They haven't played in the Grinsted Cup since 1936, but that mattered little to the Bogan Gate Rampant Rabbits, who smashed Parkes by seven wickets to claim the Grinsted Cup at Woodward Oval on Sunday afternoon.
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The Rabbits stunned Parkes when they reduced them to 7/37, with Parkes captain Myles Smith sitting back in the pavilion having scored a duck - and wondering what he had got himself in for after winning the toss and deciding to bat.
It was Craig O'Shannessy (2/19) and Phil Dunford (3/13) who got to work at one end for the Rabbits while Andrew Britt (3/31) kept things tights down the other end.
Anthony Riach (8), Smith (0) and Dan Wilson (4) were all sent packing by the 11th over, with Wilson's wicket particularly spectacular as O'Shannessy sent his middle stump cartwheeling backwards.
Perhaps the most exciting moments of the game came when young 15-year-old leg spinner Ryan Dunford came onto bowl, with his action and accuracy bearing a striking similarity to the world's best T20 bowler, Rashid Khan.
He had the batters in two minds as to whether go deep in the crease or come down the wicket, and in just his second over he bowled a brilliant double wicket maiden after removing Mitch Wright (0) and Ben Coultas (0).
Anthony Heraghty (20) was doing his best to wrest back the momentum with some lusty power hitting, but with the score sitting at 7/37 it was clear that Parkes needed a miracle.
Jock Yelland (17) and Blake Smith (16) grit their teeth and began to grind out a handy partnership of 27 but with Britt cleaning up the tail in a marathon 17.4 over spell, the Rabbits needed just 80 for the win.
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Right from the outset it was clear Bogan Gate were in no mood to mess around with the small total as Lachlan Britt (28) and Paul Dunford (14 ret. hurt) struck a flurry of boundaries.
When Dunford had to retire hurt after a nasty looking incident while running between the wicket, Vince Umbers (31*) picked up where Dunford had left off; smashing three sixes and two boundaries against the tired Parkes attack.
Blake Smith (3/21) was the only bowler to make any inroads; remarkably picking up up a hattrick despite the loss looking like a foregone conclusion.
Unfortunately for Smith and his side, it counted for little as the Rabbits steadied and eventually ran down the small total of 80 with seven wickets in hand.
It was a remarkable performance by a Bogan Gate side that was playing just their second game in 101 years of the Grinsted Cup.
Andrew Britt, who helped organise the side, was stoked with the performances of his teammates, but he reserved special praise for all the supporters that came to watch their win.
"We had a strong bowling and fielding performance which allowed our batsmen to play with freedom to chase down the total," said Britt.
"It was a great day for the Bogan Gate community; we had so many supporters from the region come and watch yesterday."
Parkes and District Cricket Association secretary Luke Nash in fact made the comment that the crowd at Woodward Oval was the biggest he had seen for many years - and that was in extreme heat conditions that saw the mercury hit 38.7 degrees according to the Bureau of Metereology's station at the Parkes Airport.
It really was a fantastic atmosphere at Woodward Oval both on and off the field, with both sides displaying genuine and warm camaraderie on the pitch while spectators avidly supported what was a very entertaining game of cricket.
Up next for the victorious Bogan Gate side is the chance to retain the Cup when they take on Grenfell at Woodward Oval on February 7 - coincidentally the side they beat in 1936 to claim the Cup for the very first time.
Unfortunately for the losing Parkes side, the loss brings a run of 13 straight Challenge wins in the Grinsted Cup to an end.
Usual captain Brent Tucker missing the match was a telling blow - he provides a steadying influence in the middle order but crucially his express pace would have hurried the Bogan Gate batters.
That being said, there was still plenty of talent and depth across a broad age spectrum in the side.
It all went quickly downhill after losing skipper Myles Smith for a duck - and given cricket is a sport often dictated by momentum, it was a critical moment they could never recover from.
Smith's brother Blake will no doubt be pleased with his hattrick, while Jock Yelland has continued to grow as a young batter throughout the 2020/21 season.
Harry Bayliss and his off spinners were also able to apply a bit of pressure - so there is certainly plenty to like about both sides when it comes to the future of the Grinsted Cup.
