Many teams have tried and failed over the last seven years but Berry-Shoalhaven Heads Magpies are ready to end the long dominance of reigning South Coast cricket premiers Lake Illawarra.
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To do so the minor-premiers Magpies will have to beat the Lakers in Saturday's grand final at Geoff Shaw Oval.
Berry-Shoalhaven Heads captain Daniel Troy sees no reason why his team can't beat Lake for a third time this season and become the first team from Shoalhaven to win the South Coast premiership.
His counterpart Kerrod White though fired an ominous warning that finals time was Lakers' time.
"We've been there and done that so to speak so that should definitely help us," White said.
"We've got a younger squad this year but we've still got experienced guys like my brother [Brendan White] and Mark [Ulcigrai] who know how to win finals.
"When it comes to finals time, that's when we tend to play our best.
"We find that extra energy we need and perform well.
"I think the calmest team with the clearest plans and calmest mind will win the comp. I think we've got that as an advantage for sure."
Troy did not argue this point but stressed Berry were playing good consistent cricket at the right time of the season.
"It's a big game but we're up for it. We've shown throught the season that we play well in big games," he said.
"We'd love to win for ourselves, but it would be extra special to knock off Lake who have been such a successful and relentless team for over five years or more.
"To cap what has already been a fantastic year and be the first Shoalhaven team to ever win the South Coast competition would be pretty awesome.
"We know we have our work cut out. Sure we have beaten them twice already but finals presents a different element.
"In saying that though, we just need to stick to our fundamentals. We need to keep going every ball.
"We're pretty relentless in that fact and will look to grind them out and put a lot of pressure on them."
White said the Lakers would need to score more runs than they did in their two losses to Berry.
"I think we fielded poorly to be honest with you. I think our fielding has really let us down. We need to be better on Saturday," he said.
"I think we bowled well in patches but not a complete game.
"I'm sure we can bowl well consistently and improve our fielding. We've shown over the years we can do this when needed. I'm backing us to do it again in the grand final."
Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
