If Yarraville Club needed extra motivation to go on and win this season’s Victorian Turf Cricket Association senior division premiership, it arrived last week when coach and club stalwart Michael O’Keefe announced this would be his last season in charge.
It was a significant week for O’Keefe, who was also inducted into the Footscray Edgewater Cricket Club hall of fame, alongside five other Bulldogs legends – John Sharp, Barry Watson, Vid Richardson, Arthur Dean and Keith Burnham.
O’Keefe will stand down from Yarraville Club’s coaching post at season’s end, but not before firing up for one final premiership push.
The Clubbers are locked in an enthralling battle with local rival Spotswood for supremacy on the ladder.
The sides are ranked one and two, with the Clubbers ahead by just 1.5 points.
But the Clubbers will not be resting easy in the lead-up to the second day’s play.
They posted 197 – historically a below par score at Walker Oval.
Will Sheridan produced his biggest score of the summer for the Clubbers with 67, while Konrad Kurta (26) and Justin Baker (23) could not go on with starts.
Spotswood bowled impeccably, with Upal Singankutti-Achchige (3-47) and Gene Maurice (3-51) leading the way, while Jeremy Brown chimed in with 2-29.
The Woodsmen will begin the day on 0-16, requiring a further 182 runs to move to the top of the ladder.
In north-west division, bottom side Footscray United can sniff its first win of the summer after taking the upper hand against second-last Laverton.
The Bulldogs are 3-59 in pursuit of Laverton’s 171.
Yaditha Ushan (4-36) and Mohammed Pardesi (4-60) were the keys with the ball for the Bulldogs.
Druids have given their home semi-final chances a boost, wrapping up first-innings points against Keilor Park inside a day.
Druids powered to 3-134 after bowling the Devils out for 115.
In the other games, Seddon posted 9-207 against St Albans in a game that may have major implications on the race for the top four, while Altona North made 246 against PEGS, with Sandeep Mandalika scoring 61.
