A dominant bowling display has led Dapto to the Illawarra Twenty20 title with the team defeating Balgownie in Sunday’s final.
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Bowling first, the Canaries restricted Balgownie to 101 and it quickly became clear the total would not be enough to deliver Bally back to back titles.
The Dapto opening pairing of Justin Faughlin and Jye Phillips blasted their way to 0/50 off six overs to set the tone for what was to be a fairly comfortable chase.
The run chase faltered somewhat when Jamie Fleming had Faughlin stumped for 32 in the seventh over and Phillips was run out just two balls later for 22.
Fleming then ensured his side would not go down without a fight, picking up his second wicket and reducing Dapto to 3/58 in the ninth over.
However, Harry Magennis and Ben Chapman combined to settle the ship and, a late Magennis wicket aside, it was smooth sailing from there as the Canaries reached the total four wickets down in the 16th over.
The victory was set up by an impressive Dapto bowling display, led by man of the match Shannon Bonnie.
The Canaries were able to take wickets at regular interviews and ensure Balgownie boundaries were few and far between.
Earlier in the day, Balgownie’s Adam Berwick backed up his unbeaten 150 on Saturday with a pivotal 45 off 38 balls in the Magpies’ semi-final against University.
Jason Bunyan (24) and Kody Freeman (19) provided key late inning runs, to ensure Balgownie reached 7/166 at the close of their 20 overs.
University fought hard in response, with Ben Page (35) and James Chappell (46) providing key runs early in the innings. However, Balgownie were able to claim regular wickets and ultimately restricted Uni to 8/158.
Dean Watson was the pick of the bowlers, with figures of 3/19 off four overs, while Fleming finished with 3/41 off his four overs.
Helensburgh entered Sunday’s semi-final as hot favourites to claim the trophy. The Tigers moved through the regular season undefeated and finished on top of a tough pool. However, like last year, the side stumbled at the semi-final stage, falling to Dapto.
Batting first, the Tigers were never able to truly get their innings moving, with Dapto restricting the side to 5/131. The match hung in the balance midway through the run chase, with Dapto sitting at 1/61 after 11 overs. However, with wickets in hand, the batsmen were able to play with freedom and chase down the total in the 20th over to secure a seven-wicket victory.