Shortened cricket tourney a great success
The sun shone brightly on a chilly Saturday morning as teams took to the cricket pitches at Port Alfred High School (PAHS) and the Port Alfred Country Club (PACC) to face off against their rivals for the prestigious title of six-a-side cricket champions for 2018.
The shortened version of the game, with only eight overs per innings, encouraged batsmen to take more chances, so hook-shots and slogs were the order of the day, allowing the fielding side more opportunities for some great catches.
The 12 teams competing were split into three groups of four, where each team played three matches and the winners of each group along with the best runner-up from all groups played in the semifinal.
The teams were Rosehill SUPERSPAR, Round Table, PAHS, El Shaddai, Kenton Hotel, Trellidor, Kowie Toyota and 43 Air School. Although registered to play, the Pick n Pay team did not take part.
In the end the final was contested at the PACC oval between Trellidor and 43 Air School. Although closely contested, Trellidor managed to keep their focus and beat the air school in a thrilling final match that ended at around 5.30pm after which the prize-giving took place.
There was a lot of post-match camaraderie and, typical of cricket tournaments in the area, the almost mandatory jibes and good-natured insults flew across the clubhouse as various players received recognition for their work on the field of play.
In keeping with the spirit of the day, the two worst teams in the three groups played one another and the winners, Kowie Toyota, won the Wooden Spoon award. This elicited a number of comments from the other collecting the prize.
Onto the more serious awards, Thanduxolo Shotana was awarded the prize as the best batsman on the day while Sipho Saki got the best bowler award,
The best umpire at the PAHS grounds was Justin Dollery while the best umpire at the PACC was Anthony Bowdler.
The award for the biggest six went to Warren Bowdler while the best bowling achievement went to Alan Harty for his hat trick, the only one on the day.
Trellidor accepted the award as overall tournament winners – their second consecutive win and the third from the four tournaments held so far.
“We have to thank Seattle Coffee, Highlander Pub as well as the Rosehill SUPERSPAR who made this day possible,” said Rob Nel, owner of Trellidor and the organiser of the event.
The teams thanked him and Trellidor for the tournament