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That’s all it took for Orange to demolish Mudgee in the third round of Mitchell Cricket Council’s President’s Cup at Wade Park on Sunday, the Bluebaggers romping to a six-wicket victory before lunch.
Jackson Coote (4-15) and Gus Cumming (3-19) ran riot after Orange skipper Daryl Kennewell won the toss and sent Mudgee in, the visitors limped to 9-108 – they only had 10 players and survived just 26 overs.
Orange made light work of the chase, Mick Hannelly (37) top scoring as the Bluebaggers secured victory in just 14 overs with six wickets in hand.
Kennewell admitted losing four wickets in that space of time wasn’t ideal, but he said it’s hard to nitpick considering the victory is Orange’s most dominant in recent memory.
“We probably should’ve only been one or two down, but that’s not a big deal, it’s as good a win as I’ve been a part of with Orange and it’s great to see us back up our performance against Parkes,” Kennewell said, referring to the Bluebaggers’ Western Zone Premier League win a fortnight ago.
“The bowlers bowled beautifully, especially Jackson and Gus, we took our chances and rolled through Mudgee pretty quickly.
“Mick batted well and a few of the young guys did their job as well.”
The showing of those “young guys”, mainly debutants Harry Pearce and Lachie Coyte, is what Kennewell labelled the most positive factor in the win.
Pearce bowled superbly without luck to finish with 0-19 from five, while Coyte opened the batting and although he only made 12 he looked comfortable enough.
“Being able to blood these young guys before Christmas and have them do a job in a win is huge for us, and it’ll be a big positive for the Orange colts in the new year,” Kennewell said.
Only former Kinross wicketkeeper Donald Hearn (26) and Brian O’Reilly (28 not out) made any real impression in Mudgee’s innings, which featured five ducks. Ed Morrish (2-25) picked up the two wickets Coote and Cumming didn’t take.
Hannelly and Coyte started the chase well, putting on 34 before the latter was caught. Josh Doherty belted a quick 19 as he and Hannelly lifted the score to 78.
Both were dismissed in quick succession, and Matt Corben (4) followed soon after, but Nathan Rosser (14 not out) and Chris Brown (11 not out) secured the victory.
With Orange no chance of making the Western Zone Premier League final Kennewell said the focus shifts entirely to the President’s Cup, and defending the Mitchell Twenty20 Cup title.
“Those two competitions will be our focus in terms of winning titles, yeah, but as long as we’re developing as a side and moving forward, then I’ll be pleased,” he said.
“A couple of wins on the trot with a few new faces and young guys playing, it helps massively, especially leading into the new year. We’ll go into the second half of the summer with a lot of confidence I think.”