Keira has bounced back from a horror start to notch up a thumping win over the Illawarra Passionate Cricketers Club on Saturday.
Lions skipper Rhys Voysey won the toss and elected to bat first at Keira Village Park, but may have rued the decision early when both openers James Chappell and Eddie Marning were dismissed for ducks.
However, experienced pair Zach Churchill and Aaryn Kornberger then steadied the ship before sending the hosts towards a solid first innings of 9/204. Kornberger top-scored with 55 and Churchill mustered 39, while Neel Honavar (31) and Jeremy Tosswill (20) also spent valuable time at the crease.
Zaied Bin Khalid was the pick of IPCC's bowlers with 3/33 from 10 overs.
In reply, the visitors' innings never got going as all of Keira's attack troubled them, bundling IPCC out for just 74 in the 24th over. Honavar finished with 4/23 from 10 overs, while Ryan Cattle (3/11), Voysey (2/17) and Troy Coleman (1/13) all picked up wickets.
It was Keira's second win from two starts in the 2023/24 Cricket Illawarra first-grade competition.
"We didn't start overly well, but Zach and Aaryn batted really well at three and four, putting on a decent partnership of nearly 100 runs which got us back nice and stable. It gave guys down the bottom a chance to go at it and get the score over 200," Voysey said.
"It was then a pretty similar bowling story to last season. I think no-one took a five-wicket haul last season, it was just a lot of guys taking two, three or four (wickets) which is really good. It means that everybody is contributing, there's not one or two blokes having to take the bulk of the wickets.
"It's been a really good start for us this season. We had a good win against Northern Districts and now IPCC as well."
Elsewhere, Dapto celebrated their club's Old Boys Days with a convincing victory over Northern Districts.
Ben Phillips belted 115 from 104 deliveries as the Canaries posted an imposing first innings total of 7/253 at Reed Park, before the hosts restricted the Butchers to 204 in their run chase.
In Saturday's other first-grade matches, opener Alec Dobson scored a century as University thumped Balgownie by 151 runs; Corrimal claimed a seven-wicket win over Port Kembla; and newly-minted Twenty20 champions Wollongong outclassed Wests by 111 runs.
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Joshua Bartlett
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
