The title holding Colts had to find form eventually, but ORC will be rueing some poor fielding and ill-disciplined bowling after failing to defend a reasonable total of 6-174.

Colts opener Greg Adams smashed a 73-ball 80 to carry his team to victory.

Adams was well supported by Robbie Clifford, who chipped in with a well-paced 51, as the pair shared an 87-run fourth wicket partnership at a stage when their side looked in some difficulty.

“Thank goodness for that,” Colts captain Jeff Clancy said after notching his maiden first grade win.

“Usually in the past we have relied on a handful of guys putting decent scores in to win us games, but geez, it was good to see Greg hit them the way he did.

“It was bloody good to watch.”

Having won the toss and elected to bowl, Colts were their own worst enemies in the opening half of the ORC innings, grassing one sitter off Tigers opener Tim Halloran and leaving another skier to fall safely between two fielders.

Halloran was also fortunate to survive a huge run-out appeal, but couldn’t truly capitalise and fell for 47.

Scott Inwood made 20 as the pair put on 55 for the opening wicket, and looked to set their team up for a later onslaught.

At the 20 over mark, ORC were 1-61, and lifted the scoring sufficiently in the back end of their innings to reach 6-174.

That was thanks mainly to Wayne Sellers, who sent one ball disappearing from the small venue and hit another six and two fours in his 30, while Adrian Mielke didn’t waste any time making 27 not out.

Paul Clancy was the only multiple wicket-taker for Colts (2-38), but Jono Rosconi was easily the pick of the bowlers and snared 1-12 off eight.

“I was surprised they [ORC] didn’t try and tee off a bit earlier, they had wickets in hand but having said that I thought our guys, particularly Jono Rosconi, bowled well and didn’t give a lot of free hits,” Jeff Clancy said.

The most identifiable reason Colts have struggled this season to win games has been the amount of players missing from their top order and the lack of big scores coming from those who are still there, but Adams changed all that.

He lost opening partner Rosconi (nine) in the third over of the innings but after some initial caution unfurled a scintillating sequence of lofted drives, cuts and pulls.

Mick Fardon removed Ben Curran (four) and then Paul Clancy next ball to what surely was one of the catches of the season from Mitch Botham at cover. He plucked a certain boundary out of mid-air and at that point a collapse loomed.

However, Adams held firm and began to put his side on top.

He nicked a Sam Debenham long-hop on 45 but the chance was spilt and 10 runs later another chance went to ground in the decisive phase of the match.

Clifford gave stout support with his second half-century of the season and by the time Adams did finally fall to Fardon (3-15 off eight) for 80, the game was firmly in Colts’ grasp at 4-132 with 16 overs still to bat.

Scott Howarth (two) and Brendan Lindsay (nought) fell in the space of an over to raise brief hopes of a miracle ORC win, but Tony Clancy (19 not out) steered his side home with eight overs still in hand.

“Robbie was excellent, he’s one of the most relaxed guys and he was actually asleep when Paul got out, he was going to face a hat-trick ball and was still plucking grass out of his hair,” the victorious skipper said.

“I really hope that game can turn things around and kick-start our season.”