DESPITE the rain interrupting a couple of games, the Victoria Men’s Premier Cricket competition still managed to produce some exciting action over the weekend. Unfortunately, there were two matches that were rained out, with the Footscray-Carlton and Greenvale Kangaroos-Kingston Hawthorn games unable to go ahead. Despite this, there were still seven ripping contests around the grounds, as the competition held its penultimate round of action. With just one round until finals begin, race for a spot in the postseason is as tense as ever, and the results over the weekend made things even more interesting.

Melbourne (9/215) def by. Geelong (220)

Geelong’s ripping form of late has continued as the Cats took down one of the top teams in Melbourne by five runs at Albert Ground on Saturday. Melbourne entered this clash as favourites, given the Dees’ higher standing on the ladder, but Geelong was able to back up their upset win over Carlton last week to knock off yet another contender as they made their way into the top-eight.

The visitors won the toss and opted to head out to the crease first, confident in their ability to post a winning total early on. Their openers got the ball rolling early, combining for 44 runs in no time at all, before the partnership was broken when Josh McDonald was bowled. Despite no one in their batting order scoring more than 37 runs (that honour belonged to Daanish Mehta), the side was able to slowly but surely build a solid total. They had seven players score 18 runs or more, which helped get their score upwards of 200. By the time Melbourne claimed its 10th wicket, the total had been set at 220, which is very defendable.

Melbourne could not have got off to a better start, with the Dees openers firing early and reaching a 50-partnership in no time at all. Jack Harper (74) and Will Pucovski (28) got their side off to the perfect start, but they unfortunately struggled after this. Five players were dismissed for less than five runs, as their batting order began to suffer an immense collapse. They still looked a chance of chasing down the required total, thanks to some impressive work from their tail-end. However, they fell five runs short of their opponents, with Geelong’s impressive win complete.

Around the grounds …

Fitzroy Doncaster could not conjure up a strong enough batting performance in their loss to Prahran at Schramms Reserve on Saturday afternoon. The visitors batted first and managed to set a decent total of 169, and this proved too much for their opponents, with Fitzroy Doncaster only able to muster up 124 runs before their batting order was dismissed.

The story was similar for Frankston Peninsula, who found itself bested by Casey-South Melbourne to the tune of five wickets at AH Butler Oval on Saturday. The home side were sent out to bat first, and managed to get themselves to 133, thanks to some strong work from their tail-end. However, it only took Casey-South Melbourne 41 overs to chase this do as they continue their quest for a top-four finish.

Melbourne University has kept its season alive with a big win over Northcote at University Main Oval on Saturday afternoon. Despite entering the match as underdogs, the home side produced a powerful performance with both bat and ball in hand, dismantling the Northcote batting order with ease as they prevented their opponents from reaching the required total.

In one of the lowest scoring matches of the season, Richmond proved too good for the Camberwell Magpies when the two sides went head-to-head at Central Reserve North on Saturday. Despite posting a total of just 135, the home side was able to dismiss their opponents for a score of just 73 in a dominant win, keeping their hopes of a top-four finish alive.

In another low-scoring affair, Ringwood was able to claim a bit of an upset when they took down Essendon to the tune of 57 runs at Russell Lucas Oval on Saturday afternoon. Despite coming into this game in ripping form, Essendon could only manage a score of just 85 with their entire batting order dismissed in the space of just 30 overs.

The final match of the round saw St Kilda demonstrate their class heading into the finals as they defeated Dandenong to the tune of six wickets at CitiPower Centre on Saturday. The competition’s top side performed very well with both bat and ball, and Dandenong had no answer for this high level of play. They have sealed their spot atop the standings for the end of the season and will now be looking towards the upcoming finals series.