Premier Cricket: Dandenong holds out Northcote in thrilling finish

They were up against it, but Dandenong’s bowlers kept believing. And they pulled off a stunning upset win over Northcote at the Bill Lawry Oval.

Skipper Brett Forsyth led the Panthers to an outstanding victory over Northcote.

Was it Dandenong’s best win this season?

“Any win this season has been great for us, to be honest,’’ captain Brett Forsyth quipped after the Panthers upset finals contender Northcote at the Bill Lawry Oval on Saturday.

“It was probably our most competitive win in terms of we were never really ahead of the game. We were in the game and we showed a lot of character to keep competing and staying in it.’’

The Dragons were 0-82 as they chased the visitors’ 4-198, but they were dismissed in the final over for 196 and their hopes of a top-four finish took a hit.

As Forsyth saw it, his team fought back through paceman Matt Wilson (3-49 off 10 overs) and leggie Gehan Seneviratne (2-35 off 10) with a mix of aggression and containment in the middle overs.

Dandenong first-gamer Angus Newman and his parents Dianne and Andrew.

Young Josh Sawrey (1-24 off 10) was difficult to score off with his accurate medium pace, doing his prospects for Victorian Under 19 selection no harm.

“He’s certainly putting his hand up to make that team,’’ Forsyth noted. “It’s a wonderful achievement for him to be in that conversation.’’

Opening pair Jake Thomas and Braden Taueber struggled early – two lots of five wides were an early gift to Northcote – but returned to have an influence.

“Their second and third spells were incredible,’’ Forsyth fizzed.

“The bowling group kept believing we could win the game, which is pretty tough to do at 0-80 chasing 200 with plenty of overs to spare. Credit to all of them. They were all really good.’’

The tall Taueber captured 3-37 off his 10 overs and at one point was on a hat-trick. He’s up to 15 wickets this season, encouraging for a second-year paceman.

Wilson has 25 wickets at 19.76.

Dandenong had chosen to bat on a wicket Forsyth described as “pretty grassy and a bit soft’’ and was to offer the bowlers encouragement all day.

The skipper anchored the innings with a knock of 84, off 136 balls and with 4 fours on a slow outfield. He was run out in the late overs as his side pushed to pass 200.

He and his brother Cam put on 141 for the third wicket, with Cam (67 off 101 deliveries, including 3 fours) making another excellent contribution from No 4.

Relishing an extended run in the top team, he’s hit almost 400 runs and is averaging 35.2 this season.

With Tom Donnell sitting it out for personal reasons (he’s awaiting the birth of his first child), the Panthers brought in Angus Newman for a debut.

They must be close to running out of caps; this season a dozen players have stepped out for Dandenong for the first time.

Max Marinic had been called up in the previous round.

Cam Forsyth made the cap presentation to Newman, the younger brother of former Panther Ed, now at St Kilda.

“Cam said some lovely words and his family were there, which was great,’’ Brett Forsyth said.

“It was a matter of when, not if, for Angus. He could have potentially played earlier but he’s got a great ground in the Second XI. I think he’s going to be a great player for us for a long period of time. It’s awesome to have him in the team and he played in a really exciting game of cricket.’’