THEY won three of their four games, but Newcastle Steel have missed out on a berth in next week’s Premier Cricket T20 Cup quarter-finals.
Newcastle finished off their preliminary rounds in style with a four-wicket victory against Gordon at Chatswood Oval on Sunday, to go with earlier wins against Illawarra and Mosman.
But a loss to Sydney in the penultimate round proved costly, as Newcastle finished equal third in their pool, only to be eliminated on quotients.
“At the end of the day, we’re happy with what we’ve done,” Steel coach Shane Burley said.
“We’ve won three out of four, and if we miss out on quotients, there’s not much we can do about that.
“Some sides play on smaller grounds, so quotients can be a bit of a funny thing.”
After Gordon won the toss and batted, Newcastle restricted them to 8-141.
Seamer Brad Aldous (3-25) and young spinner Toby Gray (3-11) delivered outstanding four-over spells for Steel. Skipper Nathan Price (42) and Nathan Hudson (32) then produced a blazing opening stand of 71 for Newcastle, who cruised to victory with an over to spare.
