HCC’s batsmen turned on a superb effort at Nieuw Hanenburg on Saturday to lay the foundation for the club’s first national title for 23 years in front of a crowd estimated at around 1200, running up a match-winning total of 252 for six and effectively playing Quick Haag out of the game.

And then opening bowler Bernie Loots turned in a fine spell to increase the pressure on the home side, who were eventually dismissed for 202 to trigger enthusiastic celebrations by the HCC supporters.

Quick captain Edgar Schiferli struck the first blow by winning the toss and electing to field, and he must have expected that he and his fellow-seamers would be able to repeat last week’s semi-final success. But they simply did not bowl well enough to seize the initiative, as Stephan Myburgh and Tom de Grooth struck a series of boundaries in the opening overs.

Despite a lush, long outfield which took the sting out of many a well-timed attacking stroke, 49 runs came from the first ten overs, De Grooth in particular going onto the offensive, hitting first Schiferli himself and then Somesh Kohli out of the attack.

It was Wes Thomas who achieved the breakthrough, bowling De Grooth for 36 (made off 32 balls) immediately after the 50 had come up, and when Jeroen Smits was run out two deliveries later by a piece of quick thinking by the bowler, it seemed as if Quick might be about to get on top.

But Feiko Kloppenburg joined Myburgh in rebuilding the innings, and after a few comparatively quiet overs they started to accelerate the tempo again. Myburgh was the next to go, his wicket some reward for a steady spell from Geert Maarten Mol, but by this time the total had reached 103 in the 24th over, a splendid platform for the middle order.

Johan Myburgh replaced his younger brother, and he and Kloppenburg continued to punish the loose ball as they put on 58 for the fourth wicket, the third half-century partnership of the innings.

Kloppenburg seemed certain to record the fifty he had narrowly missed against Excelsior, but when he was on 49 – the same score he had made then – he was trapped leg-before by Henk-Jan Mol. He had faced 76 balls, and hit five fours and two sixes.

Piling on the agony and with wickets in hand, HCC now proceeded to add 84 runs off the final ten overs, despite the loss of Johan Myburgh for 42, bowled by Kohli with the total on 194.

Jacob-Jan Esmeijer dominated the final phase of the innings, his 51 coming off 38 balls and including five fours and two sixes. He and Loots had added another 58 before he perished trying to hit the final ball out of the ground, and Quick went to lunch facing a huge task when they replied.

Darron Reekers began in typically belligerent mood, smacking Andrew Murphy for two sixes in one over, and when the young Australian was replaced by Graeme Davey Reekers hit a six and a four off his first two deliveries.

But then he hit the third hard and straight to Johan Myburgh at short midwicket, and the HCC coach snaffled the chance.

Loots had maintained a tight line and length at the other end, and in his seventh over he was rewarded with the wicket of Job van Bunge, edging to Johan Myburgh at second slip. And in Loots’s next Stephan Myburgh took a great catch in the gully, diving to his right to dismiss Henk-Jan Mol.

The pressure was now well and truly on the Quick batsmen, and the situation deteriorated further when Thomas, who had managed just three singles, was beaten by a fast, accurate throw from Stephan Myburgh as he and Jeroen Brand attempted a desperately chancy run.

That made it 60 for four, and the uphill task had suddenly become almost impossibly steep. With so many runs on the board, the HCC bowlers could afford to keep plugging away and wait for the Quick batsmen to make mistakes.

Four overs later Johan Myburgh – the South African-born brothers could suddenly do no wrong – trapped Geert Maarten Mol leg-before, and it was 80 for five.

Brand was batting very sensibly, and he and Lesley Stokkers, keeping the scoreboard ticking over with some intelligent running, kept their side in touch as they put on 26 for the sixth wicket, but the required rate was slowly but surely creeping up towards seven an over.

Loots, whose first eight-over spell had yielded two for 11, came back to maintain pressure, conceding just four more runs in his final two overs.

When Stokkers skied Stephan Myburgh to Bob Entrop at long on it was 106 for six, and seven overs later Brand lost Bobby van Gigch with the total on 140.

The Quick cause seemed lost, but skipper Schiferli had other ideas. After a quiet start, he launched a remarkable attack, taking eleven off an over from John Myburgh and then hitting Davey for a four and successive sixes. 27 had come off eight balls, and the home support dared hope that their side might yet pull off an extraordinary comeback.

But it couldn’t last, and two deliveries later Davey had his revenge as Schiferli tried another massive heave and was bowled. Brand reached a well-deserved half-century off the last ball of the over, but when Maurits Jonkman replaced Davey the batsman sliced his first delivery to backward point, where De Grooth, dropping back, took a great catch.

Brand had faced 75 balls, and hit one four and two sixes.

Thijs van Schelven showed some further resistance in getting the total past 200, but then he was bowled by Jonkman and the HCC supporters flooded onto the field. It had been a long wait, but one could not help feeling sorry for Quick, who had led the way for most of the season only to fall at the final hurdle.