Finals are now off the radar

Round 11 was season definer for Rockingham Mandurah District Cricket Club.

With all senior sides being defeated by South Perth, finals aspirations were extinguished in three of the four grades.

First Grade fought back on day one after South Perth had cruised to 1/100 at lunch.

Led by Craig Simmons, 5/75, Ben Wright, 2/22, and Jake Rogers, 2/22, they dismissed South Perth for 211.

Facing eight overs, the Mariners went to stumps at 1/6.

Day two started well, with Brayden Sutton (51) solid at the top of the order.

At 2/81 the Mariners were well on the way, but a devastating hour either side of lunch resulted in another middle-order collapse and they were all out for 124 and their finals spot gone.

In the second innings, South Perth took toll on a demoralised Mariners bowling attack and were 3/177 at stumps.

Perched on top of the Second Grade ladder, the Mariners soon had South Perth in all sorts of trouble at 7/85, but a rear-guard display enabled them to reach 184.

It was a good all-round bowling performance, with all five bowlers taking two wickets.

Craig George (40) and Dan Whiting (41) started the run chase and at stumps the Mariners were 2/81.

Like their First Grade counterparts, a batting slump on day two resulted in the Mariners being bowled out for 142.

The bowlers once again produced the goods in the second innings, Aiden Andrews, 5/48, taking the honours and South Perth were all out for 198.

Although defeated, Second Grade are still in a good position to host a final.

Led by a good knock from Alex Whiteman (52), Third Grade played well to reach 169 in their 45-over one-day fixture.

However, the South Perth openers made batting look easy as they took a toll of the Mariners’ inexperienced bowling attack.

When the visitors called a halt to the game, they had reached 179 without losing a wicket.

Tom Lewis, 2/4, and Zac White, 2/27, bowled well to restrict South Perth to 170.

It was too tall an order for the Mariners’ batsmen, who made 138.