Last Saturday afternoon the Ringwood Saints handed North Balwyn just their second loss for the year, defeating the A-grade ladder-leaders 9-4 on their home diamond.
The win solidifies fourth spot on the ladder for Ringwood, while North Balwyn remain on top of the table.
Saints club coach Andrew Tierney was full of praise for his team’s performance.
“(North Balwyn’s) a quality line-up and we set out with a plan to just not let them get too far ahead of us,” said Tierney.
“Our hitting’s been a real strong suit for us all year, and to just execute all the way through the lineup against their pitching, it’s really pleasing when it comes through.”
Tierney was particularly impressed by the performance of his pitcher, Wes De Jong.
“Our pitcher was just flawless for the day. He got hit a couple of times but then he just settled back into his work, didn’t get flustered and just really went about it,” he said.
Tierney also sang the praises of Jacob Evans, who he nominated as the player of the match.
Evans described the team’s performance as a complete victory, which involved every player in the side.
“I think the most pleasing part of the game was just the whole squad’s performance,” said Evans.
“We didn’t just rely on one individual performance, the whole way through the line-up everyone contributed to the result, which is really great to see.”
This week the Saints are back at home to face Heathmont, while North Balwyn are travelling east to face Forest Hill.
