Cricket: Greytown victors in defence

Greytown opener Gordon Reisima hits out on his way to 47 as Lansdowne keeper Alex Treseder watches.

Greytown are Cricket Wairarapa's Umpire's Cup champions for 2016.

The southerners went into the final against Lansdowne at Rathkeale College on Sunday as the defending champions and came up trumps again, this time by 32 runs in a match which turned out to be a fairly even contest between bat and ball.

Greytown batted first and, after losing the first wicket at just 16, Gordon Reisima and Jackson Kibblewhite staved off any fears of an early collapse with a second-wicket partnership with 86 runs, the biggest - and eventually the most important - of the game by far.

Hayden Barrett took four wickets for Lansdowne.

Reisima's 47 came from 58 balls and included six 4s while Kibblewhite made his 35 from 62 balls, including four 4s. A solid 29 by Robbie Speers also kept the scoreboard ticking over but once the Lansdowne bowlers worked their way through the top order they found some easier pickings, Greytown's score tumbling from 141/4 to all out for 203 in 46.2 overs. The only real resistance among the tail came from Andy Butterfield, who lasted 53 balls for his 21.

Lansdowne were quite prepared to vary their attack, with seven of the players given the opportunity to strut their stuff and it was Hayden Barrett who emerged as the most successful. He took 4-50 from 10 overs while Brock Price finished with 2-23 from five overs.

The prospects of a Lansdowne victory were very much on the radar when Alex Treseder and Jay Macdonald put on 53 runs for the first wicket, with Treseder taking an aggressive approach. He made 32 from 35 balls, including seven fours. Unfortunately for Lansdowne, however, that was to be their most productive partnership of the innings and they were all out for 171.

Skipper Henry Cameron, who has been in grand form with the bat all season, did threaten to have a major impact on this game as well but his innings ended at 31, made from 42 balls and including five fours, while the best of the rest were Price (20) and Hook-Sporry (19 not out).

The four Greytown bowlers who completed theit quota of overs all did a good job, with Reisima taking 3-43. Daniel Ingham (1-27), Brian James (1-32) and Butterfield (1-30) also had good reason to feel satisfied.