Collendina skipper Nathan Walter has praised the efforts of debutante Jack Every and fellow teenager Noah Jeffrey for their role in his side’s amazing win against St Leonards on Saturday.
The Cobras were 5-15 and then 8-59 but first gamer Every and Jeffrey got the innings to some semblance of competitiveness with a modest, but super important, 31-run stand.
Every made 28 in a mature performance, but the Cobras were not expected to win with a score of 90 on the board.
“It was really pleasing to see a couple of 15 year old kids stand up and take charge,” Walter said.
“Jack has progressed really quickly. He has probably only played 10 B Grade games and I knew he was ready from his performances at the end of last year especially.
“We just talked about having something to bowl at and really being energetic and taking our chances which is something we haven’t done the past few weeks and we didn’t drop a catch which was really pleasing too.”
All of a sudden, St Leonards’ batting looks brittle without Andrew Spengler, who may have played his game for the club.
At 4-12, the Saints were in all sorts of trouble as Charlie Lamb (3-10) and Nathan Frye (2-23) sent panic through the Saints dressing room.
Only former state player Richard McCarthy reached double figures as the Saints slumped to 50 all out with spinner Jacob Gasier joining in on the fun with 3-6 to open the Cobras’ account for the season.
“I think this win just gives us a bit of belief that we are good enough to match it with good sides,” Walter said.
“To knock off St Leonards when they beat Barrabool last week just goes to show how open the competition is this year.”
While Collendina’s bowling attack looks to be set for another bountiful season, Walter said his side’s batters need to apply themselves more.
“Confidence and shot selection is the thing letting us down with the bat at the moment,” he said.
“That will come when guys start to spend more time out in the middle. We just keep backing the guys we know are up to it and are putting in the work.
“The competition bar, maybe one or two teams, is going to be really open so we suspect we can win most of the games we play.
“I think we’re definitely a chance to push for a finals spot if we can start batting to our potential a bit more.”
