Buffaloes charge

In the first match held at Victoria Park this season, the 'Buffs' sent the Piranhas in to bat and it proved to be the right decision with the bowlers feeding off ideal conditions to knock the home side over for just 121 runs.

It could have been a lot worse for the Piranhas too, as their top six batsmen only managed 34 runs. It was their tail end that combined to make their total respectable.

Luke Southwell started the fight back with his 21 runs, captain Mat Gainsford chipped in with 15 not out and then the number 11 Brad Wilson top scored with 25 to give the Buffaloes something to chase.

AJ O'Mara was the main wicket taker, finishing with figures of 3/24 and he was assisted by Jim Burleigh and Dave Brown, who claimed two wickets a piece.

In reply, AJ O'Mara and Tim Hazell set up the victory with 23 and 36 respectively before captain Andrew Swaffield helped complete the run chase and top score with 40 not out.

After a slow start to the season the Buffaloes are enjoying a purple patch of form, winning their last five out of six games.

Of those five victories, two have been against the Piranhas. The only team they are yet to beat is the first placed Soldiers Club Snipers but there will be no shortage of confidence when they host the Snipers this weekend in a top of the table clash at Bowning Oval.

Swaffield is thrilled his team is getting the desired results, especially considering how tight the competition is.

"It was great to get another win and edge closer to securing a finals spot," he told the Tribune.

"There are good signs with everyone in the team contributing to the wins and in good form but the competition is very even this year and in every game both teams have a chance to get the win."

The skipper was also impressed with the state of Victoria Park.

"The pitch played well for its first game, the curators have done a really good job to get it ready and it will get better the more games that are played on it," he said.

Just down the road at Joe O'Connor Park, the Royal Hotel Pirates were upset by the cellar-dwelling Harden Hornets.

Fast bowler Billy Boldger was the star of the show for the Hornets, taking 5/9 off eight overs.

The home side never settled at the crease and despite form batsman Matt Rhodes getting a start, they simply couldn't string together any partnerships of substance.

In the end the Pirates were bowled out for just 77 runs. The Hornets got off to the perfect start in their run chase, classy opener Nathan Schofield quickly made 25 (or a third of the Pirates total) before Chris Hocking and Rob Barron combined to put the result beyond doubt.

Tomorrow's fixtures will see the Buffaloes host the Snipers and the Hornets host the Piranhas.

SWEENEY CUP

Bookham's lead at the top has grown to 11 points after the second-placed Gundaroo Gunners were brushed aside by the lowest ranked side in the Sweeney Cup - the Dalton Dingos.

In a huge upset, the Dingos batted first and amassed an unbelievable total of 282 when they were bowled out in the 38th over.

Fortunately for the Gunners, Tony Love again produced some quality bowling to limit the destruction. Love has taken 10 wickets in his last two matches.

Despite Clint Harvey scoring 85, Jeremy Clarke making 57 and Jason Vant smashing 66, the Gunners came up four runs short when they ran out of overs.

Murrumbateman have played their way into finals contention with a stellar batting display. The away side lost just four wickets on their way to a 367 run total to put all the pressure on the Yass Golf Club.

In response, the Golf Club could only manage 186 runs before they were dismissed. Paul Barnes fought hard to make a well-earned century but he had no support from teammates.

The other fixture, the Soldiers Club Horns have moved into third place outright after defeating Binalong in Binalong. The away side chose to bat after winning the toss and strong contributions from the middle order resulted in a total of 218.

Brad Hansen (47) produced a strong opening display to set up the innings before Joe Logue (59) and Adam Greenwood (42) helped the Horns reach the competitive mark.

Binalong fell 58 runs short in the run chase, Luke Brown proved dangerous with the ball taking four wickets in his eight overs and Joe Logue produced a strong all-round display, adding three wickets to his top score with the bat.

Tomorrow Bookham will host Binalong, the Dalton Dingos are away to Murrumbateman and the Gundaroo Gunners will be at home when they meet the Yass Golf Club.

Check out all our photos from the weekend's action in the mutimedia section of the website.