Briant takes six wickets

BEST FIGURES SO FAR: Campion College seamer Max Briant bowls to a Gisborne Boys’ High School Colts batsman. Against High School Old Boys (2) in Hope Cup cricket on Saturday, Briant took six wickets for eight runs in four overs, two of them maidens. They were the best bowling figures in local club cricket so far this season. File picture by Paul Rickard

CRICKET

What a performance. Fifteen-year-old Max Briant on Saturday produced the best bowling figures in Poverty Bay club cricket so far this season.

The Year 10 student took six wickets for eight runs in four overs, two of them maidens, in Campion College’s win against High School Old Boys (2).

Briant, a 6ft 5in (1.95m) seamer, said he was pleased with his line and length, and with the way he limited the scoring.

“I was stoked with it,” he said.

Max’s uncle Richard Briant held two catches for him first-up at mid-off.

Twice Max was on a hat-trick, and he bowled four HSOB batsmen for ducks.

Campion won this Round 1 Hope Cup match by 31 runs, despite the best efforts of opener Mike Francis, who scored 50 runs off 57 balls. HSOB were dismissed for 95 in 20.5 overs.

Campion player-coach Mark Naden said his team “bowled their hearts out” and HSOB showed an “awesome” spirit of fair play.

“In the first innings, they called Liam Spring back after he’d been given out leg before wicket . . . he’d actually hit the ball first.”

Campion won the toss and batted first. They made 126-9 in 30 overs.

Openers Naden (34 runs) and Spring (27) put on 64 before the first wicket fell, two balls into the 15th over. Spring batted well and confidently.

For HSOB, Harmanpreet Singh (3-30 off seven overs), Francis (2-29 off seven) and Jake Theron (2-33 off 5.1) were the pick of the bowlers.

Leg-spinner Liam Barbier and seamer Luke Hurlstone opened the bowling for Campion. Blake Marshall (1-16 off five overs, three of them maidens) and Sam Briant were first and second change respectively.

Then Max Briant and co-captain Nathan Andrews (2-21 off six overs) turned the game on its head.

Onwards and upwards — that will no doubt be the attitude of Ngatapa heading into the clash with High School Old Boys (2) this Saturday — their Hope Cup campaign had a difficult start.

Coastal Ultrasound Horouta beat them by nine wickets in 5.4 overs of the 30-over game.

Horouta captain Clarence Campbell won the toss and chose to bowl.

Ngatapa, a side with a good number of players new to cricket, were all out for 48 in 14.3 overs. Middle-order batsman Andrew Knight top-scored with 13.

For Horouta, burly left-armer Keegan Martin took 3-9 off four overs, Tushar Balat took 3-15 off four, the wily Campbell took 2-12 off three, and Billy Morse took 1-8 off four.

Horouta replied with 50-1. Opener David Situ (29 not out) scored the winning runs with his sixth boundary. Amit Vyas was on 10no.

Ngatapa used four bowlers, all of whom have wicket-taking potential plus a little pace and bounce to go with it.

Horouta are well-led and experienced, but look for Ngatapa to give their future Hope Cup opponents the odd hurry-up before Christmas.