Nine flags in a row: South Launceston win nail-biter as sun sets on season

But Friday night's Cricket North women's grand final, which had lived up to the hype of being one of the most competitive in recent years, had one more twist.

Duggan was run out by Riverside's Meg Radford and Tayla Buchanan and suddenly South needed eight runs from 10 balls with a new batter at the crease.

It was Caitlyn Webster, who has played with the Greater Northern Raiders in the past, and you felt she was just the right batter for that moment given her experience.

She pulled a short ball for four off her first ball which got the Knights within four runs of Riverside's impressive 6-132.

With the job not done, South kept taking risks, running hard and sneaking in singles as the crowd went 'Ooooooo' waiting to see if they were home safe.

The Knights then needed one run with four balls to go.

Webster took another quick single, completed the run and circled around like an aeroplane to give Alice McLauchlan a big hug as the rest of their teammates streamed onto the field.

They had just won their ninth-straight premiership and shared a group hug under a stunning sunset at NTCA no. 2.

Duggan, the player of the match, provided insight into how the tense final overs felt which ended up with South scoring 3-133.

"It was pretty stressful to be honest I was just trying to keep my nerve and my batting partner's nerve at the same time," she said.

South had done it in front of one of biggest-ever women's grand final crowds, showing that the unique Friday night fixture was a hit.

"People knew it was going to be such a good game as well, we were so tight with each through the whole season so I think people wanted to turnout and watch that as well," Duggan said.

"It was good to put on a show for them all and it was a good atmosphere."

Duggan said the winning streak had been amazing to be a part of and the Knights had retained a core group of players throughout.

It's worth noting they also had numerous teenagers in their line-up who are relatively new to finals.

The win continued South's story as one of the most successful regional sporting teams in Australia but it was the contest on the night that proved the most intriguing aspect.

It was a close contest befitting of the season.

The powerhouse teams of the competition took their rivalry to another level.

Not only was it hard to separate them during the home-and-away rounds but Riverside brought their best to the final, scoring 33 more runs than they did in last year's decider.

Riverside's mid-season recruit Georgia Munro, who has come over from Wales, played a big part in that with 44 from 34 as her team's top scorer.

And the Blues' Meg Radford, who switched from South a couple of summers ago, was crucial with a run-a-ball 29.

South captain Ava Curtis highlighted the significance of the 2024 win.

"It could have gone either way so this one means a fair bit," she said.

The Blues set a great challenge but you sat there thinking South's strong batting depth had shone again.

It felt like Riverside weren't having to just get one key batter out but rather numerous with Belinda Wegman (35 from 25) and Curtis (20 from 26) among them.

Curtis, who captained her first senior premiership with South, said batting depth was something that gave the team confidence.

But that didn't mean the Knights weren't nervous chasing 130-plus.

"When we went in at the innings break, we didn't say it but there were a fair few nerves around," Curtis said.

Duggan explained how she approached the task as an opener.

"They're a quality bowling team so I thought we'll start slow and pick what their bowlers are doing and see what the wicket is doing and develop from there," she said.

Riverside captain Elyse Page was understandably emotional in her post-match speech but showed great class in congratulating South.

"We probably don't admit it but we love playing you guys, it brings excitement to the comp, congratulations on this (premiership) record, it's something to be very proud of and enjoy the moment," she said.