One-day gold: 10 classic domestic finals

12 December, 1976 (Semi-Final – WACA Ground, Perth)

Western Australia 77; 22.5 overs (Charlesworth 25, Dymock 3-20, Carlson 3-17) d Queensland 62; 20.3 overs (Jones 22, Lillee 4-21, Clark 3-21)

The fuse to this incendiary encounter was effectively lit a year earlier, when Greg Chappell's Queensland snuck home against Western Australia with a boundary to spare, securing their first item of Australian cricket silverware along the way. A reason that game ran as close as it did was some belligerent late-order hitting from Dennis Lillee that almost rehabilitated his team's lost cause.

So when Chappell sent his opponents, led by his great mate Rod Marsh, into bat and promptly saw them skittled in barely an hour, Lillee was raging as he stepped-out his run-up. With the wind whipping at his back and the fastest pitch in world cricket at his feet, Lillee greeted Queensland's overseas opener Vivian Richards with a spray of bouncers (then unrestricted in the one-day game) before tilting back the West Indian's off stump with his sixth delivery.

He then set his sights on Chappell who was caught by Marsh after wafting at a bouncer, by which time Queensland were 3-27 and visibly panicking. Lillee returned to claim the final wicket and end the game that barely reached 40 (eight-ball) overs in aggregate. And from which WA still holds the benchmark for the lowest total successfully defended in a domestic one-day game.

23 January 1977 (Final – MCG, Melbourne)

Victoria 164; 37.3 overs (Hibbert 38, Robinson 32, Lillee 2-30, Malone 2-34) lost to Western Australia 9-165; 39.3 overs (Malone 47no, Serjeant 38, Hurst 3-31)

Any benefit WA might have pocketed from their rousing semi-final win doubtless dissipated over the six weeks that passed until the final against Victoria. During which period Lillee sent down 120 overs across three Test matches, which partly explained why it was he was not so potent in the one-day final as he had been at his beloved WACA.

His new-ball partner Mick Malone, however, found himself on a hat-trick in the middle stage of Victoria's innings, that ultimately yielded 164. A tally that seemed sufficient when WA lurched to 7-74 in pursuit, and then 9-139 and seemingly spent when Lillee departed.

But Malone and Wayne Clark forged a last-wicket stand that, at first, frustrated the home team and then brought WA within sight of a second miracle win in as many games. That was achieved when Malone inside-edged a delivery from Trevor Laughlin past his stumps to the fine leg boundary, with Victoria's only consolation the $750 runners-up cheque which was half the gratuity afforded the winners.

23 December 1978 (Semi-Final – WACA Ground, Perth)

Western Australia 6-215; 50 overs (Hughes 69, Serjeant 49, Hurst 5-36) d Victoria 7-214; 50 overs (Moss 76, Yallop 59, Porter 2-37)

Played at the height of the World Series Cricket split and in direct competition to a 'Super Test' between the West Indies and a World XI at the SCG, the hosts were favoured to win through to their sixth consecutive domestic one-day final despite the loss of a host of stars to the Packer camp.

But that sequence appeared set to end when Victoria moved cautiously to 3-194 in pursuit of 216, with seven overs remaining and Jeff Moss and Graham Yallop engaged in a then-record fourth-wicket stand that had passed 125. Then Moss nicked off to Wayne Clark, and the wheels departed with him.

At five-down and needing just 11 from the final four overs, Victoria should have strolled in but Bruce Yardley's nagging off-spin proved difficult to collar and, come the final over, there was still seven runs required. An early run-out heightened the drama, and as Graeme Ross faced up for the final delivery the equation was two to win, or a single to force a tie. Which would have seen Victoria through to the final given their superior total at the game's 20-over mark.

Clark bowled a bouncer; Ross took an air swing; Ian Maddocks charged through for a desperate single from the bowler's end but was run out to seal WA's third miracle finals' win in as many summers.

15 February 1987 (Semi Final – Adelaide Oval)

South Australia 7-222; 50 overs (Pyke 57, Scott 51no, Hughes 4-34) tied with Victoria 6-222; 50 overs (Young 51, Dodemaide 26no, Scott 3-40)

South Australia's prospects of reaching a third one-day final in four years took a tumble when Test opener-keeper Wayne Phiilips was a late withdrawal from the starting XI. Which meant not only did skipper David Hookes have to don the gloves, allrounder Darryl Scott was summoned for his one-day debut, having played a pair of Sheffield Shield games two years earlier.

The 25-year-old was into the action earlier than planned as SA's top-order crashed to 5-65, and the 69 runs Scott found for the seventh-wicket with James Pyke (older brother of Adelaide Crows AFL coach, Don) lifted the total to a defendable 222.

Scott then wielded even greater influence with the ball, picking up wickets whenever Victoria threatened to launch an assault on the target and, with four balls remaining, the visitors still needed four runs to claim a win. Neither Tony Dodemaide nor Michael Dimattina could find the required boundary and scores were tied at the end, which meant SA advanced to the following month's final against Tasmania.

Which led to Hookes' infamous pre-final media conference quip that he was looking forward to playing in front of a sell-out crowd at Hobart's TCA Ground – "12,000 people and 24,000 heads" – where SA duly won by posting a record one-day final total of 6-325.

1 March 1998 (Final – SCG, Sydney)

New South Wales 166; 49.3 overs (Emery 38, Bichel 3-25, Prestwidge 3-25) lost to Queensland 8-167; 47.5 overs (Prestwidge 42no, Bichel 30, S Lee 2-27, Stuart 2-30)

Image Id: BDA5C3C2291C4D93B8299DE93EA75C99 Image Caption: Andy Bichel scampers home // Getty

By the mid-90s, scheduling conflicts meant international players were rarely available for domestic duties. However, even allowing for the reality their top four were in India preparing for a Test match, the Blues could not have foreseen their auxiliary batters plunge to 5-58 on their home deck.

An eventual total of 166 seemed unlikely to daunt a star-studded Queensland top-order, but after Matthew Hayden, Jimmy Maher, Stuart Law and Martin Love all failed to reach 15 the unlikely seemed distinctly possible. Not until Scott Prestwidge was joined by fast bowler Andy Bichel, who would go on to play many a similarly heroic innings for Australia, could Queensland gain any traction.

When Bichel was dismissed with eight still needed, the Blues sniffed one fleeting chance. But Prestwidge's nerve held, leaving the question open as to which number 11 out of Greg Rowell and Paul Jackson would have been utilised (in the days of the 12-per-side rules) had one more wicket tumbled.

26 February 2006 (Final – Adelaide Oval)

South Australia 154; 43.5 overs (Cosgrove 49, Manou 28, A Bird 3-30) lost to New South Wales 9-155; 40.4 overs (Richards 35, Thornely 25, Tait 6-41)

Image Id: D8571150AF8A41F98B287C3B20A9C7A8 Image Caption: Shaun Tait claimed record-breaking final figures // Getty

Eyeing a victory target of just 155 at the historically batter-friendly Adelaide Oval, New South Wales knew their single biggest threat loomed not so much as veteran Test quick Jason Gillespie but his new-ball partner and close mate, Shaun 'Wild Thing' Tait.

The fact that Blues' spinners Stuart MacGill and Aaron O'Brien had proved the most economical in SA's faltering innings suggested it was not a fast-bowler's pitch. But Tait was no regulation quick.

He let fly from the opening over and, when he removed Jason Krezja with a snorting short ball, NSW were eight down and still 20 runs shy of their quest. Batting at number nine, teenager Moises Henriques who had weeks earlier led Australia to the semi-finals of the under-19 World Cup, then survived almost 40 minutes in scoring five runs.

By that time, Tait had completed his mandatory 10 overs having claimed the best figures in a domestic one-day final (6-41), and last-man Stuart MacGill was grateful to instead be facing Darren Lehmann's friendly left-arm spin when his leg glance yielded the winning boundary.

23 February 2008 (Final – Bellerive Oval, Hobart)

Victoria 158; 37.3 overs (D Hussey 50, McDonald 35, Doherty 4-18) lost to Tasmania 9-131; 30.1 overs (Birt 37no, McGain 3-11, McKay 3-42) on adjusted target

Image Id: 54FACA6F8F4D4883AA0246E4A7084718 Image Caption: Tasmania celebrate their 2008 title success // Getty

On a cold summer's day in Hobart, Victoria battled to get going and, having chosen to bat first, found themselves 4-47 after a telling opening spell from Brett Geeves. If not for the 80-run fifth-wicket stand between Hussey and McDonald, the visitors might have recorded a total below 100.

But Tasmania's chase was plagued by a series of rain breaks that similarly stalled their hopes of building any real batting momentum. The third, and most prolonged, break in play when the Tigers were 5-89 meant the target was reduced to 131. Which meant a reasonably straightforward 42 off 68 balls upon resumption.

Two wickets in as many balls to leg spinner Bryce McGain soon after kept Victoria in the fight, and when Geeves and Brendan Drew dropped in quick succession it was last man Ben Hilfenhaus left to combat the one-Test leggie. Hilfenhaus played out the two remaining deliveries of the penultimate over, and then watched nerveless Travis Birt pick up three from the first ball of the last to deliver some warmth to the stoic Hobart fans.

25 February 2012 (Final – Adelaide Oval)

South Australia 285; 49.4 overs (Klinger 81, D Harris 60, Faulkner 4-75) tied with Tasmania 4-285; 50 overs (Bailey 101, Ponting 75no, Lyon 3-86)

 A reprise of the Hobart final from 25 years earlier, during which time South Australia had failed to land a one-day title, began on a blazing Adelaide afternoon. Batting in the heat of the day, SA's total of 285 was always going to be within reach if one of Tasmania's batting guns fired under lights that evening.

As it was, they both did – George Bailey posting a century and Ricky Ponting riding his luck to 75 when Gary Putland was handed responsibility for the final over. With Tasmania requiring five to win, and their two batting stars at the crease.

Even when Bailey was pinned lbw by the second delivery, it still looked to be the Tigers' title as James 'The Finisher' Faulkner joined Ponting. But that was before Faulkner had honed his final-over skills, and to Ponting's growing frustration he was unable to pierce the infield or get his senior partner on strike.

With two required from the last delivery – and SA knowing a tie would hand them the trophy by dint of their superior position on the competition ladder – Ponting removed his pads to improve his speed between the wickets. Not that it made a difference as Faulkner failed to land bat on ball; a solitary bye was completed and SA claimed the prize despite sharing the result.

27 February 2013 (Final – MCG, Melbourne)

Queensland 9-146; 32 overs (Floros 47, Moller 26, Forrest 26, McKay 2-30) d Victoria 144; 31.4 overs (Handscomb 42, White 28, Harris 4-26, A McDermott 3-29)

A dismal day in Melbourne meant Queensland's innings was halted after 20 overs and, soon after the game resumed with revised playing conditions of 32 overs per side, their predicament became quickly worse. At 7-97 their chances of a competitive score hung in the balance, and it was only Jason Floros's 47 from 32 balls that brought any shift in equilibrium.

But the damp conditions worked in the visitors' favour when they took the ball, with Victoria suddenly 4-42 and in need of mid-innings repair. It came from David Hussey and Cameron White's 63-run stand until Ryan Harris decided the outcome with his final flurry.

In an instructive prelude to his last-day Test heroics in Cape Town a year later, Harris willed himself through Victoria's lower-order who needed to find five runs from his final over with two wickets in hand. Harris conceded a pair of singles from the first two deliveries before Clint McKay edged a fizzer to the keeper, and next ball Fawad Ahmed was caught at second slip pushing timidly forward.

Queensland skipper Chris Hartley's bold ploy to keep his premier seamer in reserve for the final over in such a low-scoring game was ultimately rewarded, and Queensland coach Darren Lehmann would file that knowledge away for when similar scenarios duly arose in the international arena.

27 October 2013 (Final – North Sydney Oval)

New South Wales 6-317; 50 overs (Maddinson 76, Nevill 70, Smith 61, Hopes 3-64) lost to Queensland 5-319; 49.1 overs (Khawaja 104, Hartley 78, Lynn 58no, Bollinger 2-53)

Despite the competition's shift to late autumn when pitches are more likely to favour bowlers, 50-over totals grew exponentially largely due to scheduling at boutique venues such as North Sydney. Although New South Wales' tally was a handful less than the score they had chased down in the semi-final three days earlier (when David Warner blazed 197), they felt happy at change of innings that it would suffice.

When Queensland surged to 0-165 after 30 overs, that confidence looked decidedly misplaced. A couple of mid-innings stumbles raised the Blue's hopes, but they always knew their fate would likely be decided by the Bulls' early incarnation of the Bash Brothers, Chris Lynn and Ben Cutting.

On a ground of such intimate dimensions, the power-hitting pair bided their time to launch themselves at the hapless NSW bowlers until the 47th over arrived. At which stage the requirement of 47 from 24 balls caused them no fear, and with good reason.

Josh Hazlewood's next two overs cost him 35 as Cutting savaged the Test seamer, who finished with 0-87 from his 10 overs – the most expensive return by a bowler in a domestic final. The Bulls then sauntered home with five balls to spare, signalling the arrival of an age whereby no total below 500 can be considered truly safe. Especially at a suburban stadium.