Mil Lel made its intentions clear and warned its rivals the side is a force to be reckoned with after defeating West Gambier at home on Saturday.
Frew Park was the centre of attention in the second fixture of Barber Shield matches as all six sides gathered to celebrate the Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander people for Reconciliation Round.
But once the barefoot circle and Welcome to Country was completed, Mil Lel put on a show and controlled the majority of its entertaining one-day battle with the Roos.
The home side won the toss and sent the visitors into bat on a greenish pitch and the aggressive call paid off. After Niall Easterbrook raced to 12, he was caught behind off a Logan Gibbs delivery, who also dismissed Jack Geddes cheaply. Remaining opener Connor Prior looked busy at the crease on his way to 14, but he chipped a Jonathan Allcock ball to mid on.
After Allcock also clean bowled Roos’ captain Richard Crute, the visitors were in deep trouble at 4/52 and the slide did not end there. Carey Megaw claimed the wickets of Kyal Chapman and Lachlan Brown, while Josh Cornolo fell to Darcy Williamson for another single-figure score.
Watching the carnage was Sam Willis, who remained composed at the other end and waited for a partner. His saviour came from the unlikely sources of tail-enders Jayden Prior and Connor Galpin.
At the age of 13, A-grade debbutante Prior entered the middle in the hopeless situation of 7/75, but did not buckle under pressure and gave Willis plenty of the strike. Willis relished the extra responsibility of being the last-recognised batsman and began a voyage to dig his side out of trouble. Prior and Willis pushed the total towards triple figures until the former fell for seven.
However, the blow only pushed Willis up another gear and he took on the bowling in a calculated and effective manner. Galpin ticked the strike over at the other end and the pair scored an invaluable 52 runs for the ninth wicket.
After Galpin fell for four, Willis was caught and bowled shortly after for a vital 61, which pushed West to the unlikely total of 151. Despite taking all the momentum into the run chase, West could not take any early wickets as Mil Lel’s openers Tim McInerney and Craig Lock scored an 85-run stand. Their partnership put Mil Lel in a dominant position, but their bond ended in heart break after McInerney was run out for 27.
Megaw fell just two balls later, but Craig was still at the crease and steadied the ship to push the hosts past 100. However, after Craig was dismissed for 72, the Roos brought the game to life and tore through Mil Lel’s middle order during a spell of 6/31.
The once cruising Mil Lel was suddenly limping and someone needed to stand up just six runs short of the target. That man was Josh Smith, who smashed a quick-fire 42 to put the result beyond doubt After Mil Lel crossed the line with just one wicket in hand, the side was eventually bowled out for 183 with Easterbrook the golden arm with figures of 5/11 from his eight overs.
Mil Lel captain Miller said he was impressed with how his bowlers set the tone before Smith stole the show. “I take my hat off to all the bowlers, even those who did not take wickets because we kept the pressure on,” he said. “We still have a bit to work on with the bat, but Josh Smith came in and his innings at the end was huge. “He hit 43 off just 18 deliveries and apart from one broken windscreen, it was a pretty good afternoon.”
