A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.
Big Country just dropped a bomb on the B Grade.
The Ryan West/Charles Morrison-led Civil Project Solutions Ngatapa Green Caps beat defending Senior B club cricket champions and Hope Cup holders Rawhiti Legal Old Boys Rugby by 106 runs.
The country club’s big win was set up by classy left-handed No.5 batsman Richard Briant (66 not out) and closed out by superb bowling from veteran Grant Walsh, whose off-spin netted him 4-11 from four overs, pace attack spearhead West (2-11 from four) and his new-ball partner EJ Nepe (2-19 from three).
OBR game-day captain Lloyd van Zyl won the toss and chose to bowl on Harry Barker Reserve No.2.
Ngatapa made a solid start with an opening stand of 53 between wicketkeeper Simon Wilson (29) and Jack Jefferd (27).Guest player Jacob Louw took 2-27 on debut for OBR at second change, and the third bowler used, Jonah Reynolds, continued his good form of late, taking 1-26. Both Louw and Reynolds bowled out.
Ngatapa posted a formidable 183-6 in 30 overs, Briant’s 66 off 60 balls proof of their business in the latter stages of the innings.
Walsh bowled four OBR batsmen in an innings that lasted only 18.3 overs and produced just 77 runs in total. As an off-spinner, his changes of pace are subtle and well controlled, and the armball — an outswinger — is as good as ever.
The need to chase at six runs an over from the outset put some pressure on OBR, and it is not easy to force the pace against quality operators like West and Nepe.
Wicketkeeper Heinrich Putter, in at No.3, was the only OBR batsman to spend time at the wicket; the gloveman made 33.
Opening bowler van Zyl has long understood the notion that catches win matches.
“Unfortunately we dropped a few and that allowed Simon (Wilson) and Jack (Jefferd) to steady themselves, then Richard (Briant) got off to a good start and sent anything short to the boundary,” he said.
“We struggled with the bat, except for Heinrich, who did his best to anchor the innings.
“Thumbs up to Ngatapa for a good bowling and batting performance.”
Ryan West was satisfied.
“We just batted around our MVP (most valuable player) Richard Briant.
“Heinrich — their MVP — hit six boundaries off our bowling, but Walshy soon slowed their run-rate. It was a good team win.”
BIG blow-outs were the order of the day in Round 4.
Bollywood High School Old Boys Presidents captain, No.2 batsman and wicketkeeper Ollie Needham led his team to a 141-run win against Campion College on HBR 4.
Needham won the toss and made 88 out of 201-5. He, his opening partner Matt Jefferd (33) and No.5 Blake Crosby (20) effectively put the game beyond a young side without regular captain Hamish Swann due to other sporting commitments.
Campion MVP Aidan Armstrong took 2-19 from three overs and spearhead Rhys Grogan — who stood in for Swann as skipper — was more than tidy with 1-18 from five overs.
Anikate Bandral (1-25 from three overs) continues to develop his loop and variations as a leg-spinner.
Campion were bowled out for 60 in 25.5 overs. Only opening batsman Daniel Baillie (18) and No.5 Grogan (10) made double-figures. Baillie is a gritty cricketer, one of four Campion players in the Poverty Bay side to travel to the Northern Districts under-16 tournament at Whangarei this Sunday.
The destroyer was ageless medium-pacer Mike Francis, who took six wickets for four runs in five overs.
Needham, from the best seat in the house, said: “Marto gets outswing from a full-length and hits the seam, nipping the ball both ways off the deck. We’d built a platform to push our total over 200. Campion — led by Dan Baillie — were patient but came unstuck when they tried to lift the run-rate against our bowling unit. ‘Full and straight’ was the order of the day.
“Marto was, deservedly, the main benefactor in his first outing of the season.”
THE experience of Horouta Te Waka won through against Gisborne Boys’ High School (2).
Horouta won the toss on Harry Barker Reserve No.3 and batted first. They became the first adult side in the competition this season to be bowled out by GBHS — for 112 in 24.5 overs.
Horouta MVP Etienne Botes made a run-a-ball 35 batting at No.5, and Alan Knight made 23 as second drop. Their 61-run stand for the fourth wicket was the clash’s most significant partnership.
Before and after Horouta skipper Mel Knight fell, leg before wicket, second ball to left-arm opening bowler Caleb Taewa (2-15 from five overs), an improved Boys’ High bowling unit took wickets at regular intervals. Outswing bowler Arlo Willis — who shared the Boys’ High MVP award with Taewa — took 4-15 from five by attacking the stumps with a full length.
Makiri twins Akira and Keanu, and Brandon Fearnley — who bowled second change — took a wicket apiece.
Boys’ High skipper Nathaniel Fearnley held three catches.
However, batting — the Boys’ High Achilles’ heel against OBR — hobbled them again in Round 4.
First-change bowler Amandeep Kamboj took 4-12 from three overs and only two of the eight Horouta bowlers used did not take a wicket, to close-set fields. Boys’ High were bowled out for 55 in 29.2 overs. Only Malsha Mahabalage (19), batting at No.8, made the fielders turn and chase the ball.
“With the bat, it’s about a mind-set, having positive intent,” skipper Nathaniel Fearnley said.
“The boys need to look to score.
“Our bowlers’ wide-count is coming down every week, we’re holding 90 percent of our catches and we didn’t give away any overthrows — but we need more runs.”