Queensland seal place in final

Queensland 356 beat South Australia 162 and 103 (Cooper 49, McDermott 4-35) by an innings and 91 runs
Scorecard

Alister McDermott helped Queensland secure a place in the Sheffield Shield final, which they will almost certainly host, with an innings victory over South Australia at the Gabba. The Bulls bowled the Redbacks out for 103 in their second innings to confirm the margin of an innings and 91 runs, which highlighted the gulf between the two sides this summer.

Queensland were set to finish on top of the table unless Western Australia could somehow conjure victory against Tasmania in Hobart, which loomed as an almost impossible task. South Australia have ended the season on the bottom of the Shield table without a victory from their ten games, the first time a team has failed to win a match in a Shield campaign since Victoria in 1992-93.

The Redbacks won only one game last summer and two the season before, and face an enormous task to lift themselves out of the mire in the longer format next season. They needed 194 runs in their second innings to make Queensland bat again but they had only two men who reached double figures, the opener Tom Stray (15) and Tom Cooper, who made 49.

McDermott collected 4 for 35, including the final two wickets in one over, but all of Queensland's fast men proved difficult. Ryan Harris took 2 for 20 off 19 miserly overs, James Hopes was even more economical with 2 for 9 from 12 overs, and Steve Magoffin picked up 2 for 27.