Smashing wins by Wellington
Wellington’s Firebirds and Blaze teams finished the year in style with wins in their T20 Super Smash double-header against the Central Stags and Hinds at Pukekura Park, New Plymouth.
The Firebirds beat the Stags by eight wickets, while the Blaze stormed past the Hinds by the same margin.
The Wellington Firebirds gave an improved showing on recent performances, backing up a strong effort in the field with a thrilling opening stand of 94 between Michael Bracewell and Devon Conway, which killed off the Stags’ hopes of a win.
After the Stags lost Dane Cleaver (0) in the first over and George Worker (8) soon after, it was left to Tom Bruce (28) and Josh Clarkson (31) to turn things around.
But Logan van Beek, with the key wickets of Bruce and Worker, took 3-29 and skipper Hamish Bennett took 3-22 as the Firebirds prevented the hosts getting momentum.
When they lost Willem Ludick at 101-6 in the 16th, the innings looked in dire straits, but Kieran Noema-Barnett (17no) and Dean Foxcroft (13) helped give the home team a total to defend.
Bracewell and Conway took time to get set, but then put the foot down and kept it there.
Conway was severe on anything short and hit cleanly through the leg side, while Bracewell announced his intentions with a lap shot for six off Seth Rance.
The pair raced along at eights and nines an over until Conway edged Blair Tickner to Cleaver attempting to ramp one for four. Bracewell brought up his 50 shortly afterwards from 33 balls, and looked to end the chase fast with a series of booming sixes and fours.
He was trapped lbw by a Rance yorker with just 10 runs needed for 74 from 42 balls, which included eight sixes and two fours. It was left to Adam Hose and Malcolm Nofal to get the last few runs, doing so in the 16th over.
The Blaze roared back to the top of their points table with a dominant win, as the class of White Fern Amelia Kerr shone.
The youngster took two wickets for just nine runs from her four overs, and then struck
52 not out in an assured performance.
The Hinds lost wickets in clumps, which robbed their innings of any real momentum. Their openers were going steadily before Emily Cunningham
(14), Natalie Dodd (13) and Anlo van Deventer (0) all went with the score on 28.
They lost another three wickets for just three runs with the score on 45, and it was left to Esther Lanser (27 not out) to bring some respectability to the total.
The Blaze lost Rebecca Burns off the first ball of the innings, but Kerr formed match-winning partnerships with Lucy Doolan
(27) and skipper Liz Perry (17 not out).
Doolan and Kerr were harsh on anything dropped short or pitched wide, and ran their singles hard so they were never under scoreboard pressure. Going at around a run a ball, the Blaze did it comfortably in the end.