Horsham finished sixth after the regular matches and lost a preliminary final against Hamilton, landing them in a play off against luckless Portland & District at Dudley Cornell Park.

Batting first, Dylan Newell got Horsham off to a brilliant start with a stirring half century that included 6 fours and a six.

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Newell's knock couldn't have come at a better time, with some clutch bowling from Portland meaning Horsham's batters were unable to get started.

It was Newell's third half century in four innings after the young gun scored a blistering 51 (38) in Horsham's preliminary final loss to Hamilton, and 52 (91) against South West Cricket Association in round two.

Horsham put up the relatively modest total of 124, but they had the bowling stock to defend it.

Tight, economical bowling across the board kept Portland & District to just 8-118; with wickets to Max Bunworth (1-6), James Officer (1-6), Harrison Millar (2-17), Newell (1-16) and Jack Henry (1-4).

Horsham's fielding talent was also on display, with two run outs keeping Portland's batters on their toes as they inched closer to their target.

The result came down to the wire, with Portland's Klay Nicholls quickfire 20 (16) - which included 4 fours - late in the game giving his side a chance to chase down the target.

In the end he ran out of time and Horsham ran away winners.

The victory capped off a week of mixed results for the Under 15s, after wins the Western Barbarians and Portland, but losses to South West, Hamilton and (eventual champions) Warrnambool Gold.

It was a week to remember for Jackson Hoffmann, who shared the honours of Player of the Tournament with Warrnambool Blue's Matt Gome.

As a batsman, Hoffman's unbeaten 73* (121) in the preliminary final helped set Hamilton a big total to chase and came at a vital time in the game, as Hamilton's bowlers were making life difficult for Horsham's top order batters.

Meanwhile, the young star also had impressive bowling figures; 0-7 (in round one), 4-40 (round two) and 2-5 (round three).

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In total Hoffmann finished with 141 runs, six wickets and three catches across the five-day tournament.

It was an impressive performance in a team of stirring young talents who should continue to represent the future of Horsham cricket.

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