Neither will Havelock North read too much into the way NTOB got in the final - coming through by the skin of their teeth by 18 runs against Ruahine Motors Ford Central Hawke's Bay last Saturday with skipper George Diack declaring: "We batted like extra crap but we were up to it."
On the other hand, the villagers beat The Station Napier Old Boys Marist by 122 runs but Havelock North captain Jared Priest noted that NOBM had bigger fish to fry next month at the New Zealand Club Championship finals in Auckland.
Havelock North No4 batsman Will Hilton says: "We'll be the underdogs but it's the final crunch so anything can happen."
The 23-year-old Englishman from Kent reckons that if his side bowl to their strengths, "not theirs" it will boil down to what happens today, not the season.
"If we're chasing a total, we'll have to be patient," says Hilton who is in his maiden season with the Derek Stirling-coached Havelock but has scored more than 500 runs, including five half tons. His highest score was 72 runs against NOBM just before Christmas in the 55-over red-ball competition that NTOB also won.
The captain of St Lawrence Highland Court CC in southeast England, Hilton snapped up the opportunity to play here after the English club's chairman, Mike Green, posted an email to players keen to arrive here after a request from Havelock counterpart Andy Reeves.
"The cricket here is pretty good and definitely higher than what I'm playing at home," says Hilton, who first came to New Zealand in 2010 to play rugby for Mount Albion Colts XV in Christchurch.
The "good, hard, fast" wickets here have done heaps for his confidence.
"When I was home I was pretty poor by my standards.
"Now I've learned a few things in cricket in general," says the Oxford Brookes University graduate in international hospitality management.
Havelock's robust team spirit has offered the ideal platform for him to see the game in a different perspective, including becoming white-ball savvy considering they only play cricket with the red ball in Kent.
His father, Giles, enjoyed social competitive cricket in his heyday and brother Guy, 21, also plays it so it isn't surprising that Hilton picked up on the benefits of a team existence that offers a competitive environment from the age of 6.
The sound of leather on willow that yields runs resonated whets his appetite.
NTOB opening batsman Josh Paerau is mindful Havelock's bolshy batsman, Graeme Tryon, has scored "some big runs" - 108 runs last Saturday, his second in a row as well as his fourth century this summer - so putting some pressure on him and the other end will be paramount.
Leftie Paerau, who only put his hand up to open for NTOB this summer, says it's imperative they lay down a good platform to enable their bowlers to take wickets.
"No opposition has scored more than 200 against us so if we post a competitive total with Georgie's attacking field [settings] then we'll be okay," says the 23-year-old engineering company labourer from Napier.
Finding it difficult to bat higher up the order in a talented team, Paerau had to settle for 4-5 or 7-8 in the pecking order but grabbed his opportunity this summer.
"I said to Georgie to give me a shot and stayed there [No1] pretty much all year," he says, relishing the chance to take the shine off the ball.
"I like it coming coming on a bit faster because the ball is hard so shots sneak through the gaps for fours," says the batsman who is still in the hunt of a maiden ton but has scored a highest 60-odd to date.
"I just keep getting starts but keep getting out so it's pretty annoying."
Like Hilton, Paerau has ambitions of becoming a savvy club cricketer but takes a que sera sera stance on representative duties.
He and partner Latasha have two boys, Lachlyn, 2, and 3-month-old Thomas, and he trains twice a week and plays on weekends.
"I have a young family and I'm a dad ... so if it [rep honours] comes, it comes," says the former Napier Boys High School First XI player who walked straight into the NTOB mix after leaving school in the 2009-10 season.
Today's final, he says, will be a good challenge between the best two teams in the competition.
MATCH DETAILS
WHO: Complete Flooring Napier Technical Old Boys v Bayleys Real Estate Havelock North.
WHAT: Property Brokers Hawke's Bay premier men's club one-day final.
WHEN: Today, from 11am.
WHERE: Ground No 3, Nelson Park.
TEAMS
HAVELOCK NORTH (from): Jared Priest (c), Ben Fair, James Field, Graeme Tryon, Will Hilton, Ruan Markram, Mitchell van Schaik, Harry Gregory, Todd Astill, Stu McVeigh, Sam Prescott, Jeremy Ketel.
NAPIER TECHNICAL OLD BOYS: Liam Rukuwai, Josh Paerau, Matt Edmondson, Indika Senarathne, Christian Leopard, Goerge Diack (c), Stevie Smidt, Jayden Lennox, Seb Burrow, Cory Hamilton, JK Whyte (wkt).
Coach: Derek Stirling.
Umpires: Glen Walklin (HB No1) and Kim Taylor (HB No2).
