Cricket: Wanganui United beat Tech to make Coastal Challenge semifinals

United's Brendon Walker during his unbeaten 95 not out in the victory over Tech on Saturday.

Property Brokers United were back to full strength and have kept alive their hopes of making a third straight Bullocks Coastal Challenge Cup final after trouncing Watson's Tech by 104 runs at Victoria Park on Saturday.

For the second season in a row, Tech lost their spot in the semifinals in the final round robin match, as United's two young representative batsmen steadied the ship after the top order was dismissed, and then two veterans showed they are past their injury woes with an unbeaten 152-run partnership in just under 23 overs.

Back to full movement after his calf issues, allrounder Brendon Walker smashed 95 runs off 73 balls, including seven sixes.

In reply, the Tech top order got starts but then the whole side fell into the traps of the spinners and medium pacers, with bowler Dylan Martin have another impressive outing with 3-34 from his full complement, while Ritesh Verma took 3-13.

Although Tech missed out, Whanganui again has two teams in the semifinals after United went it alone last year, as Wanganui Vet Services Marist fulfilled their preseason vow and qualified for the first time, locking in a home game.

However, the men in green did not quite reach the top of the table after Whanganui Collegiate 1st XI gave them a more spirited test than had been anticipated, Marist eventually picking up a four wicket victory with the winning runs coming at the end of the 49th over.

Missing a bonus point, Marist finished tied with two-time defending champions Paraparaumu, who kept the top spot on run rate for the competition.

Marist did leapfrog Levin Old Boys to get the other home playoff, making both matches this coming weekend Whanganui vs Horowhenua-Kapiti affairs.

Tech struck early at Victoria Park as Akhil Kumar and Ross Kinnerley (3-42) had openers Matthews Boswell and the returning Tom Lance dismissed by the sixth over, while Gerard Hobbs was gone not long after.

That brought the patient Matthew Simes (43) and Chris Sharrock (49) together, and two of the key batsmen from Air Chathams Wanganui's upset of Taranaki the previous weekend batted over 20 overs together for a 94-run partnership – just keeping the scoreboard ticking over steadily but most importantly protecting their wickets.

Tech struck back for 119-5 when a returning Kinnerley had Sharrock trapped in front in sight of his 50, while Harkaran Mann got through Simes to hit his stumps.

But that brought together Simon Badger and Walker, both dismissed for ducks in the previous Coastal Challenge game, yet with Badger (45 not out) playing the anchor role, both veterans saw off Kinnerley and Kumar's last overs and then went on the offensive.

In his return to bowling after his shoulder injury, Akash Gill managed a couple of maiden overs but couldn't get a breakthrough, neither did Mann or Jessica Watkin, while Chris Friedel was targeted with 45 runs taken off just four overs.

Chris Friedel's overs were attacked by the United batsmen.

Badger upped his run scoring while Walker swung hard right to the end, finishing stranded just short of his century for United to lay down the gauntlet with 271-5.

In reply, Tech openers Mann (24) and Bevan Hunter (20) raised a 40-run partnership by the eighth over, until Hunter came up a catch to Hobbs off pace bowler Ryan Slight.

But on a wearing track it was the slow bowlers who could make Tech over-think things under pressure, and United had a full spinners complement again with Lance, Martin and Sharrock all returning to join Robbie Power.

Nevertheless, it was the medium-pace of Verma who struck the first big blows, getting the anchor Mann and then Gill out in the space of three overs, while Martin removed the in-form Kumar (13) after he had hit a couple of boundaries.

From 64-4 in the 16th over, the rot continued as Watkin lost her stumps to Verma, and then neither Tim Czerwonka or Deon Purvis could resist trying to hit Martin's flighty deliveries and gave up catches.

Skipper Dominic Lock (18) watched all this from the other end, and tried to survive as the last real hope in Kinnerley (39) joined him at 92-7.

Lock tried to work the ball around by Power tempting him into a hook shot and bowled him round the legs.

Kinnerley figured there was no harm in having a crack now as United brought Slight back, as he hit over the top and drove through the field, striking seven boundaries in his 35-ball innings.

Slight stepped off as United reverted to the spinners, and after Lance got hit to the rope a couple of times, he caught Kinnerley in two minds as he pushed forward at another delivery and was stumped at 150-9.

Peter Czerwonka (24 not out) now threw his bat around in defiance, hitting four boundaries including two off consecutive balls, but eventually Friedel had to take the larger share of an over, and after a couple of stumping chances, he tried to hit Sharrock and Power made a good running catch to give every member of the spinner quartet a scalp.

Over at the Collegiate grounds, the schoolboys gave their older brethren who had moved onto Marist a real fight after reaching 253 before being dismissed in the 47th over.

Kashish Nauhria (31) got runs on top despite losing partners early, and then Central Districts Under 17 captain Sam Sheriff looked to carry his team with an excellent 101 not out from 102 balls, hitting nine boundaries and a six.

Beau Hourigan (42 from 39) joined him for an 85-run partnership through the middle stages of the innings, having a good launching pad at 155-4 in the 33rd over.

However, Marist pulled it back as Michael Englebrecht (2-23) had Hourigan caught out and then Sam Beard (3-39) and Angus Dinwiddie (2-38) reimposed themselves on Collegiate's lower order.

Adam Lennox (19) stuck in with Sheriff to take their team from 162-6 to 220-7 when Beard had him caught, but while Sheriff looked to keep going, the Marist bowlers just targeted his partners – getting the last three wickets for just two runs.

In reply, it was the Marist veterans of Chris Stewart (78) and Mark Fraser (63 not out) who eventually got their team home, despite Collegiate fighting for every run.

Opener Stewart lost partner Nick O'Leary (14) to a run out in the ninth over, but Zak O'Keefe (47) joined him for a comfortable 88-run partnership, both men collectively hitting 12 boundaries while Stewart also got a six.

But Collegiate hit back through representative spinner Joel Clark (2-22) who bowled O'Keefe and had Beard caught out in the same over for 125-4.

John McIlraith struck a four but was then bowled by Hunter Morrison, which brought the old firm of Stewart and Fraser together.

Raising a 65-run partnership in just under ten overs, Fraser ultimately hitting eight boundaries, Marist appeared to have control, until Joseph Abernethy (2-51) stepped up to end Stewart's 116-ball innings with a Lennox catch, while bowling Michael O'Leary in his next over for the pendulum to swing again at 219-6 with five overs remaining.

Craig Thorpe (21 not out) came in and was striking the ball well, yet Collegiate still had a chance with 12 runs required entering the 49th over by Hadleigh O'Leary.

But Fraser and Thorpe had it worked out, starting and finishing the over with boundaries in between taking singles and a well-run three to confirm a home semifinal next weekend.

In the derby game between the Wairarapa clubs, United CC picked up a 39-run win over Red Star with the Duckworth/Lewis method being applied after a weather break.

Scoreboards

United 271-5 (B Walker 95no, C Sharrock 49, S Badger 45no, M Simes 43; R Kinnerley 3-42) beat Tech 167 (R Kinnerley 39, P Czerwonka 24no, H Mann 24, B Hunter 20; R Verma 3-13, D Martin 3-34) by 104 runs.

Collegiate 253 (S Sheriff 101no, B Hourigan 42, K Nauhria 31; S Beard 3-49, M Englebrecht 2-23, A Dinwiddie 2-38) lost to Marist 255-6 (C Stewart 78, M Fraser 63no, Z O'Keefe 47, C Thorpe 21no; J Clark 2-22, Joseph Abernethy 2-51) by four wickets.

United CC 205 (L Burt 54, R Spears 29, E Childs 24; R Anderson 3-28, P Sigvertsen 3-33, H Finlayson 2-31, J Osborne 2-24) bt R Star 167 (R Anderson 61; Q Childs 3-30, S Patel 2-15, R Spears 2-27) by 39 runs (D/L Method).