Upper Great Southern Cricket Association sides hold their own as junior country week in Perth comes to a close

The Upper Great Southern Cricket Association under-16 B side finished fourth overall in junior country week after losing their pool B play-off for third place on January 9. They were edged out by Eastern Goldfields, who finished below them on the round-robin ladder but got home by five wickets in their final outing of the tournament which was held around Perth from January 5-9. Uppers had made 7-146 in their 50 overs, which the Goldfields chased down to reach 5-147 in the 44th over. Mitchell Johnstone was the mainstay of the Uppers batting. He added 56 to his tally for the tournament, with Curtis Hull collecting two scalps with the ball during the Goldfields’ reply. In pool play, the Uppers lost to Northam in their opener and were then narrowly defeated by the Wheatbelt Warriors in round two despite Johnstone’s 47. Round three brought victory over Geraldton, with Uppers reaching 6-204 in response to Geraldton’s 186 all out. Johnstone scored a mighty unbeaten 97 off 155 balls for Uppers. He then walloped 71 against Eastern Goldfields to take his side to 9-125 in the final over, helping them pip their opponents 124 all out. Their last pool outing was a loss to Busselton-Margaret River, whose 264 all out proved a chase too far as the Uppers’ reply stalled at 127. The UGSCA under-14 C1 side finished sixth overall after struggling in their pool A games. Defeated in all their round-robin matches, they recovered in their play-off to beat Bunbury and Districts, but lost their last outing to Wellington to finish sixth of the eight sides. The win over Bunbury and Districts was a tonic after the previous losses as they knocked off their opponents’ total of 8-157, reaching 7-166. Bowling first, Joel Medlen, Jonti McKenzie and Finn Ford each took two Bunbury and Districts wickets. Then Lewis Hogg opened the reply – and stayed there, reaching an unbeaten 50 with useful supporting knocks from Darcy Maylor (23no) and Archie Hogg (15). The play-off with Wellington was a tricky affair as, after opting to bowl, they could not prevent Wellington reaching a hefty 7-205. In reply, only Jackson McKenzie managed double figures in making an unbeaten 18, but with six teammates scoring ducks, Wellington’s total was soon out of reach. Uppers closed on 8-44.