INVERELL is hoping Sunday isn’t the last it sees of Tamworth this season.
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After thrashing Upper Hunter by 124-runs, it is just a win away from the Country Plate semi-finals.
They and the final will be played in Tamworth just after Christmas.
Last year Inverell just missed the semis going down to Lower Clarence in the quarter-final.
This year’s campaign couldn’t be tracking along better with Inverell tearing their way through the first three rounds.
On Sunday after making 284 they ripped through Upper Hunter for just 60 with Shaun Rynne again playing a starring role.
He has been a standout in all three games.
After a five-wicket haul in the first game as they routed Moree for 56, he took four-for against Walcha in the second round.
He followed up with another four-wickets on Sunday.
Regarded as one of – if not the – most destructive batsmen in Inverell, Rynne also shone with the bat.
The allrounder top-scored with 42 to carry Inverell past the 160 they’d set as their mark.
They were pretty confident they could defend that, although they did toss up having a bowl first after finally winning a toss.
“When we first went out and had a look at the wicket we thought maybe we should bowl,” Rynne said.
But they decided to have a bat.
They needed one with not many of the batsmen seeing much time in the middle.
Sunday was Rynne’s first chance to show what he can do.
“That was the first bat I’ve had for rep,” Rynne said.
“It was good to go out and have a hit.”
With a fair few overs still to go when he went out and Inverell travelling pretty well, Rynne took a bit more of a patient approach to his innings.
“(The plan was) to face four or five overs and get used to the pitch, then light up a few,” he said.
That is his natural game and he certainly did that.
It was a combination of placement and power.
“By then they were bowling pretty full and pretty straight.
“In my hitting zone,” he said.
It took a great catch from Will King running in from the deep to end his stay.
The only disappointment for captain Lachlan Binnie was that a lot of them got in – he made 26, Dave Mudaliar 21, Mick Kenny 25 and Tom Lavender 22 - but none other than Rynne went on with it.
Rynne then took the new rock and was on a hat-trick as Upper Hunter slumped to 5-23.
The talk heading out to bowl was bowl at the pegs, which they did.
“It was a pretty big effort from all the lads,” Rynne said.
“Our key is, we’re not very quick, except for Mick (Kenny) who’s pretty sharp, making the batsmen play and asking questions of them all the time.”
Last season was his first season of rep for about eight years.
He took about five years off outdoor cricket alltogether.
He’s enjoying being back and seeing the young talent coming through – the likes of Sage Cook, Richard Wilson and Tom Scoble.
Scoble opened with him against Moree, and is one of the brightest young quick prospects in the region.
Rynne is also handy at the indoor game and is part of the 35s state indoor squad, although he has had to forgo a couple of training sessions with them as they’ve coincided with Inverell’s games.