Apollo Bay has gone a long way to dispelling the myth that it can’t win big games away from its home fortress.
The Sharks continue to use their predicted fall this season as motivation and proved their biggest point yet by inflicting Irrewarra’s first defeat since last season’s grand final.
Although Irrewarra’s list of problems went from bad to worse 20 minutes into Saturday’s one-dayer, the Bay still made the majority of its doubters blush by rattling the league powerhouse for just 101 to win by 67 runs.
Irrewarra was already missing last season’s Division One Player of the Year Jessie Gurrie, master blaster Micah Buchanan, opening bowler Nick Hay, opening batsman Tim Foley and classy middle-order player Alex Adams from its best team when it walked out to field first on Saturday.
But after only a handful of overs, the mother of Irrewarra keeper Mick Embrey came on to the field to tell her son that his father, Tony Embrey, had suddenly died.
Embrey took no further part in the game, leaving Division Two keeper Brent Hay to take the gloves and Irrewarra without its most accomplished batsman to chase down the Sharks’ 167.
The home side never got close to the target, suffering its third top-order collapse this season to fall to 6-25 but, this time, could not rely on late-order hero Gurrie to hit the team out of trouble.
Bay skipper Jake Gillam, 4-11 off 8 overs, claimed four top order scalps in a destructive opening spell while new-ball partner Damian Carney, 1-10 off 8, and Mathew Beckett, 2-18 off 6, were just as effective.
Star all-rounder Jeff Percy offered the only resistance, punching out a hard-hitting 32.

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