It was another National Championship to remember for the NSW Open Men's team at ACT, with the Blue Bloods registering an unbeaten run throughout the course of the tournament en route to their fourth title win. Featuring ACT, Queensland and Victoria, this year's John Reid Shield was held between January 25-29 at Hawker, ACT. 

Coached by Peter Rainer, the Open Men began their tournament with two massive wins against Queensland and ACT, featuring Jack Besgrove and Harri Peters who combined for a no-hitter as well as Mitchell Brownlow's 7RBIs from 3ABs in the former game. In their game against ACT, Jeremy Garland led the hitters with 4RBIs from 3ABs. NSW continued their winning ways on day 2 as well, registering convincing wins against Victoria, Queensland and ACT. Peters and Besgrove combined yet again for the no hitter while Jeremy Garland and James Todhunter notched up 2 RBIs each against Victoria. In their 8-6 win against Queensland, Thomas Cass scored 3RBIs from 3ABs while James Todhunter brought in another 2RBIs. 

Two wins followed on day 3 against Victoria and ACT, with home runs by Ryan King, Jeremy Garland, Mitchell Brownlow and Hayden Mathews against Victoria, while James Todhunter's 2RBI double and back-to-back homers by Hayden Mathews and Todhunter secured their win against the latter. The Blue Bloods wrapped up their round robin in style the following day, registering a 5-0 win against Queensland and a massive 20-3 result against Victoria. In the latter, James Todhunter recorded an incredible 6RBIs from 3ABs, while their earlier game in the day saw Hayden Mathews hit a first-pitch homerun and Harrison Peters pitched 7.0, allowing four hits and taking 12 strike outs. 

The Grand Final

A well-contested semi-final against Queensland resulting in an 8-7 win saw our Blue Bloods secure their spot against Victoria in the Grand Final. Despite a quiet start in the first innings, NSW picked up their momentum not long after, registering much of the damage in the next three innings. Thomas Cass smashed a mighty homer in the second innings, followed by another homerun by Hayden Mathews. Ryan King and Jeremy Garland joined the patty with a home run each in the third and fourth innings respectively. 

To seal the deal, Jack Besgrove put on another powerful performance to take five strikeouts and allow just the one hit from five innings pitched, wrapping up the Grand Final by the bottom of the 5th innings with a 7-0 result. NSW brought home their fourth title, while also successfully defending the same from last year. 

Watch the full highlights of the Grand Final 

A Clean Sweep of All the Awards

• Rosemary Adey Rookie of the Year: Jeremy Garland (New South Wales)
  • 9 Games Played
  • 12 At Bats
  • 7 Hits
  • 0.583 Batting Average
  • 0.692 On Base Average
  • 4.729 ERA
  • 12 Innings Pitched
• Best Pitcher: Harrison Peters (New South Wales)
  • 20 Innings Pitched
  • 0.350 Earned Run Average
  • 75 Batters Faced
  • 31 Strikeouts
  • 0.413 Strikeout Average
• Best Batter: James Todhunter (New South Wales)
• Most Valuable Player: James Todhunter (New South Wales)
  • 9 Games Played
  • 30 Plate Appearances
  • 0.560 Batting Average
  • 1.320 Slugging Average
  • 0.700 On Base Average
  • 14 Hits
  • 15 RBIs
  • 6 Home runs
  • 1.000 Field Average
• Player of the Grand Final: Jack Besgrove (New South Wales)
  • 5 Innings Pitched
  • 22 Batters Faced
  • 1 Hit
  • 5 Strikeouts