Tyler Van Luin admits he felt a rush of nerves when he looked up at the scoreboard and realised he was in the nineties.
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But that's nothing compared to how the entire Queanbeyan team would have felt when he walked out to bat at 4-7 with a place in the Gallop Cup final on the line.
A Van Luin masterclass has Queanbeyan on the cusp of unlocking the trophy case as they set their sights on the Cricket ACT one-day title.
Van Luin blasted a match-defining 122 and picked up three wickets to inspire a 69-run win over Western Districts in a semi-final on Sunday.
Now Queanbeyan will meet Weston Creek Molonglo in the decider at Manuka Oval in a bid to avenge last year's grand final heartbreak.
Creek booked their ticket to the decider with a 44-run win over Tuggeranong Valley, but the day would belong to Van Luin just a few suburbs away.
Dean Solway, Mark Higgs, Vele Dukoski and Stuart Bridgen had already been given their marching orders. Van Luin walked to the crease with his side in serious strife.
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So Van Luin responded the only way he thought he could - with a superb 122 from 127 deliveries to lift the Bluebags to 8-232 from 50 overs.
"They had the batter's scores up there for a bit, so I was a bit nervous when I was in the nineties. I just got a few lucky ones away, it was a bit of a relief to get the first one," Van Luin said.
"Being 4-7 is not what you want, especially in a semi-final. We just had to build a partnership, and me and Marky [Solway] put on 40-odd together.
"My role was just to make sure I was batting deep until the end, and fortunately enough, I got a hundred."
When the time came for Wests to return serve it was another Van Luin blitz that blew them away with Matt Condon and Nic Broes skittled without troubling the scorers.
Before long he strangled Blake Dean down leg side and Queanbeyan were on the cusp of what had once seemed an unlikely win.
It was Higgs that finished the job with figures of 5-34 seeing Wests bundled out for 163.
"He's in the form of his life almost," Van Luin said.
"He's such a smart cricketer, he knows what he is doing. To have him in the side with bat and ball is a massive boost for our side.
"We made the final last year so hopefully we can go one better. They've got a very good side when you look at Djali [Bloomfield] and Harry [Medhurst] with the ball.
There's obviously Bucky [John Rogers] and Robbie Trickett are whacking them."
AT A GLANCE
Cricket ACT Gallop Cup semi-finals: WESTON CREEK MOLONGLO 7-271 (J Rogers 80, Z Keogh 57*; O Anable 2-38, S Devoy 2-51) bt TUGGERANONG VALLEY 227 (T Vane-Tempest 88, M Barrington-Smith 62; D McLean 3-41, D Bloomfield 2-21) by 44 runs at Stirling Oval.
QUEANBEYAN 8-232 (T Van Luin 122, T Kellar 48; E Bartlett 3-56, J Corbett 2-25) bt WESTERN DISTRICT 163 (J Staines 55, E Bartlett 27; M Higgs 5-34, T Van Luin 3-27) by 69 runs at Chisholm Oval.
CRICKET ACT GALLOP CUP GRAND FINAL
Sunday: Queanbeyan v Weston Creek Molonglo at Manuka Oval. Match starts at 11am.
Caden Helmers
Caden Helmers is a sports writer for The Canberra Times.
Caden Helmers is a sports writer for The Canberra Times.
