Saturday Sundries gets by with a little help - which is more than some can say

This week’s edition is littered with bat-raising, though we also have to take a look at ... a fake hat-trick. What does such a thing even mean?

Brotherly love

Kicking us off is a story of sibling survival in a top-versus-bottom Clyde Young Shield encounter that threatened to go wrong for highly-fancied Kyabram.

After bowling wooden spooners Karramomus out for 131 on day one, both openers fell quickly and doubt started to creep in at 3-37.

The Redbacks' Young blood corrected course, though, with brothers Jack and Alec directing traffic for almost all of day two in what became a stroll.

The Young boys notched tons side-by-side despite 10 Karramomus players taking turns with the ball in a futile effort.

Jack took honours in the power division, finding the rope 15 times to Alec's 13, but Alec claimed the overall scoreboard bragging rights with his eventual 113 after Jack fell on 102.

Safe to say they were the main attractions, though, with stumps called the moment Alec became the third victim of Karramomus captain Luke Sibley, who could take some pride in removing both brothers.

Double Ds make the boys go ...

A quick game was on the cards early at Vibert Reserve in the SJ Perry Shield meeting between Karramomus and Pine Lodge, for which Megan Fisher put some snaps together.

Pine Lodge batted first and looked like wholeheartedly regretting it when its top half fell meekly, with the side left reeling at 5-54.

Up stepped Dayne Webber and Daniel Campbell to create a formidable — and near-identical — pair that ultimately steered Pine Lodge home.

Though the duo collected its runs in starkly different ways — Webber blasted 82 runs worth of boundaries, while Campbell embarked on more journeys between the wickets — the final product was remarkably similar.

Webber wound up with 104 off 72 balls, while Campbell finished the day with 103 off 72 in a monstrous unbeaten 214-run stand that ultimately beat the Bloods' reply of 9-203 by itself.

It proved pivotal beyond that fleeting moment as well, with Karramomus denied finals by its inability to overcome this dynamic duo.

Do you just give him the hat-trick?

No doubt this is what you came for, so let's explain the circumstances.

Northerners hosted Invergordon in a Jim McGregor Shield match-up that quickly morphed into The Tim Brett Show.

Stunningly enough, the unbeaten 50 (four fours, three sixes) Brett blitzed off 29 balls became something of an afterthought by day's end.

The action heated up when Brett took the ball for an opening spell.

Four overs into Brett's shift, he had two scalps on record, but his fifth over brought about something extraordinary.

Opening with a wide, Brett found his line and knocked over Brett Findlay with the next ball.

He followed up with another wide immediately before cleaning up the stumps of Dean Mangles and Zack-Harie Betson to complete ... a technical hat-trick, one might suppose.

After all, officially speaking, these deliveries came at overs 8.1, 8.2 and 8.3.

Sure enough, Brett ended this flamethrowing stretch with one more wide for good measure, leaving Invergordon all but buried at 6-15.

Some belated heroics from skipper Aaryn Cormican and Patrick Riordan — an opener who had just watched this madness unfold — could not undo the damage done by Brett's furious frenzy.

Sadly, it likely won't count as an official hat-trick, but an unbeaten half-century and figures of 5-20 should be more than enough consolation.

Hey guys ... a little help here?

You've read stories about sides starting poorly before finding solace through pairs of middle-order heroes — but unfortunately, when there's only one would-be saviour, you don't get as far.

This was the reality for Shepparton United in its crucial SJ Perry Shield game with Mooroopna, knowing only a victory kept any finals hopes alive.

The Cats sent United in and, quickly sitting pretty at 4-17, Tristan Zito became the visitor’s guiding light.

On he marched, steadily keeping pace with 16 fours, but unlike the reports you read before with double tons and massive partnerships, nobody joined Zito on his crusade.

In fact, when United ran out of time at 8-132, Zito (88 not out) was the only batter in double figures; there was simply no help to be found anywhere.

Unsurprisingly, Mooroopna chased the total down in 25 overs to emphatically shut the door on United's season.

On the plus side for Zito personally, it's a solid way to warm up for Tatura's cross-code derby, at least.