Mountaineers hungry for more

LOGAN Cup winners Mountaineers are hungry for more silverware as they are now eyeing the Pro-50 Championship and the domestic T20 tournament.

The Mutare-based franchise last week reached a milestone when they won a domestic record-equalling third successive Logan Cup title.

The Mountain Goats, who now have four Logan Cup titles in their cabinet following the success of 2014, wrapped up the premier first-class cricket tournament in style at the weekend when they crushed Tuskers by 223 runs in a game that had since been reduced to a dead rubber.

Their coach, Shepherd Makunura, said the Mutare side wants to use their momentum in the Pro50 Championship which resumes this Saturday with a home match against Eagles.

They have also sounded a stern warning to their rivals in the domestic T20 tournament set for next month.

“We play sport to win championships. We have just achieved that this year and the feeling is great.

“I think we have been consistent for the past three years and we have maintained more or less the same team that we have had in those years. I think there is a good understanding among ourselves and that puts us in a good space.

“It’s always great when you have people like Hamilton Masakadza and Tino Mawoyo in the side. A lot of youngsters feed off them because these guys have a wealth of experience and I think nothing beats experience.

“For the next couple of days we will celebrate this Logan Cup and then from there it’s back to business. We have got two more tournaments left in the season so we would like to seriously challenge and hopefully win them as well,” said Makunura. Their batsman Timycen Maruma, who experienced a late surge in form, was voted the best batsman in this year’s Logan Cup while all-rounder Donald Tiripano claimed the player of the tournament and best bowler accolades.

Maruma topped the batting charts with 409 runs from five innings.

He had two tons and a fifty, all coming in the last three games of the season. Tiripano was the Logan Cup’s top wicket-taker with 25 scalps in the bag, five better than teammate victor Nyauchi who came in as the second best in the just-ended season.

There were also remarkable performances by Mountaineers players like Tendai Chatara, who was returning from injury, and young gun William Mashinge, who finished with 15 wickets.