THEY say you should take inspiration from your idols, but it might be time for the Brook teams to stop doing that because, like the Australian team, they can’t seem to win at the moment.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Silver and Blue are on a losing streak of four and five respectively, with the latter yet to register a victory this season.
However, there was substantial improvement from Silver this week, as they lost a seesawing contest to Bunnan away from home.
They fell short of the total by just 31 runs, making the fact they only had 10 players even more painful.
It was a frustrating affair in the beginning, as openers bowlers Campbell Schmierer and Cody Tsaousis watched upwards of a dozen deliveries go through slips, French cut just centimetres wide of the stumps and miss the edge of the bat by a coat of varnish.
But, Bunnan’s openers Matthew Langan and Glen Davis miraculously survived until drinks before Boston Gageler came on to deliver an incredible spell.
Bowling spin for the first time in seniors, he took the match’s first five wickets, with Alec Duncan being the only other Silver bowler to claim a scalp.
Attempting to chase down a modest 162 on a flat pitch, the top order resorted to their usual tricks as they collapsed from 0-14 to 4-14 with Davis and Langlan, who also opened the bowling, tearing through the young side.
However, the game was far from over as strong partnerships between captain Jarrod Watts (38) and Bartush (39), and then Bartush and Schmierer put the Muswellbrook side back into the game.
Hope continued to exist through the last wicket stand, following a couple of boundaries from Tsaousis and hard-running from 13-year-old Cooper Gageler, which brought the run rate under one a ball.
But, the youngster was finally dismissed and there was a feeling of what could’ve been throughout the camp following the showdown.
In the other match, the Blues endured a belated Halloween horror as they went down at home by 147 runs to Aberdeen, with Dom Cooper’s 59 being comfortably outshone by the opposition batsman Manu Sharma’s 96.
He was denied a century by the host’s captain Peter Turnbull, who took four wickets, over doubling his season tally which sat at three before the match.
Around the grounds, Merriwa’s perfect start was ruined by a 37-run loss to Murrurundi, Belltrees stormed to a resounding 10-wicket win over the Bulls and Rouchel enjoyed a 47-run victory over Bushrangers.
