Bunbury and Districts Cricket Association miss out on Country Cup final with two losses in T20 double-header

The Bunbury and Districts Cricket Association representative side will not feature in the Country Cup final after suffering a pair of losses in the competition’s T20 double-header at Forrest Park on Sunday. After a six-wicket win over WA Invitational XI in the first game of the tournament, the Blue Swans came into the day in good shape to progress to the final, sitting first on the table. But a seven-wicket loss to Albany and Districts Cricket Association in their first game of the day plunged them into a virtual elimination final with Peel Cricket Association in their second fixture, which they lost by nine runs. In the decisive afternoon contest, Peel batted first and got away to a rollicking start courtesy of openers Josh Thomas (53 from 38 balls) and Josh Rudge (26 from 19 balls), who took 50 from the first six overs. The stand was broken when Zane Verhaaf (1-29 from four overs) bowled Rudge, with Morgan Baxter (1-31 from four overs) and captain Liam Renton (1-22 from three overs) following up with wickets as the Blue Swans tried to stall the momentum. But the visitors were still able to post a competitive total of 7-156, with Daniel Baker (33 from 27 balls) showing some class at the back end of the innings. Tom Sletten was the only BDCA bowler to claim multiple wickets, taking two in the last over to finish with 2-27 from four overs. The BDCA’s reply started slowly, with opener Keagan Lynch dismissed for a second-ball duck and neither Bradman May (13 from 19 balls) nor Michael Tassone (11 from 12 balls) getting going. But young gun Cooper Clarke-Dehring gave the innings some serious impetus through the middle overs, smashing six sixes in a scintillating knock of 66 from just 30 deliveries. After trying to take on one big shot too many, the young gun was stumped off the bowling of Daniel Abel (2-20 from four overs), and Peel were able to apply the squeeze on the new batters from there. With 15 needed from the final over, the task of winning the game was left to tail-enders Renton and Verhaaf, with the result all but sealed after Verhaaf’s leg-side heave off Jake Wyllie (2-32 from four overs) found Rudge’s hands on the boundary, with Renton run out off the final ball of the innings to leave the Blue Swans all out for 147. In their first game, the BDCA’s total of 6-147 was run down by the Whalers with 10 balls to spare. After something of a circumspect start, Clarke-Dehring breathed life into the Blue Swans’ innings, clubbing three huge sixes in a rapid 30 from 16 deliveries. The well-set Tassone carried on after the young gun’s dismissal, hitting three sixes of his own to finish 49 not out from 42 deliveries. With the ball, the BDCA struggled to contain ADCA opener Harry Grigson, who gave his side a strong start with a brilliant 56 from 31 deliveries at the top of the order. The Blue Swans had missed some earlier catching chances before Clarke-Dehring was eventually able to hold on to a skied Grigson shot off the bowling of Renton (1-21 from 3.2 overs), but all-rounder Mitch Green took up the mantle of winning the game for the Whalers, ending up 72 not out from 47 deliveries. Albany won all three of their games and will take on Peel in the final, with a date and venue yet to be confirmed. The BDCA finished the tournament in third, ahead of the winless Invitational XI.