The Premier club cricket season is back for the 2017/18 season with the first round of Jeff Crowe Cup action getting underway this Saturday October 7th.
Teams have been working hard over the winter, with a bit of movement around the traps in both coaching and playing personal.
In our first edition of ‘Premier Preview’ we look at how Howick Pakuranga, Grafton, University, Waitakere and North Shore are shaping up for 2017/18.
Howick Pakuranga CC
Noteworthy: Beaten T20 finalists last season. Pace attack to watch.
While there’s been a change of coach at Howick Pakuranga, one man remains a constant – Bill Walsh, who is back for another season to lead from the front for the men in maroon.
Ben Williams takes over from Hayden Gardner as coach and says the boys have been working hard in the off-season.
“[We’ve been] down in the indoor dungeon but you can’t read too much into indoor nets,” Williams says.
“The boys are a tight group and have played a lot together for several years. They are pretty thirsty for success because it’s been a while between drinks.”
There have been a few departures from Lloyd Elsmore with Paddy Cairns and Cody Andrews leaving but they have acquired former Wellington Firebird Matt McEwan to add to the already impressive fast bowling ranks at the club.
“We’ve been preparing for all formats so we haven’t targeted any one [format] in particular, we want to fare well in all three,” says Williams.
And if you wanted ‘one to watch’ from the young brigade out east?
“Young Adam Jones. He’s coming through and I’d probably say he’s one to keep an eye on,” says Williams.
MAN IN THE STANDS SAYS: Some solid acquisitions at Howick Pakuranga including the fiery Matt McEwan. Make no mistake this man Ben Williams will have the boys firing come round-one, the only question, how big is the loss of Paddy Cairns?
Grafton United CC
Noteworthy: 2016/17 Tom Hellaby champions. Plenty of experience has left the building.
Last season’s Tom Hellaby champions are playing up with the big boys in 2017/18 and new captain Nick Hendrie is setting realistic goals for his new look side.
Grafton lose a bit of experience with old heads Alan Burton and Dilan Peris going out on top last season, however they have brought in Sachin Variath from Waitakere while Michael Snedden joins them from Otago which will go someway to filling the void.
“Some of the players are moving over because they enjoy [coach] Ian West and the aura he brings to the team, they want to join the culture we have built here,” says Hendrie.
Newly contracted Auckland Ace Aniket Parikh has also made the move to Grafton this season, shifting from Cornwall in the hope of more time at the crease.
“He’s going to fill Alan Burton’s role in an all-round capacity but obviously with off-spin instead,” says Hendrie.
The city slickers are realistic about their chances this season but have put an emphasis on improving their one-day form after a couple of years of perceived underperformance in the 50-over format.
“It’s just about a bit of belief, feeling we deserve to be there, that will be the factor this season.”
MAN IN THE STANDS SAYS: There’s an air of confidence around Victoria Park and you get the feeling if these boys get on a roll, anything can happen. One to watch.
University CC
Noteworthy: Second in 2016/17 Jeff Crowe Cup pool play. Englishman Tom Wells joins from Leicestershire.
Hayden Gardner makes the shift from Howick Pakuranga this season to coach a University side brimming with young talent.
By their own admission, University underperformed last season, especially in the two-day format, something Gardner says the team have addressed.
“It’s been a really positive start to the season and the boys are looking to improve their two-day form from last year. The goal is to make the top four and with the change of the points system we think we can play some positive, attacking cricket.,” Gardner says.
It’s no secret the University side has some of the most exciting young talent in Auckland Cricket right now with Finn Allen and Ben Beecroft involved in the Under-19 New Zealand setup.
“The young guys are big parts of the club and we’ll be looking to give them a bit more responsibility this season,” says Gardner.
“Both Finn and Ben are part of the Under-19 setup and they bring some good ideas back from there. They may be missing for some of this season so we just need to make the most of them while they are here.”
All eyes will be on round three of the Hedley Howard Championship when University host Garnder’s old side Howick Pakuranga, but the old coach wouldn’t be drawn into a war of words.
“Really looking forward to playing Howick, we’ll prepare as any other game but we have them at home so it should be good fun.”
MAN IN THE STANDS SAYS: On paper this side has the potential to tip up anyone on their day. Unfortunately, cricket isn’t played on paper. If the young guns fire, Colin Maiden could become a bit of a fortress in 2017/18.
Waitakere CC
Noteworthy: Third place in Tom Hellaby 2016/17. New coach, new feel out west.
Part of the new coach brigade this season is former Auckland Aces wicketkeeper Brad Cachopa who joins the club for the upcoming season.
Cachopa is no stranger to the Auckland Cricket scene and is hoping his recent First-Class experience can help the boys from out west.
“It’s probably good timing in that regard, I still have good relationship in the professional setup,” Cachopa says.
“Before I took the role, the word on the street was we had some good players and hopefully with a bit of direction we can convert that into some performances. I’ve been really impressed so far with the players especially our seam attack and I think we have some potential to go well.”
Waitakere will be without the Hira brothers this season as well as Sachin Variath who moves to Grafton but the coach says he’s working on getting his players in the right frame of mind for the season ahead.
“It’s sort of a rebuilding phase for us and a chance to give an opportunity to new players. We are approaching our attitude towards the game and how we want to compete on Saturday and apply that to all formats,” he says.
“Whether we get promoted in two-day or success in white ball will be a result of how we apply ourselves so we’re not targeting anything specific.”
Ben Lister will once again be charging in for Waitakere this season but funnily enough Cachopa is making it his mission to see as little as possible of the big left-armer.
“My goal is to have him not playing much club cricket because I think he has the skill set to have some success at the higher level.”
A coach with a plan and a reasonably blank canvas could make Waitakere hard to handle in all formats this season.
MAN IN THE STANDS SAYS: West is best? We shall see. Brad Cachopa will be whipping these boys into shape and is sure to have some out of the box tactics come white ball time. Unknown quantity.
North Shore CC
Noteworthy: Beaten semi-finalists in T20 and Jeff Crowe Cup. Second in Tom Hellaby for 2016/17.
Favourite son Graeme Beghin is back as player/coach for North Shore this season and the plucky South African is hoping to finally crack into the top flight of the two-day competition.
Like many sides, there has been some player movement for the Shore with Akash Choudhary heading back to India and Matt Selby focusing on his career, the two notable omissions from this season’s team.
While Beghin is lamenting the loss of two quality cricketers, he says the side still has plenty of experience to call on.
“We have Michael Olsen, Tim Duncraft and Carl Brungar all with 100 Premier games behind them. Ben Wall been there a few years too so that makes up the senior core of our side,” Beghin says.
Gus McKenzie will again be turning out for the Shore boys as part of the younger brigade coming through at Devonport Domain, Beghin well aware that having some old heads around is key to developing the youngsters.
“It takes the pressure off the younger guys, gives them some enjoyment and they can express themselves and find their game. We are a well-balanced team at the moment.”
It’s that balance and experience that helps Beghin wear his multiple hats at the club.
“That’s a real challenge, with a strong leadership group, the boys take a lot of pressure off me. I sometimes just take five minutes between warm-ups and going out to bat just to get in the right head space.”
Devonport Domain will be a tricky place to visit if the Shore get their tail up this season.
MAN IN THE STANDS SAYS: The bridesmaids in all three formats last season will be looking to go one better. Young Gus McKenzie is one to watch this season – the Shore’s blend of youth and experience could be a dangerous mix. My pick to gain promotion.
Musings from beyond the boundary – cricketing thoughts through the eyes of Trevor Auger, an Auckland Cricket Society and Supporters Club Member.
The Aces have returned from their pre-season excursion to the Gold Coast with three narrow losses to their name, but some very valuable match practice under their belts. We mentioned last week the one run loss to the Queensland Bulls – the last two matches were against the Scottish national side, to whom they went down by 19 runs and then by 3 wickets.
In the first of those games Auckland recovered from the early loss of Michael Guptill-Bunce and Robbie O’Donnell, thanks in large part to a century from Glenn Phillips who finished with 106 from 107 balls. Phillips was helped along by Ben Horne with 78 and Michael Barry with 43, but the Aces effort ended on 292, leaving them 19 short of Scotland’s tally.
In the second match Auckland batted first and this time Craig Cachopa led the way with 75, helped along by O’Donnell who made up for his duck in the previous match with a good half century. The runs weren’t quite enough however, and Scotland overhauled the Aces’ 254 in the 48th over.
All in all, a good warm-up for the season ahead – particularly for the batsmen, most of whom had some worthwhile time at the crease.
Two more Auckland players are showing the way in India where once again the New Zealand A team have made a disappointing start in the second unofficial ‘test’ against India A. The first match ended in defeat by an innings and 31 runs, with only Jeet Raval, George Worker and Tim Seifert passing 20 in either innings. Now in the first innings of the second and final first class match of the tour, New Zealand A has been dismissed for 211.
This time Colin Munro top-scored with 65, supported by Raval with 48, and Tim Seifert was also in the runs again with an unbeaten 44. It has been disappointing to see the likes of Henry Nicholls and Will Young struggling to make an impact with the bat. They have both been seen as candidates to fill spaces, present and future, in the New Zealand middle order but neither are playing with the consistency and authority necessary to ink their names into the test squad for the West Indies test matches in two months’ time.
In England the County Championship has come to a close with First Division winners Essex finishing their campaign unbeaten, taking the title for the first time in 25 years. At the other end of the competition Warwickshire and Middlesex have been relegated to the Second Division, being replaced in the upper echelon by Worcestershire and Nottinghamshire.
Amongst the New Zealanders involved over the English summer, Jeetan Patel yet again demonstrated his all round worth for Warwickshire, finishing the season with 608 runs at 27.6 alongside 41 wickets at 29.8, all from 13 first class matches.
For the champions, Neil Wagner played ten matches and also made an important all round contribution, averaging 24.2 with the bat and claiming 31 wickets, albeit a little expensively at 35.3.
Up north in Durham, Tom Latham’s New Zealand commitments and then his foot injury limited his summer to four first class outings, but in those matches he included two hundreds in his 382 runs at 63.7.
Not so much in the headlines, Adam Milne played five matches for Kent, averaging 20.2 with the bat but taking just 13 wickets at 44 runs apiece. For Middlesex, James Franklin scored 296 runs at 22.8 in his ten matches, adding 12 wickets at 23.3 for good measure, while at Gloucestershire Kieran Noema-Barnett’s record was very similar: 291 runs at 22.4 and 23 wickets at 32.0.
Former Auckland Ace Matt Quinn, who had an encouraging start to his second season with Essex, was sidelined by a back injury in June and he didn’t play again during the season – he is targeting a 2018 return.
Back home last week, Sir Richard Hadlee launched his new book ‘The Skipper’s Diary’ at a very enjoyable function at Eden Park. Sir Richard has compiled the book from father Walter’s diary of the 1949 tour of England, when New Zealand tied the test series with England (all four encounters being drawn) and lost only one of the 32 tour matches.
The book is lavishly put together with a fascinating collection of photographs as well as the extraordinarily detailed diary of Walter Hadlee, which covers the tour both on and off the field. It offers a compelling insight into touring Britain shortly after the end of the Second World War with what has justifiably been regarded as one of New Zealand Cricket’s most outstanding teams.
It is clear that bringing this work to completion has been a labour of love and dedication for Sir Richard, a heartfelt tribute not only to his father but to all his father’s colleagues who became known as ‘The Forty-Niners’. In a delightful touch at the launch, the author presented copies of the book to family members of several of the 1949 team, a gesture he is repeating at the launches around the country.
The book comes with a two hour DVD documentary which includes all the known surviving video footage from the tour, and it is only available online at www.theskippersdiary1949.com . It is highly recommended.
Musings from beyond the boundary – cricketing thoughts through the eyes of Trevor Auger, an Auckland Cricket Society and Supporters Club Member.
Sad news with the passing last Thursday of Vera Burt, New Zealand’s oldest test cricketer, at the age of 90. Vera Robinson, before her marriage of 65 years to Hal Burt, was born in Patea but moved to Auckland in 1941 and began playing cricket for the Teachers Training College Cricket team in 1944. By the end of that year she had made her debut for Auckland, failing to score in that first match but taking three handy wickets. In a career remarkable for its longevity, her final representative appearance came in 1971, by which time she was playing for the North Shore Association in the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield competition.
Burt’s international career was almost as long. She was first picked for New Zealand for the test match against Australia at the Basin Reserve in 1948, having scored 54 against Canterbury and 31 against the visitors in the lead-up to the test selection. A year later she played against England in the test match at Eden Park, and her third and final test appearance came an amazing twenty years later at the Basin Reserve, once more against England.
Her test record was modest, but she also played 31 times for Auckland and on 11 further occasions for North Shore. Not only did she have a noteworthy cricket career, in 1960 she became a dual international, representing the New Zealand hockey team against Australia, and in 1972 she assisted in the establishment of the North Shore Women’s Hockey Association.
In 1989 Burt was awarded an MBE for services to sport, and in 2009 she was one of the 19 inaugural inductees to the Harbour Sports Hall of Fame, alongside names like Sir Peter Blake, Allison Rowe, Ian Fergusson and Wayne Shelford. Ces Dacre was the only other cricketer to be part of the original group to be so honoured.
The oldest living New Zealand test cricketer is now John R Reid, whose role in the 1949 tour to England will be recognised this week at the launch of ‘The Skipper’s Diary’, Sir Richard Hadlee’s compilation of Walter Hadlee’s tour diary.
Meanwhile the New Zealand season has quietly got itself under way with the Aces losing a warm-up game on the Gold Coast against a strong Queensland Bulls line-up by just one run. Off-spinner Aniket Parikh snared four wickets while Craig Cachopa with 46 and Donovan Grobbelaar with an unbeaten 55 were significant contributors with the bat.
In India, New Zealand A have made a rusty start to their tour, collapsing on day one of their four-day match against India A to be all out for 147, after an opening partnership of 72 between Jeet Raval and George Worker. The New Zealanders battled against the spin of Shahbaz Nadeem and Karn Sharma, who shared eight wickets between them.
Apart from the openers, only Tim Seifert passed 20, and his 35 was the innings’ top score. A couple of late wickets to Ish Sodhi evened matters up just a little, but at 71/2 the home side are well-placed.
In England the season draws to a close over the coming week, but unlike last year’s nail-biting last day the 2017 County Championship has been decided well in advance, with Essex taking the trophy for the first time since 1992.
Neil Wagner has returned to reprise his early season role as the county’s overseas player and he played his part in a memorable victory against Hampshire this week. Wagner picked up the wicket of top-scorer George Bailey in Hampshire’s first innings of 254, before falling first ball as Essex tumbled to be all out for 76, with former South African Kyle Abbott claiming 6/20.
Following on, Essex regathered, and Wagner contributed an important 44 in a ninth wicket partnership of 82 with former England wicket-keeper James Foster. Hampshire were set 185 to win, but now it was their turn to collapse as they also succumbed for just 76, with Wagner taking 2/17 as the new Champions surged to victory.
In his last game for Durham this season Tom Latham made a handy 77 against Sussex, but that wasn’t enough to stop his team losing the match. Word is that Latham will be back with Durham next season – he has certainly made an impact with the bat in his limited opportunities for the county this northern summer.
The most noteworthy performance of the week by a Kiwi though, came from the evergreen Jeetan Patel, batting for Warwickshire against Yorkshire. Coming to the crease with the score 49/6, he scored 100 out of the 168 runs scored while he was at the crease.
Former England batsman Ian Bell, with whom Patel shared a 96 run seventh wicket partnership, scored 51 and no other player passed 21 as Warwickshire struggled to 219 in their first innings. In spite of Patel’s efforts this wasn’t enough, and Yorkshire eventually won the match by just two wickets.
Finally, congratulations to Auckland’s four players who’ve earned White Ferns contracts for the coming season. Holly Huddleston and Katie Perkins retain their places in the contracted players list, but Maddy Green is a new addition this season, and Anna Peterson wins back a contracted place after missing out last year. Ironically, while being left out of the mix at the start of last summer she was recalled to the side after players were side-lined by injury and made a big impact, most memorably with her T20 hat-trick against Australia at Geelong.
Auckland Cricket can boast four national representatives with Maddy Green, Holly Huddleston, Katie Perkins and Anna Peterson picking up WHITE FERNS central contracts for 2017/18.
All four girls are key members of the Auckland Hearts setup and will be looking to balance domestic duties with some exciting international opportunities.
Green, along with Wellington’s Amelia Kerr are the two players to make the 15-player list for the first time, while all-rounder Anna Peterson has fought her way back onto the contract list.
“It’s really exciting and I feel very privileged to be offered a contract for the first time,” says Green.
“I’ve been in and out of this side for the past few years so it’s fantastic to be recognised in this respect,” she says.
“To be back in the WHITE FERNS mix means a lot, I’ve put a lot of hard work in over the past couple of seasons so to have that recognised at the top level is an honour,” says Peterson.
Auckland Hearts coach Dean Flyger is happy for the four girls selected and hopes they can continue performing at the top level.
“It’s a great opportunity for them all and awesome for Maddy to pick up her first contract after years of hard work with the Hearts. They’ve all put the work in and I wish them all the best,” says Flyger
WHITE FERNS coach Haidee Tiffen says Peterson and Green have earnt their spots in the squad.
“Maddy’s shown plenty of promise in her limited opportunities and we’ve been impressed by her all-round skills and athleticism.
“Anna’s made it back onto the list through pure performance. She’s taken her chances when they’ve come and obviously claimed that memorable hat-trick in our Twenty20 series win against Australia earlier this year,” says Tiffen.
The WHITE FERNS are set to be in action next month against Pakistan with a tour to the UAE to be announced shortly.
WHITE FERNS Central Contract List
Suzie Bates (30)
Erin Bermingham (29)
Sophie Devine (28)
Maddy Green (24) *
Holly Huddleston (29)
Leigh Kasperek (25)
Amelia Kerr (16) *
Katey Martin (32)
Thamsyn Newton (22)
Katie Perkins (29)
Anna Peterson (27) *
Rachel Priest (32)
Hannah Rowe (20)
Amy Satterthwaite (30)
Lea Tahuhu (26)
*denotes new contract
(age in brackets)
The Auckland Aces have lost by a solitary run to the Queensland Bulls in their pre-season hit out at the Gold Coast Cricket Club today.
In a fixture that has a history of close results – last year was a tie – the Aces lost the coin toss and were asked to bowl first in hot and sunny conditions.
A tight, controlled opening spell from Donovan Grobbelaar and Danru Ferns helped the visitors gain the early ascendancy before Raja Sandhu took the prized scalp of Usman Khawaja courtesy of a stunning grab at point from Glenn Phillips.
Michael Barry was also solid with the ball picking up a couple of wickets in the middle overs before off spinner Aniket Parikh took over.
Parikh managed four wickets with his full bag of tricks on display, managing to stunt the free scoring Bull’s middle order.
Unfortunately for the visitors, the Bull’s tail wagged meaning they batted out the full 50 overs to post 277.
Coming out to chase and the Aces started in a positive fashion with Michael Guptill-Bunce and Glenn Phillips ticking things over nicely.
The middle order managed starts but didn’t kick on, the Aces managing to stick with the run-rate while losing consistent wickets.
Returning Ace Craig Cachopa (46) along with Ben Horne put on 50 runs together as the visitors edged toward the Queensland total, while Grobbelaar (55*) proved his all-round ability with some clean striking in the later overs.
The match ended up with the Aces needing 20 off the final two overs and while Grobbelaar was able to strike a couple of lusty blows, the visitors pulled up an agonising one run short off the target.
The Aces now head back to training before returning to action on Sunday against the Scotland national team.
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The Auckland Aces’ first tour match in Australia will be no walk in the park as they face a full-strength Queensland Bulls side tomorrow in a 50-over match at the Gold Coast Cricket Club.
It’s the Bulls’ final warm up match before they start their Matador Cup campaign, a team boasting several Australian international cricketers including Usman Khawaja, Matt Renshaw and Mitchell Swepson.
The Aces are keeping their expectations realistic at this early stage of the season but are pumped to be getting some meaningful cricket under their belt.
“We are up against a quality Queensland side who will provide a stern challenge with bat and ball. Tomorrow is all about taking what we have been working on over the winter and putting it into practice in a game situation,” says Auckland Aces skipper Michael Guptill-Bunce.
The Aces are bolstered by the return of Colin de Grandhomme from his stint in the Natwest T20 Blast while new recruit Matt McEwan may also get his first crack for the side after moving from the Wellington Firebirds in the off-season.
Craig Cachopa is also back in the fold and is every chance to pull the Aces jersey back on after a stint overseas.
Auckland Aces (from XII)
Michael Guptill-Bunce
Glenn Phillips
Robbie O’ Donnell
Colin de Grandhomme
Michael Barry
Craig Cachopa
Ben Horne
Donovan Grobbelaar
Matt McEwan
Aniket Parikh
Danru Ferns
Raja Sandhu
Queensland Bulls
Usman Khawaja
Matt Renshaw
Joe Burns
Marnus Labuschagne
Sam Heazlett
Jack Wildermuth
Jimmy Peirson
Michael Neser
Cameron Gannon
Mitchell Swepson
Mark Steketee
Ben Lister and Jamie Brown are the new kids on the block for the Auckland Aces this season, both bringing equal measures of nerves and excitement after signing their first professional cricket contracts.
While the pair are both over six-foot and bowl a mean bumper, they are far from ‘nasty fasties’ and couldn’t contain their youthful enthusiasm for the upcoming 2017/18 season.
Howick Pakuranga’s Brown described the moment he signed on the dotted line as a “wicked feeling” but says the call up came as a bit of a bolt from the blue.
“Obviously there was an opening once Lockie [Ferguson] got called up, but even at that point there were so many blokes training the house down over winter I wasn’t getting my hopes up,” Brown explained.
“I was pretty pumped when Simon [Insley] gave me the phone call!”
While Brown was a late inclusion, Waitakere’s Ben Lister was part of the initial contract group and the burly left-arm paceman is relishing his time in the professional cricket setup based at Eden Park.
“I just want to learn basically, as long as I’m improving, I’ll be happy,” says Lister.
He was also humbled by his Waitakere CC team mates’ response at his elevation to the Aces side.
“My club mates were pretty stoked. I grew up with all of them and still play with them of course. They all say if one of us makes it, we all make it, so that’s pretty cool to hear.”
Young cricketers always bring plenty of energy to a playing group, something both Brown and Lister will be calling on as the season kicks off.
“I try bowl with as much energy as I can,” says Brown.
“I hit the deck hard and use my six-foot-four frame. I’ve been working hard with the coaches on improving my skills (swing and variation) but I think my main attribute is a willingness to charge in hard from first ball to last and bowl a heavy nut,” he says.
Look out for these two giant quicks charging in for the Auckland Aces this season.
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Musings from beyond the boundary – cricketing thoughts through the eyes of Trevor Auger, an Auckland Cricket Society and Supporters Club Member.
The social media sites are abuzz with talk and with pictures of the Aces and the Hearts preparing for the season ahead and this time next week New Zealand A will be in action in the first of their two first class matches in India. The English season is nearing its close and the CPL stormed to a rousing finale last weekend. The summer of cricket is almost upon us!
That CPL Final was an absorbing encounter. With the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots batting first against the Trinidad and Tobago Knight Riders, a big chase looked to be in the offing for the home team, playing at the impressive looking Brian Lara Stadium, outside Port of Spain.
The early demise of Chris Gayle, and a score line of 45/4 at the start of the 11th over changed the complexion of the game though, and the visitors did well to scramble their way to 135/6, thanks in large part to a 5-ball unbeaten 18 at the end from Afghanistan’s Mohammad Nabi, batting with Carlos Brathwaite.
The Knight Riders, with their strong batting line-up, would have been confident as they started the chase, but their innings suffered the same fate as the Patriots’ as they struggled through a sluggish start. After five overs 29/2 wasn’t where they would have planned to be.
Colin Munro had opened with Sunil Narine and seen him and then Dwayne Bravo depart with only three runs and four balls between them – as Mohammad Nabi took the ball, the Aucklander decided it was time for time get the innings on a firmer footing – three sixes in five balls, 19 from the over, and 48/2 off six told a rather more cheerful story.
Except that three balls later Munro holed out to long on, and then Darren Bravo quickly followed him back, a second victim of Pakistan’s Mohammad Hafeez. At 90/7 in the fifteenth over the pendulum was swinging back the way of the Patriots, but former West Indian captain Denesh Ramdin was steady at one end, and at the other was the aggressive Kevon Cooper.
With 13 balls to go, 28 were needed, and Cooper eased the pressure a little with a six from the last ball of Sheldon Cottrell’s over. Enter Ben Hilfenhaus, and a demonstration that at times like this in Finals cricket, the pressure can get to the most experienced of cricketers. His first two balls were wides, his first legal delivery cost him two, the next ball was a high full toss, called a no ball, and that was thrashed over cover-point for six. The following free hit went for four more, and the ball after followed it to the boundary. A single and then Ramdin scored the winning run from the last ball of the over.
The Knight Riders had won with an over to spare, and Ben Hilfenhaus will want to forget he was ever thrown the ball, as his two overs for eight became three overs for 30.
Munro had finished with 29, equal top score with Cooper, and while he won’t have been happy to be dismissed when he was, his innings was a very important contribution to the Knight Riders’ victory. He gave the stuttering innings some momentum, and in a low-scoring match his assault on Nabi really put his side into a position where the final assault by Cooper became possible.
Having finished as the top scorer in the competition for the Knight Riders. Munro now joins the New Zealand A tourists in India, in what will be a very important few weeks in the context of his international career.
Meanwhile a number of the home CPL stars crossed the Atlantic to pull on the West Indian colours for a convincing T20 victory over England. For a number of the team it was an overdue return to representative duties and it was fitting that the platform for the West Indian dominance was laid by the veteran Chris Gayle and the exciting Evin Lewis, with their 77 run opening partnership in just six and a half overs. Then it was Carlos Brathwaite and Kesrick Williams who ripped the heart out of the England reply and ensured another T20I win for the team from the Caribbean.
Finally this week, some sad news from England with the passing at the age of just 58 of Jan Brittin, former English opening batsman. Brittin, who played international cricket for 19 years from 1979, averaged 49.6 in her 27 test matches and she remains both the record run-scorer and top century maker in women’s Test Cricket. She also averaged 42.4 in 63 ODIs and in the 1993 World Cup Final her top score of 48 was instrumental in England defeating New Zealand.
Auckland Cricket Association are pleased to announce Tony Naidu as the new Community Cricket Manager, replacing Iain Laxon in the role.
Tony is familiar to Auckland Cricket having already served as Hibiscus Coast Cricket Club’s Manager for the 2016/17 season.
“I’m thrilled to join the Auckland Cricket team in a full-time role having already spent some time in the office last season. I can’t wait to sink my teeth into the role and serve the cricketing community,” says Naidu.
Tony brings a wealth of business experience from home and abroad to his new role and has a passion for all sport. He is also heavily involved in golf, including being the current President on the board of North Harbour Golf.
“My experiences with golf and growing the game on the shore can only be a positive as we look to consolidate and grow our playing numbers here at Auckland Cricket,” he says.
Tony remains connected to Hibiscus Coast Cricket with his daughter and two sons gearing up for another season with the club as juniors.
“I’m keen to apply the learnings I have from my experiences in growing businesses internationally and at HCCC to the whole region of Auckland, I feel we have plenty of growing to do and I’m keen to work with all the club managers to build on the good work Iain and the team here have done,” Naidu says.
The Takapuna Ponies Premier Women’s cricket team are on a mission to promote the women’s game, their latest assignment is a trip to the Cook Islands later this month to spread the good word of leather and willow.
Last year’s one-day champions, the Ponies, are coached by Chris Reid, and this trip was one of his many ideas to raise awareness of the women’s game.
“I’m looking to push the envelope with women’s cricket and do things that haven’t been seen before,” says Reid.
“You don’t see many club teams travelling overseas, it’s something more common for school teams, so I thought why not!”
Initially the Ponies were hoping to head to Australia and test their skills against the might of our Trans-Tasman neighbours, but now the prospect of Rarotonga gives the trip a different spin.
“We are looking at this trip from a holistic perspective, we’re not just about a winning cricket team, we want to grow the game and gain exposure also,” says Reid.
Exposure won’t be an issue, with their game against the Cook Islands broadcast on national TV and several initiatives have been planned to ‘give back’ to locals.
“We will be gathering up gear donations from the wider Auckland Cricket community and taking it over with us as cricket kit is in scarce supply on the island,” says Reid.
“We will also be looking to hold interactive training sessions for the local cricket community on the island where we can hopefully share some of our knowledge to raise the standards of the game over there.”
Ponies captain Lauren Down says she’s “excited” to head to Rarotonga and is glad two new faces in Arlene Kelly and Carla Wood will have a chance to get comfortable in their new surroundings.
“Being a newbie to the side, I’m really looking forward to getting to know my new team mates and learning more about the style of cricket the Ponies play. The Raro trip will be a great opportunity to put all that practice into play… and in the sweltering heat,” says Kelly.
The Ponies have fundraised an impressive $30,000 towards the trip with a series of quiz nights, sausage sizzles and wine sales.
However, for anyone who thought this sounded like a relaxing island getaway for the girls, coach Chris Reid has sounded a clear warning.
“This is certainly not a junket, the girls all understand that, we are going there to train, play and put a solid week of work in,” he says.
It appears ‘island time’ is clearly not part of Reid’s way of thinking!
To follow the Takapuna Ponies on their overseas trip, get at them on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/TDCCWomen/?ref=bookmarks
Tour dates: 30th September – 5th October 2017.
