By Tara Murray
Greenvale Kangaroos showed plenty of resolve as they fought back against Dandenong in Victorian Premier Cricket.
After a day to forget on day one, which included conceding a first innings loss after being bowled out for 49, the Kangaroos put on a much better display on day two before the rain hit just before tea.
That would be the end of the game, with Dandenong claiming the points after their efforts on day one.
Kangaroos coach Michael Stretton said it was a much better performance on Saturday. He said the group tried to keep it positive during the week.
“It was really disappointing to put in a performance like that,” he said of day one.
“We knew there would be one hard hour and we didn’t do well enough to get through it.
“We had a look at what we could have done differently. Was it the way we went about it or the game plan?
“It was about making sure that we continued to believe in ourselves despite a day like that. It’s about believing that next time when they are under pressure like that, they can try and move forward.”
PHOTO GALLERY: Greenvale Kangaroos vs Dandenong
The Kangaroos resumed at 3-39, with the Panthers holding a lead of 79 runs.
While many would have thought that the Panthers would be in a with a good shot of getting an outright result, Stretton said they never spoke about it.
In fact, he said their aim was to try and force a positive result for them, with a reverse outright win.
The Kangaroos were 6-203 when rain stopped play.
“We did quite well and restored a little bit of pride,” Stretton said.
“We gave ourselves half a chance of a reverse outright win until the rain set in.
“We wanted to work towards a decent total and then we could try and force a result in our favour.”
Playing coach Kaushal Silva was the star, finishing 94 not out, as he was on track for this third century of the season.
Stretton said they were able to build around Silva with others putting in the hard work to ensure they stuck around.
The loss sees the Kangaroos slip to the bottom of the table. They face Casey-South Melbourne this week in a two-dayer across the weekend.
They have two matches left after that.
Stretton said they needed to continue to be positive and try and get a couple of results fall their way.
