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The last day of the Izintaba Potch Gimmies Cricket Festival saw most of the teams battling it out in T20s.

Hans Moore ran rampant over their opposition over the course of the four days and put a cherry on the top of their displays with a convincing 107-run victory over the Glenwood Invitational side on Monday.

The Hansies stuck to their successful recipe by winning the toss and electing to bat first. Marno Grobler, who enjoyed a wonderful week with the bat in hand, was among the runs for a fourth consecutive day, blasting an impressive 76 from only 48 balls.

Alongside Grobler, Stephan Vermaak also found the batting-friendly pitch on the last day to his liking. He launched the ball to all parts of the ground, racing to 62 from a mere 29 deliveries. Striking with power, he sent three deliveries over the ropes and added seven fours as he sped along at a run rate of 214.

Kenzo Mchunu was the pick of the Durbanites’ bowlers, even though he was somewhat expensive. Still, he finished with three scalps for 39 runs.

Glenwood’s batting had been inconsistent earlier in the festival and it continued against Hans Moore as they made a stuttering start, finding themselves at 50/5 in pursuit of 225.

Herchelle Oosthuizen took it upon himself to stabilize a sinking ship and contributed a valiant 43 from 42 balls.

Unfortunately for Glenwood, his knock was in vain as Marno Grobler led the bowling charge for the Hansies. Showing his versatility, Grobler backed up his destructive performance with the bat with a useful 2/12 with the ball. Henré Everleigh also got in on the act, claiming a similarly impressive return of 2/13.

The pair’s bowling dominance meant that Glenwood could reach only 117/8 in their allotted 20 overs, leaving Hans Moore with a full house of festival wins.

The hosts, Potchefstroom Gimnasium, got back to winning ways after their shock loss to Durbanville on Sunday. The were up against Northwood‘s team of stayers, who opted to field first after winning the coin flip.

As they had done in their three previous outings, Gimmies got off to a very good start. Zavier van Rensburg’s 36 at the top of the order laid a solid platform for the likes of Righardt Joubert and Tommie Botha.

Provided with a steady foundation, Joubert batted sensibly for a run a ball 45, but lost his wicket at an inopportune time. Botha, however, boosted the Gimmies’ innings with a late quickfire 20, which lifted the home team to a total of 148/4 in their 20 overs.

Northwood, in reply, struggled at the crease, frequently losing wickets. Stumbling to a meagre 81/9, Luke Allen was their only shining light. He made 22 not out to keep his side from being bowled out before their overs were up. However, mustering a final total of only 104/9 was a disappointing end to the festival for the Knights, who went down by 44 runs.

The Westville Invitational side signed off a successful week with a 27-run victory against the Affies Invitational team. Westville won the toss and took to the crease first. There, Seth Simpson grabbed his last batting opportunity of the festival with both hands, smashing an entertaining 78 from only 42 balls, including 11 fours and two sixes.

Roxton Payne continued his impressive form, falling just one run shy of a half-century, and needing only 26 deliveries for his contribution of 49. The pair’s ruthless display of power hitting saw Westville posted a very competitive total of 196/4 in their 20 overs.

Affies made a decent start to their challenging run chase, but they lost wickets at the wrong times. The in-form Divan de Vries clubbed 48 from just 27 balls, while Arne Prinsloo (30, 34b) and Henré Smith (26, 30b) added valuable cameos lower down the order.

Unfortunately for the Pretoria side, there were to be no late heroics as they finished on 169/6 to come up short in a valiant effort at the 197 runs that they required for victory.

Summarised scorecards: 

Hans Moore 224/6 (Marno Grobler 76, Stephan Vermaak 62, Warren Minnaar 23; Kenzo Mchunu 3/39); Glenwood Invitational 117/9 (Herchelle Oosthuizen 43; Grobler 2/12, Henré Eveleigh, Eteinne Smith 2/21). Hans Moore won by 107 runs. 

Potchefstroom Gimnasium 148/4 (Righardt Joubert 45, Zavier van Rensburg 36, Tommie Botha 20; Jordan Matthews 1/18); Northwood 104/9 (Luke Allen 22*; Ruan Lotz 4/15, Christian Viljoen 2/17). Potchefstroom Gimnasium won by 44 runs.

Westville Invitational 196/4 (Seth Simpson 78*, Roxton Payne 49, Chad van Breda 25; SF Vermeulen 2/30, Janco de Bruin 2/31); Affies Invitational 169/6 (Divan de Vries 48, Arne Prinsloo 30, Henré Smith 26; Thomas Jee 2/31). Westville Invitational won by 27 runs.

Klerksdorp High School ended their campaign at the second annual Izintaba Potch Gimmies Cricket Festival in fine fashion with a hard-earned victory over Stellenberg on the final day of play in Potchefstroom.

Rustenburg High School also saw off Durbanville High School to bounce back after their loss to Marais Viljoen in their previous outing, and Boland Landbou proved too strong for Hoërskool Trio in their final match of the festival.

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The Klerksdorp boys outdid themselves by going three from four at this year’s event and regrouped well after a loss in their penultimate game against Westville Boys’ High to beat Stellenberg in an exciting T20 battle on Monday.

Tumelo Macume‘s half-century helped his side to 143/3 and ultimately was the difference in the game, but the Klerksdorp bowlers still had plenty of hard work to do to contain the Cape Town side’s batsmen and secure the victory.

Arno Koen earned his 50th first-team cap, opening the innings for Stellenberg alongside Ryan Jones.

After two slow opening overs, the Stellenberg pair began to apply some pressure on the fielding team, but the right-arm medium-pacer Winton Abrahams removed both batsmen through catches by Stephan Janse van Rensburg and Donavin Payne respectively. He toppled another batsman later on to finish with three victims for the day.

Janse van Rensburg did his bit with the ball, too, picking up three wickets for 17 in his four overs to help dismiss the challengers for 93, which left them 51 runs short of the victory target.

It was a third win of the tournament for the proud team from Klerksdorp, which had previously bested the invitational teams from Affies and Glenwood. Only the Westville Boys’ High Invitational side was able to lower their colours.

Rustenburg’s batsmen required only 21 of their 35 allotted overs to overtake the Durbies’ total, thanks to a steady knock by Wesley Bruwer.

Opening the batting for Rusties, he scored an unbeaten 58 at exactly a run a ball to lead his team to success.

Tobie Roelofse batted well for the Capetonians, making 44, but the Rustenburg bowling attack was on the mark, sending Durbanville back to the changing rooms with a total of 137 to protect, which Bruwer and co chased down without much trouble.

Boland Landbou had far too much firepower for Hoërskool Trio as they cruised to a win over the boys from Kroonstad.

Marius du Plessis was pivotal for Boland over the weekend, and he added four more wickets to his list of achievements at a cost of only 10 runs to again play a huge role as the Bolanders skittled Trio for a lowly 66.

Stefan Conradie and Jan van Niekerk then smashed 13 boundaries in only 23 deliveries to rocket their team to victory.

After four days of back-and-forth competition, some teams will feel ready and excited for the forthcoming season, while others will have identified what areas they need to work on, and they will be looking forward to further opportunities to improve.

The festival provided schools from across the country with a welcome opportunity to compete against teams whose paths they would not normally cross, challenging them to deal with unfamiliar opponents, and delivering a beneficial platform for the players to get valuable game time.

Summarised scorecards:

Klerksdorp High School 143/3 (Tumelo Macumi 51, Brink von Willigh 29*, Mohammed Bulbulia 26; Lohann Pretorius 1/17); Stellenberg 93 (Extras 18, Wilhelm Smet 17; Stephan Janse van Rensburg 3/17, Winton Abrahams 3/19). Klerksdorp High School won by 50 runs.

Durbanville High School 137 (Tobie Roelofse 44, Calla du Toit 36, Extras 23; Jandré Lottering 3/16, Nathan Rossouw 2/6, Logan Rossouw 2/8, Callie Fryer 2/32); Rustenburg High School 139/3 (Wesley Bruwer 58*, Reagan Smook 33, Logan Rossouw 21*; Albertyn du Bois 2/20). Rustenburg High School won by seven wickets.

Hoërskool Trio 66 (Extras 14, Tsiamo Mosia 12; Marius du Plessis 4/10, Markus Groenewald 3/26, Stefan Conradie 2/6); Boland Landbou 70/0 (Stefan Conradie 37*, Jan Albert van Niekerk 25*; Louis Boshoff 0/11). Boland Landbou won by 10 wickets.

The penultimate day of the Izuntaba Potch Gimmies Cricket Festival saw Brackenfell hold on for a victory over Voortrekker from Bethlehem in a highly entertaining clash between these two unlikely opponents.

Stellenberg also flexed their muscles to see off the challengers from Kroonstad, Hoërskool Trio, and record their second victory at the festival.

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The Voortrekker bowling attack started strongly, taking two early wickets and had the Brakkies under early pressure at 3/32 after the first nine overs.

However, Luke Hattingh, batting at five, brought some much-needed stability to the Brakenfell innings, with an outstanding 95-ball knock that produced 130 runs, to put his side on the front foot, before he was finally caught by Andre Heunis off a Jean Theunissen delivery.

Remarkably, Hattingh’s total included a staggering 80 runs from boundaries. He smashed 14 fours and four sixes to tear apart the Trekkers’ bowling attack.

The boys from Bethlehem put up a valiant fight when they took to the middle to attempt to chase down 241 for victory, but 3/20 from Jean Oosthuizen, including three of the top four batsmen in the order, and 2/12 from De Wet Willemse, which tied up the tail enders, was enough to secure a 25-run victory for the Cape Town school.

On Monday, Brackenfell tackles Dr EG Jansen in their final match, while Voortrekker seeks a return to winning ways against Monument.

Stellenberg turned to their bowlers to make the difference in their match against Hoërskool Trio.

Batting first, they put up 231 all out, led by Michael Amoêdo, who top scored with 41 towards the end of their innings, while Jan-Jak Alberts weighed in with an undefeated 26.

With Trio at the crease, JJ Rothman and his captain, Kyle van Santen, got to work, dismissing six batsmen from Kroonstad in their combined 11.5 overs for the loss of only 34 runs between them.

Liam Fourie also took a brace for only 20 runs in his seven overs.

The Stellenberg boys will aim to finish on a high against Klerksdorp on the final day in a match which will see Arno Koen earn his 50th cap for the first team. His captain Kyle van Santen has previously joined that elite club.

Trio faces the daunting task of trying to topple Boland Landbou in their final outing.

Summarised scorecards:

Brackenfell 240 (Luke Hattingh 130, Dawson Lombard 34, Extras 22; Hendrik Janse van Rensburg 3/38, Jean Theunissen 3/40, Wian Klaasen 3/45); Voortrekker 215 (Hendrik Janse van Rensburg 39, Craig Mann 36, Extras 34; Jean Oosthuizen 3/20, De Wet Willemse 2/12, Aiden Barnardo 2/41). Brackenfell won by 25 runs.

Stellenberg 231 (Extras 44, Michael Amoêdo 41, Kyle van Santen 32, Jan-Jak Alberts 26*, Arno Koen 22, Wilhelm Smet 21; Miguel Menino 3/40, Henrico van der Merwe 2/27); Hoërskool Trio 115 (Miguel Menino 23, Extras 20; JJ Rothman 3/15, Kyle van Santen 3/19, Liam Fourie 2/20). Stellenberg won by 116 runs.

 

The Hans Moore 1st XI has proved itself to be the most dominant side at Izuntaba Potch Gimmies Cricket Festival over the course of the first three days. The Hansies’ batsmen managed to better 300 for a third consecutive time, tallying an imposing 313/8 against a decent-looking Helpmekaar College side.

Hansies won the toss and, like the previous two days, chose to bat first. Their impressively consistent top order delivered again, with the top six all contributing 30 runs or more.

On day three, it was Stephan Vermaak who led the way, top scoring with 50 from only 45 deliveries to set the tone for another dominant display from the rest of the Hans Moore lineup.

Warren Minnaar (46, 43b) and Marno Grobler (45, 48b) continued their strong form with two more classy knocks, replete with wonderful stroke-making.

Xavier Coetzee was also among the runs once more, with his 45 playing a vital role in the Hansies tallying 313/8 in their 50 overs.

Aiden Pretorius was the pick of the Helpmekaar bowlers, claiming 1 for 55 from his 10 overs, despite the onslaught of the Hans Moore batsmen.

Replying, the Helpmekaar batters looked comfortable at the crease and put the Hans Moore bowlers to the sword somewhat, for the first time during the festival.

Anthony Stone led the way with an exceptional 88 from 123 deliveries. He was by far the best with willow in hand for the side from Johannesburg and showcased an impressive ability to rotate the strike when under pressure.

However, Sahil Parbhoo, astonishingly, bagged his third five-for in a row, this time snaring 5/27 to undermine the Helpmekaar innings. His spell was well backed up by stalwart Adam Kruger (3/30), and together they ripped the heart out of the Helpmekaar run chase, restricting their opponents to 243 all out, which left Hans Moore with another convincing victory, this time by 79 runs.

Potchefstroom Gimnasium suffered their first defeat of the week, losing by 35 runs against a determined Durbanville side. The men from down South visited the middle first after winning the toss. It didn’t go particularly well for them as the Durbies mustered a meagre 160 before being bundled out.

The bulk of their runs came from an impressive knock of 50 from 68 balls by James du Toit, who has been a consistent performer for the side from the Cape throughout the festival.

Phillip du Plessis was the pick of the Gimmies’ bowlers, knocking over 3/31 in his outing with the ball.

The in-form opening partnership of Tommie Botha (32, 42b) and Marnu Cronje’ (21, 19b) gave the hosts the start they needed in pursuit of 161 to win. However, a decisive spell of 5/21 from Tobie Roelofse changed the course of the match drastically. As the Gimmies’ innings progressed, they found themselves sliding deeper into trouble, with the severe pressure leading to them losing wickets in clusters.

Jan-Pieter Kriel (2/25) and Alexander van Aarde (2/31) also came to the party with their bowling stints. On the day, the Gimmies’ side didn’t have the answers and were rolled over for a disappointing 125 all out.

The Affies Invitational team appears to have hit its straps after claiming a second victory in succession, this time coming out on top against Monument.

Monnas won the toss and followed the day’s trend of batting first. Antoni van Niekerk stood out with a wonderfully constructed 54 from 52 balls, but he would’ve been disappointed to get out just as he attempted to accelerate his scoring. Joshua McCoy chipped in with a much needed 48, and he found valuable support from Werner Darheim (40, 65b).

Those contributions helped Monnas to a respectable 235/7 in their 50 overs. Affies’ SF Vermeulen was the standout with the ball, snapping up an impressive 4/32.

Despite being set a challenging target, the Affie batsmen didn’t appear fazed. Divan de Vries led their reply, striking an unbeaten 53 off of 61 deliveries.

SF Vermeulen backed up his good bowling performance with an exciting 39, and together with contributions of 35 from Ronan Cilliers, as well as a few telling cameos lower down the order, the Pretoria side cruised to a four-wicket victory.

Summarised scorecards: 

Hans Moore 313/8 (Stephan Vermaak 50, Warren Minnaar 46, Marno Grobler 45, Xavier Coetzee 45, Adrian Watson 37, Kenan Shaw 32; Aiden Pretorius 1/55) Helpmekaar 234/10 (Anthony Stone 88, Stefan Lottering 25, Zander Neethling 22, Kevin Olivier 21, Hanru Marais 20; Sahil Parbhoo 5/27, Adam Kruger 3/30, Stephan Vermaak 3/11). Hans Moore won by 79 runs.

Durbanville 160/10 (James du Toit 50: Phillip du Plessis 3/31, Stefan Fourie 2/30, Ruan Lotz 2/52); Potchefstroom Gimnasium 125/10 (Tommie Botha 32, Marnu Cronje 21; Tobie Roelofse 5/21, JP Kriel 2/25, Alexander van Aarde 2/31). Durbanville won by 35 runs. 

Monument 235/7 (Antoni van Niekerk 54, Joshua McCoy 48, Werner Darheim 40, Rieghardt Prinsloo 28; SF Vermeulen 4/32, Janro de Bruin 2/43); Affies Invitational 239/6 (Divan de Vries 53*, SF Vermeulen 39, Ronan Cilliers 35, Zirk Meyer 22, Antonie Fourie 22, William Burgess 20; Durheim 3/59). Affies Invitational won by four wickets. 

 

 

Boland Landbou returned to winning ways on day three of the Izuntaba Potch Gimmies Cricket Festival with a solid performance against the Northwood team of stayers.

After losing out to Marais Viljoen in their previous outing on Saturday by the narrowest of margins, just eight runs, Boland regrouped well to beat the team from Durban with four wickets to spare.

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Stefan Conradie led the charge for the boys from Paarl with an unbeaten innings of 95 as the Western Cape side chased down the 183 posted by the Northwood Invitational team.

The stalwart opener stood his ground against the Northwood bowlers, facing 97 deliveries while establishing a stable platform from which his team could chip away at the victory target.

Marius du Plessis, a standout for his side throughout the tournament, was on song again, scoring 41 runs and taking three wickets.

The Northwood innings started strongly, but after Kagan McMeekin was run out on 76 their batting crumbled in the face of good bowling from Du Plessis and Conradie, who picked off the middle-order for minimal loss, which left Boland Landbou with a reasonable total to chase.

Following their win, they will be looking forward to their final game against Hoërskool Trio on Monday. Another win would see them ending on a high note and taking a healthy dollop of momentum into the 2023/24 season.

Klerksdorp High School, after two emphatic wins, finally met their match and suffered their first loss of the festival against the Westville Boys’ High Invitational team.

Dandre Slabbert started off promisingly for Klerksdorp as they took to the middle first. He struck a six and three fours in a knock of 21 from 30 deliveries, which underlined his positive intent.

Unfortunately for Slabbert, he and his teammates simply didn’t have any answers for the accurate left-arm spin of Roxton Payne.

Payne dismissed all four of Klerksdorp’s top order batsmen for only 17 runs, stifling their attack before it had a chance to get going.

The Westville boys, who notched their third win on the trot, following victories over Monument and Brackenfell, chased down the low required total of 55 in 16 overs, with their opener, Chad van Breda, seeing them through with 24 not out.

If they can get past the Affies Invitational team on Monday, Westville will return home with a 100 percent win record.

Dale Slabbert led Dr EG Jansen to a 69-run victory over the Glenwood Invitational XI, by removing four batsmen.

They face Brackenfell, in their last outing of the festival on Monday.

Summarised scorecards:

Northwood Invitational 183 (Kagan McMeekin 76, Alistair Duncan 28; Marius du Plessis 3/33, Stefan Conradie 3/39); Boland Landbou 184/6 (Stefan Conradie 95*, Marius du Plessis 41, Francois Prins 26; Tuswa Pheta 3/25, Matthew Norton 2/18). Boland Landbou won by four wickets.

Dr EG Jansen 157 (Extras 39, Rico Crouse 21, JP van Staden 20; Akhil Maharaj 3/26, Ntando Vezi 2/22); Glenwood Invitational 88 (Rehaan Jhungbathur 23; Dale Slabbert 4/27, JP van Staden 2/6, Jayden Marcus 2/14). Dr EG Jansen won by 69 runs.

Klerksdorp High School 55 (Dandre Slabbert 21; Roxton Payne 4/17, Sekou Shangase 3/8, Heath Stott 2/16); Westville Boys’ High Invitational 57/4 (Chad Botha 24*; Tumelo Macume 3/28). Westville Boys’ High won by six wickets.

 

Marais Viljoen found themselves in a second consecutive tight affair on Saturday, the second day of the Izuntaba Potch Gimmies Cricket Festival. This time, however, they came out on the winning side, scraping by Boland Landbou to claim a narrow eight-run victory.

The side from Alberton won the toss and elected to bat first. An impressive partnership between openers, Aldre Huyzers (50, 71b) and Jaden Govender (36, 34b) got Marais Viljoen off to a positive start. With a solid platform laid by the pair, Tian du Toit was afforded the freedom to play his attacking brand of cricket.

Du Toit let loose, scoring at a strike rate of 125 for his 64 not out, which came from only 51 deliveries. A valuable 41 from Tristan Thom towards the back end provided a much-needed boost for Marais Viljoen, which lifted them to a respectable target of 239/9 in their 50 overs.

For Boland Landbou, Stefan Conradie bowled an impressive line and length, showing that consistency remains the main contributor to a successful outing with the ball. After 10 overs, he walked away with figures of 4 for 60.

The Boland Landbou batters appeared to hit their stride early in their chase of 240 for victory. However, a decisive bowling performance from stalwart Declan Botes (4/31), which caused a middle-order collapse, dragged it back for his side.

Marius du Plessis restored some order to the Boland Landbou innings with a wonderfully constructed innings of 57 not out. With the visitors from the South falling behind the required run rate, Janco Visagie took it upon himself to try and get his team across the line.

Unfortunately, his quickfire 20 not out wasn’t quite enough as the Marais Viljoen bowlers restricted the Bolanders to only 231, claiming a well-deserved hard-fought victory.

EG Jansen proved to be too good for their rivals from Krugersdorp, Monument.

After winning the toss, Monnas struggled to get their innings going, with most of their top order making solid starts but failing to convert from there.

Waldo Greyling impressed with a fighting knock of 41 from 73 balls. He found solid support from Innocent Ramerafe, who was again among the runs, adding 33 to his tally for the week.

Egan Pretorius shone for the men from Boksburg. Showcasing his fine abilities with the ball, he claimed 3/17 and helped restrict Monument to a sub-par total of 172.

EG Jansen then continued their dominance with the willow. Rico Crouse played the anchor role, grafting hard for his 38 not out from 71 balls. Liam Green’s contribution of 37 and a well-played 31 from Jean Novellie was enough to see EG Jansen to a comfortable victory with six wickets to spare.

Summarised scorecards: 

Marais Viljoen 239/9 (Tian du Toit 64*, Aldre Huyzers 50, Tristan Thom 41, Jaden Govender 36; Stefan Conradie 4/60, Tiaan Reyneke 2/37); Boland Landbou 231/8 (Marius du Plessis 57*, Henre Swart 44, Lohann Louw 28, Rynardt van der Schyff 24, Janco Visagie 20*; Declan Botes 4/31, Jordan Baijnath 2/47). Marais Viljoen won by eight runs.

Monument 172/10 (Waldo Greyling 41, Innocent Ramerafe 33, Caleb dos Santos 23, Rieghardt Prinsloo 20; Egan Pretorius 3/17, Zander Lubbe 2/21, Dale Slabbert 2/9); EG Jansen 173/4 (Rico Crouse 38*, Liam Green 37, Jean Novellie 31, JP van Staden 24; Prinsloo 1/24). EG Jansen won by six wickets.

Selborne College held off a fierce Kearsney College side in a rousing final of the u16 Nick Rey Water Polo tournament hosted at Durban High School over the weekend.

The gripping clash went all the way to penalties after both sides scored five goals, with nothing to separate the teams after the fourth quarter.

The penalty shoot-out, a closely contested one fell in the hands of the Eastern Cape side after Kearsney missed a shot.

Selborne eventually won (3-2) on penalties.

In other matches on the day, Jeppe Boys High School from Gauteng thumped Glenwood High (13-7) to finish in the 13^th spot. Whereas wins for Westville (5-4 against Northwood), Michaelhouse (5-3 versus Affies), and Hiton (7-5 against St Stithians) saw them all finish within the top 10 spots.

Dominant start pays off for the Eastern Capers:

Selborne College will look back at the tournament and draw inspiration from how they carried themselves in the pool.

The side began the weekend in the best way possible, putting their front foot forward and dominating as early as day one. Despite lapses of concentration creeping in early on day two, it’s their resilience and fight that stood out, and saw the side seal their spot for the grand finale.

In their first match, the visitors scored a mammoth 12 goals against Jeppe Boys. That statement win was however cancelled out on the morning of day two when the side lost by two points (11-9) against Hilton College.

The same resilience and never-say-die attitude saw Selborne redeem themselves when they put 12 goals past Michaelhouse on the same day.

That secured Selborne’s spot in the play-off spots, where they got past hosts, Durban High School (8-5) before a spirited win against Hilton College (4-2) in the semi-final on Sunday morning saw the side book a date with Kearsney College in the final.

Made to work for the win:

Heading into the final, Selborne were undoubtedly the favourites considering their run in the tournament and the type of attack and mid-field players they have in their arsenal.

However, Kearsney was always going to pose a massive threat, especially in a knockout match.

When looking at their run to the final, the KZN side was quiet about their business. The side with home-ground advantage scored 14 goals, conceding two against Glenwood in their opener. They continued on their goalscoring form, netting in a further 16 against the DHS Invitational side before thumping St Stithians (12-8) in the semi-final.

The final began on a physical, and high-tempo note.

The visitors from the Eastern Cape opened the scoring with two minutes. Kearsney slotted one back with just under a minute to play after one of the Selborne defenders was penalized for foul play.

The first chukka ended 1-1.

The second stanza only produced one goal – after both sides failed to increase their tallies early on, Kearsney pounced on a golden opportunity. When a counterattack presented itself, the KZN side passed the ball to one of their attackers, who with a reverse swing smashed the ball in the right-hand corner to give his side a 2-1 going into the final two quarters of the match.

The final two quarters were the most exhilarating, mouthwatering, and aggressive quarters of arguably the whole tournament.

Selborne got themselves back into the match by scoring three goals, while Kearsney also stayed in the clash with two goals of their own. In the end, both sides were tied at (4-4), and one goal a piece in the final chukka couldn’t separate the two teams, with penalties the only option.

Selborne kept their calm, slotting in their three shots while one miss by Kearsney gifted the East London side a hard-fought (3-2) in Durban.

Results:

Day 1:

Durban High School 9, Maritzburg College 1; Clifton 16, Glenwood 1; Kearsney 14, Westville 8; Northwood 6, St Benedict’s 1; St Stithians 10, Affies 5; Selborne 12, Jeppe 2; Greg College 9, DHS Invitational 5; Hilton 9, Michaelhouse 3.

Day 2:

Northwood 5, Maritzburg College 1; Kearsney 16, DHS invitational 2; St Stithians 14, Glenwood 2; Hilton 11, Jeppe 6; Kearsney 16, Grey College 4; DHS 14, St Benedict’s 2; Clifton 5, Affies 3; Hilton 11, Selborne College 9; Westville 6, DHS invitational 1; DHS 7, Northwood 6; St Stithians 9, Clifton 3; Selborne College 12, Michaelhouse 4; Westville 16, Grey College 5; Maritzburg College 9, St Benedict’s 1; Affies 8, Glenwood 5, Michaelhouse 16, Jeppe 8.

Day 3:

Affies 6, Northwood 5; Clifton 10, Maritzburg College 3; Selborne 14, Grey College 5; Michaelhouse 9, Westville 6; Glenwood 11, St Benedict’s 7; Jeppe 7, DHS Invitational 5; Selborne College 8, DHS 5; St Stithians 8, Michaelhouse 7; Hilton 11, Affies 6.

Day 4:

Selborne 4, Clifton 2; Kearsney College 12, St Stithians 8; St Benedict’s 5, DHS Invitational 5; Jeppe 13, Glenwood 7; Grey College 4, Maritzburg College 3; Westville 5, Northwood 4; DHS 4, Clifton 4; Michaelhouse 5, Affies 3; Hilton 7, St Stithians 5; Selborne College 5 (3), Kearsney 5 (2).

The Westville Boys’ High Invitational Team put up two centuries in a match for the second consecutive day as they cruised to a 289-run triumph over Brackenfell on Saturday, the second day of the Izintaba Potch Gimmies Cricket Festival.

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Seth Simpson and Yusuf Karodia matched one another with 104 runs each for Westville as they raced to a massive 365/5.

Roxton Payne and Bhaskar Sewlal achieved the same milestones for the proud team from KZN on the first day in their victory over Monument, and the Westville Boys are building up a fierce reputation at this year’s event.

Simpson took only 80 balls to reach his century, while Karodia survived for 118 deliveries as the opening batsman to reach his ton.

Brackenfell’s Luke Hattingh defended dourly to finish on 25 not out, but six wickets for Westville’s Brandon Wiid at a cost of only 23 runs meant there was no chance for the Capetonians to establish a foothold and they were dismissed well short of the victory target.

On Sunday, the Westville Invitational team takes on Klerksdorp, who are also unbeaten so far in the tournament, having convincingly dealt with the invitational squads from Affies and Glenwood already.

Their showdown promises to be a thrilling affair. Only one team can emerge with its perfect record intact.

Durbanville High School also breached 300 in their match against Voortrekker from Bethlehem, with Henry Venter leading the charge with an innings of 101.

Calla du Toit and Pierre du Toit produced solid innings of 69 and 63 respectively.

Having 340 runs to defend, the Durbie bowlers then made mincemeat of their opponents’ batting lineup, with Tobie Roelofse taking five wickets for 34 runs in seven overs, which included a hat-trick, to steer Durbanville to a massive 233-run victory.

The team from Cape Town takes on Potchefstroom Gimnasium next and will be aiming to maintain their momentum as they seek to hand the hosts a defeat in their home tournament.

Summarised scorecard:

Westville Boys’ High Invitational 365/5 (Seth Simpson 104, Yusuf Karodia 104, Roxton Payne 61, Armaan Ramsaran 25; Nicholas Geldenhuys 1/15); Brackenfell 76 (Luke Hattingh 25*; Brandon Wiid 6/23, Luke Maxwell 2/22). Westville Boys’ High Invitational won by 289 runs.

Durbanville High School 340 (Henry Venter 101, Calla du Toit 69, Pierre du Toit 63; Joel Coetzee 3/48, Hendrik Jansen van Rensburg 3/68); Voortrekker 107 (Cecil Parsons 47, Tobie Roelofse 5/34). Durbanville High School won by 233 runs.

Klerksdorp High School racked up more success on Saturday with an impressive second victory in their game against a Glenwood Invitational XI on the second day of the Izintaba Potch Gimmies Cricket Festival. Meanwhile, the Affies Invitational team bounced back to winning ways against Stellenberg.

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The Glenwood Invitational bowlers began strongly by knocking off the Klerksdorp High School top order at a steady rate, picking up four wickets in the first 20 overs for 92 runs. However, Brink von Willigh, who came in at six, took control of the game with an aggressive knock of 91 off 57 deliveries to help his team to a solid 245 all out.

Glenwood’s run chase never materialised. It was undone by Tumele Macume, who captured 5 for 28 and caused chaos in the KZN side’s lower order. Glenwood’s batting crumbled and Klerksdorp secured a comprehensive 156-run victory to improve to two from two at this year’s event after outplaying the Affies Invitational squad by 112 runs on the opening day.

Brendan Mathyse also played a vital role for the victors, dismissing both openers to put the opposition on the backfoot early.

In the battle between the Affies Invitational XI and Stellenberg, Arne Prinsloo led the charge with the bat for the team from Pretoria.

He batted diligently, scoring 62 off of 90 deliveries and, at the same time, he created a platform from which his team-mates could play.

The Affies boys utilised their full 50 overs, bolstering their total to the very end, with Antonie Fourie, batting at nine, contributing the third most runs with 29 not out.

It looked like Roux Wasserman was putting together a key innings for Stellenberg to launch a counter-attack, but Divan Ras needed only three deliveries to send him packing, and from there the proud team from Cape Town struggled to build any more momentum.

SF Vermeulen took three wickets for only 10 runs for the Affies Invitational team and Ryan Seymore also dismissed three Stellenberg batsmen for just 19 runs.

Tomorrow, Klerksdorp face the Westville Boys’ High Invitational XI. It could well be their toughest challenge of the weekend so far.

The Affies Invitational boys will look to carry on their winning ways when they face Monument.

Summarised scorecards:

Klerksdorp High School 245 (Brink von Willigh 91, Raykie van Rooyen 29, Mohammed Bulbulia 28, Extras 26, Dandre Slabbert 21; Akhil Maharaj 4/52, Hercelle Oosthuizen 3/31); Glenwood Invitational 89 (Isa Mohammed 27, Extras 20; Tumele Macume 5/28, Brendan Mathyse 2/14, Brink von Willigh 2/14). Klerksdorp won by 156 runs.

Affies Invitational 261/8 (Arne Prinsloo 62, Divan de Vries 31, Antonie Fourie 29*, Henre Smith 25, Extras 23, Ronan Cilliers 21; Kyle van Santen 2/50, JJ Rothman 2/50, Lohann Pretorius 2/55); Stellenberg 143 (Roux Wasserman 37, Extras 23; SF Vermeulen 3/10, Ryan Seymore 3/19). Affies Invitational won by 118 runs.

Day two of the Gimmie Cricket Fest was action-packed, with Hans Moore crossing the 500-run mark and the hosts surpassing 400 runs in their 50-overs-a-side matches.

A mammoth 522/9 helped Hans Moore bag a second consecutive one-sided victory. The Hansies won the toss and elected to bat first against Trio High and, just like on day one, their opening pair proved instrumental as they combined for a wonderful partnership of 96 runs.

Marno Grobler led the way with his quickfire 51, while Aiden Shaw played the anchor role and also brought up a half-century, contributing 54 from 55 deliveries.

After the pair’s departure, all the Hansies’ batsmen cashed in, with their innings featuring no less than six half-centuries.

It was Adam Kruger, however, who stole the show. Walking in at number ten, he let loose from ball one to rub more salt into the already severe Trio wounds. The bowling all-rounder smashed 99 from only 35 balls, at an eye-opening run rate of 283. His breathtaking innings, combined with the five other half-centuries, meant that the Hansies were able to amass an astonishing 522 in only 50 overs.

On the side of Trio, Henrico van der Merwe could hold his head high after claiming 3/83.

Taking to the crease under tremendous pressure, the Trio batsmen soon found that pressure rapidly increasing as they lost wickets at regular intervals. Louis Boshoff was the only one able to stand his ground, counterpunching with 45 from just 27 balls.

But the man from Benoni with the golden arm, Sahil Parbhoo (5/8), bagged his second five-for in as many days. Together with Parbhoo, Adam Kruger wreaked havoc among the Trio batsmen, claiming four scalps of his own for only 22 runs.

Together, they ripped apart the Trio reply, rolling over the opposition for only 66 runs.

The Gimmie-Oval also played host to some entertaining chaos. Having won the toss, the home team opted to bat first against a wounded Helpmekaar bowling attack and, for the second day in a row, Tommie Botha was among the runs, scoring a scintillating 60.

Botha’s knock was good, but Ewald Kruger grabbed the spotlight with a magnificent 98 from only 49 deliveries. There was a further significant innings from the other run-machine at the top of the order, Marnu Cronje (72, 58b), while Zavier van Rensburg matched Cronje’s contribution (72, 66b), which helped the hosts to cruise to 408 all out.

Dihan Janse van Rensburg impressed with the ball for the Helpies as the Gimmies’ batsmen went on the attack. He snapped up 3/42 despite it being a difficult day in the field for the men from Johannesburg.

Cronje, after a fine innings, continued his heroics with the ball. He tore through the Helpies’ top order to end the day with a telling return of 4/40, and Caiden Seleka chipped in with 3/36, to close out the Helpmekaar innings.

The Helpmekaar batsmen appeared shell-shocked and couldn’t put a meaningful partnership together. Juandré Verwey, after taking a solid 3/73 with the ball, top-scored for them with 32 from 36 deliveries. His knock was, however, the only contribution of note in his side’s innings as they were bundled out for a meagre 154, which left Gimmies the winners by a massive 254-run margin.

Summarised scorecards:

Hans Moore 522/9 (Adam Kruger 99, Zander Swart 66, Sheldon Kruger 65, Aiden Shaw 54, Xavier Coetzee 54, Marno Grobler 51, Warren Minnaar 43; Henrico van der Merwe 3/83, Myburgh Jacobs 2/90); Trio 66/10 (Louis Boshoff 45; Sahil Parbhoo 5/8, Adam Kruger 4/22). Hans Moore won by 456 runs.

Potchefstroom Gimnasium 408/10 (Ewald Kruger 98, Marnu Cronje 72, Zavier van Rensburg 72, Tommie Botha 60; Dihan Janse van Rensburg 3/42, Juandre Verwey 3/73, Aiden Pretorius 2/43); Helpmekaar Kollge 154/10 (Verwey 32, Jean Lubbe 26, Hanru Marais 24, Pretorius 21). Potchefstroom Gimnasium won by 254 runs.