Court House shock Mornington to book last grand final spot

That belief manifested itself into a performance which left most onlookers in awe as they upset the second-ranked team on the ladder and booked a spot in this weekend's grand final.

After winning the toss, Court House elected to bowl first at Kitchener Park, with a specific plan in mind.

They stacked the fielders square of the wicket and left gaps down the ground in an attempt to entice the batters to hit the ball straight.

"With the pop in the wicket, it was a very hard wicket to drive on," Court House batter Blake Small said.

Ryan Smith, who has been in excellent form this season, was the only Mornington batter to stay in the middle for any length of time.

His gritty 65, which came off 124 balls, was the crux of Mornington's total of 7-147.

"All credit to Ryan Smith, he batted sensationally," Small said.

"He didn't really give us many chances. He's probably one of the best batters I've seen around Gunnedah, that's for sure."

The only other Mornington batter to get a start was Rhyce Kliendienst (26), as Vincent Winsor (3-35) led the wicket-takers' column, while Oscar King, Braithen Winsor, and Jaycob Price all chipped in with one apiece.

On that Kitchener wicket, which produced some variable bounce and a little bit of assistance to both seamers and spinners, 147 was bound to be a tricky total.

But Small said the Court House batters were confident from the outset.

"I thought it was a good total to chase," he said.

"The deck was a little bit up and down, but I thought we had the batting to be able to do it. To lose those couple of wickets early hurt, but a couple of players dug in and performed the best they have all year."

A stunning opening spell from Kliendienst (5-15) reduced Court House to 6-47 at one stage, with a heavy defeat seemingly barreling their way.

However, Small himself (52 not out) and Price (46 from 32 balls with five sixes) turned the tables with a 68-run seventh-wicket stand.

"I wasn't expecting that sort of knock from Jaycob," Small said.

"He is a very aggressive batsman. He'll either go out and score runs or give away an early chance, but all credit goes to him ... the way Jaycob played pretty much changed my innings. Instead of me having to attack, I could noodle it around and look for singles and twos so he could attack."

After Price's dismissal, Pete McCormack resolutely played out 41 balls to allow Small to guide Court House home, which he did with three wickets remaining.

The win has secured Court House the second place in the grand final, against the dominant Albion outfit which has lost just once in 2021/22.

To give themselves the best chance of an upset premiership win, Small said, "the boys have to do their jobs, really".

"The opening bowlers to bowl to their fields, and we have to take all our chances. That's the one thing we haven't done well this year and it's cost us.

"We've got to take the chances that'll be there, and I definitely think we can give Albion a good run for their money."

Court House will face Albion for the Gunnedah District Cricket Association this Saturday, March 12, from 1pm at Kitchener Park.

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