McMahon Shield | Super Sunday sends three clubs packing, South to finish without a win

But at the other end of the ledger, a final-round bye will consign Echuca South to a winless McMahon Shield season, following the Swans’ defeat to Moama.

Round six, originally scheduled for January 8, was postponed to Sunday, February 13 after it was scuppered with mass player shortages league-wide due to COVID-19.

At the apex of the McMahon Shield, victories to Echuca (first) and Rochester (second) locked up the top two spots on the ladder, securing home semi-finals.

Echuca hosted Leitchville-Gunbower at Victoria Park, with the visitors requiring victory to stay in the finals hunt.

Despite a brief stumble with the bat, the ladder-leaders made no mistake with the ball to bundle out L-G for 106, bringing the league newcomers’ season to a close.

Batting first, Echuca was besieged by a fired-up bowling attack, led superbly by Blake Gelletly.

Gelletly snagged 4-22 off his eight overs, while Simon Tatt snared 3-24 and the wicket of Saturday centurion Taylor Beard for 22.

Curtis Townrow and Rory Carlisle top-scored for Echuca with 29 runs apiece, but with the exception of a 37-run partnership between Carlisle and Beard, Echuca found it difficult to maintain any fluency, dismissed in the final over for 138.

Chasing 139 to stay in the hunt for finals, a miraculous L-G middle-order revival nearly instigated a famous upset.

Tyler Jones and Liam Keath started the innings watchfully with 10 runs each, but fell to the bowling of Beard and Simon Maddox respectively.

Gelletly and Scott Lucas departed within four balls of each other, and the wickets of Kurt Brereton and James Keath left L-G reeling at 6-48.

Austin Windridge (21) and Mitch McEwen (40) sent a shock through the Echuca camp with a 53-run partnership, and with 12 overs remaining with the score holding steady at 6-101, L-G had manoeuvred itself into a winning position.

Charlie Hinks sent both packing to dispel any notions of an upset, triggering a collapse of 4-5 as L-G were bundled out for 106, now unable to progress to finals.

Rochester, also with a home final wrapped up, hosted Cooma at Windridge Reserve.

Rochester was dominant in the one-day game, sinking the Two Blues’ finals aspirations with a 75-run win.

Daniel Major led the way for Rochester with a swift 59-run innings while his skipper Sean Williams passed the 400-run mark for the season with a 40 of his own.

Charlie Ryan (30) chipped in to Rochester’s score of 187 all out in the 41st over.

Two Blues bowler Ben Napier helped restrict Rochester’s score with figures of 3-22.

In defence of their total, Rochester’s bowlers were lethal.

Williams and Myles Wade opened the bowling with a devastating spell, sending opening Cooma pair Mason and Liam Scopelliti back to the sheds in the first four overs.

Williams then cleaned up Cooper Fawcett’s stumps to leave Cooma reeling at 3-9.

Kyle Waters broke through for the wicket of Cooma captain Jacob Kelly, before Fraser Cleary swept up the tail with figures of 3-16, capping off a productive weekend.

Waters and Williams both finished with two wickets apiece.

Ethan Palma-Ludeman top-scored with 36 for Cooma as it also bowed out of the McMahon Shield finals race.

Rochester now has a home semi-final wrapped up, with round 11’s two-day game against Nondies Cohuna and results elsewhere to determine its opponent on March 5 and 6.

BLU meanwhile is poised for a blockbuster finale to the home-and-away season.

Defeat to Rochester and a bye on Sunday have left it teetering on the precipice of a finals berth, with the men in maroon slipping from third to fourth spot.

BLU is now equal on premiership points with third-placed Moama and the dangerous Kyabram Fire Brigade in fifth.

Round 11’s two-day clash against Cooma this Saturday will make or break BLU’s chances to advance to finals, its hopes hinging on beating the Two Blues and sweating on the results of Leitchville-Gunbower versus Moama and Fire Brigade versus Echuca.

With a bye in the final round, Echuca South confirmed it would be consigned to a winless season after another difficult loss.

The Swans compiled 112 in the one-day match against Moama, with Rishabh Kothari and Clay McGregor snaring mirror figures of 3-15.

Cameron Hay top-scored for South with 22, while Kaydn Blachford (20) and Cameron McMullan (17) helped their side eclipse the century.

But the run chase was over before the drinks break.

Moama opener Tommi Wesley raised the bat for an unbeaten half-century, while captain Jack Russell nearly did the same with 49 not-out of his own.

Shaun Haffenden dismissed Fraser Buchanan for the only wicket of the innings, and Moama passed the required total in the 19th over.

In the showdown between finals aspirants Kyabram and Nondies Cohuna at Cohuna Reserve, the Flames kept their premiership defence alive with a 48-run win.

The Flames got off to a disastrous start however, losing opening bat Daniel Kent to Peter Moore on the first ball of the day.

Anthony Depasquale (30) and Miller Griffiths (24) put on a 57-run partnership before both were dismissed in quick succession, with Moore, Kyeran Ellery and Xavier Wishart doing the damage.

Lower order resistance from Tristan Watson, Jack Donnell and Scott Morris saw the Flames struggle to 137.

But once again, it was Fire Brigade duo Donnell and Jackson Barnett to sway momentum with ball in hand.

Claiming six wickets between them, the Flames dismissed Nondies for just 89, Patrick Doyle top-scoring with 25.

Kyabram’s win now sets up a mammoth clash against first-placed Echuca to qualify for McMahon Shield finals.