THE final weekend of the Victorian Women’s Premier Cricket regular season did not disappoint, with enthralling clashes seeing some teams step up with their seasons on the line. We go around the grounds to recap what was an exciting weekend of action.

Carlton vs Ringwood

Ringwood stepped up when it counted, and in defeating Carlton for the second time this season, ensured a Women’s 1sts finals berth for the first time in its history.

Batting first, Carlton made an impressive and very competitive 8/189. As she has done so many times this season, Cailin Green top scored with 39.

Meanwhile for the Rams, Hailey Ferris was the pick of the bowlers with two wickets, but the wicket taking workload was very widely spread, with half a dozen other bowlers nabbing a wicket too.

Despite the huge target, Ringwood was able to pull it off with over 10 overs to spare.

Una Raymond-Hoey top scored with 41, while Kristy Arulrajah notched 33 and Bhavisha Devchand made 32. Meanwhile for Carlton, it was Maryam Omar who topped the wicket taking tally with three.

Essendon Maribyrnong Park vs Box Hill

In the battle where both seasons were on the line, it was the Box Hill who won the tussle and survived another week.

Batting first, the Mustangs made 143, with no one making more then Isabel White’s 34. Meanwhile for the Bombers, Hannah Rooke was the top wicket taker, with 3/8 off her three overs. Chloe Rafferty and Milly Illingworth also took two each.

In reply, despite a 53 from Siena Ferrara, it was not enough as a stellar bowling performance from the Mustangs saw the Bombers bowled out for 140. Kristie Gordon and Zoe Griffiths had terrific innings with the ball, taking three wickets each.

Melbourne vs Dandenong

Needing to pull off one of the upsets of the year to play finals, Dandenong was not able to pull it off, going down to Melbourne.

Dandenong made 8/168 batting first, off the back of a 73 from Kimberley Garth. Meanwhile for Melbourne, Ella Hayward, Amy Yates and Zoe Samuel each took two wickets.

In reply, although Melbourne certainly took its time, the target was reached in the 43rd over. Amy Vine was the star of the innings, making 73. Meanwhile for the Panthers, Garth was also the best of the bowlers, taking 3/13 off 9.1 overs, which included four maidens.

Plenty Valley vs Prahran

In the battle of the bottom end of the ladder, Prahran got one last little bit of joy out of the season, defeating Plenty Valley to keep the Bats winless.

Batting first, the Bats made a respectable 8/156 off their 50 overs, fighting back after a slow start. Anusha Joshi was the standout with the bat, making 48. For Prahran, Sophie Day took 2/16 off her 10 overs, which included four maidens.

Unfortunately it was no match for Prahran, with the True Blues reaching the target in just over 23 overs. Paris Bowdler made 67 to help her side to the cruisy win.

THE LADDER

No matter what happens this finals series, we will have a new champion in the Women’s 1sts competition.

Melbourne ultimately finished on top with just the two losses for the season. Carlton finished second, three wins behind Melbourne. Then it’s Ringwood, who after beating Carlton secured its place in the finals series.

Box Hill rounds out the finalists after finishing equal with Ringwood, but the Rams’ superior net run rate meant it got to finish ahead.

This means that the four teams that miss out on finals are:

• Dandenong, who won the Grand Final last year but don’t get the chance to defend its title this year.
• Essendon Maribyrnong Park, which butchered its chance to secure their place in the finals.
• Prahran, who although had their moments this year, overall had a less than ideal season.
• Plenty Valley, who officially went winless this season.