The Pointies survived a tight finish in the final to edge past district team Ballan’s 120 runs with three wickets in hand and 10 balls remaining in the final at Brown Hill on Sunday afternoon.

Point captain Josh White said the unfamiliar rival really challenged his team and put up a great battle.

“We were under a bit of pressure. I think they fielded really well and set a great example for the district competition – all credit to them,” White said.

“We had to play at 100 per cent and we certainly didn’t want to ease off against them.”

Both finalists earn a spot in the Central Highlands Region play-offs, Cricket Willow Cup, on Australia Day. 

Ballan was the only BCA district team to reach the BCA Twenty20 Cup semi-finals, taking on the club competition giants after finishing fourth in overall rankings from four preliminary rounds the past fortnight.

The Navy Blues staked their spot in the final with a 50-run victory against an undefeated Ballarat-Redan in a semi-final at Alfredton on Sunday morning.

Point also had to overcome an undefeated powerhouse in Mount Clear for its semi-final that morning – claiming a second upset win against the Mounties for the weekend, polishing off a club firsts victory on Saturday.

“That was probably our best performance,” White said.

“(Mount Clear) had a good team in and we had a few young guys; they stepped in and did really well.”

And so it came down to a good final battle in misty rain.

Simon Ogilvie and Dan White led Point’s bowling charge – Ogilvie took 4-11 while White claimed 3-10 – but youngster Bailey Van De Heuvel continued his strong form with 2-12 off his four overs.

The Ogilvie-White tag team had Ballan in big trouble at 5-21.

Ballan’s number seven bat Daniel Romeo stepped up to salvage the order with 43 runs (including four fours), while Ryan Aquilina added a handy 23 runs.

Ogilvie then turned ruthless with the bat, smashing 25 (six fours) off 15 balls to open the Point tally with Andrew Falkner (21 runs), who has been a consistently good run-maker this Twenty20 Cup series.

Point’s English batsman David Whapplington continued his strong batting form to make 34 runs, but his batting partners started to crumble.

Ballan grew more vocal and upbeat in the field.

It was a tense finish for Point, which lost a flurry of wickets when nearing its target, including seventh wicket Brad Lockyer just three runs short of victory.

Ballan captain Mick Nolan said the series was a lot of fun and, while the final did not go Ballan’s way, it was a great learning experience for the district contender.

“The boys were pretty excited, especially after (winning) the morning game to get through to the granny,” Nolan said.

“No one expected us to make finals, let alone get into the granny.”

melanie.whelan@fairfaxmedia.com.au