Victorian Premier Cricket 2024/25: Casey South Melbourne season review

Casey South Melbourne coach Will Carr believes there is still scope for improvement at the Swans following a third finals appearance in four seasons. Find out why.

Casey South Melbourne batter Yash Pednekar. Picture: Valeriu Campan

Casey South Melbourne coach Will Carr believes there is still scope for improvement at the Swans following a third finals appearance in the past four seasons.

The Swans suffered an elimination finals exit at the hands of cross-town rivals Dandenong after Shobit Singh rattled past the 1000-run mark with an unbeaten 116 to steer the Panthers to victory.

“I actually think we played pretty good cricket throughout the two days, there were probably some opportunities that we couldn’t maximise, Dandenong were just two good,” Carr reflected.

Despite the disappointment of a first week finals exit off the back of last year’s grand final heartbreak, Carr said his Swans enjoyed a “pretty good” season.

“It’s a tough competition and some really good sides missed out on finals altogether, we had one less win this year than last year and I thought we played a reasonably similar standard,” Carr said.

“Probably not quite as well as last year, one or two games are the difference between finishing seventh and finishing top-four … after the disappointment of last year it would’ve been nice to back up further … but to make finals was a really good achievement.

“We’ve got a team who’s got the capacity to improve and a desire to improve. I can’t fault the effort from the group who represented the First XI throughout the season, it was a tick as far as we’re concerned.”

The Swans celebrate a wicket. Picture: Andrew Batsch

The Swans’ finals track record is strong under Carr, with the defeat marking the first time in three campaigns they had suffered a finals loss before the grand final with the former Victorian quick at the helm.

“We’ve had a fairly good block … I think there’s room and a desire for growth, I think we’re in a pretty healthy position,” Carr said.

With a focus on retaining the bulk of its first-grade squad, Carr said incremental gains would be key to Casey South Melbourne contending for the flag next season.

“They’re not major things, batters being able to turn starts into bigger scores and bigger scores into hundreds. From a batting point of view. I think that sounds simplistic but that’s probably going to be the difference,” Carr said.

Ash Chandrasinghe reached triple figures twice in the home-and-away season and was the only Swan to do so, while Yash Pednekar delivered a classy and crucial ton in the elimination final against Dandenong.

Casey South Melbourne batter Yash Pednekar at the crease. Picture: Valeriu Campan

“From a bowling point of view, bowlers being at their best for longer periods of time, just getting better at what we do.

“Our standards are pretty high, we probably didn’t quite meet the same level of standard as we did last season, or not by much.

“We’re just building on what I think is a pretty good solid base, some individuals will look to improve on their games and get better for longer, hopefully that’ll put us in good stead.”

Leg-spinning maestro Ruwantha Kellapotha and seasoned quick Nathan Lambden both enjoyed stellar seasons with the ball to finish with 38 and 34 wickets respectively.

The pair were two of the competition’s leading wicket-takers.

Carr was thrilled with the pair’s performances, as well as Chandrasinghe’s season with bat in hand.

“Yash Pednekar’s season was a big step forward for him, particularly with the 100 in the final,” Carr added. “I think he’s taken a tremendous stride forward with his development and his game.”

“I think (Jackson) Isakka’s going to be a really good player for us, he showed with both bat and ball that he’s a serious player and I’m expecting bigger and better things from him with both bat and ball moving forward.

“Dev Pollock was really sound behind the stumps, he’s just so reliable, another terrific season behind the pegs for him.

“Harry Hoekstra’s a really exciting player, he had a really good second half to the season and has developed again ... hopefully he gets higher honours somewhere down the road.”

Casey South Melbourne bowler Nathan Lambden walking back to his mark. Picture: Andrew Batsch.

The club’s three lower grades all missed finals, but Carr noted that success can be “measured in different ways”.

“We’ve been able to develop some individuals throughout the year we’ve had a number of guys who have played a higher level than what they played last year and had a level of success in those grades,” Carr said.

“If we looked at our whole squad last season we probably only had 12 to 13 genuine guys that could play first XI, that’s probably increased to 15 or 16 and we look to build that out, that in turn will hopefully lead to more games won by the lower XIs.”

A top-order batsman and pace bowler are both on Carr’s off-season wishlist, although the recruitment of either is far from a necessity.

“We’re probably in the same boat as everyone, you’re always looking for another quick and a top order batter ... there’d be very few clubs in the competition that wouldn’t be looking for those two,” Carr said.

“Some may want a spinner but we’re very comfortable with our spinning stocks at the moment.

“You can never have too many fast bowlers and another top-order batter may help us improve, but I’m still comfortable with the depth of batting we’ve got as well.”