Wairau cricketers at the double

Wairau were the big winners on the local senior cricket scene last week, claiming victories in both Twenty20 and 40-over competitions.

On Wednesday they tipped over Renwick in the T20 league, then, on Saturday, accounted for Wairau Valley in the 40-over format.

In Saturday’s clash at Oliver Park, Wairau batted first, working their way to a modest 168 all out in the 39^th over. Opener Nick Weaver scored 33, George Burton featuring further down the order with 26 while Colin Wood chipped in with an unbeaten 15 near the end. Jethro Moran, 3-26 from seven overs, Matthew Stretch, 2-15 from eight, and Richard Moran, 2-27 from six, were the pick of the Valley attack.

Valley’s replay began promisingly, the first wicket falling at 30. However, dismissals were frequent after that. Greg Stretch, with 31, led the way as his side were dismissed for 66 in the 23^rd over, handing Wairau a 102-run win.

Baxter Croad picked up the stunning figures of 3-5 from six overs, Griffin Carter claimed 3-9 from four and Weaver bagged 2-28 from eight to ensure the competition front-runners stayed on top of the table.

On the adjoining Oliver Park ground, Renwick took on the newly-formed Falcons, eventually winning by 22 runs.

Renwick batted first and put 203 on the board, showing application on a difficult wicket. Luke Frankland, batting four, was top scorer for the Green Machine, putting together an unbeaten 59. Rikki Bovey added 47 and Luke Zillwood scored 45 to ensure Renwick had a decent target to bowl at. Ian Crawshaw, a new arrival and handy allrounder took 2-34 from eight, to be the pick of the Falcons’ attack.

Most of the Falcons’ batters made a start in reply, Crawshaw scoring 25, Ben Armstrong 15 and Aidan Conroy 18 but it was the arrival of No 4 Luke Holdaway that upped the ante. The MBC youngster threatened to take the game away from Renwick, scoring a classy 65, but no-one could stay with him as the Falcons were dismissed for 181 in the 34^th over.

The players came off the field for rain, with Falcons ahead on the Duckworth Lewis system at that stage, but, thankfully for Renwick, the players returned to get the match completed.

Twenty20

The Marlborough senior T20 competition entered its ultimate stages last week, with Wairau and Celtic picking up wins as the competition moves towards a final on February 9.

Wairau met Renwick on the Horton Park one ground, both sides coming off recent wins. Renwick batted first and struggled for momentum in their innings, losing top-order batsmen at key moments and eventually able to post just 125-8 from their 20 overs.

The Bovey brothers were again major contributors, Rikki scoring 37 from 30 balls, Corey 21 at a run-a-ball. Luke Frankland added 17 but it was the Wairau bowlers who finished on top, Griffin Carter bagging 3-25 from four and Harry Boyce 2-15 from four.

Wairau’s reply was hardly inspiring but they got the job done, scoring 128-7 in 18 overs to win by three wickets. Opener Nick Weaver scored 30 from 20 balls, Andrew McCaa a steady unbeaten 30 from 34, Boyce 22 from 14 and Carter 29 from 26. Rikki Bovey’s 2-21 from four, and Cody Golding’s 2-11 from two highlighted the Renwick bowling effort.

On Horton three, Celtic batted first, scoring a mediocre 108-8. Luke Holdaway, 32 from 29, and Aidan Conroy, 24 from 19, were the top scorers. Greg Stretch, 3-12 from 3.1, and Sam Boyce, 2-14 from three, led the Valley attack.

Chasing a small target, Valley were well placed at 48-2 in the 10^th over before the wheels fell off. Openers Stretch and Boyce were dismissed, sparking a steady stream of dismissals. Despite a solid knock from top scorer Matthew Stretch, who made 53 from 38 before being run out in the final over, Valley’s quest for 16 runs from the final six balls came up well short.

Greg Knowles took 4-22 from four overs, while Josh Poole claimed 2-20 from his full complement as Celtic prevailed by nine runs.

The senior T20 final takes place on Friday, and will be between Wairau and Celtic.