VSDCA: Yarraville pair Max Pritchard and Joel Reid fire

A Yarraville teenager’s “breakthrough game” has lifted his side from the jaws of defeat in the VSDCA as the opposition lost 6-11 with victory just runs away.

Remember the name Max Pritchard.

The “extremely talented” Yarraville teenager gave an incredible look into the future on Saturday as he sparked a batting collapse to rescue his side from the jaws of defeat.

Pritchard finished with figures of 4-13 from seven overs as Taylors Lakes lost 6-11 to be all out for 138, 20 runs short in their Victoria Sub-District Cricket Association southwest clash.

It was just Pritchard’s sixth game of first grade cricket.

Yarraville coach Matthew Grose described it as a “breakthrough performance” for Pritchard who has recently finished high school.

Pritchard also added eight runs after coming in at number 11, having already made headlines earlier in the season when he hit six 6s in an over.

“He was thrown the ball at a crucial time when we needed a breakthrough and he delivered,” Grose said.

“We asked Max to hit the top of off stump and bowl to his fields which he did perfectly. He showed clever changes of pace which contributed to the opposition’s downfall.

“His batting was also impressive, the umpires commented on how much talent he had for a tailender.

“With more opportunities I think we will see him move up the order in future.”

Yarraville enjoyed a strong win on Saturday against Taylors Lakes. Picture: Steve Tanner

Despite the stunning collapse, Grose said he always had confidence in his side to get the job done after they were bowled out for 158.

“We looked at past scores and knew somewhere between 150 and 160 would be about par,” he said.

“There was a strong belief among the group that if we were able to get through the top order then we could clean up the tail pretty quickly.

“It was a tough pitch to bat on and that was justified by no player getting past 30.”

Yarraville captain Matthew Grose also found himself among the wickets. Picture: Andy Brownbill

Joel Reid also won the praise of his coach, taking the wickets of key Taylors Lakes batters Alex Deuchar and Kaidin Jackson.

Those were his first scalps of the season.

“The conditions really suited Joel on Saturday and that’s why we brought him into the attack quite early,” Grose said.

“He’s stringing a nice season together at the moment.”

Yarraville will take on Elsternwick this coming weekend.

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