West Tamworth captain Shaun Stevenson has described as "devastating" and "shattering" having the grand final against Old Boys called off, before a ball was bowled, due to wet weather.
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![FAMILIAR FEEL: Old Boys have won back the premiership one year after Souths snapped their four-season tile run. FAMILIAR FEEL: Old Boys have won back the premiership one year after Souths snapped their four-season tile run.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/KUhQizDbwW8WqAyPP4x5yp/4d11eba5-09b2-4b41-9121-e4004309088b.jpg/r0_8_645_624_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
As minor premiers, Old Boys claimed the premiership - winning back the title they lost to South Tamworth last year after four straight grand final triumphs.
The heavy downpour on Saturday morning meant that umpires deemed No.1 Oval unsafe to play on, with the verdict announced at about 12.15pm on Sunday. The two-day match was due to start on Saturday.
Stevenson thought the match could have gone ahead. He said both sides had "played in a lot worse conditions".
"I feel like we could have got on ... but obviously the umpires are concerned about player safety - and at the end of the day, you have to go with that," he said.
He added: "Just shattered ... to get so close and just to have it taken from you like that ... excuse the language, but it's just sh** ... It's a rubbish feeling.
"But I'm massively proud of the boys: from last at Christmas to making the grand final. And like, we would have given it a fair shake, you know - I was backing us all the way."
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It had been hoped that play could start at noon on Sunday, with the team batting first given their regular 90-over maximum.
Old Boys won the Twenty20 final against Bective East this season when the match was abandoned following a sickening player collision involving two Bulls. Again, Old Boys claimed the title after topping the table.
Prior to that, the one-day final between Souths and City United was washed out.
Old Boys captain Ben Middlebrook, Tamworth cricket's president, cannot recall another season when all three finals were abandoned.
Middlebrook said winning the grand final in such a manner was "a bit hollow". However, he respected the umpires' decision and pointed to Old Boys claiming the minor premiership by more than 35 points as a sign of their dominance.
He said if the match went ahead and someone was injured because of the surface, "all hell breaks loose". "There is a duty of care, and the umpires did that," he said.
"At the end of the day, it's [the feeling] a bit hollow," he added, "but we've been the best team all year."