YARRAVILLE Club is a modern-day miracle. The Clubbers are the invincibles of local cricket.
Win one flag and you create a special bond. Go back-to-back and you have greatness. Achieve a three-peat and it’s officially a dynasty. But four in a row is off the charts.
Completing the feat in the elite Victorian Turf Cricket Association senior division is simply mind-blowing.
Clubbers stalwart Michael O’Keefe told the Weekly the accomplishment has revealed the true character of the playing group who have long been the hunted and continually motivate themselves to improve year after year.
“It’s a magnificent achievement,” he said. “It’s hard enough to win one and we’ve just won four in a row. A lot of hard work went into it because everyone wants to knock off whoever’s on top.”
The Clubbers produced a workmanlike performance to beat Beaumaris in the grand final at Peter Robertson Oval in Murrumbeena, enduring a stop-start first innings to make 205 in 87overs.
A crucial 108-run fourth-wicket partnership between Anthony Cristofaro (92) and Kayne Meehan (36) set the Clubbers on the right track.
It wasn’t a huge total, but the Clubbers bowlers turned it into one to have Beaumaris all out for 126 in 64.1 overs, a byproduct of the pressure built by crafty slow bowlers Matthew Boglis (4-40 off 17) and O’Keefe (2-30 off 16), who dictated proceedings on the second day.
The Clubbers entered the third day on a mission to bat as long as possible. They were eager to snuff out any chance Beaumaris had of getting back into the game.
So they batted and batted and batted – for 106 overs – for a return of 210 and an imposing lead of 289 runs.
O’Keefe (36), Viv Ion (32) and Mark Williams (24) got some handy runs, but the psychological knockout of Beaumaris came through a 76-run ninth-wicket partnership between tailenders Matthew Murphy (33) and Boglis (25).
The last straw for Beaumaris was the run-outs of both their opening batsmen in the second innings. Once they fell, the innings disintegrated and they were all out for 119 in 34.4 overs.
Murphy, the spot-on medium pacer who has a reputation as a grand-final specialist, ran through the line-up in quick time with 5-40 off 14.4overs, including the match-winning wicket that sparked the celebrations.
“It was nothing but jubilation,” O’Keefe said of the final dismissal. “We were ecstatic.”
Ominously for the rest of the competition, all players, with the exception of overseas-bound Andrew Cullen, have indicated a desire to return for a shot at five in a row next summer.
“We’ve also got some good stocks coming through the club,” O’Keefe said. “Our seconds made the semi-final, our thirds won the flag and our fourths made the semi-final.”
