Lobethal and Nairne will square off at Lobethal Oval tomorrow in the Alexandra & Eastern Hills Cricket Association (AEHCA) Grand Final. Nairne will be looking for their 10th ‘A’ grade premiership in 13 seasons and their 15th overall since the AEHCA was formed in 1983/84. Lobethal are playing in their first AEHCA decider after joining the competition from the Torrens Valley Cricket Association in 2011/12, where they had won eight consecutive premierships. The two teams have clashed twice this season with Nairne winning in round nine by 36 runs and in round 18 by 71 runs to sneak into the top-four.

Last weekend Lobethal travelled to Langhorne Creek to face the minor premier in the Qualifying Final and came away with a comprehensive nine-wicket victory to qualify for tomorrow’s decider. Nairne had to win their last two minor round games just to make the finals and last weekend they defeated Hahndorf on Saturday and then Langhorne Creek on Sunday to make their first Grand Final since winning the flag in 2017/18. 

Lobethal has a very even side with their top three batsmen Ben Matthews (453 runs), Mitch Weeks (361) and Daniel Norsworthy (309) being very consistent this season. Matthews has been one of the best batsmen in the competition for the past five seasons, racking up 2,748 runs in ‘A’ grade competition at an average of 42.94. The Tigers bowling attack has plenty of depth and variation with Cam Winen (29 wickets), Weeks (24), Matt Martin (19), Will Zadow (17) and Dave Huxter (13) combining for 102 wickets this season. 

Nairne has four batsmen who have exceeded 250 runs in 2020/21 with Jarrad Tait leading the way with 352 runs at 29.33. He has been well supported by skipper Luke Timmins (326), Shane Kenney (289) and Mitch Hein (263). The Razorbacks also have great depth in bowling with left-arm ‘chinaman’ spinner Matt Hein winning the AEHCA bowling aggregate with 30 wickets in the minor round. Chad Harrop (23 wickets at 13.83) has had his best season as has teenager Brodie Clarke (21 wickets at 14.90). Add Mitch Hein (18 wickets) and Tait (12 wickets) and you can see how potent the Razorbacks attack is. 

“Obviously we're stoked to have made it to the Grand Final given we were only an outside chance to make finals after our round 16 loss to Wistow,” said Nairne skipper Luke Timmins. “Lobethal are a quality team, youthful and full of energy. Mitch Weeks, Ben Matthews & Matt Martin are serious talents and their depth is not to be underestimated. They are a team that has been around the mark since joining the AEHCA so to see them in a Grand Final is a worthy reward for their years of work. Our bowling group has excelled this year and have continued to improve throughout the season. Everyone in the team knows their role and is willing to sacrifice personal stats for the greater cause, something that is invaluable in finals. We have had success against Lobethal during the minor round this season but everyone knows that doesn't count for anything tomorrow. We are expecting a hard game of cricket but hell, we are looking forward to it!”

The game will be live streamed by our good friends at Murraylands Football and Netball sporting results from 12.30pm tomorrow. The game will be umpired by Graham Medlow and Michael Bohmer.