Balgownie put Uni on the ropes

Balgownie look set for first innings points after they amassed 302 against University at Judy Masters on Saturday.

Balgownie won the toss and elected to bat, with Christopher Sheppard’s 115 laying the foundations for his side’s total.

Mark Longhurst (47 not out) and Robert Andonovski (40) offered capable support, while Scott Tutton was by far the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3/32. In reply, the Uni side are dangerously poised at 3/22 after Stephen Jones took 2/8.

At Keira Sports Ground, a tight tussle for first innings points appears to be on the cards between the Keira and Corrimal sides. Corrimal struggled to reach a total of 138; medium-pacer Nick Bell topped the bowling figures with 3/27.

In response, Keira appeared to be in complete control after Tim Moore’s 61 enabled them to reach 88 without loss.

However, a collapse meant they lost 6/30 in quick time and are 6/119 at stumps on day one, requiring another 20 runs to register first innings points.

In other Illawarra Cricket action, Wollongong were shock first innings victors over Helensburgh at North Dalton Park.

The Wollongong team were in deep trouble early at 5/29 and Daniel Maher (37) was the only batsman to reach 20 after his side were dismissed for just 98.

M. Treuberg did the majority of the damage with the ball, taking 4/30. In a stunning turn of events, Helensburgh were then bowled out for a paltry 59 in only 22.3 overs.

Aaron Cadet (25) and skipper Andrew Northbridge (16) were the only Helensburgh batsmen to reach double figures as Jason Welsh (6/23) and Shane Fanning (4/33) ran roughshod over the batting side. Things were far from one-sided though, as Wollongong are in strife at 3/16 in their second innings at the close of play on day one.

At King George V Oval, a hard-hitting 41 from tailender Jason Bunyan helped Port Kembla reach a moderate score of 137 against Northern Districts.

It was a mixed day for Bunyan though, as he severely injured his ankle while bowling. Despite this setback, two wickets each from spinner Daniel Lee and Steve Sunderland had the Districts side dramatically crash from a comfortable 1/68 to be 5/69 at stumps.

At Reed Park, Wests were dismissed for 226 in the final minutes of the day’s play against Dapto.

David Giorgio (52), Andrew Tougher (49) and skipper Nathan Dodd (40) were the main contributors with the bat for Wests. Tommy Bozinovski’s 4/35 off 16.2 overs was the highlight of Dapto’s bowling performance.