Eve's Realty Greerton have the opportunity to grab the outright lead in the Williams Cup Baywide competition this weekend, albeit with Carrus Mount Maunganui sitting on the sideline courtesy of the round five bye.
Greerton travel the short distance down Fraser St in Tauranga to play Cooney Lees Morgan Tauranga Boys' College tomorrow.Current Northern Districts all-rounder Brett Hampton led the migration of a number of Tauranga Boys' first XI players to the Greerton club in recent seasons.
The match-up will feature the competition's leading run scorers and wicket takers. Greerton batsmen Lee Watkins, Pip Thickpenny and former Tauranga Boys' player Tom Renouf hold down the top three spots on the Williams Cup batting lists. Sitting in fourth place is recent Tauranga Boys' recruit in Taylor Bettleheim who fell just two runs short of a century last weekend.
Greerton leg-spinner James Boyd heads the Williams Cup bowling stakes with 10 wickets, followed closely by Tauranga Boys' Rhys Donaghy, with best figures of four wickets at a cost of 21 runs.
Defending Williams Cup champions Element IMF Cadets, who sit in an unfamiliar position at the bottom of the points tally, should be at full strength when they host GM Painters Lake Taupo CC at the Tauranga Domain. Recent Bay of Plenty representative fixtures have seen skipper Jono Boult, Sean Davey and Joe Carter missing from the Cadets Baywide line-up, with their return suggesting that the Western Bay side will return to form with a bang.
Lake Taupo CC, who have made their premier cricket debut this season, have found out about life in the fast-lane of Baywide cricket, having had little success on the field. However, the experience picked up in the past six months will stand them in good stead in future Baywide cricket seasons.
New World Te Puke will be hungry to post their first win in the current Williams Cup competition. Standing in their way is Bayleys Central Indians who will host the Western Bay side at Smallbone Park in Rotorua. Both sides have plenty of young talent in their ranks with a good battle likely to take place.
Williams Cup Draw
Cooney Lees Morgan Tauranga Boys' College v Eves Realty Greerton, Nicholson Field; Element IMF Cadets v GM Painters Lake Taupo CC, Tauranga Domain; Bayleys Central Indians v New World Te Puke, Smallbone Park; Carrus Mount Maunganui the bye.
Points Table
Mount Maunganui 21, Greerton 21, Central Indians 15, Tauranga Boys College 9, Te Puke 3, Cadets 3, Lake Taupo CC 3.
Williams Cup Honours Board 2018
Batting (Centuries) 103 – Joshua Bates (Element IMF Cadets) v Greerton.
Bowling (Five wickets) 5/46 - James Boyd (Eves Realty Greerton) v Cadets.