Jamie Winkler blasts his way to an unbeaten 51 for Exies on Saturday at West End Oval.
Cricket
EXIES have come from the clouds to steal the first-grade minor premiership after an emphatic outright win over the Yenda Jets on Saturday at West End Oval.
Another stunning spell from captain Marc Tucker and a half-century from Jamie Winkler helped Exies to the 74-run victory, which saw the side leapfrog the Coro Cougars to finish in first place on the ladder.
The double chance was always the reward on offer for Exies but the outright triumph served as an unexpected springboard to the top, Tucker said.
"The boys are very happy, but now we've got to knuckle down and win the real premiership that's something for us to work towards," he said.
Tucker finished with incredible match figures of 11-44 from 23 overs, with his last five wickets coming on day two as Exies bowled out Yenda for 68 and then again for 85.
"I went alright but I was helped out by the bowler at the other end. All our boys kept it nice and tight," Tucker said.
Winkler's unbeaten 51 was the highlight of Exies' second innings, which was declared closed at 6-98 and with an imposing lead of 159 runs set for Yenda.
"He's in a bit of form at the moment, Jamie. He batted really well and helped set up the outright for us," Tucker said.
The Jets' run chase never really got going despite the likes of Tom Spry (32) and Peter Vardanega (24) digging their heels in at the crease in the afternoon.
"It was harder than we thought it would be they really knuckled down for a while and stuck it to us but we got there in the end and came away with the result we were after," said the Exies captain.
The win sets the minor premiers up with a mouthwatering first-up finals clash against the Coro Cougars, their one-day cup conquerers.