Footscray Edgewater has meekly surrendered Premier Cricket’s top spot after it was poleaxed by Northcote at the Bill Lawry Oval on Saturday.
The Bulldogs have been so focused this summer that their inept performance came totally out of the blue.
A lack of application and energy saw them outsmarted in most facets of play in the 162-run belting.
Bulldog coach Steve Chapman was not too concerned about relinquishing first place but was deflated by the process that led to a shock loss to a side battling to make the finals.
“It was a pretty poor way to give up top spot for those people who are interested in that sort of thing,” he
said.
“I’m just more interested in the process of the cricket that we’re playing and the type of cricket.
“We just fell over; we just had one of those days.
“It was unexpected and I was pretty disappointed with the result. It took a long time for it to sink in.”
Northcote posted an imposing 9-313 declared, but that was not uncharted waters for the powerful Bulldogs batting unit.
But the Dogs got complacent, expecting the runs to be easily gained.
Northcote bowled with discipline to fields that were well set, refusing to give the ladder leaders cheap runs.
“They were a lot more organised and were able to work to the basic plan for longer than we did,” Chapman said.
“I think we just thought, it’s Northcote, they’re travelling 12th or 13th and we’ll run over the top of
them.
“These lads have got to realise we’re sitting on top of the ladder and these sides are going to bring their A-game for us.
“It’s a wake-up call.”
The Bulldogs were always chasing their tails after their top order crumbled and were all out for 151 in 53.3 overs.
Jake Haberfield (24) and Hamish Winter-Irving (17) offered nuisance value as the only batsmen to dig in for lengthy stints.
Mitchell Winter-Irving top-scored with a quickfire 27.
“With the exception of Jake and Hamish, there wasn’t really anyone who batted any length of time,” Chapman said.
The Bulldogs host Chapman’s former club, Dandenong, in a Saturday-Sunday clash at Merv Hughes Oval this weekend.
