Cricket Shepparton suffered a heartbreaking loss — on the final ball of the match — to Leongatha and District District Cricket Association yesterday at Elsternwick Park.
The Division Two encounter ended on the final ball, as Cricket Shepparton was dismissed for 194 runs, in reply to Leongatha's gritty 8-197.
Needing a boundary to claim victory, Old Students’ gun all-rounder Nick Breslin was caught on the boundary.
It was a cruel blow for the No. 9 bat, who had whacked a brave 29 runs under heavy pressure, as he and Sam Nash (seven not out) put on 26 runs for the final wicket.
Before the nail-biting finish, Cricket Shepparton got the day off to a promising start with the ball.
Katandra spearhead Corey Hickford (3-31) got the local contingent off to a flyer, as Leongatha slumped to 3-27 early.
However, an impressive 79-run stand between Luke Manders (42 runs) and David Newman (41) wrestled momentum back in favour of Leongatha.
Wickets steadily fell after both batsmen departed, with Central Park-St Brendan's captain Brendan Scott (1-21) bowling well alongside Hickford.
Cricket Shepparton's run chase mirrored its performance with the ball, as it reached 50 runs with no loss of wicket, thanks to opening pair Dylan Grandell (37 runs) and Mitch McGrath (18).
Although, once McGrath departed the crease Cricket Shepparton went on to lose 3-22 and dropped away with the bat.
A resilient 58-run knock from Mooroopna's Shoaib Shaikh spurted life back into the run chase, but the wickets continued to tumble as the middle order misfired.
Shaikh crunched three boundaries and two sixes in his 58 off 79 deliveries, but his dismissal — with the score at 159 — left Cricket Shepparton's hopes of victory shattered.
That was until Breslin and Nash rallied together late in the innings to almost record a memorable victory.
Cricket Shepparton will square up against Warrnambool and District Cricket Association in round two today at Camberwell Sportsground.
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