DJ Barry Cup: HSOB, Horouta place well on Day 1 of Round 1

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Day 1 of Round 1 in local cricket’s DJ Barry Cup ended with High School Old Boys and Horouta Te Waka well placed.

David Situ’s Breakers Horouta side took four competition points for their hard-earned first-innings lead against Gisborne Boys’ High School — Horouta are 67 runs to the good — and Coastal Concrete Old Boys Rugby trail Bollywood HSOB by 118 runs with three wickets in hand.

Both teams can bat for a maximum of 60 overs on the first day, with a minimum number of 80 and a maximum number of 96 overs possible.

In the Horouta-Boys’ High match, GBHS co-captain Jarrod Ormiston won the toss on the representative wicket and opted to bat.

The Waka seam attack made an outstanding start, with Shubham Raihan and Billy Morse conceding only 14 runs in the first 10 overs.

Boys’ High fielded a new opening pair in Nathaniel Fearnley (21) and Malsha Mahabalage (18), and the former (as he had in the T15 Walker Shield match against Horouta on Thursday night) got off the mark with a forcing shot square of the wicket off Raihan, this time for two runs from the first ball of the third over.

The Boys’ High opening pair put on 34 before offspinner Stanley Blake (1-35 from eight overs, one maiden) had Fearnley caught by Raihan at mid-off.

Mahabalage fell with the score at 48, and first drop Alex Shanks’s 16 was his team’s next-highest individual score as they were bowled out for 76 in 37.5 overs.

Following the dismissal of the Boys’ High opening pair, medium-pacers Jagroop Singh (4-15 from 13.5 overs, six maidens) and Gautam Sareen (4-9 from six overs, two maidens) knocked over the next eight batsmen for the addition of only 28 runs.

“Nathaniel and Malsha gave us a good platform but none of our other batsmen got going,” Ormiston said.

“In the second innings, our own bowling effort was good — stump to stump — and we got wickets late in the day.”

Boys’ Hgh left-arm spearhead Johnathan Gray was once more extremely accurate for 2-9 from 11 overs, with seven maidens. The best of his supporting cast were his elder brother David (2-24 from nine overs) at first change, second change Fearnley (1-24 from eight overs, two maidens) and left-arm orthodox spinner Riker Rolls (2-35 from 10 overs), the fifth bowler used.

Sareen hit Fearnley for four off the first ball of the 24th over to give Horouta the lead with seven wickets in hand, and The Waka were 143-9 after 49 overs at the end of the day’s play. Horouta led by 67 runs.

Situ was well pleased: “We’re pretty happy to come away with first-innings points, considering our numbers situation on Friday night. Gautam and Jagroop both bowled really well, putting it in the right areas on a tricky pitch.”

Battle was joined for the fourth time this season by OBR and HSOB at the weekend.

Triple-crown holders HSOB beat OBR by five wickets in the 40-over Doleman Cup final on December 16 and at the end of Day 1 in Round 1 of the DJ Barry Cup two-day championship, HSOB were in a strong position.

“It was a good batting deck,” OBR captain Matt Cook said.

“Dave Castle, Carl Shaw, Scotty Tallott and Steve Lamb all batted well for HSOB and on a hot day, we chopped and changed bowlers regularly to conserve their energy, while not allowing batsmen to get used to them.

“We’ll look to bat as long as we can next Saturday while being as positive as we can, because both teams want the outright win.”

Castle won the toss on Harry Barker Reserve No.2 and — as Cook himself indicated OBR’s preference would have been — chose to bat first.

HSOB compiled 245-9 in 55.3 overs. With No.11 Glen Udall unable to take the field, the innings was complete.

Openers Castle (58 off 76 balls) and the left-handed Shaw (40 off 65), first-drop Scott Tallott (34 off 33), Daniel Torrie (25 off 49, batting at No.5) and the unorthodox but occasionally devastating No.7 Steve Lamb (48 not out off 34 balls) did the damage.

Castle was caught by Paul Stewart at slip from the bowling of Cook (1-39 from eight overs), off the last ball of the 19th over, by which time he and Shaw had put up 81; the innings closed when Daniel Stewart (3-39 from 8.3 overs, one maiden) hit Nicholas Armour’s middle stump with a ripe, tempting off-break.

Daniel Stewart, Nathan Trowell (2-34 from nine overs, one maiden) at first change and spearhead Jimmy Holden (2-59 from 12 overs, one maiden) worked hard for their success. In temperatures approaching 30 degrees, they continued to hit the crease hard and pitch up to the bat . . . 245 is a good total, but OBR never folded.

There are days and pitches on which a bowler has to stick to a tight line and length, keep four-balls to a minimum and stay patient. A keen bowler who loves to bowl and never gives up always has a chance of taking a wicket.

The HSOB bowlers had more runs to play with on Saturday than any other team in Premier Grade or Senior B Grade so far this season. Left-armer Jak Rowe (2-23 from 12 overs, two maidens) and Steve Lamb (2-40 from six overs), with whom he shared the new ball, made excellent use of it.

They made OBR’s batsmen play the ball. They bowled with good shape, and rarely let up on the pressure. Buddhika Kumarage, the fifth bowler used, took 2-12 from five overs (two maidens). Any cricket team with a new-ball attack complemented by change bowlers who can maintain the pressure on top-order batsmen will benefit.

Kumarage and offspinner Castle (1-17 from seven overs, two maidens) kept the pressure on. Castle bowled the aggressive Tom Garrett three balls into the 20th over — a huge dismissal in the context of the match, Garrett having thumped a six and seven fours in a 23-ball innings of 42 from No.5.

Medium-pacer Anthony Boyder and left-arm orthodox spinner Daniel Torrie were tried for one over each, after which Armour was brought on as the seventh bowler.

Armour’s teasingly accurate, wobbling slow-medium pace had Mana Taumaunu caught by wicketkeeper Tallott for a gritty 15 off 37 balls. Daniel Stewart was the eighth and last man to fall on Day 1, bowled by Rowe in his second spell for an eight-ball duck to end the 33rd over.

At the close, Hayden Keast (11no), batting at No.8, had held Armour at bay. No.10 Amit Vyas, who had yet to face a ball, will be on strike at the start of Day 2.

OBR have 26 overs remaining to them in the first innings.

“OBR fought hard, and had an opening to bowl us out for under 200, but with Steve’s exciting knock — plus Dan Torrie’s 25 and Jak Rowe’s resistance — we managed to stem their momentum and get that targeted 200,” HSOB skipper Castle said.

“It was an excellent two-day deck. There was plenty in it for the bowlers at the start of the day, and Paul and Jimmy showed that, with both having chances put down early on from good bowling.

“The wicket then flattened out a lot, and allowed for good batting. Steve Lamb proved that. Hitting through the line was the key to his success. The pitch started to turn a little at the end of the day, so it’s a real two-day strip.”

DJ Barry Cup, Premier Grade two-day championship, Round 1, Day 1 —

GISBORNE BOYS’ HIGH SCHOOL 76 all out in 37.5 overs (Nathaniel Fearnley 21; Gautam Sareen 4-9, Jagroop Singh 4-15) BREAKERS HOROUTA TE WAKA 143-9 in 49 overs (Gautam Sareen 53, Stanley Blake 21; Johnathan Gray 2-9, David Gray 2-24, Riker Rolls 2-35). Horouta lead by 67 runs.

BOLLYWOOD HIGH SCHOOL OLD BOYS 245-9 in 55.3 overs (Dave Castle 58, Steve Lamb 48 not out, Carl Shaw 40, Scott Tallott 34, Daniel Torrie 25; Daniel Stewart 3-39, Nathan Trowell 2-34, Jimmy Holden 2-59) COASTAL CONCRETE OLD BOYS RUGBY 96-7 (Tom Garrett 42; Buddhika Kumarage 2-12, Jak Rowe 2-23, Steve Lamb 2-40). HSOB lead by 149 runs.