While it was not its most convincing effort, Waaia punched its ticket into the Cricket Shepparton Haisman Shield finals series with a nervous one-wicket win over Karramomus on Saturday.
On a day filled with drama at Vibert Reserve, the Bloods seemed destined to back up their win against Numurkah the previous week with another monumental upset, as a middle-order collapse had Waaia slump to a dismal 7-88 in pursuit of 132.
With their season well and truly on the line, Damian Atkins (17) and Jesse Trower (14 not out) pulled the Bombers out of trouble with a pivotal 19-run stand to set up a grandstand finish.
This is where the ever-reliable Trower finished the job, as with his side needing six runs from the final over with one wicket in the sheds, he deposited Sam Walton over the ropes to see the Bombers to victory with four balls remaining.
A result that pencilled in Waaia’s third straight finals appearance, captain Mitch Cleeland said it was a relief to come away with a result that he admitted his team may not have deserved.
“It was probably a bit too close for comfort in the end and, basically, we did not really deserve to win, but it is nice when you are on the winning side of close games like that,” Cleeland said.
“Being able to find a way to win when the chips are down is always a good trait to have, so, while we got out of jail free a bit there, it shows the character of the group we have to grind out a win like that.
“We’ve also got to give credit to Karramomus, they bowled and fielded exceptionally well and piled on pressure our guys weren’t able to handle, fortunately we just had a few guys that stuck it out at the end there for us.”
Heading into this round 14 clash the equation was simple for Waaia.
Win and you are in.
It did have an in-form Karramomus standing in its way, however, who after knocking off a desperate Numurkah were intent on playing spoiler again and finishing their season on a high.
Bowling first on a picture perfect day, the Bombers did extract life from the pitch early, as Cleeland (2-27), Trower (0-13) and Brayden Summerville (2-35) combined beautifully to have the hosts in a spot of bother at 5-69.
The spin of Jordan Cleeland then took over, as he terrorised the Karramomus batters with a brilliant nine-over spell of 2-22 that kept his team in the driver’s seat.
Karramomus did have one saving grace in the form of determined number four Cooper Delahey, who stood tall with others falling around him and anchored the effort with a patient unbeaten 49 to see his team to a competitive 8-130.
With a tricky chase separating the Bombers from the finals, top-order batters Brenton Low (26) and Brayden Carey (21) were quick to assert themselves and put their team in a fantastic spot at 1-52.
But from there, disaster struck.
Craig Dhosi and Zac Groombridge swung the momentum of the game with a devastating bowling partnership, combining for five key wickets as the Bombers slumped to 7-88.
Luckily for the boys in red and black, Trower was on their side, and as we have seen on so many occasions in the past three years he stood up and willed his team into the finals with those last over heroics.
“It’s been a bit of a long season to be honest,” Cleeland said reflecting on his team’s finals berth.
“Not having any home games is something we’ve found more and more difficult as the year has gone on, but to the boys’ credit they’ve just kept fighting which has been great to see.
“As a captain I am so proud to have seen the boys get this far and I can’t wait to see what we can do in the finals.”
THE GAME
Waaia 9-131 (Brenton Low 26, Brayden Carey 21, Craig Dhosi 3-13, Zac Groombridge 2-10) d Karramomus 8-130 (Cooper Delahey 49 not out, Jayden Dhosi 26, Jordan Cleeland 2-22, Mitch Cleeland 2-27)
STAR PLAYER
Cooper Delahey (Karramomus): Although the team was unable to come away with the win, the efforts of Delahey with the bat would have pleased all Karramomus followers on Saturday. With a consistent flow of wickets falling at the other end, Delahey stood firm and played with great patience and control, with his unbeaten 49 the only thing giving the Bloods a fighting chance.