CRICKET
White-hot favourites meet the ultimate underdogs — that’s tomorrow’s clash between competition leaders Rawhiti Legal Old Boys Rugby and winless Gisborne Boys’ High School (2).
A 40 run-loss to Bollywood High School Old Boys Presidents last week was as close as Boys’ High (2) had come to victory 10 rounds into the 16-game season.
HSOB are snapping at the heels of second-placed Civil Project Solutions Ngatapa Green Caps, with Siteworx Horouta and Campion College fourth and fifth respectively.
OBR defeated Boys’ High by eight wickets in the season opener and by 92 runs in Round 6.
Tomorrow’s match will be played on a firm Harry Barker Reserve No.4 pitch — site of the clubs’ second meeting — and OBR skipper Craig Christophers has two aims heading into Round 11.
“Our focus is on limiting extras — in some 30-over games this season we’ve had to bowl 36 or 37 overs because of wides — plus we’re looking for massive performances from Jannie Jacobs (bat) and Amit Vyas (ball),” Christophers said.
“Amit is Poverty Bay cricket’s only mystery spinner: expect a surprise, as he has been working on a new delivery — the ‘long snapper’.”
Boys’ High skipper Dylan Foster’s aim is for his crew to bat deep. That’s a realistic goal, as they were bowled out with only four balls left in the sides’ second meeting.
Noah Torrance-Cribb struck 29 off only 38 balls on that occasion, and wicketkeeper Alex Shanks is coming off a 35-ball knock of 47 against HSOBP. They need to play well again, as do outswing bowler Bekko Page (2-28 off six overs against HSOB last Saturday) and promising medium-pacer Akira Makiri (2-15 off three). Makiri and his twin Keanu debuted with distinction in Round 10.
Campion College want tomorrow’s battle with Horouta to be a case of “third time lucky”.
Horouta, who hold the Naden-Taylor Trophy, play Campion on HBR 1. Last time these teams met, Horouta won by six wickets, and the time before that, by eight wickets.
Campion player-coach Mark Naden bowled six overs straight with the new ball in the second meeting, and does not intend that his crew should be dismissed for 88 again, as they were on October 31.
“We’ll honour the late Vaughan Thompson, in whose memory the trophy is contested, by playing in the spirit of the game,” Naden said.
“We’ll bowl six good-length balls and field our hearts out.
“When we bat, that’s about keeping the good ball out and punishing the bad one.”
Campion have four talented Year 9 players — promising pace bowlers Taye McGuinness and Connor Starck, and hard-hitting batsman Reuben Swanepoel and Daniel Bailie.
Bailie has the potential to be a good gloveman but can also bowl excellent leg-spin; Swanepoel bowls good off-spin.
Horouta captain Mel Knight sees it as important for her team to retain top-order wickets when batting and minimise the width given by her outfit’s bowlers. As an offie, she did just that in taking 1-21 off six overs in the last meeting and, remarkably, 2-5 from four overs on an artificial pitch at Nelson Park before that.
Tomorrow’s match could be a low-scoring, tight tussle. Campion could not defend 88 or 115 against Horouta. At least two batsmen must make scores of consequence for the college to be third-time lucky.
HSOB Presidents may never live down their rough start to the season but there’s no doubt they’ve improved a lot since then.
Ngatapa have claimed victory over HSOBP by seven wickets and five wickets this season. On opening day, they rolled the Presidents for 43 with medium-pacer Tim Gardner on fire (4-11 from six overs), although new boy Ryan West (1-8 off six) was ultra-impressive in the eyes of his skipper, Mike Gibson.
Gibson’s opposite — HSOB opener and ’keeper Ollie Needham — with 12, and Israel Turner (15 not out), were the only Presidents batsmen to offer any resistance in double-figures. Needham — along with everyone else in a blue-and-white uniform — was mortified by that result and has addressed it since.
“We aim to score 180 minimum, achieved through good running between wickets, sensible strokeplay and each of us playing to our individual strenghts,” Needham said.
Ngatapa are chock-full of veterans, and while Gardner and West were both superb in that first meeting, it should not be forgotten that off-spinner Grant Walsh (3-23 off 3.3 overs) and laconic seamer Gibson (2-1, two maidens in three overs) wrapped up the tail.
The HSOB-Ngatapa clash on HBR 3 will be umpired by Gary Coutts and James Raroa, with Marty Bennett standing in the Horouta-Campion College game.