The three-peat dream is alive for the Central Stags as six becomes four in the exciting and closely fought 2017 Ford Trophy.
The competition has farewelled the Auckland Aces and Otago Volts as the last of the top four for the playoffs was inked in yesterday at Pukekura Park.
That was where a captain’s unbeaten century helped left the Stags into third spot with their second consecutive bonus point win at the ground. The bonus point meant the Stags finished ahead of fourth-qualifier Northern Districts — who lost to the Volts in Dunedin — to not only qualify, but earn the right to host the 3v4 knockout at Pukekura Park this Saturday 11 February.
Top qualifier the Wellington Firebirds and Canterbury will meanwhile wrestle each other again in the 1v2 Qualifier at Hagley Oval on the same day to determine who gets a ticket straight to the Grand Final, which the winner will host, and who gets bumped back into next week’s Elimination Final where they will meet the winner of 3v4 in another sudden death shootout.
Central Stags v Auckland Aces scorecard
After injuries robbed him of attack staples Doug Bracewell, Andrew Mathiseon, Adam Milne and Bevan Small this season, Stags captain Will Young has watched his side recover from a winless start in the competition, to dead last with two rounds to go plus needing other results to go their way, to a position where they now once again hold their fate in their own hands, in a late charge reminiscent of eventual winners the Firebirds’ run up to the McDonald’s Super Smash Grand Final earlier this season.
With two dominant wins on the trot at their happy white-ball hunting ground of Pukekura Park — the scene of their Ford Trophy Final celebrations last summer, they have declared a position as the team to beat when they return there this Saturday. ND, meanwhile, needs to shove to one side any battle scars from losing their round seven clash against the Stags, a match which broke The Ford Trophy’s all-time record for biggest winning margin.
The Firebirds have qualified top. PHOTOSPORT
Although the Wellington Firebirds finished top of the regular season points table with their two-wicket win over Canterbury in Christchurch, led by another match-winning captain's century from Hamish Marshall, the Basin Reserve is unavailable this weekend and so the Firebirds have ceded hosting rights to second qualifier Canterbury for the 1v2 Qualifier, which will now be a rematch back at Hagley Oval and is also set for this Saturday at 11am.
Canterbury v Wellington Firebirds scorecard
The Basin Reserve will be available again after that for either the Elimination Final or the Grand Final, while Canterbury will host one of those matches at Mainpower Oval, Rangiora as Hagley Oval moves into BLACKCAPS mode.
Ford Trophy finals series schedule
In Dunedin, the Otago Volts also finished the eight rounds with a boom, Anaru Kitchen charging to a fast century to ensure they got a bonus point win against ND and did everything they could to boost their mathematical hopes. But they had also needed the Stags and Aces to have a closer finish in order to influence net run rate tie-breakers in their favour, and the Stags weren’t having a bar of that with a handsome seven-wicket win.
Despite a topsy turvy season, ND had already secured its top four position thanks to vital bonus point wins, while the talented Aces unit will be gutted to be exiting the competition early, having been its early frontrunner. Down to the final four, where the Firebirds and Canterbury now hold an extra ace up their sleeves.
