QUEANBEYAN'S Jono Dean has been the form batsman of grade cricket recently, but the man who scored a record 300 not out just two weeks ago succumbed to a first ball duck on Saturday.
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The home side dismissed Wests/UC for a modest total of 178 at Freebody Oval on day one of the two-day match, with Wests' captain Ben Oakley disappointed not to make more on a flat wicket.
But Wests' chances got a big boost when Oakley claimed the scalp of Dean, with fellow opener Matt Cutler (7) also going cheaply at the hands of Oakley.
"I think Jono said it all when he said, 'Cricket's the greatest leveller,' " Queanbeyan captain Aaron Ayre said.
"[It] just shows that sometimes you can be on top of the world and it only takes one bad shot in cricket and you're sitting back with the boys, watching the rest of the game."
Ayre was on 54 not out when stumps were called. His team was four down and 95 runs away from claiming first-innings points.
At Kingston Oval, Eastlake claimed the first innings and made an aggressive move towards an outright victory, declaring at 5-189, 50 runs ahead of ANU, which reached a respectable total of 139 thanks to 71 runs from No. 9 batsman Anthony Braybrook.
Eastlake captain Adam Tett made the declaration from the middle on 56 not out. Ashley Meek, 17, was unbeaten on 34.
Ginninderra is also chasing points, bouncing back from a trouncing by Queanbeyan last weekend to restrict Tuggeranong to 194 runs.
"To come out and to bowl probably the competition favourites out for under 200 at Kippax was a massive, massive boost for us," captain Josh Kentwell said. "It's definitely game on next week."
