A DOMINANT force in recent Swan Hill District Cricket Association seasons, Woorinen was bundled out of the top four on the last day of the home and away season by St Mary’s Tyntynder on Saturday.
An eight-run first-innings win to St Mary’s saw Woorinen slip back to fifth spot, with St Mary’s claiming third place and a berth in the second semi-final.
They will play Nyah District which cemented second spot with a big outright win over Tooleybuc Manangatang.
Swan Hill held on to fourth spot with another win over RSL. The tight first innings win to the Swans didn’t prevent the Blues from claiming the minor premiership, with the two teams to again do battle in this weekend’s first semi-final.
St Mary’s had set Woorinen a target of 123 in its first innings at Ken Harrison Sporting Complex on March 1.
A steady stream of wickets prevented the visitors from building partnerships and momentum on Saturday, with Tim Free’s 34 the top score for the Tigers.
Corey Daniels inspired the home side, claiming 6-48 in a match-winning performance. Robin Sebastian and James King were the other wicket takers for St Mary’s with two each.
Swan Hill was in a strong position against RSL after setting a target of 244 for the Blues on day one at the showgrounds.
Scores of 46 and 48 to Ryan Shepherd and Brenton Foott helped set up the strong first innings, with scores of 37, 33 and 45 to Stuart Dixon, Daniel Cruickshank and Matt Lanigan down the order complementing the openers’ performances.
Incredibly, Brad Jones was the only wicket taker for the visitors but his seven scalps weren’t enough to prevent the big total.
The Blues fell 28 runs short of the Swans’ score, despite a half-century to Pat Caldwell (52) and a strong 44 to captain Duane Bruton.
An even team performance with the ball, saw the Swans have six wicket takers.
Jon Hirst’s three made him the only multiple wicket taker, while Kane Griffiths, Brad Cockfield, Mat Lanigan, Damien Hirst and Pat Noonan each claimed one scalp.
Nyah proved too strong for Tooleybuc Manangatang from the start, dismissing the home side for 63 in its first innings at Nyah last week before making a commanding 248.
The home side didn’t have to bat again after dismissing Tooley-Manang for 101 in its second innings.
The round’s other match was the last of the season for Ultima TUF and Lakers at Alan Garden Memorial Reserve.
Despite conceding a first innings deficit when it managed 86 in reply to Lakers’ 89, UTUF was able claim an outright win after dismissing Lakers for 53 in their second knock.
Ultima TUF managed 1-60 off just under seven overs to finish the season on a positive note.
