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Queensland have snatched an astonishing 12-run win over Victoria in their one-day domestic cricket final at the MCG.
While it is the second one-day title for the Bulls in three seasons, the loss confirms Victoria’s reputation as finals chokers in domestic cricket.
Victoria have now lost four successive finals – last year’s one-day decider and the Sheffield Shield, plus this season’s Twenty20 and now the one-dayer again.
Victoria have also lost the last three one-day finals.
After restricting Queensland to 8-187 from 50 overs, the Bushrangers were bowled out for 175 at the end of the 48th over.
Nathan Rimmington took 4-40 from 10 overs and was named man of the match, while Ben Laughlin snared 3-25.
Victorian opening bowler Shane Harwood was named man of the series.
Victoria’s innings started badly when they lost opener Chris Rogers for two, but Rob Quiney’s strong hitting kept the score ticking over and they were well-set at 1-72 in the 17th over.
Queensland then hit back, taking 4-26 and reducing the home side to 5-98 after 25 overs.
Quiney went for a top score of 52, while a poorly-judged single meant key batsman David Hussey was run out needlessly for eight.
Captain Cameron White and Crosthwaite put on 33 for the sixth wicket and Victoria were still well-set if they batted sensibly.
But White tried a big hit off Laughlin and was caught in the deep for 24.
Rimmington then took his third wicket in the following over when he bowled Damien Wright for a duck.
Victoria were in major trouble at 7-131, before Crosthwaite and McKay combined for a 37-run stand.
But Laughlin had McKay caught and bowled for 22 and Crosthwaite chased a wide ball outside off stump and was caught at point off Rimmington for 29.
Laughlin then bowled Harwood for one to end the match.
Earlier, the Bushrangers lost McKay and Harwood to injuries in the final 10 overs of the Queensland innings.
McKay left the field with tightness in his left side and Harwood sprained his right ankle while following through.
Harwood (chest) and Queensland’s Andrew Symonds (knee) had to prove their fitness before making the final teams.
An unbeaten partnership of 54 at the end of the Bulls innings between Chris Hartley, who top scored with 49no, and Chris Swan (30no) proved crucial.
The Bulls won the toss and slumped to 4-28 as Harwood bowled a devastating five-over spell, taking 2-9.
When Symonds was dismissed for 23, Queensland were 5-56.
But Glen Batticciotto (40) and Hartley put on 67 for the sixth wicket to steady the innings.
Hartley and Swan came together in the 42nd over with the score at 8-133 and batted sensibly, scoring at better than a run a ball.
Harwood took 2-23 from 8.4 overs and Damien Wright snared 2-31 from 10 overs.
Queensland suffered a blow last week when they surprisingly lost to South Australia, blowing their chance of hosting the final.
But they demolished Victoria earlier this month in another MCG one-day match, again managing only a modest total before bowling out the Bushrangers.
Rimmington was Queensland’s 12th man until an hour before the game, when Ashley Noffke was ruled out with a back injury.
He said Quiney’s wicket was the vital moment in the game.
“It would have been nice to take more early wickets, it wasn’t looking great at one stage,” he said.
“We were lucky enough to get some quick wickets and open up some of those old scars from the last couple of games.”
White looked shell-shocked afterwards, saying his team had blown a great opportunity.
“I just don’t know what to say – we got ourselves in this position and no-one really put their hand up in the run chase to win the game,” White said.
“I’m just shattered … at the halfway mark, you’d take 188 any day of the week on the wicket.
“Where do you go from here? It’s a hard one, the only thing that fixes this is 12 months’ time, if we get another opportunity.
“We didn’t handle the pressure … not one of the top five or six stood up and won the game.”
Victoria are guaranteed to host the Shield final and White conceded they must win that title.
“Of course we need to win the Shield final to get some sort of confidence back in finals,” he said.
Asked if Victoria now had a finals hoodoo, he replied: “We’ve got a finals something, I know that, it’s going to take a win in a final to get rid of whatever it is.”
Victoria next play Tasmania away in a Shield match from this Thursday, with Harwood and McKay likely to be rested.
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