Penola 139 d North 102
AN upset result saw the prestigious Mount Gambier and District Cricket Association Barber Shield return to the small country town of Penola on Sunday night after an impressive display of cricket at Frew Park.
Despite the status of “underdogs”, the Eagles outplayed reigning champions North Sportsman’s to break a 28-year drought with a 37-run victory.
It has taken almost three decades for Penola to again claim the prestigious shield.
The Eagles worked hard to reach 139 runs on day one, but skipper Jase Bateman admitted a sleepless night was had on Saturday, expecting a tough hit out with the Tigers on Sunday.
Jack Mullan was a well deserved recipient of the man-of-the-match award after impressive stints with both the bat and ball.
Mullan and Jack Schulz set the tone early on Saturday with a 49-run partnership.
Schulz contributed to the scoreboard with an eventual 43 runs, while Mullan finished with 19.
A solid score of 26 from George Kidman in the middle order and a credible performance by Michael Waters – which saw him finish on an unbeaten 30 – kept Penola’s chances at a Barber Shield grand final win alive.
Penola managed to bat just 64 overs, leaving 13 for North on day one.
The Eagles refused to lay down and an impressive throw from square leg from Curt Evans saw Matthew Robinson run out in the sixth over and Penola had the momentum.
North’s Michael Johnston batted out 54 overs, but contributed just 24 runs, while a trademark innings from Matthew McInerney saw him reach 41 runs in 10 overs.
However, his wicket was the end of the Tigers’ chances.
Conrad Slabber ripped through North’s bottom order batsmen – claiming 4/17 off seven overs – while Mullan chipped in with three and George Kidman two.
Kidman sealed the game after sending the Tigers’ skipper Tim Young back to the sidelines for one run.
North reached 102 runs before the Eagles’ claimed all 10 wickets, which handed Penola the 2017/18 Barber Shield victory.
Bateman said he was overwhelmed with the result, but had faith his side could get the job done.
“We were pretty confident as a side,” he said.
“We thought we had the ability to match North all over the park and we proved it (Sunday).
“We just backed our bowlers in, but unfortunately we did not make as many runs as we wanted.”
Bateman said while he believes the Eagles are strong with the bat, 139 runs was not where he had hoped to be on Saturday night.
“We have not performed as I would have hoped with the bat all year,” he said.
“But our bowling just showed again.”
While a team effort was needed to break North, Bateman commended Mullan on his work.
“To be honest all of the bowlers stood out, but Jack Mullan in particular,” he said.
“Jack has stood out for the whole finals series and he performed really well again over the weekend, so a big pat on the back to him.”
Bateman said he knew North had the depth through its batting line-up and said the players held their excitement until the final wicket was taken.
“North is a strong side and I do not think we would have felt confident until the end, when we had them all out,” he said.
It has been a long 28 years since Penola has taken home the Barber Shield and Bateman said he spoke for the entire club when he said it was a long time coming.
“It feels awesome to be a part of it,” he said.
“It has been a long time since Penola has won a Barber Shield grand final.
“We are all pumped about the end result.”
