'Winners are grinners' as Orange downed by Dubbo in under 14s grand final

Those were the words of Dubbo under 14s coach Steve Orth after his side toppled Orange in a rain-affected grand final at Wade Park on Sunday.

The home team came into the Central West cricket match undefeated through their four regular season games, including a victory over Dubbo back in early February.

But it was the visitors who would come out on top this time, chasing down the revised total of 94 with 12 overs to spare.

"We were looking at the end game and not just trying to get to the 20 overs to make it a game, we wanted to work on getting our three an over which would've got us the win," Orth said when asked what his side's mindset was when the two teams came off ten overs into the run chase due to rain.

"You always worry about the field being too wet to play the game and that's the biggest concern when you get wet weather, but we were really pleased because the Orange guys were so positive about trying to get the game on and finished and get as many overs in as we could."

Orange batted first and got off to a rough start as they fell to 3-18 early on. Robert Heath (20) was able to get Orange back in the game, but the loss of three wickets all while the score sat on 55 saw the home side in deep trouble.

Ashton Nock (30) and Hayden Griffith (36) then put on a 74-run partnership before Orange were bowled out for 133. Dubbo's Andrew Ridge (3-33), Cooper Townsend (2-24) and Archie Morgan (2-16) all shone with the ball.

The visitors also got off to a sluggish start in reply, falling to 2-18. Ashton Deebank (20 not out) and Cooper Giddings (29) slowly got them back on track before the rain came.

After a short delay, the sides were able to return to the field and despite the loss of Giddings, Deebank and Townsend (12 off 13) were able to guide them to a seven wicket win.

"Early wickets are always a big thing and we got consistent early wickets with some really tight bowling from our openers and then some really good fielding displays to get rid of some key batsmen. That turned out to be the difference," Orth said.

"We play cricket for the love of it and because we enjoy it, but there's nothing better than winning. You want to be fair and play fair, but winning is always a really good feeling."

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