Bruck captain Jordan Blades said Hanstead’s 45 was a sign of the batsman’s improvement.

“He was really strong out there on a tricky wicket to bat on,” Blades said.

“He’s really matured in the way he goes about it, and it was good to see him rewarded for that.”

Blades supplied a handy 38 in Bruck’s total of 171, while off-spinner Jeremy Wilson took advantage of the pitch to take 3-24 from his eight overs.

Hamish Busk had a brief but damaging spell, taking 3-10 from four overs.

None of the Greta batsmen were able to get free on the unpredictable pitch, with Matthew Gathercole’s 31 the only shining light in its 111.

Fourth-placed Bruck will face ladder-leader Yarrawonga-Mulwala next week.

“It’ll be a massive test for us, but we really need to perform well to be able to keep ourselves within reach of the finals,” Blades said.

City Colts had a thumping win over Myrtleford, which was set up by a century from in-form batsman Isaac Willett.

The Saints’ bowlers couldn’t contain Willett, who belted 14 fours on his way to 101, almost singlehandedly chasing down Myrtleford’s total of 140.

Colts captain Greg Daniels (3-29) tore through the Saints’ tail, while Jayden Vescio was excellent early on, taking 2-16.

The big win ensured the Colts remained just above Bruck on the ladder, and they’ll look to extend that gap against Wangaratta next weekend.

Yarrawonga-Mulwala was ruthless against the Magpies, losing just four wickets as it chased down a competitive total of 167.

Paul Marshall whacked eight fours on his way to 46, while Pat Martin topscored with 62 not out.

The Magpies looked like they were on their way to a huge upset after openers Rhett Mitchell and Bradley Melville put on a 123-run partnership, scoring 84 and 44 respectively.

But their wickets triggered a collapse for the Magpies, with just one other batsman scoring in double figures.

Rovers United was unable to fight through some extremely frugal bowling from Beechworth Wanderers, falling 63 runs short.

The Wanderers bowled nine maidens in their 40 overs to restrict the Rovers to just 123 in pursuit of their 8-186.

Jack Newton and Matt Hunt led the charge, taking 2-24 and 3-23 respectively.

The Wanderers, who have the bye next week, will need results to go their way to maintain second position, with City Colts just four points behind in third, and Bruck trailing by six.