Element IMF Cadets won their tenth Williams Cup since the mid-1990s and their first since 2010 when they defeated Carrus Mount Maunganui in a thriller in the 2017 Baywide Championship Final at the Bay Oval on Saturday.
Cadets batted first with the Mount spin bowlers restricting Cadets attempts to hit out on a wicket block that had hosted a Plunket Shield game during the week. When skipper Scott Steward got out lbw, Cadets were 114/4 in the 36th over.
Bay of Plenty reps Jono Boult and Donovan Deeble started an assault on the Mount bowlers which took their side through to 210/4 in their allotted 50 overs. Boult was there at the end with an unbeaten 53 with Deeble posting 47 not out.
Mount Maunganui openers Brenton Thompson and Nick Smith made a cracking start to their team's run chase before Smith was out for 22. Thompson continued the momentum, and when he was caught by Jono Boult for 77, Mount Maunganui appeared in charge at 142 for the loss of three wickets.
The Cadets bowled then tightened the screws and strangled the Mount Maunganui batsmen's attempts to hit out, restricting the Mount to 198/9 and claiming a hard fought 12 run victory.
