March 1, 2018
Rain affected all three senior cricket games scheduled to be played in the South Burnett last weekend.
Day 2 of the Gympie A Grade match between the two South Burnett teams, due to be played at Murgon, was washed out.
This left Murgon Crusaders in top spot on the ladder, with the combined South Burnett team, Southern District Devils, narrowly behind.
The Grand Final will be played in Gympie on March 3-10.
In the local B Grade competition, the game between competition leaders Cherbourg and the Blackbutt Timbertowners, due to be played at the Murgon State High School Oval, was also washed out.
This has put Cherbourg straight through to the Grand Final, their second in two years.
The other B Grade semi-final, between Murgon Diggers and Kumbia Rattlers was moved to Kumbia in an unsuccessful bid to avoid rain disruptions.
The knockout match was reduced to 30 overs but still did not escape the rain which threatened to cause the game to be abandoned in the 19th over before a result could be declared.
If this had happened, Diggers would have automatically gone through to the preliminary final as they finished ahead of Rattlers on the table.
However, the Murgon side decided to bat on in the rain and at the end of the decisive 20th over, Kumbia was ahead and Murgon’s season was over.
(Although some Diggers may get the opportunity to play in the Crusaders’ A Grade Grand Final).
The Rattlers will now face the Timbertowners this weekend to decide the second spot in the B Grade Grand Final.
