IRYMPLE and Mildura East are both chasing history in this weekend’s Sunraysia Cricket Association grand final at Henshilwood Oval.
The Swallows are looking to make up for last year and claim just their third First Division premiership following successes in 1998/99 and 2017/18, while East are back in the big dance for the first time since their last triumph in 2013/14.
In a hopeful omen for the visitors, they also won premierships in 2003/04 and 1993/94.
Irymple captain Mark Thomson, one of five players still in the team who held the AS Hopkins Shield aloft six years ago, said his squad is keen to go one step further than last year’s grand final loss to Gol Gol.
“It’s a slightly different team to last year but the majority is the same and everyone is happy to be back there again,” he said.
“Haven’t really touched on it (last year) very much, finals come around pretty quickly and before you know it, you either win or lose a semi final we were lucky enough to get the win.
“We’re obviously keen to play a home grand final, honestly it wasn’t something that had really crossed my mind until Sunday afternoon.
“It’s good depth batting-wise, we’ve guys contribute right down to number eight when required and bowling-wise, we’ve got probably five or six as good as frontline bowlers as you can get and everyone contributes at different times.
“Everyone bowls slightly different and bring different skills to the table, new ball, old ball, spinners… just trying to get something different out of the wicket for everyone.”
Coach Josh Berry, who was a 20-year-old in the last East premiership side, said the excitement has built around the club after their upset semi-final victory over Gol Gol by just two wickets.
The coach said the building blocks for the side had been put in place in recent years after finishing in the bottom two for the previous four seasons.
“That’s the main feel from the club, it’s nice to be back again competing in grand finals,” Berry said.
“There’s a lot of excitement around the club, the finish to Sunday’s game was pretty spectacular, obviously it was a tight tussle for two days … there were a lot of supporters there and it was a pretty special moment for the cricket club.
“We dropped out of finals probably five years (ago) and we really had to rebuild from the bottom and that’s been a slow burn.
“Some things have been putting in place, obviously the move out to Mildura Sporting Precinct kept the excitement level high and now to add a first division grand final to that is exciting times.”
Berry said his side will need to perform at their best against a consistently strong Irymple outfit to claim the premiership.
“They’ve been an incredible side and an incredible club, they’ve won multiple club championships in the last five or six years and they’re a really well-run organisation,” he said.
“They’ve got arguably three players in the best 15 in the competition in Mark Thomson, Bryson Lush and Billy Phelan, on their day, they’re very dangerous and players we’ll need to keep in check.”
The grand final begins Saturday at Henshilwood Oval from 1pm.
SCA grand finals
First Division: Irymple v Mildura East at Henshilwood Oval
Second Division: Gol Gol v Merbein at Alcheringa Oval
Third Division: Irymple v Gol Gol at Mildura Senior College Oval 1
Fourth Division: Irymple v Mildura West at Mildura Senior College Oval 2
