Those two successes guaranteed Wairarapa a place in the top eight so the 11-6 defeat by Southland in the last of the pool games was of little consequence results-wise but an injury to gun pitcher Tony Nixon, which sidelined him for the rest of the tourney, did dampen spirits to a degree.
The quarter-finals had Wairarapa drawn against Wanganui and with Justin Karaitiana taking over the pitching duties they thoroughly deserved the 10-5 victory which took them into a semifinal against defending champions, and hometown favourites, Otago.
In an enthralling match Wairarapa prevailed 6-3 and it was on to the final against a powerful Auckland squad. There Wairarapa lost 5-0 but they were not disgraced.
Clarke said the secret to Wairarapa's impressive showing was the composure displayed under pressure.
"Most of our guys have been around the softball scene a good while and there was never any panic in the ranks," he said.
Individually Karaitiana was outstanding, not only for his pitching but for his powerhouse batting, an area in which Terry Waitere also excelled. They both struck several home runs.
Waitere was a standout in the field too, pulling off some spectacular catches.
Their 4-2 win over Tawa in the Inter-City premier two final represented a first for Giants in that they had not won that particular title before. Coach Mark Fricker was part of the Wairarapa line-up at the Evergreens nationals and taking his place was Danny Brown, who could not play because of a knee injury. He would have been delighted at a strong all-round performance, led by Michael McDermott whose consistent pitching and batting provided an excellent example to his team-mates.
Making the Giants victory even more notable was the fact they had lost their first five games of the season and just to reach the final, let alone win it, represented a wonderful comeback from a squad most of whom are aged under 21.
This Saturday will see Giants vets take on Wainuiomata in the semifinals of the Hutt Valley President's grade competition.
