The Kyabram Fire Brigade batting genius again showed the way for Hurley Hotel Hounds, batting more cautiously than usual, but getting the job done again in the final against the Jarvis Delahey Crushers at Shepparton’s Deakin Reserve.
Newman made an unbeaten 42 and with West Coburg recruit Jack Potticary, who finished with unbeaten on 31, guided the Hounds to a seven-wicket win.
The victory, the Hounds’ first in the three-season deciders they have competed in, didn’t come without a few anxious moments.
But in the end it was comprehensive.
Chasing Crushers’ lowly score of 83, Hounds lost three wickets — for only one run early in their run chase. One of these victims was key batting hope Kyle Mueller who had a rare failure.
But without any batting fireworks Newman and Potticary carefully picked off the remainder of the runs needed for victory with 21 balls to spare.
Newman, who hit six boundaries in a game that failed to produce one six, took his run tally in four hits in the competition to 246 and remaining unbeaten in three of these knocks finished with that stunning average.
He also collected the Player of the Match and Player of the Series with his batting heroics over the four games.
After winning the toss and batting Crushers were under the pump from the start with Carlton quick Cam Stevenson again striking in the first over.
And once the second-wicket stand of 34 by Henry Cullen (30) and Jake Klemm (19) was broken by Michael Archer, Crushers wickets fell regularly.
Archer, a former Tatura player now with Premier League club Greenvale, picked up 4/9 in four overs in a destructive spell, which Crushers never recovered from.
Bowling spearhead Stevenson finished with 2/9 and his opening bowling partner, Katandra’s Corey Hickford 1/21 while other spin bowlers in Kyabram‘s Darin Ohlsen and Katandra’s Jedd Wright each picked up a scalp to keep continuous pressure on the Crushers batsmen.
One man overjoyed with the win was Hounds franchise owner Brenton Sheppard, the Kyabram publican who has done the hard yards assembling a team to get the job done.
Sheppard said it was pretty satisfying when you put a lot into something and you got the result you were seeking.
‘‘They are a pretty close lot who get on well together and work as a team and that’s all you can ask for,“ Sheppard said.
‘‘You get to meet a lot of new people in this competition and makes some lasting friendships so its pretty rewarding.’’
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