NDCA’s MA Connolly Cup side crashes out following Collins Park thriller

The Narrabri District Cricket Association’s representative second XI entered its final MA Connolly Cup regular season match on Sunday well aware that it could bow out of the competition, despite entering the round five game at the top of the table.

The Pink Slugs entered the match on 14 points, one ahead of its opponent Gunnedah and also second-placed Moree which were both on 13 points before Sunday.

Moree took on the winless Peel Valley and scored a convincing nine-wicket win while the NDCA side’s match was still being played.

That meant that the Pink Slugs definitely needed to win to qualify for the finals series.

However, in a nerve wracking finish the hosts were defeated at Collins Park by two wickets.

Narrabri lost the toss and was sent into bat.

The hosts reached 175 runs before losing their final wicket in the 49th over. The innings was inspired by captain Ty Baker who scored a team-best 53 from 101 deliveries.

Josh Trindall (21), Hamish Duncan (12), Matt Conroy (12), Jarrett Tough (11) and Kaleb Mowle (11) also reached double figures.

In reply Gunnedah reached the required total in the 43rd over after losing eight wickets.

Dylan Smith was the NDCA side’s best with the ball, finishing with 3-35 from 10 overs.

He took two early wickets to dismiss both Gunnedah openers to make the score 2-20 after 10.2 overs.

However, Gunnedah’s Adam McGuirk (75) and Oscar King (50) combined for a 121-run third-wicket partnership which put the visitors in the driver’s seat.

Smith finally broke that partnership in the 30th over, dismissing King to make the score 3-131 after 29.5 overs.

The hosts took two more wickets, the second of which saw McGuirk dismissed for a game-best score which made the score 5-161 after 35 overs.

At that stage Gunnedah required 15 more runs to win, while the NDCA men needed five wickets.

Gunnedah looked home and hosed in the 40th over when the score was 5-172.

However two wickets to Baker and another to Trindall made the score 8-172 in the 42nd over and meant that the hosts needed just two wickets to win. But the

NDCA men were unable to find those winning wickets, with the visitors holding on in a nailbiting finish to win by two wickets.

The round five results meant that Moree finished first on the MA Connolly Cup’s Western Conference ladder with 19 points, edging out Gunnedah on net run rate.

Narrabri finished four points behind those two teams with 15 points in third.

The semi-finals will be played this Sunday.

Moree will host the Eastern Conference’s second-placed side Tamworth Blue, while Gunnedah will travel to take on the Eastern Conference’s top-ranked team Gwydir.