Entering the last weekend of the Williams Cup round robin, Tauranga Boys', Generation Homes Lake Taupō and Te Puke were locked together in the race for the fourth semifinal position.
With Eves Realty Greerton batting Lake Taupō out of contention, the encounter at the Te Puke Domain turned into a winner-take-all contest.
The home team batted first and posted a defendable target of 181 for the loss of eight wickets. Cameron Riley top scored with 39 runs, while Hamish Wilde and Stephen Crossan made useful contributions. Tauranga Boys' spinner Tim Pringle led his side's wicket tally with 3/51, while Niven Dovey took two wickets for 19 runs.
Led by a lightning 77 off just 51 balls from Niven Dovey, the Tauranga students cruised home to victory for the loss of just two wickets. Tauranga Boys' First XI mentors Tim Clarke and Charles Williams both made solid contributions in reaching the 40s.
Tauranga Boys' will now join Carrus Mount Maunganui, Element IMF Cadets and Greerton in the semifinals.
Te Puke's Cam Riley plays a shot during his side's loss to Tauranga Boys' College. Photo / George Novak
Meanwhile, Geyser City overseas batsman Sam Kershaw posted his second Williams Cup century as he took his side to victory against Bayleys Central Indians. Central set their Rotorua rivals a target of 245/9, with Jeff Simmons and Nadeera Naweela both scoring half centuries.
Kershaw then belted 112 runs, at a run a ball, as Geyser took out their second Williams Cup win, leaving Central Indians with the dreaded wooden spoon.
Cadets lost their first Williams Cup match of the season when they were beaten by Mount Maunganui at Blake Park. The visitors won the toss and went into bat with Gurinder Singh and Taylor Douglas posting identical scores of 38 as the visitors were bowled out for 144. Mount stalwart Nathan Walker was rewarded for line and length bowing with four wickets.
Ben Guild anchored Mount Maunganui's chase with an unbeaten 51 as they got home with five wickets to spare. Ben Pomare and Logan Carr also played a big part in the Mount win with 26 runs each.
Geyser City bowler Ben Astwood in action against Central Indians. Photo / Stephen Parker
Greerton blasted Lake Taupō's hopes of a playoff spot away, when they posted a massive 314 for the loss of five wickets. They reached the 200 run mark with nine wickets in hand, with Nick Hendrie and Tom MacRury in fine form. Hendrie belted his fourth century of the season, reaching 127 before being dismissed, while MacRury battered the visitors bowling attack with nine sixes in his 96 runs.
Lake Taupō were bowled out for 147, Mark Mitchell top scoring with 54 runs, while Umesh Ranaraja, Lee Watkins and Jared Tutty took two wickets each for the winners.
Central Indians' Nadeera Nawela slides his bat in to avoid being run out. Photo / Stephen Parker
Versatile Tauranga Williams Cup Results Te Puke 181/8 (Cameron Riley 39, Hamish Wilde 36no, Stephen Crossan 32; Tim Pringle 3/51, Niven Dovey 2/19) lost to Tauranga Boys' College 184/2 (Niven Dovey 77no, Tim Clarke 49no, Charles Williams 40).
Cadets 144 (Gurinder Singh 38, Taylor Douglas 38; Nathan Walker 4/35) lost to Mount Maunganui 146/5 (Ben Guild 51no, Ben Pomare 26, Logan Carr 26; Michael Barbeau 2/21).
Greerton 314/5 (Nick Hendrie 127, Tom MacRury 96, Bruce Kerr 55; John Dolan 2/66) beat Lake Taupō 147 (Mark Mitchell 54; Umesh Ranaraja 2/11, Lee Watkins 2/29, Jared Tutty 2/33).
Central Indians 245/9 (Jeff Simmons 56, Nadeera Nawela 52, Stephen Nicholls 47, Joe O'Donoghue 3/25, Sam Kershaw 3/53) lost to Geyser City 246/5 (Sam Kershaw 112, Shaquille Graham 43, Cody Fell 32; Virin Patel 2/37, Nadeera Nawela 2/37).
Points Table: Cadets 38, Mount Maunganui 38, Greerton 38, Tauranga Boys College 28, Lake Taupo 20, Te Puke 19, Geyser City 12, Central Indians 4.
