It's the FINALS countdown!!!
Ash Cowan, during his 5-27 in the Third Grade Qualifying Final against Mosman, claimed his 100th wicket for the club. It was his fourth five-wicket return for the club. He becomes only the fourth player in the club’s history to score more than 5000 runs and take more than 100 wickets (after Greg Mail, Ian Moran and Mark Wilson).
Mark Faraday, in the Second Grade Qualifying Final against Penrith, took his aggregate of runs for the club in all grades to 6241. In the process he passed Darby Quoyle’s tally of 6236, so he is now the seventh-highest run-scorer in the club’s history (behind Greg Mail, Ian Moran, Adam Theobald, Ed Cowan, Simon Gray and Craig Tomko).
Jono Craig-Dobson staked a reasonable claim for player-of-the-match honours in Third Grade’s semi-final against Manly. His unbeaten 46 was his highest score in Thirds, and he followed with his best bowling figures in Thirds, 4-39.
In Fourth Grade, Hugh Kermond improved on his highest score in the grade twice in successive weeks, following his 51 against St George with 53 against Northern District in the semi-final. Saturday’s Grand Final against Penrith will be Hugh’s fourth Grand Final in only three seasons with the club: last season he played Grand Finals in both the Metropolitan Cup and the AW Green Shield, and in 2013-14, he played in the Metropolitan Cup Grand Final.