Sport
24 February, 2025
Rematch: St Andrews, Swifts/Great Western to meet in last GCA grand final
The Grampians Cricket Association's last grand final is March 1.
The stage is set for the Grampians Cricket Association's last grand final with the best two sides of the season poised to square off on Saturday, March 1.
Minor premiers St Andrews will take on defending champions Swifts/Great Western at Central Park after both sides won their semi-finals convincingly.
The one-day game will be the ultimate match of the GCA's nearly six-decade history following the league's announcement it would disband.
Kettle sizzles with century
The Saints defeated Halls Gap by 70 runs thanks to an 18-boundary 114 from Reece Kettle.
Playing at the Gordon Street Recreation Reserve, St Andrews won the toss; with an eye on the temperature gauge, skipper James Hosking elected to bat.
The Mountain Men would have been pleased, restricting the hosts to 4/53 after 21 overs, with Caleb Bretherton (2/13) dismissing both opening batsmen.
However, a 53-run partnership by Kettle and Hosking saw St Andrews pass 100.
Riley Thomas (3/14) finally dismissed Kettle, but only after he hit 14 fours and four sixes.
Needing 4.2 an over, Halls Gap started poorly, losing Charlie Mcintosh and then the GCA's leading run scorer Max McMahon to be 2/23.
Brady McMahon (18) provided some resistance before the visitors lost three wickets for no runs to be 6/50.
Adam McCormack (18) and Luke Stevens (17) put together Halls Gap's highest partnership of 20 before both men were sent back to the clubrooms.
Sam Summers dismissed the last two batsmen to bowl out the Mountain Men in the 34th over.
Summers was the pick of the bowlers with 4/27 off 4.4 overs, while Ned Bohner (2/6) and Caleb Summers (2/17) were vital in the win.
Brilliant hattrick as McPherson, Carter combine for victory
A bowling masterclass from Stewart MacPherson (3/14), Bradley Carter (3/25) and Marc Brilliant (3/17) steered Swifts/Great Western to a nine-wicket win against Pomonal.
With the temperature already at 31°C at 11am, Pomonal won the toss and elected to bat on a green pitch.
Tigers' opening pair Lynden Brewis (25) and Lane Jackson (10) crafted a 36-run stand; however, their dismissals triggered a collapse.
The Combine took five wickets for 10 runs, including a Brilliant hattrick; the evergreen seamer caught Matt Peel on the crease before bowling Cameron Holland and Adam Gellert.
Tyler Cronin (19) and Matt Dean (7) steadied the ship with a 19-run partnership, but nine overs later Pomonal was bowled out for just 77.
Will Clough (1/18 off eight overs) was the Combine's other wicket-taker in an inning that featured five ducks.
Swifts/Great Western only needed 16 overs to chase down the target, with Aiden Graveson (31* off 33) and Zach Marrow (37* off 34) doing the damage.
Cronin (1/38) was Pomonal's lone wicket-taker.
Silverware up for grabs
Fittingly the best two sides of the summer will contest the Association's last match at Central Park.
It will be a rematch of the previous grand final, which saw the Combine defeat the Saints by just 35 runs.
St Andrews go into the game as slight favourites, having defeated Swifts/Great Western in each of its three contests this season.
In a T20 contest, the minor premiers won the Henry Gunstone Cup by 40 runs, thanks to Ethan Summers' 4/0 effort with the ball.
The Saints defeated the Combine twice in one-day matches, both times chasing a total of about 150 runs.
Nevertheless, playing at home will give Swifts/Great Western an advantage.
Matt Heffer will look to make his name with either the bat (367 runs at 45.88) or the ball (18 wickets at 12.5).
Saints captain James Hosking (17 wickets at 8.88) will look to limit the Combine's batsmen.
Since the 2022/23 season, the team that lost each grand final has won the following one.