If Seddon goes on to defeat Sunshine Druids in the Victorian Turf Cricket Association north A1 grand final this weekend, the club might look back on a nifty piece of glove work from wicketkeeper Mark Webb on day two as the turning point.
Seddon struggled to contain Druids opening batsman Leigh Wilson, who powered to 112 not out after the first day at Hogans Road and was seriously set for a long-haul innings with a further 80 overs to bat on the second day.
While Wilson was at the crease, the Druids had the potential to amass a war chest of runs and bat Seddon out of the game, so the fielding side was desperate to bring about his demise.
It took some out-of-the-box thinking and a magnificent piece of work behind the stumps by Webb to remove Wilson for 115.
Webb gamely kept up to the stumps to medium-pacer Dellon Udugamasooriya and flicked off the bails to catch Wilson wondering out of his crease.
The Druids went on to record 223, but it could have been so much more.
“He’s a gun ’keeper,” Seddon secretary Rolf Tamburro said. “He keeps up to the stumps a fair bit to the pacemen.
“He said after the game it was probably his favourite stumping because it was the most important.
“Wilson didn’t look like going out and Mark rated it highly because of the situation.”
Not to be overshadowed were the tireless efforts of the Seddon bowlers, who restricted Druids to less than two an over for 122 tough overs amid Melbourne’s weather extremes.
Udugamasooriya produced a captain’s performance with 5-32 off 18.
New-ball operator Brendan Major was outstanding with an economical 3-17 off 19, while the speedy Malith Cooray was a tad expensive with 2-77 but claimed two important scalps.
Seddon went to stumps on 3-62, requiring 162 with seven wickets in hand for the first innings, which could prove decisive with two days remaining.
Udugamasooriya (4no) and Tharindu Weerasinghe (24no) steadied the ship late on day two after their side struggled to 3-36. “They had to see out 15 or 16 overs – it was getting dark and cloudy, but they did well to survive any real onslaught towards the end,” Tamburro said.
“Now they’re set up for next week and the game is definitely on. It should be a very exciting finish.”
