Haisman Shield | Gallery | Dominant Katandra skittles hapless Karramomus

Travelling to a revamped Vibert Reserve, the Eagles flexed their muscles from the opening ball, firstly rolling the Bloods for 94 in a brutal bowling display.

They then continued on that same trajectory with the bat, blasting their way to the target in 20.4 overs for the loss of two wickets.

Katandra skipper Ben Clurey, who was one of his team’s standouts with an impressive 49 off 63 balls, said it was pleasing to head back north with a win on what was a tricky wicket.

“We got down to Karra and I was initially keen to have a bat, but with the rain from later in the week the track was pretty wet, so it was a pretty good toss to win and have a bowl,” Clurey said.

“The ball did plenty early in their innings and our bowlers were good enough to take advantage, especially the quicks.

“All day we were just aggressive in our approach and to come home with a win facing pretty trying pitch conditions it is always a good feeling.”

Keen to make early inroads against an inexperienced Bloods top order, Clurey threw the ball to the reliable pair of Corey Hickford and Raymond Ireland and got instant success.

Combining for the first four wickets, the duo had the Bloods in tatters at 4-19, which then set the stage for star all-rounder Hadleigh Sirett to take control.

Utilising his pace and bounce Sirett hit his spots to perfection, bowling six overs and taking 3-10 in a spell that made things go from bad to worse for the home side.

“The boys first up with the ball were phenomenal, the wicket was a bit up and down, so it was advantageous for the seamers, but they still had to put it in the right spots which they did,” Clurey said.

“Hadleigh was especially dangerous with his height, he put the ball in very uncomfortable areas for their batters and just showed how good of a cricketer he is.”

Sitting at a dismal 8-51, it appeared the Bloods were set for complete embarrassment as Zane Newbound joined Lachie Keady at the crease.

But with nothing to lose the pair played with freedom and put together a crucial 36-run stand to see their side to 94.

Well and truly in the driver’s seat at afternoon tea, Katandra’s in-form batting unit came to the crease keen to make another statement.

From ball one it was the skipper who led from the front, as he immediately put pressure on the Bloods’ bowlers and got his team off to the flyer it needed.

Finding the boundary on nine occasions, Clurey gave the Bloods a masterclass on how to play on the Vibert Reserve wicket, while opening partner James Dawson (18 not out) was resolute in defence to counteract the dominance of his captain.

Putting on a 78-run opening stand Clurey said the mindset with the bat was to take the game on.

“It (the pitch) dried out a bit for the second innings which worked in our favour, but I felt a lot of their wickets came from them being tentative, so we just went out there with an attacking mindset and fortunately it came off for us,” he said.

“Daws (James Dawson) was really good in anchoring the innings for us, his defence was superb and really took pressure off me.

“For me it was all about just backing myself and playing my shots, fortunately a few got over the top of the fielders and it was nice to get a bit of a score.”

The win cemented Katandra’s spot atop the A-grade ladder with three weeks left in the home and away season, while Karramomus remains chained to 12th spot.