Day four saw the final being played against unbeaten old arch rival Hamilton Boys. After batting first on 3 occasions, St Paul's lost the vital toss and had to field first. Unfortunately we didn’t respond well, bowled a little loosely and missed an early half chance. However Simon Morbey 2 for 17 from 9 bowled superbly. Chris Swanson only bowling in his second match of the tournament stepped up brilliantly to take 5 for 19 from 8. He was well supported by Eli Spadoni with 1 for 13 from 7 including the wicket of the dangerous Hamilton Boys High captain. The boys threw themselves round the field in the heat, held their catches and bowled Hamilton Boys High out for 150.
St Paul's had a horror start to the innings to be 2 for 7 from 2 overs. Devon Nolan with a gritty 41 and Chris Swanson 26 in pressure cooker conditions slowly got St Paul's back into the match as they denied the best of the Hamilton Boys High bowling. The fall of Swanson at 55 for 3 meant it was evenly poised but out strode big Ali Blackett to play the innings of his life as he made a brilliant 51 not out. He showed incredible guts and mental toughness as he saw off the stronger bowlers and forced the weaker bowlers into the attack. A towering 6 soon after the second drinks break got the team rolling and he and Reuben Andrews with a gutsy 16 not out began to gap the ball nicely. In the end the team did it with ease only 4 down and with 4 overs to spare. This saw St Paul's crowned Northern Districts Secondary School cricket champions. Chris Swanson was named player of the tournament and the final.
In the 25 year history of the Gillette Cup this is the 4th time St Paul's have qualified for what is now a 6 team finals series at Lincoln in Christchurch in early December. On the previous 3 occasions the finals were 4 team competitions. This is the first time St Paul's have qualified since 2004 – 10 years.
The boys showed immense character to win after four long, hot and hard days in the park. It was fantastic reward for a lot of work honed in the much tougher environment of the Waikato Valley Mens' competition. Many thanks to all our supporters, those that sent us messages of support. A very proud moment for the team and management.
