Danubian Kangaroos won by Royal Tigers won by 3 wickets

Kangas claw in Blues 2nd's

On a cloudy, yet surprisingly heavy-rain free day, the Danubian Kangaroos faced off against the Baggy Blues 2nd XI. The all-Hungarian team were in a do-or-die situation looking for their first win, while the Blues were playing in their first match, as their only encounter so far had been washed out.

Captain Matt Watson-Broughton won the toss and decided to put the Kangaroos in to bat. A solid opening partnership between Nádudvari and Mátyásfalvi was ended by a straight delivery from De Silva. Kangaroos captain Gábor Török joined Mátyásfalvi at the wicket and the pair produced the best partnership of the year (65) thus far for the native Hungarians. Singles were run well and boundaries were hit when required, the run rate was hovering around 6 and cruise control mode set in. Suddenly this turned to emergency brake mode, when Mátyásfalvi (27) departed with an ill-timed pull, his partner G. Török (30) for a reckless drive and star batsman Tamás Török claimed a silver duck off a shot that usually yields 6 for him. Keeper Dávid Török and Krisztián Bartók also left the field with feathered birds to their names. Eddie Allnutt was the bowler who produced this fantastic spell; along with partner Ted Wiese they had the Kangaroos spiral from 90-1 to 115-7.

Enter Viktor Ágoston, who had produced a half century against the Blues in a friendly. He steadied the ship by seeing off Allnutt and Wiese, then turned into Chris Gayle mode by smashing boundaries at a frenetic rate. The tail crumbled before he could reach his half-century, but his 44 not out was the top score and ensured that the Kangaroos reached 162 runs, a total which seemed all the higher because of the damp conditions. The pick of the bowlers was Allnutt with 4/22 off his quota of 6 overs.

The Baggy Blues 2nd XI's innings started slowly but steadily, although the tempest was nearing literally and poetically with a shower of close LBW appeals being turned down, a lovely 6 and the rain gathering overhead. Allnutt was threatening to repeat his bowling performance, but was adjudged LBW off G. Török for 6. The innings never really took off once the brilliant former baseball duo of Zoltán Poprádi (2-27) and Ágoston were handed the bowling duties. Steady wickets fell and runs were extremely difficult to come by as the required run rate started skyrocketing. The Kangaroos' fielding also started resembling the Városliget training sessions for the first time in a league match and the Baggy Blues 2nd XI were only in their fourties with 5 wickets down at the drinks break.

For a while it seemed only the rain could take the match from the Kangas, but runs suddenly started flowing at an alarming rate. Two crucial wickets came from Tamás Török, who bowled the threatening Henry Mills and the man who destroyed the Kangaroos last year, Hiran De Silva. Watson-Broughton joined Chris Dobson at the wicket for the last partnership and the all-Hungarians' worst nightmare temporarily surfaced as Dobson started belting sixes and Watson-Broughton, with his sound technique, never looked like getting out. Suddenly, only 39 was needed off the last three overs, when Gábor Nádudvari did the honours with a key 1 for 0 spell – dismissing the top-scorer Dobson for 26 - and the game was over, before a tempest of any kind could occur.

So the Kangaroos stay alive in the semi-final hunt, while the Baggy Blues 2nd XI look to bank on some promising performances.

Man of the Match: Viktor Ágoston for his 44 not out and his 4/9 off 6 overs