The afternoon session saw the development of the second wicket partnership between young guns Matthew Birrell and Rhys May which eventually produced 156 runs and, while they were still together at tea, they had lifted the rate, and with nine wickets in hand, had set the platform for a rousing finish.

Early in the final stanza, May, who had spent the bulk of the last two seasons on permit to Perth, stamped his return with his maiden first-grade century for Bayswater. It was a finely crafted and paced innings of 103 which spanned three hours at the crease and included nine fours and two sixes.  After a further partnership of 48 with Ryan Phillimore [28], opener Birrell was finally dismissed for a monumental 88. His knock had anchored the innings and spanned 303 minutes and 241 balls and twelve boundaries.  It was an innings of extraordinary application which belied the inexperience of his eighteen years.  When he departed, a further 48 runs were needed with a little over thirteen overs remaining in gathering gloom.

Wickets then fell at an alarming rate and at the beginning of the final over skipper Joe Barnes joined Kim Lawrence with four runs still needed.  When a leg bye had tied the scores, Lawrence pulled the penultimate ball of the match to the mid-wicket boundary to seal a meritorious win.

On Sunday Bayswater visited Lilac Hill to face Midland-Guildford in a one day game which constituted the third round of the pennant season.  Midland batted first and managed 221 before being dismissed in the last of the allocated fifty overs. Stewart Walters top-scored with a fine 55 for the home team.  Once again Matthew Birrell was the star of the match, carrying his bat throughout the innings to be undefeated just three runs short of his inevitable maiden century.  Valuable contributions from Hall [27], Brendon Mills [23], and Rob Peach [36], helped clinch victory, once again in the last over of the game.

Birrell has now almost certainly guaranteed his selection in the State Under Nineteen team to contest the National Championships later in the year.

The Bears have a perfect unbeaten record and will look forward with confidence to the clash with Gosnell beginning at Hillcrest on Saturday.

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