MILDURA Settlers continued their domination of the Sunraysia Cricket Association competition with their third First Division premiership in as many years Saturday.
Coomealla Wentworth, who came from nowhere to reach their first First Division final in 14 seasons, were no match for the consistency and depth of the Setts outfit, who claimed this season’s one-day format flag by winning the first two of the three-game decider.
It was the usual suspects who shone through when needed for Settlers with Jason Morrison (66), Braidyn Turner (42 not out) and Luke Stanbrook (29 not out) helping their side surpass the combine’s 9-147 with eight wickets and 12 overs to spare.
Morrison and Turner added a quickfire 76 for the second wicket before Stanbrook bludgeoned 29 off 18 balls to bring a premature end to the contest.
But it was the unheralded Mark “Cabbage” Kerr who set up the win from the outset and, while wicketless, sent down eight miserly overs for just seven runs to keep the Coomealla Wentworth top order in check.
His opening spell included five maidens with his impressive finals campaign across three games conceding just 30 runs from 24 overs as well as three wickets and 11 maidens.
That early pressure on the combine batsmen saw the side slump to 4-42 before Bevan Wade recorded his second highest score of the season to add some respectability to the scoreboard with 62 from 47 balls, including four towering sixes.
But Wade’s defiant innings was too little, too late as Settlers made light work of the target to secure their eighth First Division title in 11 seasons to be the most dominant club of the modern era.
The win was Setts’ second hat-trick of First Division premierships in seven seasons and the only club to have achieved that feat since Mildura East won three on the trot from 1999-20 to 2001-02.
Settlers captain Braidyn Turner, who averaged almost 33 with the bat and 17.4 with the ball this season, yesterday said Saturday’s deciding game had panned out just as he had hoped.
“We had a game plan that we stuck to and it just happened to come off,” Turner said.
“It worked last week opening up with ‘Cabbage’ (Kerr) and Jason (Morrison) so we thought that we’d go with the same idea again and it paid dividends again,” he said.
Turner said the side’s finals experience in recent years had also played a part in the victory as well as a togetherness around the club.
“The experience really helps at the end,” he said.
“It’s been a wonderful team to skipper – I told them before yesterday that I’ve probably enjoyed this year the most.
“It’s just the mixture of old and young that somehow we clicked well, there’s no animosity against one another, we’re all best mates and everyone plays their role.” – it’s just been the most enjoyable year, I’ve enjoyed my Saturdays so much in the 24 games that we’ve played together.
“Everyone has always been on the same page and we just all get along so well.”
Turner said the side would now focus on a fourth successive premiership – something that has not been achieved since Wentworth Services did it from 1979-80 to 1982-83.
“We’ll come in next season with hopefully the same team and four premierships in a row will be our goal, 100 per cent,” he said.
