Riverside will be unable to defend its Statewide Twenty20 crown this season after falling to Burnie by 27 runs in Sunday’s semi-final at West Park.
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The Blues looked set for a good performance after opening bowlers Alex Saunders and Ramesh Sundra restricted the Hurricanes top order to 3-34 in the seventh over.
But an unbeaten 49 from Brodie Hayes, combined with valuable contributions from Matthew Walton (26) and Charlie King (21 not out) saw the home team reach a competitive final score of 5-132.
Riverside’s reply started poorly with Nick Garwood dismissed in the first over, and things barely improved from there in the blustery conditions as a constant stream of batsmen made their way back to the change rooms.
The Hurricanes bowling attack were at their miserly best and never let the visitors regularly find the boundary, resulting in a steadily increasing run rate.
Tyler Johns, Brady Yates and Tom Lewis each picked up two wickets for the home team and the game was as good as over with Riverside needing 77 from the final five overs with just three wickets in hand.
Alex Kerrison provided some brief entertainment with a hard-hitting 28 from 13 balls in the final stages, but it mattered little as the Blues ended a disappointing day at 9-105.
Burnie will now progress to the Statewide Twenty20 grand final on February 26 where they will play Cricket Tasmania Premier League side New Town at Blundstone Arena.
