Speedster Loffler’s return boosts OBR's firepower

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Matt Cook is a level-headed cricketer . . .and captain.

But any skipper other than the Coastal Concrete Old Boys’ Rugby man would be rubbing his hands with glee at the news that pace bowler Cohen Loffler will be back in the ranks this weekend for their Round 2 clash with Gisborne Boys’ High School first 11 in the Premier Grade DJ Barry Cup two-day championship.

According to Cook, Loffler, 18, is the quickest in the district.

“Having Cohen back’s a big advantage for us, while for GBHS, Alex Shanks and David Gray have both scored runs recently, so we need to contain them. Their captain, Bekko Page, can be troublesome with bat and ball and Jarrod Ormiston is a dangerous left-hander.”

Loffler and all-rounder Dane Thompson will supplement the swing of Cook, Jimmy Holden and Richie Needham. The side will miss Tom Garrett — who scored 42 and 35 in their DJ Barry Cup Round 1 game against High School Old Boys but is heading back to OBR’s Hope Cup side — and Hayden Keast, who has work commitments.

Keast was twice not out against the Bollywood HSOB side and Cook will want to see similar steel from his batsmen in Round 2.

With Te-Reimana Gray overseas, wicket-keeper Kieran Venema will join left-hander Sean Henry at the top of an order which may include Nick Greeks, James Bristow, leftie Herschel Barker and Karan Solanki.

Boys’ High placed eighth in the Super 8 tournament at Palmerston North yesterday, having had to play a T20 match against Rotorua BHS in order to beat the 8pm road closure between Wairoa and Gisborne.

Opener Nathaniel Fearnley stroked his way to 24 off 22 balls with four boundaries from No.1 in a 14-run loss.

The David McDonald-coached Boys’ High came home with players better for the time away.

Against Rotorua, left-arm quick Johnathan Gray (1-14 from four overs) bowled No.6 Connor Banks (3) with the last ball of the first innings to dismiss them for 101.

David Gray (2-5), Bekko Page (2-23) and Fearnley (2-21) bowled out.

Banks bowled Johnathan Gray (14), eighth man in, to end Gisborne’s run chase at 87 with the last ball of the 18th over of a game Page said his side would learn from.

“We bowled really well against Rotorua and batting-wise, we learned the importance of settling at the crease after a wicket fell — to reset, reassess the situation.”

This knowledge could serve GBHS well and they have the ability to act on it.

Standing for GBHS and OBR on the No.1 ground at Harry Barker Reserve from 11am will be umpire Stewart Patrick while Jason Trowill will take charge of HSOB v Breakers Horouta on No.2.

The David Situ-led Horouta go into Game 2 of the longer-form play as competition leaders, having beaten Boys’ High outright two weeks ago.

Gautam Sareen (53) and opener Stanley Blake (21) steered their crew to first innings points v Boys’ High while skipper Situ made 22 not out in Horouta’s short second dig for victory.

Horouta’s pace bowlers were brilliant.

Sareen and Jagroop Singh took four wickets apiece first time around; Billy Morse and Bruno Judd three wickets each on Day 2.

They will need to impress again to have any chance of subduing two of their opponents in mighty batting form.

The 235 run third-wicket stand between HSOB batsmen Dave Castle (100) and Scott Tallott (116) against OBR in Round 1 was a partnership to make the three other Premier Grade teams sit bolt upright.

Having scored 58 and 34 respectively in HSOB’s first knock, the pair took the competition’s batsmanship to a new level on Day 2 — hitting five sixes and 32 fours between them in HSOB’s 253-2 in 43.1 overs.

Left-hander Carl Shaw, who made 40 in the first innings, is unavailable tomorrow but the holders of the DJ Barry Cup, 40-over Doleman Cup and T15 Walker Shield have extensive resources to call on.

Capable all-rounder Angus Orsler has played for Poverty Bay at senior representative level and is back in the blue and whites mix for tomorrow.

Against OBR, opening bowler Jak Rowe took 4-23 in 12.3 overs with two maidens first up.

He bowled a good line, asked hard questions of the batsmen as relates to footwork, and applied pressure.

However, in the second dig, his two wickets came at a cost of 54 runs from 12 overs with left-handers Te-Reimana Gray (33) and Sean Henry (2) laying on 39 in 7.3 overs.

They hit both he and his new-ball partner Steve Lamb for six.

In the context of the match, those shots did little to stem the tide, but they did give the opposition renewed heart.

Horouta have batsmen more than willing to lay willow on leather and spread the field.

The Waka, though, will need to take calculated risks to prevent Rowe, fellow left-armer Keegan Jooste, Lamb and Buddhika Kumarage from settling.

That in mind, Castle bowled his off-spin tidily in the Doleman Cup final last month. He bowled to conditions with control and is just as capable as the HSOB pacemen of influencing events.

His would be a stranglehold that Horouta could ill-afford.

“We find two-day cricket to be a true test of skill,” HSOB skipper Castle said. “It’s a great format that we get up for and Horouta will provide a different challenge this week.

“We’re well-aware of David Situ’s ability to take the game away from us, as he did in Round 2 of the Walker Shield.”

Situ (61) and Sareen (42) shared an opening partnership of 102 in that six-run win for Te Waka.

The defending champions of Senior B club cricket are to take the stage tomorrow.

Civil Project Solutions Ngatapa Green Caps, under Charles Morrison, will look to avenge their loss of October 28 last year to Rawhiti Legal Old Boys’ Rugby on the representative wicket tomorrow while Chicking High School Old Boys’ Presidents duel with Campion College first 11 on No.3. Both games start at 2pm.