Wanneroo players celebrating their victory over Claremont-Nedlands.
Camera IconWanneroo players celebrating their victory over Claremont-Nedlands. Credit: Supplied/Supplied

WA Premier Cricket: Wanneroo rules in T20 match

Staff writerWanneroo Times

WANNEROO might be a cellar dweller in the WA Premier Cricket two-day competition, but the side has proven a master of cricket’s shortest form.

The Roos capped off a dream statewide T20 run with a grand final victory over Claremont-Nedlands at Fletcher Park on Sunday.

Wanneroo successfully defended 6-164 in a 28-run triumph against the Tigers.

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After winning the toss and electing to bat, the Roos lost opener Max Holden cheaply for 4 before a blistering 61-run partnership between captain Christian Smith and Robert Richards recaptured the innings.

Not to be outdone, former Roo Haydan Morton spun his way into the match, taking two quick wickets to put the game on a knife’s edge with Wanneroo sitting at 3-73.

Tiger Elliot Hitchen also forced his presence upon the Roos, taking two wickets in the space of nine runs to have the Roos under enormous pressure on 5-102.

However, after Smith was dismissed for 43, Matthew Spoors anchored the back half of the innings for the Roos, smashing out a 49-run partnership with Mitchell McGee.

Spoors ended the innings unbeaten on 39, helping the Roos to a defendable 6-164. The Tigers then entered the crease with confidence, getting the score to 30 without incident.

However, the 32-run opening partnership between James Allenby and Nicholas Hobson turned out to be a match-high for the Tigers, as Wanneroo’s bowlers tore the Tigers’ batsmen apart by taking five wickets in the space of 42 runs.

At 5-74, Bradley Hope and Morton gave the home side a small chance at victory, getting the total up to 5-101 before their 27-run stand was broken by Robert Richards. Richards ravaged the Tigers’ middle-to-late order, taking 4-19 in an astonishing two over spell, firmly ripping the premiership out of the Tigers’ hands.

The match ended in a disappointing fashion for the Tigers, with Christopher Simpson run out scrambling to chase down the final runs in the 18th over.

In the two-day competition, Wanneroo heads into the second day of its match against Subiaco Floreat this Saturday with the Lions having amassed 9-225.