Nagambie punched its ticket to the 2021-22 Haisman Shield finals series with a thrilling 11-run win over Katandra at Nagambie Recreation Reserve.
Needing a win to secure its spot in the top six, the Lakers were boosted by a balanced batting performance to get to 176, before Brock Boddington became chief destroyer with the ball, taking four wickets to see his side to victory.
It was Nagambie’s sixth win in seven starts since the Christmas break and captain Mark Nolan said he was proud of the way his team dug in and grinded out a vital win.
“It was a pretty good win in the end,” Nolan said.
“I thought we batted well and got to a reasonable total of around 180 but probably didn’t bowl as well as we could and it got pretty tight towards the finish there.
“To finish fourth from where we were at Christmas is really good. We have been on a good run and built a lot of momentum over these last few weeks and we can’t wait to get into the finals.”
Batting first on a sunny day at their lakeside fortress, Jonathan Moore picked up where he left off last week, smashing a quick-fire 29 off 20 balls to get the Lakers off to a fast start.
With a solid foundation built, Dale Short (36) and Luke Nolan (27) continued the momentum, before Mark strode out to the crease and made a quick 34 to really hammer home Nagambie’s advantage.
Seemingly destined for 200-plus, Corey Hickford (3-24) came to the rescue for the Eagles, taking two quick wickets to halt the Lakers’ momentum and they finished their 45 overs with 176 on the board.
With nothing but pride on the line for Katandra, it attacked the chase with freedom as captain Ben Clurey came in at number three and compiled a masterful 71 to help put his team in the box seat.
But while the skipper was striking them pure, his teammates did not find it as easy, with the in-form Nick Fothergill (2-36) and captain Nolan (3-25) making consistent breakthroughs to keep the pressure on the visitors.
As Clurey departed with 47 runs to get, the match was set for a grandstand finish when Boddington came into the attack and made his presence known.
Finishing with figures of 4-34, he ripped through the Eagles’ middle order in what ended up being a match-winning performance, with the Lakers getting home by 11 runs.
Nolan said his team could not be in better shape as focus now shifted to a crunch first final against Mooroopna next weekend.
“We have a lot of confidence. I think we are all hitting our straps at the right time of the year and starting to get a few runs rather than relying on the same people to do it every week, which is good heading into the finals,” he said.
“Now we come up against a good Mooroopna team who we had a good hit out with a couple of weeks ago, so it is very exciting and we cannot wait for the challenge.”
Nagambie’s B-grade campaign came to a close at the weekend when it fell to Katandra by six wickets on a tough day at Katandra Recreation Reserve.
Batting first, the Lakers struggled to get anything going with the willow, with extras top-scoring with 22.
Darby O’Brien battled hard at the top of the order, occupying the crease with a 68-ball 15 to try and take the pressure off his teammates.
But an inspired spell by Eagles spearhead Josh McKinnon left Nagambie in tatters, with its innings finishing on just 85 after 38.3 overs.
Wanting to finish its season on a high, Katandra attacked the run chase with a positive mindset from the outset.
McKinnon continued his dominant day with a vital 20 from the top of the order, before Clayton Simpson came in and finished the job, with his 33 not out seeing the Eagles to victory in 20 overs.
James Brook provided a bright spot for the Lakers, taking 3-27 from what was a gutsy spell of bowling from the opener.
In Whitelock Shield E-grade action, Nagambie youngster Flynn Bush made headlines in his side’s heartbreaking one-wicket loss to Waaia, taking 4-6 off five overs after coming up from the under-14s.
Batting first, the Lakers got off to a solid start courtesy of Brian Morris (33) and Angus Murray (33) as they looked to build a solid total.
But just as it looked like they were about to get away from the Bombers, Dylan Cornick (3-13) and David Booth (2-7) took control, ripping through the Nagambie middle order to restrict it to 136 from 36 overs.
With an enthralling chase of 137 set up, Waaia was coasting at the start as Booth (50) and Ben Daniel (48) seemingly had it on the road to a dominant victory.
Enter Bush.
Coming into the attack late in the piece, the youngster turned the game on its head in a five-over spell, taking four wickets and going for six runs to put his team back in the contest.
With the game on a knife’s edge, the experience of the Bombers’ tail won out in the end, as Ashley Dohnt came in at number seven and hit the winning runs.