By Sean Talbot
It was truly a mixed bag of results for the Upwey Ferntree Gully Tigers teams playing finals this past weekend, as the club saw the Lady Tigers, 2nds, 3rds, 4ths and both 38+ Masters teams competing for a spot in their respective grand finals.
Hosting Sandringham at home on Sunday afternoon in sweltering conditions, the 2nds were caught off guard on the back of two runs in the first inning, one in the second and two more in the third that gave Sandringham an unassailable lead they would not surrender, despite the Tigers best efforts. Veteran right hander Sean Meldrum took the ball for the Tigers and valiantly battled the Royals all day. The Tigers managed a single run in the bottom of the first inning on a Manning Davison sacrifice fly, however they would not break back onto the scoreboard until the bottom of the 6th inning as Royals starter Cooper Drummond twirled seven brilliant innings, scattering just 3 hits and 1 walk while surrendering 2 runs (1 earned) to take the win. Meldrum did a sterling job himself going seven innings, scattering 8 hits and 3 walks while giving up 5 runs (1 earned) in a lionhearted but ultimately losing effort.
The Tigers looked to rally in the bottom of the 8th inning as they plated their 3rd run of the day, however, it was too little, too late as Royals reliever Brandon Elton slammed the door shut in the 8th and 9th innings, sealing the win, and ending Upwey’s season in the progress with a final score of 6-3. A large portion of the 2nd’s players will now be required to suit up for the 1sts who begin their finals series on Tuesday evening, while Meldrum will be jetting off to Bali for some much deserved R & R after getting married on Wednesday.
The 3rds travelled to Sandringham and were defeated by the narrowest of margins, going down 1-0 in a 7-inning game that lasted barely 90 minutes as both teams flew through their innings. Daniel Smith was given the start for Upwey and threw arguably the finest game of his young career, going the distance whilst scattering just 3 hits and 1 walk but unfortunately surrendering the go-ahead run in the 4th inning, which scored after a lead-off single, a ground ball and a sacrifice fly ball, a run that was truly manufactured by the Royals and one that they well and truly were made to earn by Upwey’s dominant left-hander.
To his credit, Sandringham starter Josh Bydack was equally brilliant for the home side, throwing 6 1/3 innings, scattering a measly 5 hits and 2 walks without surrendering a run. The Tigers can take solace in the knowledge that they out-hit their opponents five to three on the day, however they were unable to capitalize on their chances. Will Yon was the pick of the hitters for Upwey, going two-for-three and adding two stolen bases and was backed by Russell Jeffery, Daniel Williams and Stephen Johnson who all recorded one hit, whilst Smith was a unanimous choice for best on ground with his efforts on the mound.
The loss closes the book on what was a terrific season for the team, who saw a large number of players take the field for them throughout the season due to injuries and promotions to the 2nds while finishing in 3rd place with a 10-5-2 record on the season, however the players will walk away from the game knowing they gave themselves every chance to win and were beaten by the best team on the day, a moment where you need to tip your cap and know you will get them next time.
The 4ths travelled to Blackburn and were looking to both book their place in the grand final and avenge their loss earlier in the season, the first one hung on them after a 13 game win streak to begin the season. The Tigers ensured their hosts were aware of their intent from the first pitch, as they scored one in the 2nd inning, three in the 3rd inning, two in the 4th inning and two in the 6th inning as they kept applying pressure and eventually ran away with the result. The Tigers were at their mercurial best on the day, with eight of the nine starters recording at least one hit or one walk, with Steve Williams (2 hits), Richard Ferguson (2 hits), Oscar Monagas (2 hits) and young up-and-comer Dom McGrath (2 hits) leading the charge for the Tigers.
Ferguson took the start for his side, going four strong innings, working his way around four hits without giving up a walk to allow Blackburn to only score a single run off of him to record the win, before McGrath closed the door on the home side, throwing three innings, scattering three hits while also giving up no walks to record a well earned save. To their credit, Blackburn ensured that they did their best to stay in the contest all day, as they also saw six of their starting nine record at least one hit in a showing of the team baseball that took both teams to the finals.
The Tigers will take a lot of positives out of the game (along with the result) as the heart of the line-up was productive all day and hitters at the top and bottom of the order are all starting to get hot, a sure sign that they will enter next weeks Grand Final against Essendon at full strength and looking to replicate their Round 10 and Round 12 wins, two games which saw the Tigers outscore the Bombers 25-4, however always aware of the old baseball adage that “anyone can beat you on their day”.
Playing in front of a large crowd on Saturday at Kings Park in conditions that felt more like Darwin than Ferntree Gully, the Lady Tigers claimed their spot in the Women’s Metro South Grand Final with an emphatic 16-4 win over Moorabbin, in a game that ended after only 4 innings due to time. Chelsea Mosbey got the start for the Lady Tigers who were jumped by Moorabbin in the top of the first inning, surrendering three runs after a leadoff and a one-out double. Upwey would answer back with two of their own runs in the bottom half of the inning on the back of a drop third strike passed ball, a single, a ground ball and another single.
Mosbey settled in the second inning, tight roping her way out of a bases loaded, two-out jam to leave ‘em loaded and keep the Lady Panthers scoreless. Upwey were not so kind to Moorabbin starter Rebecca Fielden, combining six hits, three walks and a fielder’s choice to score the maximum seven runs and suddenly hold a commanding 9-2 lead and find themselves in firm control of the game. Moorabbin were not willing to go down without a fight, as they scored twice in the top of the third after stringing together a leadoff single, a hit batter, an error and a single before Mosbey again worked some magic to escape the inning, still with a 9-4 lead.
Upwey took to their third time at bat looking to put the game well and truly out of reach and did just that, riding the wave of a leadoff walk to Hayley Mather, a fielder’s choice without an out recorded, a double, a single, three walks, a wild pitch and two singles to again score the maximum seven runs and take a commanding 16-4 lead with time quickly running out for the Lady Panthers.
Jess McDonald took the ball for Upwey to start the fourth inning, surrendering a leadoff single before recording two quick strikeouts, Moorabbin still managed to load the bases looking to take advantage of the situation and score at least once more, however Dusty had other ideas, inducing a weak fly ball to Sally Light at 3rd base to end the game and tie a bow on another dominant Lady Tigers performance this season.
The win will see Upwey go head to head with ladder leader Chelsea, who picked up the win over Waverley, a 4-3 result in a surprisingly tight contest given the Dolphins penchant for blowing opposition teams out of the water, outscoring their opponents 269-77. With the season series tied one-apiece, it is fitting that the last game of the season will determine who has bragging rights between the two clubs, especially given how closely they were matched throughout the entire season.
In 38+ Masters news, both Upwey Black and Upwey Gold picked up wins on Monday night against Blackburn (10-8) and Melbourne (8-2) respectively to set up a local derby Grand Final next weekend. While the Black team maintained a position within the Top Four all season long and were always a lock for a finals spot, the Gold team came from nowhere, going on a 7-1 run after Christmas to sneak into 4th place by 0.042%, however there is no doubting that they made the most of their chances against the Demons, scoring early and often to put the game out of reach and secure their place in the season’s final game. The Black team ended up in a dogfight to claim the win in their game, however their experience and line-up depth ensured they did enough to be in front at the end of the game and also book their Grand Final appearance.
It is sure to be a hotly contested game between both Tigers teams in front of what will hopefully be a decent crowd, as the teams are (including juniors), the 10th and 11th Upwey teams to make the finals this season.
