A hat-trick by Bacchus Marsh opening bowler James Bailey led the Bulls to a seven-wicket smashing of Sunbury United on Saturday.
With his side forced to bowl first, Bailey made his move in the third over.
The speedster sent Dylan Wright packing for six, getting through the opening batsman’s defences to knock the stumps over.
Next ball, to Andrew Powell, was caught by wicketkeeper Scott Wakefield.
It was then a case of when you’re on a good thing, stick to it, with Wakefield and Bailey again combining to complete the rare feat.
Bacchus Marsh coach Paul Baker was full of praise for his strike bowler.
“If you’re going to get a hat-trick, that really is the perfect one,” he said.
“To get the top three batsmen was a great effort. It was just one of those things that clicked into gear and we sort of had them on the back foot for the rest of the day.”
Bailey has now taken seven wickets for the Gisborne District Cricket Association season from just three matches.
“James is our strike bowler,” Baker said. “It’s good when he gets up and about because he can bowl quite quickly and gets the team up and about, too.
“The other bowlers tend to back him up really well.”
Sunbury United never got going after its disastrous start, bowled out for 123 after 38 overs.
In reply, the Bulls smashed their way to the target, bringing up its win for the loss of just three wickets.
Peter Lalor top-scored for Bacchus Marsh with a well made 49.
“There were a lot of good signs in the win,” Baker said.
“Key players started to find form. I actually thought we carried on our form from our bowling innings at Riddell. We were pretty close there to pinching a win after not batting well in that game.
“The signs were there, it was just a matter of carrying on with it,” he said.
“Sunbury United are a really good side and they were undefeated. We built ourselves up to play them, and the batters went about their business pretty quickly, too, which was great.”
The win moves Bacchus Marsh to fifth on the GDCA ladder with a 2-2 record.
The Bulls will take on Woodend this week.
