Trojans power to victory

METROPOLITAN-EASTS continued the Toowoomba dominance over the Harding-Madsen Shield as their bowlers rattled Laidley.

CHAMPIONS: Metropolitan-Easts celebrate their Harding-Madsen Shield final victory over Laidley.

CRICKET: A dazzling bowling display has guided Metropolitan-Easts to the first silverware of the club season.

The Trojans completed their perfect Harding-Madsen Shield season with a four-wicket defeat of Laidley.

It continued an unbeaten run for the side, who ensured Toowoomba’s sheer dominance over Ipswich sides in the competition carried on.

Opting to bat after winning the toss, Laidley was in a world of bother early, as Ben Brocherie (3/35) removed Chris Wilson and Noah Emmerson cheaply, before Matt Elford dismissed Michael Sippel to leave them reeling at 3/22.

Elford (3/36) then linked with Peter van der Kooij (3/29) to continue smashing through Laidley’s middle order, with the home side struggling at 8/82 from 30 overs.

For all their dominance, they were unable to remove opener Alex Welsh, who was the shining light for Laidley throughout a tough afternoon.

He held his bat through the whole innings, and his unbeaten knock of 98 lifted them to a respectable 9/169 from their 50 overs.

Despite not breaking through, Paul Toohey (0/10 off 10 overs), Dan Brown (0/28 off eight overs) and Campbell Rathie (0/27 off seven overs) all contributed with efficient bowling.

Mets made a fast start as they looked to get the home side on the backfoot early, scoring at more than a run a ball throughout the first six overs.

Dan Pollock (26 runs off 16 balls) was eventually dismissed, before Rathie (14) and Troy Gurski (18) combined for a 27-run partnership to leave them at 2/63.

The removal of Gurski gave Laidley a faint hope, before Liam (34) and Dan Brown (37) piled on a 63-run fourth-wicket partnership that put the result beyond any doubt.

Brocherie (14*) and Ross Milton (4*) were able to see out the final runs, as they chased down the runs with seven overs to spare.

Welsh, who led the Valley Raptors to a preliminary final berth in the DDBBL, again carried the load for Laidley with the ball, taking two wickets.

The Trojans booked their spot in the decider after downing Western Districts in the semi final at Harristown Park, prevailing by seven wickets.

Up until the success of the Trojans at the weekend, Wests had collected all three Harding-Madsen Shields to date.

Metropolitan-Easts ensured that only Toowoomba sides have their names etched on the shield, with Ipswich teams forced to wait another years to break their winless streak.

The attention of the Toowoomba cricket landscape now shifts to the two-day competition, which commenced at the weekend.

Mets continued their form on the first day, holding a big advantage over University, while Northern Brothers Diggers and Western Districts are in the box seat in their matches against Highfields-Railways and Southern Districts respectively.

The final day of play takes place on Saturday.

Originally published as