Gunnedah not only kept its fourth grade finals hopes alive but also defeated the top-placed team last Saturday, as the home side recorded a 19-run victory against Old Boys at Donnelly Fields.

Half-centuries from Jono Middlebrook and Zoe Fleming set up a strong total of 242, before Old Boys batted out its 40 overs and lost eight wickets while falling behind the required run rate.

Old Boys youngster James Wilkinson had an outstanding all-round match, having opened the bowling and the batting. He captured the final three wickets of Gunnedah’s innings to finish with 3-47 from 7.3 overs, before scoring 95 not out from 123 balls.

It was the second week in a row that Gunnedah topped 200 in a victory on home soil, with the first occasion involving batting second.

Jono Middlebrook showed his intent as he struck the first and sixth balls of the game to the boundary, before his son Oscar’s first scoring shot was a four in the second over.

Oscar played second fiddle while Jono dominated the scoring. In the ninth over Jono clubbed the first two balls for four and the next two balls for six to reach 54 retired off 32 balls.

Following Oscar’s departure for 19 in the following over, the in-form Zafar Mukhtar clubbed his second delivery to the boundary to make the score 1-85 at the 10-over mark.

Zoe Fleming found the boundary four times in the 12th over before Mukhtar cleared the boundary with consecutive balls in the next over, only to be caught soon afterwards for 19 off seven balls.

The dismissal of Marnee Walters made the score 3-138 after 15 overs, before Ken Walters was off the mark with a four past cover.

Zoe Fleming pulled two sixes in the 19th over, before crunching a four over cover in the following over to reach 53 retired off 44 balls.

Ken Walters appeared to be settling in when a top-edge was caught at short fine leg, before Tyler Small heaved three fours in a brisk 17.

Jedd Lye nabbed two wickets in the 27th over as Gunnedah slipped from 4-195 to 6-195, before Shane Fleming hit the first two balls of the 29th over for four and then departed with the first ball of the 30th over.

The next wicket left Gunnedah 8-215 with nine overs remaining, and prompted the return of Jono Middlebrook. He scored a dozen runs from the first five balls of the 33rd over, only to depart from the final ball.

Zoe Fleming added five runs to her retirement score before she was similarly dismissed, leaving Rhyse Frost unbeaten on 11 while Gunnedah fell 33 balls shy of batting out its 40 overs.

A run-out occurred from the first ball of the run chase, before a catch behind the wicket made the score 2-28 in the sixth over.

With the scoring rate slowing down considerably, Zoe Fleming held a return catch to leave Old Boys 3-39 after 11 overs.

Fifteen runs were scored in the 18th over before Hayden Amos sent the first ball of the 20th over to the boundary to lift the total towards 100, but the following delivery featured another run-out.

Only 40 runs were added in the next 10 overs before Mukhtar held a catch, leaving Old Boys with a task of 104 runs from the final 10 overs.

Frost struck with the final two balls of the 33rd over, with a pull shot going straight to Mukhtar at mid-wicket before another pull shot found Ken Walters at deep mid-wicket.

Eathen Byrne hit two sixes before being caught by Ken Walters off Zoe Fleming, leaving Old Boys needing 63 from 23 balls with two wickets in hand.

Lindon Wilkinson cleared the boundary before his son scored 14 runs in the space of six balls to give himself a chance of reaching a century. The opener ultimately fell short after his dad wasn’t able to give him quite enough of the strike.

James Wilkinson was on 94 with one over remaining, but he managed only a single before his dad regained the strike with three balls left.

Lindon Wilkinson faced a dot ball, and then belted the second-last ball for four and the last ball for six to make the margin look more respectable.

With the fourth-placed Quirindi on 56 points and followed by Bective East on 55 and Gunnedah on 53, Quirindi hosts Gunnedah at Longfield Park this Saturday.

Gunnedah 242 (Jono Middlebrook 69, Zoe Fleming 58; James Wilkinson 3-47, Jedd Lye 2-19) defeated Old Boys 8-223 (James Wilkinson 95 not out, Hayden Amos 39; Rhyse Frost 2-31, Zoe Fleming 2-38) by 19 runs.