Henry's breakout year capped with starring role: 'I'm loving it'

But even if he doesn't take to the field for one more day this season, the 20-year-old could consider it among the best of his life.

That was assured on Sunday, when he captained the Tamworth representative side to a win in the Connolly Cup final against Narrabri at No. 1 Oval. In doing so, Henry lead with more than just his words.

Under the pressure of his first year in charge of a rep team, he produced a sparkling 103 in the first innings.

"It was [special]. To get a hundred in a final is pretty good," Henry said.

Having walked in to bat with Tamworth wobbling at 4-39, Henry was confident - and for good reason.

The young man had scored 397 runs at a touch under 40 across all cricket this season prior to Sunday's knock. And he had a habit of producing vital innings right when his side needed them most.

"I do [enjoy batting under pressure]," Henry said.

"I'm not a bloke that hits the boundary regularly, but I just love batting. And the longer I bat, the easier it is."

Wickets fell regularly even after Henry's innings began, until he put on a stand of 46 with Conrad George (19) for the seventh wicket.

That was followed by another partnership with Chris Fox (8), this time worth 74, for the eighth wicket.

Shortly after Fox fell with the score at 8-184 in the 48^th over, Henry was the last man out on the final ball of the innings, having guided Tamworth to a total of 190.

"At the start of the game, I thought 200 was a good score," he said.

"But then about five overs in, I thought 150 would be enough. To get to 190 was a really good effort. It wasn't easy to bat out there, and Narrabri bowled really well."

Dylan Segundo did the bulk of the damage early for the visitors with 4-35, while Cooper Brayshaw (2-12) and captain Nathan Trindall (2-45) also chipped in.

But they couldn't nullify the impact of Henry's century. Although he characterised his innings as a matter of "just patience", Henry's first grade captain and Tamworth teammate, Tait Jordan, told the Leader that he is a "class player" with a "massive cricket IQ".

It also marked his first century in representative cricket, a milestone he narrowly missed out on in the January 14 clash against Moree when he was dismissed for 99.

"This definitely makes up for it," Henry said.

Despite a gritty effort in the second innings, Narrabri never looked likely to chase down the runs.

The scoring rate fell behind quickly, and only slowed further when rain began to fall late in the day. Brayshaw was the top scorer with 28, but nobody could muster a significant stand before they were all out for 117.

Michael Rixon's sharp offspin was the chief weapon for Tamworth, which snared 3-21, while George Wilson and Jordan also picked up a pair of wickets each.

"They're an easy group to captain," Henry said in tribute to his team, which went through the competition undefeated.

"We had plenty of blokes come in and out of the side due to availability and injuries, but every week it was easy to do. It's a good bunch of blokes."

While he shied away from taking too much credit for the team's performance, Henry was voted Players' Player for his century.

It was the cherry on top of a wonderful year for the young cricketer, whose explanation for his sterling form was a change in mindset.

"I'm very relaxed this year, I think," Henry said.

"There's not as much pressure, not as much rep stuff going on. I'm just playing cricket and loving it."