ST Pat's Old Boys pair Aiden Macauley and Connor Slattery produced one of the most destructive bowling-batting combinations of the Bathurst Orange Inter District Cricket season thus far on Saturday to put their team within reach of outright victory.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Macauley dismantled the City Colts middle order at Loco Oval with figures of 6-8, leaving the team all out for 96, before Slattery delivered the decisive blow with his unbeaten 120.
The pair helped the Saints bounce back in a big way from their loss to Orange City last round, and with Pat's currently sitting at 7-251 they will have second innings points in their sights this coming Saturday.
Macauley picked up at least one wicket per over to enjoy a day most bowlers can only dream of.
He removed Jaden Ekert (8), Henry Shoemark (5), Dave Giorgio (6), Daniel Casey (0), Pat Hill (0) and Paul Clancy (1) in the space of just 20 deliveries.
In a collapse of remarkable magnitude Colts lost their last eight wickets for a meagre 20 runs.
Matt Fearnley removed Colts' openers Wayne (35) and Dave Sellers (22), who were the team's only double-digit scorers.
Keep up to date with the latest sports news by clicking here.
Macauley's efforts were top shelf, especially for his first top grade appearance of the season.
"I just seemed to have it on a string, but I didn't feel like I was doing anything too special with the ball. Everything just seemed to be working and all the boys got around me which definitely made things easier," Macauley said.
"I had the start of the season off to focus on school and I only came back last week. I can't play next week, and I didn't get named in second grade, so I thought I was either having the week off or I'm down in President's Cup for the week.
"I got the call up to first grade which turned out to be a good experience."
That's certainly an understatement.
Macauley's scalps included some of Bathurst's representative batsmen such as Shoemark and Ekert, and his efforts with the ball will undoubtedly see him earn more top grade play.
Slattery then went on to enjoy a special day of his own, his century continuing his excellent start to the cricket season across all forms.
He'd seen what brought about the downfall of Colts during their innings and worked hard to avoid similar mistakes.
"We bowled few and they played at a few shots which could have been left, so I went out there telling myself to play straight, get on the front foot and play with soft hands,
"I just played steady the whole way through. Those late runs helped a lot. I was really surprised when I came off the ground and heard we'd got the score to 250.
"Cooper Brien came out and smacked it everywhere which was really great to see.
"I've just been training really hard this season, getting myself to the nets a lot and it's all about confidence for me. If I'm confident then I normally go pretty well."
Brien finished the day with a quick-fire 62 while Brendon Cutmore prevented middle order dramas with an important 26.
First innings victory takes the Saints to a 2-1 record while the once highly fancied Colts squad continue to chase their first win.