The Cambridge Cats played the perfect grand final on Saturday afternoon at Woodward Oval, thrashing the Parkes Colts by 123 runs as they won the 2020/21 Lachlan Premier Cricket competition.
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Led by skipper Zac Bayliss, the Cats were far too good for a disappointing Colts side, with the evergreen Anthony Heraghty named as the Man of the Match for his swashbuckling innings of 74.
After the match Bayliss admitted to being surprised at the ease with which his side was able to win when accepting the premiership trophy.
"Usually when we play you guys (Colts) we know we are really in for a tough day, so I'm really proud of my boys for coming away with the win," said Bayliss.
"There is still plenty of young guys coming through to be positive about, so you boys (Colts) should really hold your heads high."
Bayliss got his first win for the day when he was on the right side of the coin flip, and he elected to bat first and get runs on the board, with a very long and powerful batting line-up keen to set the tone for the game.
The opening few overs were a very tight tussle between the two sides, with a patient Harry Bayliss (27) and Anthony Riach (22) keen to see off the experienced Colts openers Andrew Britt (1/44) and Brent Tucker (1/26); knowing full well they could take advantage of the rest of the attack.
Tucker, steaming in on the long run, struck first, removing Riach with a perfectly aimed short ball, that saw a surprised Riach swat a ball straight up to square leg.
It was clear the incoming Mitch Cambourne (14) was in for a good time, not a long time, with the powerful top order batter keen to go after everything from ball one.
He only managed to get a couple of good shots away before spooning an easy catch to Ryan Dunford off the bowling of Britt.
Cambourne's departure brought Anthony Heraghty (74) to the crease, which turned the entire game.
Heraghty put on 53 for the second wicket with Bayliss, who had begun to grow in confidence, and the pair seemed to make runs rather effortlessly without taking too many risks.
Bayliss eventually went for an assured 27, before Cameron Rosser (1) produced a remarkable display of sportsmanship; walking despite being given not out caught behind off Colts skipper Israel Symington (3/41).
From there, lusty hitting from Heraghty and Zac Bayliss (42*) saw the Cats smash an impressive 71 runs in the final 10 overs, taking them to the very defendable total of 6/206 from their 40 overs.
In reply, the Colts never looked like winning, unfortunately for the side and the myriad of fans watching from the other side of the pickets.
The Cats bowling and fielding effort was very disciplined, putting all the pressure on the Colts batters - many of whom crumbled under the pressure.
Openers Shane Jones (2/25) and Clinton Hawke (2/14) led the way, barely straying in their long spells while a Harry Bayliss cameo net the spin bowler a double wicket maiden - a cherry on the top of a superb individual performance.
Ryan Dunford (27) was the lone contributor for the Colts, displaying maturity and tenacity beyond his years, with just two other batters reaching double figures as the side was eventually bowled out for 83.
Colts wicketkeeper Peter Yelland was pretty disappointed with performance of the side, but was happy to see the talented group of youngsters doing their best on the big stage.
"We were outplayed in all facets - they bowled far more consistently than we did, fielded excellently and obviously paced their batting innings out perfectly," said Yelland.
"Those kids are the future though - Ryan Dunford scored his highest score in A-grade, and on grand final day no less."
To the surprise of no one, Heraghty was awarded Man of the Match for his match winning innings of 73 - with both Bayliss boys likely to have featured in the voting.
Prior to presenting the premiership trophy, Greg Morrissey OAM, Secretary-Treasurer of the Lachlan Cricket Council awarded talented youngster Harry Bayliss the league's Best and Fairest award for his remarkably consistent season that belied his youthful age.
Cambridge Cats 6/206 (Anthony Heraghty 74, Zac Bayliss 42, Harry Bayliss 27; Israel Symington 3/41) defeated Parkes Colts 83 (Ryan Dunford 27; Harry Bayliss 2/0, Clinton Hawke 2/16, Shane Jones 2/25) by 123 runs.
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