Despite the Power’s number one team bowing out of cricket action last week, it was business as usual for Mount Beauty United Cricket Club’s second XI, who are preparing for a finals campaign in the Cricket Albury Wodonga competition.

The Power needed to win, or at least have other results fall their way to lock in a home final, which was confirmed after a convincing five-wicket win.

In their last regular season appearance for the season, the Power crossed the border to visit Howlong and kindly asked the home side to bat first in fine conditions.

With arguably their strongest squad assembled for a game with plenty at stake, Sam McIntyre took the opening wicket of the innings in the sixth over, but the Spiders’ top order provided stiff resistance to reach 1/53 after 15.

This was until the ever-reliable Craig Henderson (2/15) and Mark Roffey (3/4) joined forces to obliterate the Howlong middle order, taking a combined four wickets within twenty deliveries.

A quickfire 37 from Howlong’s Caleb Chant pushed the score to a somewhat respectable 9/114, which looked even better after Mount Beauty young gun Tom McCluskey was run out for a single.

The 66-run partnership between McIntyre (39) and skipper Dave Hunt (29) wiped a large portion of the total, which proved to be the difference between the two sides once Ross Buchanan (19) and Nathan Woodforth (10 not out) completed the mission with eight overs to spare.

Mount Beauty finished second on the league table after 16 rounds of play and a home final will be received thanks to their higher-ranked finish.

Their opponents, third-placed Tallangatta, will provide a more than adequate challenge for the Power, with only one win separating the two teams throughout the season before their upcoming semi-final showdown.

The venue of choice will be Les Peart Oval in Mount Beauty, which will be confirmed before Saturday’s match, starting at 1pm.