There wasn’t a spare seat in the house as around 8000 supporters cheered on the Bombers and the Aussies in perfect cricket conditions.
Australia, led by Adam Gilchrist, boasted test players Justin Langer, Damien Martyn, Jason Gillespie, Darren Lehmann and Shane Warne.
The Bombers were represented by skipper James Hird, Matthew Lloyd, Adam McPhee, Damian Cupido, Brent Stanton and Damien Peverill.
Hird looked the part at the toss of the coin as he donned an Essendon blazer and skullcap but it was to no avail as Gilchrist won the toss and sent the Bombers in.
The crowd roared as Justin Langer steamed in off the long run to deliver the first ball to Stanton who missed a juicy full toss and was bowled. Under match conditions Stanton was not out because Essendon players would not be given out first ball.
Other modified rules included three runs being taken off for each wicket; each pair batting for two overs while each bowler had one over each; Essendon fielders could catch the Australian’s out one-hand-one-bounce and each time the Aussies hit the ball they had to run.
Damian Cupido starred with the bat, show-casing some of the form that saw him represent the state at Under-17 level. He launched a ball deep into the Alan Hird Stand off the third ball of Jason Gillespie’s over and repeated the effort over the sightscreen off the last delivery of the pair’s innings.
Cupido scored 23 from eight deliveries to kick-start the Bomber innings. Lloyd and Peverill were the second pair for the Bombers and struggled against the might of the Aussie attack. The both managed seven runs each against Gilchrist and Lehman.
The final pair saw a clash between the two blonde bombshells, James Hird and Shane Warne. Warne drew first blood after Hird charged and missed the champion leg-spinner and was stumped without scoring.
Adam McPhee and Hird lifted the score to 64 off the allotted six overs, a target that would prove too much for the Aussie batsmen.
The Bombers took the field and immediately placed pressure on Justin Langer by placing an attacking field that consisted of three slips and a wicket keeper only to the medium pace of Brent Stanton.
The field quickly dispersed as both Langer and Martyn looked to free their arms and score some quick runs.
It wasn’t to be as Cupido twice claimed the wicket of Langer in the second over to leave the Aussies reeling with only one run.
The Essendon’s game plan came into play as every player on the Bomber’s list came out from the sidelines and fielded for an over. There weren't too many gaps in the field with 35 players in the field and the Aussies struggled.
Gilchrist and Lehman tried to revive the run-chase but a steady flow of wickets (which resulted in lots of deducted runs) meant the Aussie’s needed an unlikely 63 runs off just four overs.
Despite the efforts of Jason Gillespie and Shane Warne at the end it was too much. Even umpires John Buchanan (Australian coach) and Joe Misiti could not call enough wides and no balls to even up the contest.
It came down to four runs off the last ball with Gillespie facing McPhee. The Aussie quick could not come up with the shot to win the match and the resultant two runs saw the Bombers home by just one run.
While Damian Cupido starred for the Bombers, he was outdone by team mate Matthew Lloyd who took one of the great outfield catches when he ran and dived to his right and came up with the ball much to the delight of the pro-Essendon crowd.
The day was organised in conjunction with the major sponsor of both teams - 3 mobile - and proved to be a huge success. Let’s hope that the surprise Australian loss today does not have an effect on their form for the remainder of the summer.
