A BRILLIANT fightback by the Woorinen tail wasn’t enough to overcome Wandella as the Bombers won their fifth match in a row – by the barest margin.
It was a heartbreaking one-run loss for the Tigers, who needed to win to play in the finals.
Darren Rushton, who came in at No.9, was nearly the hero, hitting a superb 61 not out, but the Bombers held firm to ensure a home final.
Woorinen were left ruing their top-order collapse.
The Bombers reached the preliminary final stage last season, but their form and the weekend’s close victory helped them into the finals in much better shape than 12 months ago, according to captain Gregory Dickson.
“Everyone’s on the same page, and we have the confidence we can get ourselves out of a tight spot – whatever position we’re in, we believe we can still find a way to get to job done,” he said.
Dickson said securing a home final only two seasons after joining the SHDCA was a huge moment for the club.
“It’s massive to have it in Kerang – especially only being our second year in the competition.
“It’s big for our supporters, who’ll enjoy being a part of it – we should get a good crowd on Saturday.”
The job of defending 168 was made tougher by the exclusion of opening bowler Ryan Barnes for the match.
Ethan McKnight grabbed his opportunity with the new ball, taking four wickets.
Dickson lauded McKnight and brother Bohden, who took the crucial ninth wicket with only five runs left.
“The two McKnights have had great years,” he said. “Ethan has had a breakout season – and they’re both bowling with a bit of pace that’s troubling people.”
Earlier on, the Tigers put the clamps on the Bombers, restricting them to a run rate of 3.36 an over.
Without the late-order hitting of Daniel Higgs (37 not out), the game could have turned out very differently.
Higgs’ innings changed the momentum and gave his bowlers enough runs to defend.
“We were only about 84 at the final drinks break, and that last partnership between Daniel and Kyle (Hodges) gave us the hope we could still win the game,” Dickson said.
The Bombers will face Nyah District in the preliminary final on Saturday.
With the loss, the Tigers gave up fourth spot to RSL.
St Mary’s Tyntynder v Ultima TUF
ULTIMA TUF’s final-round collapse within striking distance of a finals spot might have been the storyline on most days, but there was little they could do against Saints skipper Nathaniel Holmes-Brown, who had a career-best day.
The Saints captain took 7-18 from 13 overs to lock in top spot in the SHDCA’s 2022-23 bowling averages over Nyah District’s Joel Walsh, finishing with 5.94 in the A Grade competition.
It was a near-perfect performance from the Saints, who sent a statement to other finals sides that they are still the team to beat.
Corey Daniels is in ominous form, making 72 and picking up two wickets.
As has been the case the whole season, the Saints have 11 contributors with the bat, and this week it was the turn of Jack Shannahan (65).
The Saints will head into the semi-final against RSL as the warmest of favourites.
Nyah District v Swan Hill
NYAH District romped home against Swan Hill in a nice warm-up for finals.
The Bombers will be cursing the Swans for playing Charlie Boulton (91) and Joel Walsh (85) into even better form.
Opening bowler Callan Noonan (2-47 off 18 overs) was the pick of a bowling line-up that otherwise got smashed.
The Swans were never going to chase down 264 and looked like they would fall meekly when their top-order failed, but some lower-order runs from Sean Noonan (33) added respectability to an otherwise dismal end to the season.
The Demons head down to play Wandella in a blockbuster semi-final this weekend.
