Sport
12 March, 2026
Lions miss grand final on ladder position
NOORAT Terang’s last remaining team in finals action, the division four side, had its Warrnambool Moyne and District Cricket Association semi-final against Dennington end in a tie on Saturday.
Because Dennington finished higher on the ladder, it will now progress through to the grand final.
The game was played at Winslow, with the start of play delayed by persistent drizzle that swept in from the south.
Dennington had no hesitation in batting first in the wet conditions.
While the ball was dry, Sam Munro and Tom Conheady beat the bat on numerous occasions.
At the half-way mark of the innings, the Lions had restricted Dennington to 1/64.
The first wicket fell to an amazing catch in the deep by Henry Roberts, running back with the flight of the ball.
Earlier Roberts, running back with the flight, crashed into the boundary fence trying to take a catch.
After a further 15 overs the bowlers had done extremely well to keep Dennington to 5/108.
The last five overs yielded 42 runs as the hitters took toll on the bowling to finish at 7/150.
Tom Conheady finished with 3/41 from his eight overs, while Dean Abbott did well controlling his leg spinners to take 2/12 from five overs.
Sam Lillico was also very effective with 1/23 from seven.
In reply, a good start by Noorat Terang was ended with three wickets falling with the score on 17.
The fourth wicket fell at 49 before a fifth wicket partnership ended at 78.
Disaster followed, with wickets falling and suddenly the Lions were 8/80 in the 26th over.
The eighth wicket created club history as it was the Lions first ever diamond duck, going to Jesse Unthank.
While the carnage was happening at one end, Sam Munro kept his cool at the other end.
Sam Lillico joined Munro, while generally not being noted as an aggressive batsman he started attacking and along with Munro they pulled back the run rate.
Lillico’s innings ended after 21 balls for 19 and the pair had achieved a club record ninth wicket partnership of 42.
Jack Kenna joined Munro and the latter tried to control the strike, with Kenna surviving the end of overs.
Coming to the last over, the Lions felt they could believe in victory with just four needed.
Munro took a single off the first ball, a dot to Kenna and a single returned Munro to the strike.
A dot ball and a single had the scores tied, with Kenna on strike for the last ball.
A skied pull shot from Kenna was well caught and the score was tied; the Lions all out for 150.
Sam Munro came in at the fall of the first wicket and remained not out on his highest score of 81 not out off 126 balls, with six boundaries.