THE Lithgow Lightning under 12 team travelled to Katoomba for their grand final to take on hot favourites Leura.

Leura finished the season as minor premiers and was the first team into the grand final.

Leura won the toss and, in damp conditions, elected to bat.

The Lightning bowlers did an exceptional job in the conditions, restricting Leura to 5-76 off 27 overs.

Louis Johnman, Luke Thompson, Luca Giokaris and Dom Dellabosca all took a wicket each.

Top scorer for Leura was Henry Horwood with nine.

Chasing 77 for victory, the Lightning lost a couple of early wickets to find themselves 2-10 after five overs.

The Leura bowlers were giving nothing away, as Lithgow tried to consolidate their innings.

As the drinks break was called, Lithgow found themselves at 2-23 from 15 overs, requiring a further 54 runs from the final 12 overs — a tough ask given the wet conditions.

At the resumption of play, the Lightning batsmen threw caution to the wind, knowing there were no second chances.

Mitchell Thompson lifted the pace of the innings with some heavy hitting, before being dismissed for 19.

Kennedy Brown and Louis Johnman then came together with the score at 5-43, requiring 34 runs for victory from the final seven overs.

With a combination of controlled hitting and very aggressive running between wickets, Brown and Johnman guided the Lightning to a thrilling victory, with just six balls remaining.

The win was a credit to the youngsters involved, as the team had fought back from fifth position.

A big thanks goes to coach Thomas Thompson and each and every team member should be very proud of their efforts throughout the season.