Third spot for Badgers Rural
The Garden Route Badgers earned themselves a spot on the podium at the CSA Rural Coastal Week, held on the West Coast last week, from 19 to 22 February.
The Badgers were the runners-up at the last Rural Coastal Week in Oudtshoorn in 2022 and headed off to Saldanha Bay and surrounds with the hopes of bettering this outcome. In their way lay seven other union teams from the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces - EP Grahamstown, EP Midlands, Border Aloes, Border Country, Border Villages, Kei and the hosts, Boland.
While the tournament hub and accommodation were based in Saldanha Bay, the playing venues were spread out among outlying areas – Vredenburg, Darling, Hopefield, Velddrif and Piketberg. The conditions in which the tournament was played took some getting used to for the Badgers and most teams visiting the West Coast.
The pitches were slow and more suited to spin bowling, offering very little for seam bowlers and even less for batters. Anyone seeking runs would have to battle their way to anything resembling a respectable score. The first two days would be played in the 50-over format, while on the last two days teams would play three 20-over matches.
Days one and two
With high hopes, the Badgers faced eventual winners EP Grahamstown on the first day in Darling. Unfamiliar with the conditions, the Badgers batters mustered a total of 128. A strong fight with the ball gave the men from SWD some hope, but EP Grahamstown battled hard and earned a three-wicket win.
On day two the Badgers faced Border Villages in Velddrif on a much better playing surface. Opting to bowl first, the Badgers managed to restrict the Border outfit to only 96. A free-spirited run chase saw the Badgers chase the target down in good time to get on track with a six-wicket win.
Day three
The first of their two 20-over fixtures on day three was against EP Midlands at Vredenburg, by far the slowest surface that the Badgers would play on all week. A top batting effort from the Badgers saw them score 122-7. Great bowling meant that EP Midlands could only muster 69 before they were dismissed, handing the Badgers a 53-run triumph.
The second 20-over match of the day was against hosts Boland at Hopefield, the best surface any team played on all week as there was much on offer for everyone, spinners, seamers and batters alike. Despite tough going for most of the innings, a brilliant final two overs for Boland meant they reached 131-6 in their innings.
The Badgers remained on track with the required run rate for most of the innings, but untimely wickets saw them fall behind.
Ultimately they were restricted to 108 and Boland won by 23 runs to earn a place in the final against EP Grahamstown.
Day four
This meant the Badgers would have a rematch against Border Villages back at Darling for the 20-over third place decider on the final day. The Badgers' best batting performance of the week saw them reach 141-6 in their 20 overs. Again Border Villages were no match for the Badgers bowlers, this time being bowled out for 99. This gave the Garden Route Badgers a 42-run win, securing third place with three wins from their five matches.
Captain of the side Leroi Bredenkamp, of Pacaltsdorp United, was the Badgers' top run-scorer for the week while Jermaine le Kay of Harlequins Forces in Oudtshoorn was the Badgers' leading wicket-taker for the week. SWD Cricket was also represented by two umpires at the week, Lyndon Volkwyn and Nathan Rhode.