Secondary schools’ competition gives youngsters chance

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CRICKET

IT gives them a chance — that’s what the Poverty Bay secondary schools’ T15 competition on Friday afternoons does for young cricketers.

The nine-a-side league mixing seniors and juniors produced another cracker of a match in Round 2, with the Cohen Loffler-led Gisborne Boys’ High School Tradition beating GBHS Heritage under Nathan Trowell by six wickets.

Trowell won the toss on an artificial wicket at Nelson Park, his crew batting first and being dismissed for 101 in exactly 15 overs.

Left-hander Adam Whibley, the school’s head prefect this year, made 36 off 18 balls at No.5 and opener Trowell made 27 off 29 balls.

Noah Torrance-Cribb (2-11 off two overs) bowled an extremely good line and his fellow seamer, Lukas Fry, bowled left-arm round the wicket to get Whibley; Fry took 1-11 off one over.

Tradition opener big-hitting Jacob Colbert (12 balls) and first-drop Daniel Watts (36 balls) both scored 28 in the chase; Watts was not-out.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Jack Whitehead-McKay (11) at No.4 brought up the win with a leg-glance for four off former Boys’ High first 11 captain Paul Stewart from the last ball of the 13th over.

Stewart said: “Dan Watts impressed me with the bat.He defended the good balls and went after the bad balls. He looked good.

“Heritage medium-pace bowler Matt Foster kept his line and length and was rewarded when Jacob (caught by Trowell on the midwicket boundary) made a mistake.”