Orange High School will go on to represent the western area in the NSW Combined High Schools competition after a gripping win at Dubbo on Thursday.
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Play went ahead despite the threat of rain at John McGrath 2 and the western area final lived up to the billing as the Orange side defeated Dubbo College on the last ball of the game.
The finish to the match was an incredibly dramatic one as Orange, chasing Dubbo's 163 for victory, needed four from the final delivery.
The hosts seemed to have the upper hand but a no balls from Alex Orth in the final over shifted the match into Orange's favour.
While the match finished in thrilling circumstances, it seemed at one point Orange's win would be a fairly routine one.
Dubbo's powerful top order, featuring Eastern Suburbs representatives Tom Coady and Koda Sissian, was dismantled and the hosts slumped to 5/52 early on, with Jarryd Seib (2/26), Tynan Southcombe (2/30) and Cam Laird (2/44) doing the bulk of the damage.
But Nate Ambler (37) and Ted Murray (36) dug in and led the fightback.
Their performances, plus a late cameo from Will Olney (13), got the College team to a competitive total of 163.
Orange's performance was the bat was vastly different to Dubbo's.
The top order fired, with representative guns Blake Weymouth (18), Hugh Middleton (28), and Cam Laird (34) all making an impact.
At 2/97 Orange was well on its way but Dubbo again proved it wouldn't lie down and Oscar Robinson (2/10) got his side back in the game and was well supported by Watts brothers Campbell (2/42) and Connor (2/11).
It all came down to the final over and Orange got it done in nail-biting circumstances, with Will Burdock (16 not out) playing a key role.
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