Double hat-trick and a tied game in juniors

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

It’s extremely rare. But on Wednesday night, Blake Marshall did it in the High School Old Boys Pups’ six-wicket win against the Bollywood Stars.

He took a double hat-trick — four wickets in four balls — as the Pups dismissed the Stars for 76 in 12 overs in T15 nine-a-side cricket at Nelson Park.

The feat is called a double hat-trick because the three-in-three sequence can be compiled in two ways — wickets 1, 2 and 3 or wickets 2, 3 and 4.

In all, Marshall took five wickets — the first caught and bowled, the next three bowled, and the last caught by wicketkeeper Jack Whitehead-McKay — for seven runs in two overs.

Stars captain Liam Spring, batting at No.4, made 28 from 22 balls. Opener Matt Foster (18 off 16) also batted well before Marshall zeroed in on the stumps.

Pups colossus Max Briant, who made 58 not out against the Eastland Broncos in T30 competition on Saturday, backed that up with 46 off 27 balls on Wednesday night. He hit a six and eight fours.

He — like Spring for the Stars — demolishes short-pitched bowling on the artificial pitches. Henry Watson (1-7 off one over) took the wicket of Briant after another medium-pacer, Matthew van Zyl (1-3 off one), had earlier claimed that of Briant’s opening partner, Ben Phelps, for 14.

Pups first-drop Luke Fisher and No.4 Rhys Grogan were on seven runs apiece when victory was achieved in 9.4 overs.

They’ll talk about this. An eventful junior cricket season threw up yet another surprise on Wednesday: a tie.

All-rounder Travis O’Rourke, who made an unbeaten 50 against the Stars on Saturday, hit the purest of strokes to find the boundary for Auto Tyre Eagles off the last ball of the 15th over to tie the match and finish on 48 not out off 24 balls. He hit seven fours and two sixes, with a strike rate of 200.

O’Rourke’s game-tying shot was a leg-glance off the bowling of Cohen Loffler, whose Broncos had cruised to 151-3.

Classy second drop Nathan Trowell (51 off 20 balls, with nine fours and a six) and No.3 Luke Hurlstone (45 off 30, with seven boundaries) were in great nick for the Broncos.

Brayden Sycamore (1-14 off two overs) was excellent value with the ball for the Eagles. Sycamore is one of the players finding their feet — and confidence — in the revamped grade.

The Eagles lost four wickets on their way to 151. Opener DJ Penfold continued his good form with the bat, scoring 40 from 30 balls, and hitting six fours and a six in the process.