Cumbria have been used to NCCA finals – but Sunday represents something a little bit different.
They have reached the One Day Trophy Final (format 50 overs a side) on each of the last four occasions it has been played – 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023.
But this season Cumbria have reached Finals Day in the Twenty20 format for the first time.
However they will go into the finals day without influential skipper and all-rounder Michael Slack who suffered a serious knee injury in Sunday’s second game at Furness against Herefordshire.
Format for the day follows that of the Vitality T20 Blast in that four teams face off in two sem-finals with Cumbria first into action at 10am against Oxfordshire.
In a repeat of one of the 2023 games Berkshire face Staffordshire in the other semi final scheduled to start at 1pm.
Then the winners play each other later in the day in the final (scheduled to start at 4.30pm). Should the weather intervene there is a reserve day on Bank Holiday Monday, May 27.
Cumbria go to the finals as the only county not to have won the T20 title.
Berkshire won in 2018, Oxfordshire in 2022 and Staffordshire are the reigning champions.
They represent the most successful quartet in the NCCA as between them they have won every National (Minor) Counties Championship since 2014, until Buckinghamshire won the Championship last year.
Cumbria’s early day opponents Oxfordshire show their strength at developing cricketers with Harrison Ward (240 runs at a Strike Rate of 164 so far) and Zion Lion-Cachet both contracted at Sussex, having played in the majority of early rounds this season.
They also have the possibility of being able to call on the Price and Charlesworth brothers contracted at Gloucestershire (if they not required at the weekend) all of whom started in Oxfordshire’s Age Groups.
Through their close links with Sussex, they have also been able to, on occasions in the early rounds, select their Henry Crocombe, Danial Ibrahim and Sean Hunt. In Tom Hinley they also have this season’s competition’s leading wicket taker.
In a repeat of one of the 2023 semi-finals Berkshire face Staffordshire in the other showdown on Sunday.
Berkshire have a record over the last 20 years which must be the envy all other Counties. They have won the One Day Trophy eight times since 2004, the Championship five since 2016 and the T20 Cup in 2018.
The majority of their squad playing so far this year are proven winners at this level and in Dan Lincoln, Euan Woods and Andy Rishton they have three players who have won this particular trophy back in 2018.
Even when running into the Nils Priestley show last year (147 runs in 66 balls) Berkshire still managed a respectable score of 184 in their 20 overs.
Staffordshire enjoyed a reprieve after apparently being knocked out in the Group stages this year, but then they were the only ‘away’ side to win through in the Super 12 stage when they bowled out their opposition twice for scores of 82 and 83 to demonstrate their strength.
The greatly experienced Nils Priestley, Liam Hurt, Zen Malik and Tom Brett took the majority (15) of their wickets last Sunday. Their captain James Kettleborough is their leading scorer.
In head to heads Staffordshire and Cumbria have won (and lost) three times each with five further games being abandoned. Cumbria are yet to play either Berkshire or Oxfordshire in this format.
