But it was a dominant Tigers side that ensured they remain the team to beat, comfortably accounting for Barooga by six wickets in the cross-river showdown at Cobram Showgrounds.
Having lost the toss, Cobram was asked to bowl first by the visitors, which proved to be no issue as Adam De Cicco broke through in just the fifth over to remove Harvey Johnson (4), reducing the Hawks to 1-8.
The wicket brought in-form Barooga skipper Riyaad Henry (14) to the crease, and alongside Ethan Bovalina (13), the pair set about building a defendable total.
For 10 overs the duo prodded the ball around the ground and began to accumulate runs, yet within 18 deliveries, the pair both perished without a run being scored, as Lachlan Hyde and Tyron Baden both snared their first wicket of the afternoon to put Cobram in a commanding position, while Barooga slumped to 3-35.
Outside of Barooga’s top three, only Crue and Ben Lucas would manage to hit double digit scores, scoring 14 and 10, respectively, as the Tigers tore through the middle and lower order at a rapid pace, snaring the last seven wickets of the innings for 28 runs to bowl Barooga out for 82.
De Cicco did the damage with the ball for Cobram, claiming team-best figures of 4-13 from 6.1 overs, while Jimmy Daniel (2-19) and Noah Sneddon (2-21) each snared multiple scalps, and Lachlan Hyde and Tyron Baden both chipped in with one each.
It was a similar dominant story with willow in hand, taking just 16.3 overs for the Tigers to chase down the required runs to secure a fourth win of the season, posting a total of 4-86 with Lachlan Hyde’s unbeaten 24 the best of the Cobram batters, while Daniel Ellis (20), Bodey Webb (12) and Eamon Hyde (12 not-out) were all valuable contributors.
Jonathon Oliver was the pick of Barooga’s bowlers, snaring 3-20 from his five overs in a valiant effort, while skipper Henry claimed 1-24.
The win ensures Cobram keeps its nose in front of Deniliquin in second, despite the Rhinos earning a mammoth nine-wicket win of their own over Katunga.
Hosting Katunga at Memorial Park, the Rhinos restricted the visitors to 9-200 from 45 overs, with Andrew Hogan snaring 4-27, but made light work of the total in the run chase, needing only 40 overs to secure victory.
An unbeaten 107 from skipper Griegan French at the top of the order, alongside a well-made 64 not-out from number three Harry Hillier, saw Deniliquin cruise to a total of 1-201 to claim a nine-wicket win, and keep hold of second spot.
Nathalia isn’t far behind in third however, having beaten Katamatite by 106 runs at Nathalia Showgrounds on Saturday.
The home side posted a total of 9-226 after batting first, with Emile Haratbar’s 60 not-out the top score, while Dylan Cunningham snared 3-17 with the ball to power Nathalia to the win.
The top three sides have now distanced themselves from the bottom four, having each only lost one game, however a first vs third match-up this week between Cobram and Nathalia at Cobram Showgrounds is sure to shake up the pecking order.
