Unbeaten Celtic to face Renwick in final
It was a day for the chasing sides at Horton Park on Saturday as Celtic and Renwick booked berths in next week’s Marlborough senior cricket SBS Bank 50-over final.
Celtic ran down Wairau Valley’s 190-9 with nine balls to spare to keep their unbeaten record in this competition alive, while Renwick eased past Wairau’s 236 in the 46th over to score their second win of the four-match roundrobin.
Wairau Valley made a promising start to their innings, Rikki Bovey and Shane Wills pushing them to 46 after 13 overs. Although Bovey stayed put, top scoring with a patient 69 from 136 balls, wickets continued to fall at the other end. No sizeable partnerships eventuated in the face of a steady Celtic attack.
Josh Poole and Reuben Kepes, who both bowled seven overs, were the main wicket-takers, Poole snaring 3-19 with his demanding spin, while Kepes continued his good form with the ball to bag 3-37.
Chasing a tricky score of 191 for victory, Celtic lost John Porter early but consolidated through fellow opener Ben Blackman and Poole, who took the score to 50.
Poole’s dismissal brought skipper Jerrym Lamb to the crease and he combined well with Blackman for the best partnership of the match.
The experienced pair put on 69 to set up Celtic’s successful chase, although there were some nervous moments towards the end.
Lamb’s 34 from 50 balls was valuable, but it was Blackman who steered the ship home. He scored 91 from 149 balls with just seven boundaries, showing restrain and good judgement.
With wickets falling regularly at the other end, Blackman saw his side through to 149 in the 48th over before being dismissed by the reliable Sam Boyce, opening up a late opportunity for Valley to snare the final two wickets .
However, Sean Neal and Jack Holdaway showed composure to see Celtic home in the penultimate over.
Bovey, Matthew Stretch and Boyce picked up two wickets each for Valley.
On the number one ground, Wairau set Renwick a challenging total.
Wairau’s total was based around two half centuries. Skipper Andrew McCaa scored a wellconstructed 91, batting for most of the innings before being caught at mid off in the final over. He put together a superb century-plus partnership with young opener Aiden Lavender who made his way patiently to his first senior half century.
Lavender went for exactly 50, then Harry MacDonald, with a rapid 39, added late impetus to the innings.
Best of a steady Renwick attack was Dustin Emms-Healy, who snared three of the six wickets to fall.
To have any chance of chasing down the Wairau total, Renwick needed a sizeable partnership and it was provided by skipper Luke Frankland and MCA development manager Prabodha Arthavidu.
The pair came together after the early loss of Emms-Healy and played each delivery on its merits, picking up singles regularly and generally keeping the ball on the deck.
Their 153-run partnership slowly but surely turned the game in Renwick’s favour with McCaa shuffling his bowling line-up in the hope of a breakthrough.
By the time it came Renwick were well on top. Frankland was bounced out by Nick Weaver for a superbly-compiled 80, then, when Hayden Gaudin followed quickly, Wairau smelt blood. But a handy 22 from Jason Campbell pushed Renwick closer to the finish line and Arthavidu, who ended on an unbeaten 95, saw them home comfortably. it was the Sri Lankan’s first score of substance since his arrival in Marlborough and hinted at plenty more runs to come.
Weaver and Kennedy looked the pick of the Wairau attack who were steady, but not penetrative on a well-used wicket.