Four wickets, four balls... Not a bad start to season
Southland Boys’ High School went from 16 for one to 16 for five in four balls with three players removed for first-ball ducks.
Invercargill-Old Boys’ Blake Buttar-Scurr lifted the curtain on the 2023-2024 ILT Premier Southland club cricket season in impressive fashion on Saturday.
Invercargill-Old Boys won the toss and opted to bowl against Southland Boys’ High School before Buttar-Scurr caused carnage with the new ball.
He took six for 21 from eight overs but it was a four-ball period that did the damage as the pupils were bowled out for just 64.
Southland Boys’ went from 16 for one to 16 for five in four balls with three players removed for first-ball ducks.
In reply, Southland Boys’ Travis Mann removed Brayden Thomas for a golden duck and Shahil Rana also went for single figures.
However, Chris Case (35* and 23 balls) and Brendon Domigan (15* 20 balls) made light work of the chase when they helped Invercargill-Old Boys overhaul the target inside 10 overs with the loss of just the two wickets.
While it was Buttar-Scurr who was the star of the show with the ball on Saturday, over at Miller Street in Invercargill it was Ryan McFaul (Waikoikoi) and run machine Shaun Fitzgibbon (Marist) to who set that game alight with the bat.
Waikoikoi won the toss and chose to have a bat in what proved to be a good call.
The country club racked up an impressive 244 for four from their 40 overs thanks mainly to Ryan McFaul’s impressive day out.
McFaul produced an unbeaten 112 from 107 balls after coming to the crease with his team at 25 for one.
He found good support from Ashleigh Harrison late in the innings who chipped in with an unbeaten 34 from 33 balls as the pair put on 89 set set Marist 245 to win.
When Liam McFaul reduced Marist to 55 for four Marist’s chances started to vanish quickly.
However, as has been the case for many years now, Shaun Fitzgibbon again proved to be the thorn in the side of another opposition bowling attack.
Fitzgibbon delivered with his knock of 107 from 90 balls to get Marist through to 189 for five when he departed.
Thomas McCabe took charge from there with his impressive unbeaten 55 from 60 balls, although it wasn’t quite enough to get Marist over the line.
Marist finished 219 for six from its 40 overs, 26 runs short of victory.