In round one of higher-grade, Old Students had an electric one-run win over Pine Lodge, meaning Students will now play Haisman Shield ladder-leader Waaia in a David and Goliath battle.
Students currently sit second-last on the shield ladder with two wins, but the away side will be buoyed by the recent performance of star batter Felix Odell, who struck a commanding 95 not out in Students’ last higher-grade match.
Meanwhile, Waaia will head into the match full of confidence after it defeated Northerners by 30 runs in its round one match.
The Bombers have been nearly unstoppable this season, having only lost one match in Haisman Shield, going down to Mooroopna by 12 runs in round eight.
In the other higher-grade match on Thursday, Mooroopna will host Numurkah in what promises to be an enthralling match.
Numurkah was able to scrape a round one win over Katandra (which sits second on the Haisman Shield ladder) by one run thanks to the bowling efforts of Riley Dawson (1-11 from four overs) and Ben Beaumont (2-18).
Meanwhile, Mooroopna had a relatively straightforward victory over Tatura in its round one match, defeating it by seven wickets.
Batter Matt Price will be one to watch in the final as he sits top of Mooroopna’s runs in the Haisman Shield this season with 232, averaging 29.
The winners of these two higher-grade matches will face Central Park-St Brendan’s and Kyabram in the second week of finals on February 8, before the T20 tournament culminates in a grand final on February 22.
In the lower-grade finals this week, Karramomus will host Invergordon at Vibert Reserve, while Old Students will host Katandra at Kialla Park Reserve.
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