Cricket: Williamson's school record finally beaten

HISTORY REPEATS: Tim Pringle and his Otumoetai Intermediate teammates hope to win the NZ Active Post Cricket Cup.PHOTO/JOHN BORREN

A new breed of talented cricketers from Otumoetai Intermediate have proved Neil Finn wrong when he penned the Split Enz hit song History Never Repeats.

In 2003, Otumoetai Intermediate won the right to represented Northern Districts at the national play-offs and they came home victorious with the New Zealand Cup. The team captain was Black Cap Kane Williamson, who scored 426 runs in the preliminary games and then scored three consecutive centuries in the national finals in Palmerston North - making his first mark on the national scene.

Now, 12 years later, Otumoetai Intermediate are off to the same nationals in November for the first time since. They defeated Tauranga Intermediate in the Northern Districts Active Post final held in Papakura on Monday.

And that run-scoring record of Williamson's has finally been broken. Opening batsman and captain Tim Pringle scored 429 runs in six innings without being dismissed.

Pringle, the 12-year-old son of former Black Caps bowler Chris Pringle, rates Williamson as his favourite player and would love to meet him one day.

"Kane is just so calm. If he blocks out a maiden he will get over it and then get a couple of boundaries and time it beautifully. His calmness is what I have tried to copy from him. I am just stoked for the boys, as well as for myself," said Tim, who was named Player of the Tournament for his batting and sharp, left arm pace bowling.

"I think our chances of winning (the New Zealand Cup) are quite high."

He rates his innings against local rivals Tauranga Intermediate and Aquinas College as his best.

"The hundred was against Whakatane and they were not probably as strong as Tauranga and Aquinas. It is still a hundred but I don't count it as my best innings. I was stoked to win against Tauranga. It felt really good and we bowled extremely well. We got them out for 95 and chased them down easily."

To qualify as one of two Bay of Plenty schools at this week's tournament, Otumoetai lost to Tauranga Intermediate and defeated Aquinas College and Whakatane Intermediate.

This week, they had wins over Fairfield Intermediate, Morrinsville Intermediate and finally Tauranga Intermediate in the final.

Otumoetai coach Richard Smith says everyone is very proud of what the team has gone through.

"It has been very timely with the Cricket World Cup and we were all down in the dumps on Monday morning when we went up to Auckland but we had two days of great cricket and now we are happy again," he said. Smith says getting the team fit and prepared well is his goal between now and November's national play-offs.