THE NSW Cyclones put up a strong fight against the NSW Blues in the annual City versus Country indoor cricket championships held at Dubbo Sportsworld at the weekend.
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But unfortunately for the bush boys they narrowly missed out on bragging rights.
Now in its fifth year, the tournament also featured the ACT Rockets for the first time.
The Rockets played well but were not in contention for the title secured by the Blues 13-11.
Each club fields eight-a-side teams across three grades - under-13s, 15s and 17s.
Dubbo's Henry Railz put in a good performance for the Cyclones in the 13s, not only leading the team as captain but batting well for the duration of the competition.
Under-13s coach Dan French was pleased with the boys' overall game, and Railz in particular.
"He's very strong on the bat and overall he scored the most runs from the weekend. I expected it from him but it was a good effort," French said.
Twelve-year-old Henry was the only player to have ever competed in eight-a-side, which is a lot tougher than four-a-side competition.
The end result for the under-13s was one from four, after their defeat of ACT 97-86.
They came close to toppling the Blues in a nail-biting 77-74 contest.
The under-15s contest was a David versus Goliath event in which the Cyclones were eventually only narrowly defeated by their city counterparts.
Coached by Dubbo's Don Skinner, the boys were in awe of the Blues after watching them annihilate the ACT team.
"The Country boys were intimidated by City," Skinner said.
In the first game, the Cyclones lost 86-76, but on the second day, they regrouped and came up with a 70-57 win.
"I think they backed themselves," Skinner said, outlining the strength the team had displayed in keeping their opponent's score low.
Dubbo's Wade Burrowes was a standout player in the grade, not only captaining his fellow players but putting in a good all-round performance.
"He leads from the front," French said.
It was a similar story in the under-17s grade, coached by Greg King.
On Saturday, they defeated ACT 97-82, before going down to the Blues 98-64.
Sunday's result was a 94-76 win over ACT, and a whopping 143-114 win over the Blues.
Sixteen-year-old Sean Mason was a standout player for the Cyclones, particularly his performance with the bat.
The annual City versus Country tournament is a prelude to the Australian National Junior Indoor Cricket Championships, which will be held in July in Sydney.
All together, Dubbo fielded eight players across the three grades.