Mount Beauty has stolen a stunning finals berth, surviving one of the biggest collapses in association history, losing 5-0 in seven balls, which included a hat-trick.
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The Power was 4-160 after Baranduda posted 161.
But the visitors lost captain Al Randell (15), Anthony Brewergray (0), Ben Slocombe (0), Ashan Ranaweera (105) and Aidan Grace (0) with the score still on 160.
Number seven batsman Luke Vickers still hadn’t scored when joined by Chris Derrick for the final over.
Vickers didn’t score off the first ball, but then hit Aidan Ryan back over his head for the winning two runs.
Captain Randell was quizzed if he’s played in a more bizarre game.
“I don’t think so, not with a finish like that,” he said.
He was then asked if panic went through the team.
“There wasn’t too much time to be panicking,” he said in reference to the scramble for pads as the wickets tumbled.
Rohan Pearce snared Slocombe, Ranaweera and Grace in successive balls.
The Power players couldn’t race on the field after the winning runs as the scorers wanted to confirm the win, with Vickers then hitting two boundaries.
Interestingly, Randell said he played in a final against Belvoir where the team was 5-0.
Baranduda was the gut-wrenching story of the final round, starting in fourth and missing finals.
Meanwhile, Corowa also jumped three spots, but in the other direction.
A newcomer to CAW after years in Wangaratta and District, Corowa posted an outright win over Howlong, which resumed on 2-24, chasing Corowa’s 8-278.
Three players grabbed three scalps as Howlong was skittled for 127 from 42.2 overs, with opener Tim Seymour offering the greatest resistance of 51.
Howlong was forced to follow on and Mark Athanitis destroyed it with 6-27 in the total of 134.
Elsewhere, another first-time district team is finals bound.
Lavington toppled Yackandandah with just an over to spare.
The Panthers resumed on 4-100, with captain Mick Galvin constructing his highest score of 49.
Lavington finished with 172 from 57.4 overs, leaving the visitors around 45 overs.
But paceman Jaydon Wright torpedoed their hopes with his best bowling of the year with 4-22 from 12 overs.
Yackandandah scraped together 111.
Dederang defeated cellar-dwellers Bethanga, with the latter’s number eight Tom Henderson posting 84, while Eskdale defeated Kiewa.
The final contenders finished on: Dederang 88.17, Wodonga 84.03, Corowa 81.11, Yackandandah 78.99, Lavington 75.80, Mount Beauty 71.93, Baranduda 70.95.
