
Home Hill’s senior cricket sides returned to the field on Sunday for the first time since the Christmas break.
The Third Grade side travelled to Riverway Stadium to take on Suburban Parks.
Suburban Parks, batting first, struggled to build momentum against the Home Hill bowling attack. Troy Patti led the charge, claiming three wickets for just 15 runs from his five overs. Darren O’Keeffe, Brad Parravicini and Brendan Williams chipped in with two wickets apiece to restrict Suburban Parks to 9/114 from their 30 overs.
Home Hill’s chase was anchored by Daniel Olditch (52) and Andrew Wallwork (46), with support from Brendan Williams (21) and Brad Parravicini (15). The final score of 8/164 comfortably surpassed the required total and sealed a valuable win for the visitors.
Home Hill’s Second Grade team faced a tough match-up against ladder leaders Brothers.
Home Hill posted a modest total of 79 runs, with early wickets tumbling in quick succession. A brief recovery came through Greg Flanagan (13 off 40) and Jack Gimson (35 off 45), whose counterattack gave Home Hill a glimmer of hope. Gimson’s seven boundaries were the highlight of the innings, but the tail couldn’t build on the momentum, with the final wicket falling at 79.
With the ball, Alex Stillhard struck early to remove opener Tom Herron for a duck. Greg Flanagan bowled with control, conceding just one run from two overs, including a maiden. Al Wilkins and Jay Leckenby bowled economically to keep the pressure on, but Brothers held firm and reached the target to win by nine wickets. The team will look to regroup and bounce back stronger in the next fixture.
Contributed with thanks to Home Hill Cricket Association
Dan Olditch scored 52 runs on the day. Photo supplied