Horouta beat Campion by eight wickets three weeks ago and Presidents by 10 wickets on Saturday, so form suggests it will take the type of magic that Barbier conjured up last year for Campion to knock out Horouta in consecutive seasons.
On Saturday, Presidents captain Mike Francis, deputising for Isaac Hughes, opted to bat.
The Presidents were all out for 67 in 23.2 overs, seamers doing the damage. Left-armer Keegan Martin took 3-20, Horouta MVP (most valuable player) Billy Morse took 2-8 off six overs, including two maidens, and Tushar Balat took 1-9 off six, two of them maidens.
The Presidents’ best batsman was Amandeep Kamboj at No.9. His unbeaten 17 off seven balls featured two sixes. The next leading run-scorers were opener Luke Fisher, No.5 Kyle Jean-Louis and No.8 Herman Fourie, with eight runs each.
Horouta openers David Situ (32 off 26 balls) and Franco Calucci (30 off 23 balls) then saw Horouta home without incident in 9.2 overs.
“We maintained our high standard with the ball, in the field and with the bat throughout in a solid team performance,” team captain Situ said.
“Billy (Morse) bowled especially well. He built pressure and reaped the rewards.”
Francis rued his team’s putting four catches down in the first six overs, yet remained philosophical.
“Winning the toss was probably a highlight for us but our MVP was Luke (Fisher) for sticking to his task. He took a nasty blow to the ribs but kept batting.”
There’s nothing like a scurry and a flurry to finish.
OBR (2) leg-spinning all-rounder Dylan Foster batted superbly, with positive intent, for 25 at the end of Saturday’s clash with the Stirling Logging Ngatapa Green Caps.
Thirteen-year-old Foster hit two boundaries in his 21-ball knock from No.9, the last of four excellent individual innings in the match.
Will Faulks’s 51, from No.7, was the biggest score in Ngatapa’s 159 in 29.1 overs, the Lyle Crudis-led Ngatapa earlier having won the toss.
OBR’s juniors, inspired by debutant Joe Walsh (3-28 off six overs), were sensational. Budding seamers Cohen Loffler (4-19 off six) and Nathan Trowell (3-27 off six) bowled accurately and achieved movement of the ball in the air and off the seam.
OBR (2) reached 133 in 29.5 overs in the run-chase, Walsh (No.5) making 43.
Ngatapa opening bowler Phil Cook took 3-12 off 5.1 overs and the wily Chris Hurlstone, 2-23 off five.
Ngatapa are a solid side, heading towards the business end of the season.
“It was a great game,” Crudis said.
“Our MVP would have to be Will Faulks with his 50. Bowling-wise, we just tried to keep it tight and force them into making mistakes.”
