IT was a familiar sight for the Portland and District Cricket Association on Sunday, with Tyrendarra hoisting the A grade shield aloft for the third consecutive season after a brilliant five-wicket win over Portland Colts over the weekend.

Colts won the toss and elected to bat first, at Cavalier Park on Saturday, with openers Alister Stannard (14) and Glenn Hollis (22) getting them off to a reasonable start as they progressed to 0-33.

However, the Darras’ season-long excellence with the ball shone through once again, as Darren Killmister and Ben Menzel dismissed both openers in relatively short succession.

It was a fantastic performance from the veteran duo which saw the Darras get on top, as they were able to roll through Colts’ top and middle order without a great deal of resistance once they got past Daniel Chisholm (11) and skipper Luke Evans (18).

With three consecutive Colts batsmen departing for ducks, all of a sudden they were 9-77, and this match was in real danger of being essentially over by day one.

It wasn’t until eighth batsman Adam Barbary that Colts were able to find some resistance, as his 34 not out helped them past three figures thanks to a 28-run partnership for the 10th wicket between him and Damien Bell.

With Colts all out for 105, they had ultimately been able to produce a suboptimal but still defendable total, especially given the strength of their bowling attack.

Killmister was the pick of the Darras’ bowling efforts, claiming a grand final five-for with figures of 5-26 from 18 overs, including seven maidens.

Menzel was almost as good, picking up four wickets of his own as he finished with figures of 4-33 from his 14 overs.

Colts fightback

Although the Darras had gotten themselves on top, this match was far from over, with Colts certainly confident that if they got it right with the ball that could pull out an unlikely victory.

And they got off to a solid start in that venture, as Evans had Darras opener Lachie Kirk trapped LBW for four, before spinner Mat Belden produced the goods to dismiss both Killmister (21) and Jake Wilson (nine).

When Evans was again able to earn an LBW decision in his side’s favour, with Menzel departing – also for nine – the Darras were suddenly teetering at 4-56, with the game on a knife’s edge heading into day two.

However, it was on the Sunday that the class of a side full of players with plenty of premiership pedigree under their belt came to the fore.

Darras dominate day two

It was their skipper Cam Mather and star batsman Jordi Withers who were instrumental in guiding their side home, as a 46-run partnership took them to 96 and put the game essentially to bed.

Mather (32) and Withers (39) found the right blend of patience and attack, keeping out the good balls – of which there were many – and finding the gaps where possible.

Evans toiled hard for Colts, bowling essentially unchanged for the duration of the Darras’ run chase and finishing with figures of 2-33 from 22 overs with 13 maidens.

Belden ended up with two wickets of his own finishing up with figures of 2-51 from 12, while Matthew Payne (1-13) and Bell (1-15) also had their moments.

But it would be Withers and a rock-solid Mark Pitt (27 not out) who would see their side past Colts’ total, before Sam Wilson (15 not out) bludgeoned a couple of boundaries to put the game beyond doubt.

Eventually, the match was called at the tea break, with the Darras in an irreproachable position of 6-164 – a lead of 59 – with a maximum of 40 overs remaining in the day.

Killmister’s five wicket haul, along with an important knock at the top of the order, was enough to earn him a well-deserved man of the match award.

Mather said that he was proud of his group for what they managed to achieve this season, saying it was a goal they had set out heading into it.

“It was one of the things we discussed heading into the season, a goal that we kind of set out to accomplish, it was great that we were able to get to it today,” he said.

“We weren’t able to get to our other goal of winning a match at the T20 Cup, but this was our main focus so I’d say it’s been a very successful season.”

He added that their performance on the day had been demonstrative of the calibre of team they have been over the years.

“We always enjoy playing here at South (Cavalier Park), they do a great job of producing a quality ground and turf, so hats off to them,” Mather said.

“I kind of thought, as long as we were thereabouts on the day, we were going to have a really good chance, and fortunately it’s paid off for us.

“I thought we bowled really well overall (on Saturday)… but I thought Glenn Hollis and Stannard opened really well, at one stage I thought we were going to be chasing over 200, they were looking solid.

“But once we broke that partnership we were able to get through a few more quite quickly… everyone who bowled contributed and our fielders all did a fantastic job.”

He credited Colts’ bowling attack for giving them a run for their money in the run chase, but credited his side for remaining composed under pressure.

“I think we were all a bit nervous coming into (Sunday), but we had the view that if we could get 20-25 runs on the board without losing a wicket it would take a lot of pressure off, and fortunately we were able to do that,” Mather said.

“Jordi is a fantastic batsman… having him back at the club this year along with Hamish (Withers) was huge, they’re both quality contributors and it’s been great having them.”