HSOB in dominant form

Cricket Final HSOB v OBR - (Back) - Marshall Norris, Dave Castle, Daniel Torrie, Angus Orsler, Gaurav Chetan Kashyap, Jagroop Singh - (Front) - Scott Tallott, Glen Udall, Carl Shaw, Baxter Mackay, AJ Kumar, Sean Wills

HIGH School Old Boys claimed Poverty Bay Cricket's Doleman Cup with a nine-wicket victory over OBR on Saturday.

Bollywood Stars HSOB played some flashy cricket as they cruised to their 164-run target after Coastal Concrete OBR had been dismissed for 163 in 36.3 overs at Harry Barker Reserve.

An 85-run opening partnership between captain Carl Shaw (62 not out) and Scott Tallott (45) set a fantastic platform for HSOB.

It looked almost unbreakable before Tallott was dismissed, caught at backward point by Jack Faulkner off David Gray's bowling as he looked to smash a late cut to the shortened hockey-turf-side boundary.

Tallott's innings set up HSOB for their run-chase, Shaw said.

The OBR total was a “decent score in a final”.

“There's lots of pressure and we needed to perform to get there,” Shaw said.

“Scott batted really maturely, (with) great patience, shot selection and running. He calmed a lot of nerves.”

Tallott and Shaw looked in control as they dealt with the new ball and started to punish wayward deliveries, a trend that continued with the introduction of Dave Castle (39 not out), who combined with Shaw to see the game out in commanding fashion.

The match had started positively for HSOB. They had OBR at 30-3, with Angus Orsler (2-27) taking both OBR openers' wickets early in the innings with two great deliveries edged through to wicketkeeper Glen Udall.

OBR stabilised through Ian Loffler (17) and Josh Adams (46), who combined for a 65-run fourth-wicket partnership.

They gave HSOB issues as a left-right combination. This was evident from a 13-delivery Dan Torrie over that featured seven wides as the batsmen kept changing strike.

Adams was the star of the OBR innings and deserved a half-century, but fell just short. He was bowled by Castle, having been dropped on the boundary one delivery before.

Adams's dismissal brought captain Nick Greeks to the crease.

He looked dangerous as he opened up and hit some big shots — four fours and a six — before he was dismissed for 37 by a great catch on the boundary by Angus Orsler. Greeks had been looking to hit the ball straight for six.

With Greeks out, the momentum had swung and HSOB pounced.

The last four OBR wickets fell for 15 runs. Their innings ended 21 balls short and gave them a tough total to defend, but the task looked achievable with their bowling attack on a lush green pitch that suited bowlers.

OBR threw everything they had at HSOB, and used eight bowlers to try to force a breakthrough.

But HSOB expertly navigated the waters to become the 2021/22 holders of the Doleman Cup.

Shaw said he was extremely proud of his team's performance, and commended Castle for his work with bat and ball.

“Dave bowled exceptionally well in the middle to build the pressure, and I'm really happy with how we stayed up (in the field) and supported each other.”

It was great to see Castle coming in to finish the game, stepping up and not leaving the hard work to someone else.

It was also good to see batting partnerships forming.

“We're really looking forward to the second half of the season.”

Efforts to contact OBR skipper Greeks for comment were unsuccessful.

OBR 163 in 36.3 overs (Josh Adams 46, Nick Greeks 37; Jagroop Singh 3-17, Dave Castle 2-23, Angus Orsler 2-27).

HIGH SCHOOL OLD BOYS 164-1 in 25.4 overs (Carl Shaw 62 not out, Scott Tallott 45, Dave Castle 39no).