Ginninderra Cricket Club and Queanbeyan District Cricket Club are set to go head to head in the Men’s First Grade Greg Chappell Cricket Centre T20 Final this Sunday, February 8, under the lights at Manuka Oval in Canberra.
This highly anticipated clash marks a historic moment for Ginninderra, who will compete in the First Grade T20 final against Queanbeyan for the very first time. Both teams finished the regular season equal on points, setting the stage for a competitive and closely fought decider.
Ginninderra Captain Scott Murn says the occasion carries enormous significance for the club.
“(A) very big weekend for the club, Ginninderra is in its 50th year of being in the ACT Premier Cricket Competition. Up until this point we haven’t yet secured a white ball trophy, so it’s very much a goal of this group this year to break that drought and get our first one.”
Murn also reflected on the squad’s impressive consistency throughout the season.
“I think we have won 15 games already this season. I think it’s a fantastic result… regardless of who’s taking the field for us in first grade this year everyone has performed well, made an impact and contributed really well to the culture of the group, so we are quietly confident going into this weekend.”
He believes the team’s versatility has been key to their success.
“Our versatility has been the key to our success this year. We have had guys making an impact with bat and ball and in the field… we are hoping that this weekend we can really show off the depth that we have in our squad and it’s enough to get the job done.”
Queanbeyan Captain Mark Solway says his team is excited to be back on the big stage at Manuka Oval.
“It’s awesome, I suppose it’s something you aspire to be able to do at the start of each season… everyone sort-of pinches themselves I guess when you get to Manuka Oval and get to play a game under lights like that, so good to be back.”
Solway also praised Ginninderra’s rise this season.
“I suppose Ginninderra have probably been the benchmark this year… they’re a good side and should be a good game (on) Sunday night.”
Looking ahead to the final, Ginninderra will take into consideration the strength of their opponents.
“I think a little bit like us Queanbeyan has a really strong squad… they have definitely been the benchmark in this competition for a long time and they are a formidable side in white ball. We know that they bat down to eleven, they have 6 or 7 high quality bowlers, so we need to be on the whole game.”
Ginninderra will also be boosted by the return of Tom Hogan after arriving back in Australia from the U19 World cup
“Tom Hogan comes back into our team for the grand final… he is very excited to get back to Ginninderra and that was the first thing I got from him in a message was ‘Can’t wait to get stuck in for the Tigers’.”
T20 Finals Schedule – Manuka Oval
9.00am – TVCC vs GCC (4th Grade)
12.15pm – QBN vs WDCC (3rd Grade)
3.30pm – WDCC vs ECC (2nd Grade)
7.00pm – Queanbeyan vs Ginninderra (1st Grade)
*Times subject to change.
Be sure to head to Manuka Oval on Sunday to catch all the T20 finals action or stream it live on the Cricket ACT YouTube channel.