Premier Cricket: star turns for Melbourne’s Charles Lill and St Kilda’s Jon Merlo
Charles Lill is looking steady at the top of Melbourne’s batting order. And St Kilda’s Jon Merlo is emerging into one of Victoria’s best prospects.
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CHARLES Lill came to Melbourne to pursue his football career.
Now he’s making a name in Victorian Premier Cricket.
A stylish opening batsman, Lill started the season in Melbourne’s Third XI and was quickly promoted after making a century in Round 2.
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A ton in the Second XI earned him a top-team debut in December and in the past three matches he’s helped get the Demons away to sturdy starts.
Australia had Lillee and Thomson. Melbourne has Lill and Thomson.
Lill and his opening partner Blake Thomson put on 197 against Essendon, 84 against Carlton and, on Saturday, 47 against Camberwell Magpies.
Lill made 89 against the Bombers, 33 against the Blues and 61 against the Maggies.
In superbly sunny conditions at the Camberwell Sports Ground, the tall right-hander played crisp strokes off front foot and back on a pitch that was on the slow side.
It took a fine catch to end his innings: Lill cut hard at left-arm paceman Matt Whittaker and was brilliantly caught by Dylan Hodge at gully.
The 23-year-old was a promising player in the WAFL and linked with Essendon’s VFL team in 2015.
But a cancer diagnosis kept him out of football for 12 months. After treatment he returned to play two VFL matches for the Bombers in 2017. He spent last year with Doutta Stars in the Essendon District league.
His 61 on Saturday came off 112 deliveries, included 9 boundaries and led Melbourne to 280.
Three runs after Lill’s dismissal Will Pucovski (43) was smartly caught by James Rosewarne at gully after driving at Whittaker.
Skipper Matt Brown (22) and Meyrick Buchanan (26) made starts, but Andrew Fekete knocked over Buchanan and an over later Brown, clearly struggling with a back injury, hit Rosewarne’s leg-spin to Tom Russ at short cover.
From 1-121 the Demons had slipped to 5-175. But they pushed on through all-rounder Jackson Koop, who hit 61 not out off 95 deliveries, five of which he put to the fence and two over it.
Former Victorian rookie Koop has been cruelled by injuries in the past two years but, as Victorian selector Ray Bright noted on Saturday, he has much natural ability with bat and ball.
Brown said Lill had been a surprise package for the Demons.
“I think he’s better than everyone thought,’’ he said.
“He dominates in the nets and in the past few weeks he’s been able to take that out into the middle. The sky’s the limit for him. He’s going really well.
“It starts with his defence. Technically he’s probably the best batsman we’ve got at the club. Solid defence and anything loose he pounces on and generally hits for four.’’
He said Lill and Thomson shaped as a long-term opening combination for the Demons.
Brown was also pleased for Koop.
“I think for him it started last week bowling against Carlton at Princes Park. He bowled the house down,’’ Brown said.
“A bit of confidence and now he’s got some runs to his name. He’s going to be crucial for us if we are to sneak into the finals.’’
The Magpies will pick up at 0-12.
At Harry Trott Oval, Jon Merlo hit his maiden century in Premier Cricket as St Kilda ran up 6-321 off 96 overs against bottom side Kingston Hawthorn.
The strong right-hander, a Big Bash player with the Melbourne Stars, finished 106 not out after the Saints were sent in on a pitch with a green tinge.
Openers Erik Laubscher and Josh Manning put on 83 before Manning (31) was given out LBW. He didn’t care much for the decision.
Laubscher creamed a couple of cover drives to the boundary and hooked young paceman Jack Fowler for four when he returned for a second spell before lunch.
The left-hander was 50 at the break, but fell to Lyle D’Rozario for 62. D’Rozario had a second wicket when he bowled Damon Egan, promoted up the order to No 4, for 12.
No 3 Lachie Holmes crafted a patient 46 against a persevering visiting attack and from there Merlo lifted St Kilda past 300, with a hand from Ben Davies (30).
There were 9 fours and 3 sixes in his 170-ball stay.
“Great knock from him. Hopefully he’s broken the shackles and there are plenty more hundreds for the club to come,’’ Saints skipper Michael Beer said of Merlo.
“It was really good the way he went about it.
“It wasn’t entirely easy. I think the wicket was quite hard to score on, particularly when the ball got softer. He worked through that period pretty well.’’
It was slow going for the Saints in the hour after tea after Holmes was dismissed and Merlo and Davies consolidated.
“He (Merlo) had to change his role a little bit at that point and make sure he was still there at the end, which he was,’’ Beer said.