They hadn't hit top gear all season but Lake Illawarra saved their best until last, trouncing The Rail in Saturday's grand final to continue their reign of South Coast Cricket supremacy.
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In a dominant display, the Lakers rolled their opponents for 112 at Croome Regional Sporting Complex, which they chased down inside 30 overs for the loss of just one wicket.
The win continues the side's incredible dominance of the South Coast first-grade competition's recent history, with the Lakers now winning seven of the last eight one-day grand finals - including the past six straight.
The Rail had been on the wrong end in several of those deciders, and it was Kerrod White who delivered the knockout blow on Saturday, blasting the ball through the point region to the boundary.
"We love this time of year, the whole club does. Everyone stands up and we can't get enough of it, really," Lakers captain Mark Ulcigrai told the Mercury.
"That's what you play for - you play for the trophy - and it's so good when it's in your hands."
The Rail skipper Brett Gilly won the toss and elected to bat first, but the hosts were under the pump from the outset as the defending premiers piled on the pressure.
The Razorbacks lost wickets at regular intervals, slumping to 7/58, but rallied late through Gilly (34) to take their total up to 112. The Lakers' attack shared the workload, with Ulcigrai taking 4/13 from seven overs and Cooper Hayes picking up 3/23 from his 10 overs, while three other bowlers collected a wicket apiece.
"It was absolutely sensational, mate. We bowled really well up top and Cooper - for his first finals since coming over from Albion Park - was outstanding. And then I took four-fer through the middle," Ulcigrai said.
"But there were some ordinary cricket shots from The Rail to be honest. The wicket was excellent, but some of their shot selection wasn't great."
White led the way in the Lakers' chase, scoring an unbeaten 79 from 87 deliveries - which included the winning runs. He shared a 108-run stand with fellow opener Max Henderson, who was bowled by Nathan Brown for 29, while Nathan Hore remained two not out.
"It was an excellent innings from Kerrod, he only gave one chance. It was really good, especially coming off 100 last week, and he probably got 100 a couple of weeks before that in the Twenty20," Ulcigrai said.
"His back end of the season was excellent, and shows what happens when you get to training a little bit and hit some balls."
Conversely, The Rail were left to rue another missed opportunity against the South Coast Cricket titans.
Captain Gilly was disappointed post-game, particularly lamenting an under-par batting performance.
"We just didn't bat well enough. We won the toss, on a very good batting wicket, but there were just too many poor shot selections from the batters - we didn't give ourselves a chance. It was a 250-run wicket, and to get bowled out for 110, there was no application with the bat, and that's where the game was lost," Gilly said.
"On that wicket, it was going to be tough to defend. Obviously if you get a couple of early wickets, you're well in the game, but everything needed to go right. I don't think we bowled terribly, they were 112 off 30 overs, so if we'd score 250, we were well and truly in the game.
"But it's just one of those things. I'm not sure if the occasion got to us, but we didn't apply ourselves. Out of the 10 wickets, I think nine were bad shots, and one was a good ball. That's just not good enough in a final."
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Joshua Bartlett
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
