Prospect mouth-watering

CRICKET

Tomorrow’s Hope Cup action features three mouth-watering match-ups.

Round 3 of Senior B club cricket on superb turf wickets at the Harry Barker Reserve has the top-of-the-table clash between two unbeaten sides, two-time defending champions Ngatapa and Old Boys Rugby, led as they are by two of the best thinkers in the game: Mike Gibson and Craig Christophers.

That game will take place on ground 3, with James Raroa the umpire while on ground 4, Marty Bennett will stand as Horouta under Heyan Ranasinghe look for their second win of the season against the Ollie Needham-led High School Old Boys, who — like Campion College and the Gisborne Boys High School Second 11 — have yet to taste victory this season.

Campion captain Liam Spring and GBHS all-rounder Noah Torrance-Cribb are central figures in the school derby on the practice wicket, and the college’s player-coach Mark Naden knows there’s pride on the line.

Naden, whose line-up is keeper, Spring, Blake Marshall, Cameron Rowell, Luke Hurlstone, Matt King, Jonty Fenn, Maddie Ashworth, Reuben Swanepoel, Hamish Swann and Rhys Grogan, expects a hard game.

Many of Campion’s young players have shone in the first two weeks; Boys’ High’s David Gray is in that category for the youngest team in senior cricket. With he, adult player Deevon Gray and Torrance-Cribb will be Year 11 gloveman Jack Whitehead-McKay, Alex Shanks, Kavidu Withanage, Dylan Foster, DJ Penfold, Jarrod Ormiston, John Broad, Kelan Bryant, George Gillies, Bekko Page and Kavidu Vethanage, with a possibility of players being promoted to the first 11 for the Premier grade Doleman Cup game v OBR.

The Civil Project Solutions Ngatapa Green Caps have this week cast their net as far as Tokomaru Bay, to bag Chris Richardson. Harry White took 3-27 in six good overs of medium-pace on debut v Campion last week and in Round 3, Hamish Briant will make his debut for the club, with Gibson, Jack Jefferd, Ryan West, Grant Walsh, Jeremy Castles, Cam McNaught, Paul Randall, and Tim Gardner deputising for Simon Wilson with the gloves.

Ngatapa’s to-do with OBR will be interesting because both are experienced teams.

Rawhiti Legal OBR’s side is Christophers, Amit Vyas, Dean Wrigley, George Reynolds, Jannie Jacobs, Mana Taumaunu, Peter Stewart, Phil Viljoen, Philburgh Viljoen junior, Rongomai Smith, Tama Wirepa and Matt Lotar Mcfatter. Phil Viljoen senior will keep wicket against Ngatapa.

Horouta skipper Heyan Ranasinghe’s team is without keeper Rubi Perano (Ranasinghe to take the gloves up himself), seamer Grace Levy and left-arm spinner Clarrie Campbell but welcome a very good former Northern Districts age-group representative, Tayla Hollis, into the mix.

Etienne Botes, Mel Knight, Kayley Knight, Kavinda Yasith, Hasantha Vithanage, Piumal Madushanka, Greg Taylor, Jayxena Piwari and BJ Seymour make up the 11.

Ollie Needham’s Bollywood HSOB Presidents unit showed improvement in Round 2, having been dismissed for 43 on opening day. The HSOB side led by keeper Needham may feature Glen Udall, Isaac Hughes, Israel Turner, Jeff Chambers, Kyle Jean-Louis, Nathan Quimpo, Inderpreet Singh Bassi, Nicholas Armour, Manvir Kang, Marius Weyers, Michael Francis, Ryan Majstrovic, although three as yet unspecified players may turn out for HSOB’s premier in the Doleman Cup fixture v Horouta.

All 30-over Hope Cup games start at 2pm.