Bay cricket: Greerton defend Baker Cup against Cadets

COMPETITIVE: The Williams Cup takes centre stage in Baywide cricket on Saturday. PHOTO: FILE

The Baker Cup competed for by the five Western Bay of Plenty premier teams within Baywide Cricket has gone full circle since the Williams Cup began in early January.

Eves Realty Greerton started the Baywide Championship with the Baker Cup in their possession but lost it to Element IMF Cadets on the opening day of Williams Cup competition.

Carrus Mount Maunganui relieved Cadets of the challenge prize, before Greerton seized it back last weekend after chasing down the Mount Maunganui target of 233.

Today Greerton square off with Cadets at Pemberton Park with the Baker Cup sitting on the sideline.

After an indifferent Baywide Cup, Greerton have been in rare form in the Williams Cup, chasing down big targets in the last three weeks to sit at the top of Williams Cup standings (by points differential) from Mount Maunganui and Cadets.

Their never-say-die attitude was exemplified when they chased down a massive Cooney Lees Morgan Tauranga Boys' College total of 341.

Cadets have won all three occasions the two rivals have met this season. While they have again lost three players to the Bay of Plenty Hawke Cup side they lead both the Williams Cup batting and bowling stakes. Morton Freer has scored 229 runs to lead the batting stakes, while Kamal Bains, Scott Steward and Ben Christensen hold down the top three bowling spots.

Mount Maunganui and Tauranga Boys' College will square off at Tauranga Boys' 2016/17 temporary headquarters at Blake Park three.

A big part of the Mount Maunganui run of form in recent seasons is wicketkeeper Matt Golding who has taken five catches and effected two stumpings in the Williams Cup. Tauranga Boys' keeper Tom Renouf is equally agile behind the stumps and lets few balls get away from him.

New World Te Puke got their first Williams Cup winning runs on the board when they defeated Tauranga Boys' in a high-scoring encounter last weekend.

Long-time Te Puke player Tai Bridgman-Raison dominated proceeding, smashing the season's highest score of 174. Today Te Puke travel to Rotorua to play Bayleys Central Indians in a game that could go down to the wire.

BOPCA Williams Cup draw, Saturday

Bayleys Central Indians v New World Te Puke, Smallbone Park; Cooney Lees Morgan Tauranga Boys' College v Carrus Mount Maunganui, Blake 3; Eves Realty Greerton v Element IMF Cadets, Pemberton Park.
Williams Cup Points Table: Eves Realty Greerton 29, Carrus Mount Maunganui 29, Element IMF Cadets 29, Bayleys Central Indians 12, New World Te Puke 11, Cooney Lees Morgan Tauranga Boys' College 5.

WBOPCA Reserve Grade draw, Saturday
Pool One: Tauranga Boys' College v Lake Taupo CC, Blake2; Geyser City v Sikh Sports, Boord Park; Katikati v R&A Sangha, Fergusson 2.

Points Table: Lake Taupo CC 60, Tauranga Boys' College 60, Geyser City 43, Sikh Sports 35, R&A Sangha 19, Katikati 15.

Pool Two: Aquinas College v Whakatane United, Fergusson3; Te Puke v Greerton, Te Puke Domain; Mount Maunganui v Cadets, Blake1.

Points Table: Whakatane United 60, Te Puke 47, Greerton 46, Aquinas College 29, Cadets 28, Mount Maunganui 21.

B Grade
Mount Maunganui v Tauranga Boys' College thirds, Blake4; Albion v Wanderers, Fergusson1; Bethlehem College v Grasshoppers, Bethlehem College; Singh XI v Mount Maunganui Colts, Gordon Spratt Reserve.

Points Table: Tauranga Boys' College 12, Singh XI 12, Bethlehem College 12, Wanderers 12 Mount Maunganui 12, Grasshoppers 6, Albion 6, Mount Maunganui Colts 0.