Hudson Park fall short in T20 final
St Stithians’ class proves bridge too far
IN THE end, it proved a bridge too far for Hudson Park High School when they lost the final of the Coca Cola Schools T20 Challenge to St Stithians College at the Coetzenberg Oval in Stellenbosch yesterday.
It was a fantastic effort, from Coastal Focus Schools representative, Hudson, who lost their first game of the tournament, before going on to win three in a row – including a nail biting semifinal – to make it into the final.
However, they were then outclassed by the superb Lions’ representatives, St Stithians, who were the only unbeaten team in the tournament. Hudson lost the final by eight wickets.
“It is just a magnificent St Stithians side, it really is an outstanding team,” said Hudson coach, Dave Alers.
“They are unbeaten this year and at this tournament, so they are the best in the country.”
Of some consolation to Hudson was seeing their star bowler, Akhona Mnyaka, being awarded the Coca Cola Hero of the day award and the Coca Cola Hero of the Tournament Award for his superb match-winning performance against Cobras’ represemtatives, Wynberg, in the semifinal.
In the final, Hudson batted first and capitulated to a disappointing 62 all out. They managed to get off to a good start, with Jason Niemand and Luke Dallas negotiating the first two overs well, but when they fell it began a procession that saw 10 wickets fall for just 36 runs.
Dallas with 15 and Akhanya Rebe with 10 were the only batsmen to reach double figures in the innings.
Hudson Park’s bowlers had the unenviable task of trying to defend an extremely low total and with St Stithians attacking from the opening ball of their innings, they cruised home in style.
Opener Joshua Richards just threw his bat at everything, with most of his shots finding the boundary as he pummelled nine fours and two sixes to score 54 off 21 balls and single-handedly take his team to victory.
Bradley Mauer got him out with St Stithians two runs short of victory, but in the next over they crossed the line, ending on 66/2.
“I think we had a fairly reasonable start, we were quite happy with being 26 for none after five overs and the two batsmen at the crease were looking pretty confident,” said Alers. “It was then very difficult for the bowlers, but the fact is we went out there and didn't lose by 10 wickets which was important.
“I am not disappointed at all, it would have been nice to have put on a better performance in the final, but the fact that we got here means an incredible amount to us,” Alers said.
The other East London side in the competition, Warriors representatives, Selborne College, lost the plate final against HS Centurion (Titans).
Selborne started the competition with a bang with a thumping win, but suffered two losses to finish third in their group and went into the plate final. They were beaten by four runs which meant they finished sixth out of the eight teams – an impressive effort from them altogether.