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Surrey Vagrants crowned Cup champions |
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Warathais win Shield final
By Julian Turner
Surrey Vagrants took the premier Cup crown at the Gymkhana club with a powerhouse display of batting that captivated the crowd throughout while Lords Taverners' Andy Walton showed real grit after suffering a suspected broken cheekbone in the Shield final. A sporting agreement in the Plate final earlier in the day between STH Drifters and Irish Pub also exemplified exactly what this competition has come to represent. Vagrants emerged as champions after belting 80 for two to beat Marchweils decent 77 for one target after their opening innings. The eventual losers had put themselves in a plum position after a particularly fruitful final over when they grabbed 28 runs. But swaggering Surrey forged on quickly to bag 38 for one from just two overs as they went in hunt of the main trophy. Vagrant Mark Higgs smashed a series of fours and sixes to swing the balance in his sides favour before being caught for 29. The blistering pace continued until their glorious end result, which was thoroughly deserved. Marchweil had booked their place in the Cup final with a narrow win over the Cricketeers. The victors got off to a great start with Hashan Trilers racking up 31 runs before retiring and Zac Pacey hit 27 until he was caught by Farooq Ahmed. They contributed to a respectable total of 77, with five wides, and that proved enough to nip their way through by two runs. The Perth Postels couldn't reach the Cup final in their 10th anniversary year when they went down to a 17 run defeat to Surrey. The Vagrants overcame a shaky start when opener Paul Pritchard was run out for one to score 76, including 32 from Mark Higgs and 27 from Carl Crowe. That proved too much for the Postels, who had hosted an excellent celebratory bash the previous night, and the Vagrants eased through with 76. Warathais had kick-started the day with a 23 run Shield semi-final win over Darjeeling. Steve Christie (32 ret) helped power the side to 72 at the crease, including 17 extras. Once again, Warathais kept their bowling tight to restrict Darjeelings reply to 49 runs with only nine extras. Rudi Bisschof (14 r.o.) and Brad Wisgink (20 n.o.) made a gallant show of it at two and three but Trevor Chappells Warathais just had that little bit extra to carry them through. In the Shield final, Steve Christie hammered two sixes and a four in three deliveries as he and Trevor Chappell set a red-hot early pace for the Warathais against Lords Taverners. Christie was eventually caught for 21 while Chappell retired after an intelligent 30. Their total of 89 runs was enough for the silverware but the main talking point of the game came when the Taverners Andy Walton took a fast ball to his right cheek and dropped to the ground. Walton lay prone after several worrying minutes but, after receiving first aid, he bravely opted to complete his innings of 30 before being taken to hospital. Ashwell Crusaders won the Bowl with a four on the final ball after a rather one-sided game against Silver State. State set a 51 for two total with knocks of 11 from Amal and 18 from Paul before Ashwell cruised to the title with 30 runs from Johnathon, 12 from Simon and eight from Darren with four extras for 54. STH Drifters nearly snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in their clash Plate final tussle with Irish Pub. The Drifters set a meaty total of 84 for two for Irish to chase then bowled out their opening batsman for a duck. Things didnt get much better until some wayward bowling from the leaders handed Irish a vital 37 extras. That took the game right to the wire and Irish needed 14 runs off the last four deliveries for victory. They whittled it down to need three off the final ball. The cause seemed lost when the ball was cracked for a seeming two runs but when it was thrown back towards the stumps it bounced off one of the bats and skewed back out into the field to allow the third run. Although that meant Irish Pub were the winners, the controversial manner of the last run meant both captains were called to the committee tent after the game. After a brief discussion all parties sportingly agreed to declare the game a draw. It was a fair decision and reflected the sportsmanship that has been evident throughout the competition. Gymkhana Cavs captured the Spoon trophy on their homeground with a hard-fought victory over Wombats. Wombats had never won a final before in 18 years of participation in this flourishing competition and they went home as bridesmaids again. The Cavs who contained three Thai players from schools alliance programme had to chase a total of 68. Opening batsman Chris Simmonds hogged the limelight with 30 and their caused was helped by generous bowling with 36 extras swelling their total. Eric Little marched onto the green and scored the winning run from his first delivery to secure the trophy. In a one-off game, a Best of the Rest side beat the All Star Sri Lankans by one run with 56. D Shaw (17 n.o.) and S Chowdhury (32 ret) made a serious dent in the Sri Lankans opening gambit of 55 and a Chappell single was enough to tip the game in their favour. YESTERDAY'S FINAL RESULTS Surrey Vagrants beat Marchweil (Cup final), Warathais beat Lords Taverners (Shield final), Ashwell Crusaders beat Silver State (Bowl final), STH Drifters drew Irish Pub (Plate final), Gymkhana Cavs beat Wombats (Spoon final) OTHER GAMES: Warathais beat Darjeeling (Shield SF), Marchweil beat Cricketers (Cup SF), Surrey Vagrants beat Perth Postels (Cup SF), Best of the Rest beat All Star Sri Lankans, Chiang Mai Chassies beat Dixies (women's challenge) |
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