Beechworth to head to Wangaratta for semi-final showdown

WITH winter sport around the corner, summer sport is just heating up with the WDCA and Beechworth Wanderers ready to embark on semi-final weekend from this Saturday. Already having booked their spot in finals, the Wanderers’ A grade side went on to bowl themselves to a comfortable 82-run win in Benalla over the Bushrangers. It sets up a semi-final clash with Wangaratta Magpies on Saturday and Sunday at Norm Minns Oval, Wangaratta, with the winner to play off in a grand final. Captain Brenton Surrey said his team has found form at the right time and would be every chance to go all the way. “You want to be playing your best cricket at the end of the year; I think any of the four sides in it can win it,” he said. “You’re going to have to play well for 150 overs to be in the game right at the end and hopefully a bit of luck goes your way.” With 271 runs on the board last weekend, the Wanderers had more than enough to account for the Bushrangers, who ran out of overs at 9/189. The dangerous Brayden Stepien was gone for just eight, Ross Cavill (22) and James Carboon (16) came and went, with Matt and Jack Ryan tearing through the middle order. Lucas Ham would fight his way to a half century off 100 balls before he was knocked over by Kayde Surrey. Matt Ryan would dismiss Gary Priest for two runs to finish with 4/34 from his 20 overs for the day, while Kayde Surrey picked up 2/17 from his 15 overs. Brenton Surrey said his team did what they had to do early in the day to secure the win. “They batted pretty well, if you’re ever going to make 270, you’re going to do it at the gardens,” he said. “We had them three or four down for not a lot and the game was over pretty early, but they made us toil away.” This season will mark Beechworth A grade’s second finals appearance in a row, after coming up short to eventual premiers Yarrawonga Mulwala last year. The Wanderers hosted their semi-final opponent just last month at Baarmutha Park, going down to the Magpies by 51 runs. Surrey said the two sides would go into this weekend's encounter evenly matched. “Wang’s all-round game was a bit better than us last time, I don’t think there will be a lot in this one,” he said. The Wanderers will be at full strength, bolstering a more senior side to this time last year with the additions of the Ryan brothers and Jackson Cull, as well as the late season return of Cam Fendyk who has slotted seamlessly into the middle order. “He’s been good, he’s a good sportsman and he adds a bit to our batting and even to our fielding, he’s pretty lively in the inner ring,” Surrey said. Meanwhile, C grade will be preparing to host Greta Blue at Stanley as they head into their finals campaign undefeated. The Wanderers took down their biggest challenge for the C grade shield in the second-placed Yarrawonga Mulwala by 22 runs last weekend, in what could be a grand final preview next week. C grade will be playing a one-day match from 1:30pm on Saturday while A grade will be playing a two-day match in Wangaratta from 1pm on Saturday and Sunday.

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