early. In an innings which never really got going the Bombers crawled to 86 with fighting knocks from 20-year-old Vihanga Fernando (21 off 25) and Nick Markovski (22 off 26) the only innings’ of substance.
In desperate need of early wickets, Nick McGuane was the man once again, breaking through in the first over before he was forced to leave the ground with a finger injury. Captain Liam Molloy was also tidy with ball in hand finishing with 1/5 off two. Despite the Bombers being disciplined with the ball, with only 86 on the board Prahran proved too good. Chasing down the total in 11 overs to win by six wickets.
2nd XI
Round 13 ECC 4-124 DEF BY ST KILDA 9-125
Winning the toss and batting first at Waverley Oval, a solid opening stand from Aidan Salvado (15 off 14) and Simrth Gill (33 off 36) helped the Bombers ease into their innings. Healthy contributions from Prasanna Ketheeshwaran (27 off 30) and Veteran Sean Phillips-Williams (24 off 23) steered the twos to a solid 124. A hot start with the ball from Essendon with the Saints to 5-59. Young left arm orthodox Jackson Martin snared 2/10 off his four overs, with Navdeep Rai also taking 2/18 off four. Wrestling back some momentum in the surge, St Kilda’s tail order took the game deep. After his last over heroics last week against Casey, Rai was once again thrown the ball. With only five needed for the Saints, a wicket off his first and a runout soon after made for an exciting finish. However, a hit and run off the last ball granted St Kilda the win.
Round 14 ECC 115 DEF BY PRAHRAN 4-148
With the home side winning the toss and batting first, Prahran put up a strong first innings total of 4-148. Agam Sandhu was the pick of the Essendon bowlers with 2/30 off his four. Beginning where he left off in game one, Simrth Gill hit a well-made 39 to open the bombers account. Gill was supported by Prasanna Ketheeshwaran who hit a quickfire 37 off 20 balls to keep the Bombers in the hunt. Despite their best efforts chasing 148 on a tricky wicket, Prahran’s score proved too great. Essendon all out for 115.
3rd XI
Round 12 ECC 5-162 DEF ST KILDA 5-161
Winning the toss and sending the Saints in to bat at Ian Johnson oval the thirds were looking to make early inroads with the kookaburra. With two early wickets, the Bombers had immediate impact, however a strong fightback from the home side saw St KIlda post a total of 161. Heath Doherty and Paramvir Singh were Essendon’s only wicket takers with two each to their names. Losing both openers in quick succession and in desperate need of a partnership, a 100-run stand from Jessraj Badhaan (55 off 38) and Vansh Sandhu (59 off 48) put the thirds in the box seat. With some late pinch hitting from Diliwar Ali (19 off 10) the Bombers got over the line with seven balls to spare.
Round 13 ECC 6-113 DEF BY PRAHRAN 3-115
After a good start to the day, the thirds were looking to go two from two. Sent in on a slightly wearing wicket, Prahran were disciplined with the ball. With scores coming from only Paramvir Singh (33 off 19) and Vansh Sandhu (19 off 31) the Bombers were able to get 113. Needing to bowl well, a solid start from Prahran’s openers granted them control for majority of the second innings. Although captain Paramvir Singh rounded out a solid day capturing 2/18 off his three, with not enough runs on the board Essendon’s score was overtaken in the eighteenth over.
4th XI
Round 13 ECC 7-103 DEF BY ST KILDA 0-105
Batting first on a good wicket at Righetti Oval, fourths opener Stefan James (33 off 40) looked the goods early with the bat. With wickets falling around him and no one to go with, the Bombers were left stranded at 7-103. A dominant display from St Kilda’s opening pair saw them overtake Essendon’s score zero down. A tough start to the day for the fourths.
Round 14 ECC 8-103 DEF BY PRAHRAN 3-104
Batting first late in the day and needing to bounce back, a 53-run opening stance from Stefan James (31 off 42) and Sai Simhadri (28 off 32) got the fourths off to a promising start. However, a collapse once again left the Bombers at an under-par total of 103. Staying positive and looking to be defiant with the ball, Krishna Chandak took a wicket in the first over of the innings. George Dikeos’ 2/16 off three attempted to wrestle back some momentum for the Bombers. Despite their best efforts, Prahran’s batting performance was too strong.
The Bomber's focus now turns to Saturday's one day game against Fitzroy with the 1sts will hosting the Lions at Windy Hill.
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