Tara Murray
Sydenham-Hillside has secured its third Victorian Turf Cricket Association premiership in four seasons, capping off a stunning season on Sunday.
The Storm claimed the opening two matches of the best-of-three grand final series against Newport-Digman to win the division 2 title.
In game one, the Bulls were bowled out for 145 on the final ball of the innings.
Alex Barlas and Shehan De Silva took three wickets each for the Storm.
The Storm lost two early wickets in the run chase before steadying, making the runs with nearly 10 overs to spare.
The Storm finished 2-148.
Gayashan Weerasekara finished unbeaten on 80, while Ben Green made 50 not out.
Storm coach Geoff Pretty said the team as a whole put in a really strong performance.
“We strangled the game with our bowling,” he said.
“We then lost a couple of quick wickets, but Gayashan and Greeny batted really well and managed it from a batting point of view.
“They were controlled and smart.”
It was a similar story in game two. The Gorillas were restricted to 9-132 from their overs. De Silva took four wickets.
The Storm didn’t lose a wicket, as they made 0-133 in 33.2 overs to seal the win and premiership.
Green finished unbeaten on 63, while Ishan Dombagaha Pathirage finished with 55 not out.
“Our guys were sensational over the two days,” Pretty said.
“Greeny and Ish batted well in game two,” he said.
“It was a good job restricting them to under 150 on both days and we did a really good job in the field. We would have taken that before the games.
“Credit to Newport. They should be commended on their approach.”
Ben Green was awarded player of the grand final series for his two knocks.
Pretty said the club was thrilled to add another premiership to the cabinet and with it, promotion into division 1. The Storm, which has only been in the VTCA for six seasons, will have risen from division 4 to division 1 in that time.
Pretty said he could have only dreamed of this when he took on the role ahead of this season.
“[President] Bobby [Kunesevic] and [vice-president] Warren [Hackney] have been fantastic support for me,” he said.
“You don’t expect to have a list like this when you walk into a club. The list I was given, I only added one player, which was Shehan at Christmas.
“You’ve got the likes of Alex, who bowled the house down for two days. This is his first full season in first XI cricket. Credit to the young man.”
Pretty said they would enjoy the off season, before turning their focus to next season and the new challenge of playing in a higher division.
“The club is really happy with the premiership and promotion. The club has one eye on the future.
“There’s so many juniors coming through the club. Division 1 will be no different, I’m always looking for the next challenge. We’ll set ourselves for that now.
