Canowindra and Grenfell A will get the first chance to etch their names in the history books when they battle in the inaugural final of the Doug Wright Shield Twenty 20 competition on Saturday.
Canowindra advanced to the final with a victory over Carcoar in round two before clinching their spot with a solid win over Valleys last Saturday.
“It was a good comeback by the boys,” Canowindra captain, Nick Guthrie, said.
“It wasn’t our best fielding performance of the year and we gave them a few chances, but our batting was very good and we were right on top to get a pretty good win.
“I think we could have kept them to a few less than 90. We had a few dropped catches and a few misfields with chances that should have been taken, but overall it was a very good win.”
Canowindra had the better of the conditions with overnight rain making for a sticky pitch and Guthrie was happy at the way his batters adapted.
“It was a little bit better to bowl first after rain the night before,” Guthrie said.
“There was a little bit in the deck and not too easy to bat on to start with. There was still a bit in it when we batted and our boys played it well. It was a pretty slow outfield and we were forced to run them out or go over the top.”
A fine effort with the bat from opener Jacob Devlin (43) brought praise from his captain.
“Jacob is batting really well and the shorter form of the game probably suits him. He likes to bat quickly - he has been batting pretty well all season and it is starting to pay off for him.”
Grenfell A’s spot in the final was secured in a different fashion in their semi final against Morongla A.
After a strong start by openers Terry Knight and Alec McSpadden, which saw them 0-40 off six overs, a storm forced the game to be abandoned.
As a result, Grenfell A progressed as they were the higher ranked team.
While conceding that it was not the ideal way to go through to the final, Grenfell A captain, Phil Simpson, believes that they will not be disadvantaged by their lack of matches in the short form.
“It is a bit disappointing to go through like that and we would have preferred to get the game in but we’re looking forward to Saturday,” Simpson said.
“We got off to a good start and our openers, Terry and Alec, look to be coming in to some form and hopefully they can carry that into next week as well.
“It would have been good to have a bit more Twenty 20, [one bye and a win over Lachlan Hotel], but I don’t think that it will worry us too much. We’ve all been playing plenty of cricket and I think we’ll be fine come the weekend.”
The ledger stands at one game a piece this season for the combatants on Saturday in the regular 40 over fixtures, but Simpson seems quietly confident given the recent performance of his side.
“They’re a good team and have a good bowling attack and plenty of batsmen in their lineup who can score runs. So, it shapes as a good game.
“We have a strong batting lineup ourselves. We have been doing quite well lately and Alec McSpadden coming back into the side has been a positive, especially as he has been finding some good form. We’re pretty happy with how things are going in the season.
“Our bowling is going really well at the moment. Our opening combination of Carl Brus and Ben Mitton have formed a great partnership of late.”
Unfortunately for Grenfell, Brus was a part of the Grenfell B side for the Twenty 20 competition and will not take the field on Saturday.
The new competition received the tick of approval from Guthrie.
“The T20 concept has been really good’” he said.
“It’s been something different and I know all the boys in our team have enjoyed it and it’s been a lot of fun, so I think it is a good idea.”
The finals of the Doug Wright Shield begin at Holman Oval, Cowra, with the consolation final at 1pm between Bowling Club and Morongla B.
Grenfell A and Canowindra’s clash will start at 3.45pm.
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