Wet weather during the week couldn’t stop Uniteds from finally breaking Northern District’s unbeaten streak but more importantly holding aloft the Scuderi Shield in victory for the second consecutive time. Northern Districts batted first with Steven Devietti (38) and Troy Menegon (35) again topping the scorers with Ross Girgenti (17) helping make a modest total of 8/128 off their 35 overs. Uniteds bowler Mitchell Seri 3/19 (7) was the best of the bunch although Brendan Devietti 2/12 (7) and Michael Fortini 2/29 (7) both claimed a pair of cheap wickets. The Scuderi Shield is renowned for small totals and in the history of the game 128 is a big score especially on a wet field.
In response captain Callan Solari (52) and Player of the Shield winner kept his wicket intact while his teammates were falling all around him. Northern Districts Michael Kauppila 3/18 (7) and Michael George 3/13 (7) swung the game back in their favour with some fiery bowling. In a game with more twists and turns than a mystery novel, Uniteds batsmen Matthew Chiesa (15no) and Ryan Sheahan (11no) kept the game alive long enough to hit the winning runs with only one over to go, winning the Scuderi Shield for the second time in as many years.
Next Saturday will see Uniteds playing Combined Services on field one and on field two Northern Districts play against Lower Herbert. Also this weekend on the Sunday Homehill comes to town to compete in the Wilmar Sugar Cream of the Crop Challenge with Senior and Junior teams taking to the fields for a helping of town pride.