THE FINALS - A Grade v Ex-Services, 4th/11th April 1970
Armidale Waratahs (The Tahs) | April 16, 2026
Waratahs had climbed from 3rd on the ladder to the Final, after beating St Peters in the semi-final. They had some good wins throughout the season, with centuries from Graham Johnson (#207), Alan Gray (#26), Bill Thompson (#185) and Brian Connolly (#226), with Johnson (507 runs), Gray (400) and Thompson (341) all having good aggregates. Ex-Services were their Achilles heel. Back in January, they had lost by an innings to Ex-Services, scoring only 32 in their first innings and Ian McLean had taken 11-45 across the two innings.
Ex-Services, defending Premiers, were an impossibly strong combination of experience and talent, chock full of allrounders, a batting line-up that could afford Errol Browning at 8 and a teenage Peter Wayte at 11 and the best bowling attack in the competition.
The match was over by tea on the first day, with Waratahs making less than a hundred and Ex Services already in front. Johnson top scored with 20, his partnership of 22 for the 4th wicket with Terry Betts (#205) was the biggest of the innings and the tail contributed so little that their number six, Tony Failes (#220) was not out at the end having scored just 9. Ian McLean destroyed them again, bowling through the innings unchanged and after Rene Mullen’s early scalps, Tony Ryan cleaned up the scraps. By stumps, Ex-Services were 65 in front, after Ray Blair added 67 with opening partner Wally Miller and and then 81 with the unbeaten McLean.
On the second day, Waratahs made early breakthroughs, removing Ray Rose, Mick Hawkins and Mullen and slowed Ex-Services down to 6-208. John Roberts (#115) came into the attack bowling his left arm orthodox spin and had McLean stumped by Betts as he charged toward a century but the afternoon got no shorter as Browning took control and supported by Mal Campbell and Ryan, another 134 were added for the last three wickets, including 98 for the 8th wicket. Browning himself was unlucky to miss his own hundred when youngster Wayte was Betts second victim, leaving Browning ten short.
Trailing by nearly three hundred, Waratahs could only save the outright and some modicum of face, but still lost four wickets to Ex-Services second string bowlers.
Waratahs v Ex-Services, A Grade Final, 4th/11th April 1970
