After a strong performance throughout the 2024/25 Sheffield Shield season and finishing top of the ladder, South Australia have secured a home final starting next Wednesday at Karen Rolton Oval. The competition remained tight all season, so close that it came down to the final game to determine who South Australia would take on in the decider.
Game 1 v NSW - Draw
The South Australia Men started the 2024/25 Sheffield Shield season with a draw against NSW. Early in the match a win or draw looked unlikely until Alex Carey and Nathan McSweeney led with a resilient comeback on day four. Carey played a pivotal role with a first innings score of 90, followed by a superb knock of 111. McSweeney’s composure at the crease with an unbeaten 127* helped guide SA to a match saving draw.
Game 2 v QLD - Win
SA’s first win came against Queensland at Allan Border Field thanks to two important centuries to Henry Hunt (136) and Alex Carey (123). This marked Carey’s seventh Sheffield Shield century, surpassing former captain Graham Manou as the most prolific century-maker for a South Australian wicketkeeper in the competition’s history. Not to be outdone by the batters, the bowlers also made a strong contribution in the 129-run win, with Nathan McAndrew claiming dominant match figures of 8-93.
Game 3 v VIC - Win
SA welcomed Henry Thornton in his debut for their first home game of the season. Once play commenced, Ben Manenti excelled taking four of the first five wickets and finishing with notable figures of 5-73. He then followed up with the bat scoring 62*, accompanied by a half-century to Jake Lehmann and solid contributions from Alex Carey and Conor McInerney. Henry Thornton picked up his first wicket for SA early on day four, and from there Lloyd Pope ran riot in the final innings taking six wickets, including the last four, sealing a 138-run win against Victoria.
Game 4 v NSW - Loss
SA’s first loss came against NSW at home on a pitch that challenged the batters with plenty of seam movement and bounce. Batting first, SA could only conjure 110 runs which was chased down quickly by NSW. The wickets were shared with an all-round performance from SA’s bowling attack, but eventually NSW took a 284-run advantage into the third innings. A defiant hundred to Jake Lehmann and half-century to Thomas Kelly weren’t enough for SA losing by an innings and one run.
Game 5 v WA - Draw
With day/night matches returning to the Sheffield Shield schedule, SA’s opportunity with the pink ball came against Western Australia at home. Competing for the Rod Marsh Cup, the start couldn’t have come any better for SA with Spencer Johnson dismissing Cameron Bancroft with the first ball of the match. Brendan Doggett claimed figures of 5-97 with WA eventually posting a total of 373. SA struggled early before Henry Hunt scored his second century for the season guiding his side to 253. In a rain affected match and needing 363 runs from 90 overs, the SA batters provided strong resistance, holding on to claim a draw.
Game 6 v TAS - Win
Arguably SA’s greatest Shield win of all-time came against Tasmania at Ninja Stadium with a runout on the final ball of the match. SA posted a strong first innings total thanks to a career-best 151 runs from Jason Sangha in his Shield debut for SA. Henry Hunt was in similarly hot form, notching his third Shield ton of the summer to finish with 136. Set 429 runs to win, Tasmania fought hard until the final over needing only seven runs for victory. Wes Agar clean bowled Gabe Bell and conceded just three runs before the chaotic final-ball runout. SA claimed the victory by just two runs, the equal tightest win in terms of runs in Shield history.
Game 7 v WA - Win
A pitch favouring the bowlers is what awaited SA as they met Western Australia at the WACA. Bowling first, SA dismissed WA for only 120 runs before facing a similar fate with 20 wickets falling by the end of the first day. On day two, Nathan McAndrew and Jordan Buckingham struck straight away, having the visitors 2-0 inside the first two overs. This quickly turned into 5-13, and from there McAndrew dominated with the ball, ending with figures of 7-11, the cheapest seven-wicket haul in Sheffield Shield history. SA required only 63 runs in their final innings, which was successfully chased down with two days remaining.
Game 8 v TAS - Win
Records were broken on day one when SA hosted Tasmania at home. Following the same trend from the previous game, it was the first time in history that 20 wickets had fallen on the first day of a Sheffield Shield match at Adelaide Oval. A tight contest between the top and bottom position kept everyone guessing until the final day where Tasmania required 217 runs to win with seven wickets remaining. The Tasmanian top order all made starts but they couldn’t chase down the total when matched against Lloyd Pope and Nathan McAndrew who combined for seven wickets in the final innings.
Game 9 v VIC - Win
A win against Victoria continued SA’s winning streak with only one home and away match remaining. The pace attack worked hard to break important partnerships with Henry Thornton taking 4-42 and Jordan Buckingham also collecting four wickets in the first innings. Set 300 runs to win in the final innings, Jake Lehmann put on a batting masterclass scoring 105* supplemented by a handy 83 from Liam Scott. SA chased down the total in the final session, cementing their spot in the Sheffield Shield final.
Game 10 v QLD – Draw
With a final spot locked in, the SA batters took to a flat Karen Rolton Oval pitch with the prospect of facing Queensland again in the final. There were plenty of highlights in the first innings with a maiden First-Class century to Conor McInerney, followed by centuries to Alex Carey and Jake Lehmann. Declaring and setting Queensland 614 runs to chase in the second innings, the batters had their work cut out for them. The pitch continued to play consistent, resulting in SA returning to the crease on day three. Jason Sangha added another century to SA’s milestones for the match, making it the fourth time only SA has amassed four centuries in one Shield match, and the first since 1994/95. It was determined no result would occur, and just ahead of tea on the final day the teams shook hands, and the match was declared a draw.
Finishing with six wins, three draws and only one loss, South Australia equalled their highest points achieved in a single Sheffield Shield season. The upcoming final will be only the third time SA has come up against Queensland in the decider. With one win a piece – the 1975/76 Shield presented to SA and the 1994/95 to Queensland - both teams will be fighting to add the 2024/25 Shield to their collection.