There is something in the water at Claremont-Nedlands Cricket Club.

Maybe it’s Scotch. Scotch College that is.

The PSA institution borders the Tigers’ home ground Cresswell Park and it’s no coincidence there’s a higher proportion of Old Scotch Collegians in the first XI.

And they celebrated long and hard, like old Scotch boys do, after winning their fifth consecutive one-day title.

“I think we could call it roughly half the team,” captain and Perth Scorchers’ batsman Nick Hobson said this week.

“Joel Paris was two years above me (at Scotch), Tim David and Matt Kelly were a year below me.

“Young Matt Cameron who has played a couple of games. And there are some at other clubs as well. I remember my first (junior) district game when I was 10 or 11 and Joel and Tim we were all in a similar age group.

“We have grown up playing a lot of cricket together, which definitely helps.”

Hobson is one of five Tigers to have played in each of the five one-day flags, alongside Dan Turkich, Haydan Morton, Jacob Whiteaker and Brad Hope.

Off-spinner Turkich was man of the match in the one-day final, complementing his 4-21 with four maidens, while left-armer Morton finished with 3-23.

After bowling Fremantle out for 97, opener Hobson was unbeaten and top scored with 47 off 58 balls, featuring five fours.

He also took a one-handed blinder at second slip to lead the Tigers to an eight-wicket victory.

“I hope they caught that on camera. So it’s not just talk in five years when we have a reunion,” he said.

Hobson said Claremont’s success had not come by chance, but through hard work and a squad mentality fostered by coach and veteran Jim Allenby.

“Jim being the coach and director of cricket and being an influence for a number of years has been really good at striking a balance of setting high standards and enjoying yourself,” Hobson said.

“It’s definitely the environment. When were were teenagers in our early 20s, we had some really good players at the club to watch and learn off.”

“It makes a massive difference because they kind of carry you and then when they go you help the others out. It’s a combination of all those things I think that makes the club.”

The one-day win was reward near the end of a frustrating season for Hobson, an accountant with Ernst and Young’s restructuring team who used much of his annual leave this season to go part-time and dedicate himself to cricket.

Left-hander Hobson played the final five matches with the Scorchers in 2018-19, top scoring with 43, and earned a full contract for BBL09.

But the season was over before it started as Hobson ruptured the lateral ligaments in his ankle, rolling it on a boundary rope during the warm-up for the Big Bash game against Hobart Hurricanes at the start of January.

He was 12th man for that game but was expected to slot in when Ashton Agar and Ashton Turner were picked in the Australian squad for the ODI tour of India.

“Things didn’t quite work out, hopefully they do next season.” he said.

“Before this season I think I’d played six years of A-grade and missed one week with injuries. It was pretty frustrating.”

The Tigers kept their one-day celebrations short as they sit on top of the two-day ladder with two matches remaining as they aim for three titles in a row.

“We honestly don’t talk about it until either side of grand finals,” Hobson said.

“It’s a horrible cliche in sport, but you keep preparing each week and then all of a sudden you find yourself in with a chance of getting a result.”

Action picture: David Woodley