Country Thunder take down the Town Heat as NDCA’s Charity Cup match returns

Country Thunder were able to hold off a resurgent Town Heat to claim their fourth Narrabri District Cricket Association Charity Cup crown at Collins Park on Friday night.

In what was a brave performance after coming out to bat at number 11 with an arm injury suffered in the first innings, Cooper Brayshaw took Town from 9-74 to 9-124 with three deliveries remaining alongside Luke Meppem in their pursuit of 143 runs.

Three sixes would have forced a super over, and the addition of any no balls or wides could have gotten Town over the line, however Dylan Segundo delivered at the death for Country as he bowled a dot ball and then bowled Brayshaw out to secure an 18-run victory for the Thunder.

It was a sensational finish to the first Town v Country Charity Cup match held since December 2018, which raised valuable awareness and funds for the local Pink Up Namoi McGrath Foundation to help ensure breast care nurses are available to anyone who needs them.

Country Thunder batted first on the night after their skipper Jack Tate won the toss, and they made 7-142 from their 20 overs before they knocked over the Town Heat for 124 with a single delivery to spare.

The Town men entered the match looking to square up the head-to-head record at three apiece after winning the most recent two games in 2017 and 2018, and they got off to the perfect start as their skipper Nathan Trindall bowled his RSL clubmate Shane Murphy for a third-ball duck in the first over.

However, the rest of Country’s top order fired as Josh Schwager (28), Josh Trindall (35), Matt Bradshaw (22) and Cody Kember (36) all made valuable contributions.

Kember entered at number five and blasted a game-high score of 36 runs off just 18 deliveries as he struck at 200. His entertaining innings included two fours and three sixes, and his teammates also wowed the crowd as Schwager, Trindall, Bradshaw and Dylan Smith found the boundary 10 times between them.

Nathan Trindall (2-18 from three overs) and Jake Brayshaw (2-28 from three overs) were Town’s best with the ball, and Will Ford (1-16 from four overs) was their most economical at four an over.

Tate and Segundo entered the T20 clash as the two most dominant bowlers so far in this season’s NDCA first grade 40-over competition, and they delivered for the Thunder as they opened the bowling and ripped through the Heat top order. Tate knocked over Town openers Nick Tomlinson (1) in the first over and Jakeb Nipperess (3) in the fifth over, either side of Segundo’s wicket in the fourth over that dismissed Lachlan Woolford (2).

Those wickets made the score 3-9, which then became 4-13 in the sixth over when Zaac Brayshaw (1) was run out by Dylan Smith.

Lachlan Cameron (17), Ford (14) and Jake Brayshaw (20) then helped Town march towards the required total, but they found themselves at 9-74 with one ball to go in the 15th over as Cooper Brayshaw and Luke  Meppem met at the crease for the final partnership of the match. They struck at more than 10 an over as they combined for 50 runs to give their side a shot at winning with three deliveries remaining, but they ultimately fell 19 runs short as Segundo got the job done for the Thunder in the final over.

Tate (3-12 from four overs) was the most dominant bowler of the game once again and also chipped in with a runout, while Segundo (2-23 from 3.5 overs), Zack Doring (2-26 from four overs), Kember (1-18 from three overs) and Smith (0-19 from three overs and a run out) combined for the other seven.