Roncalli/Celtic moved into second place in the Twenty20 competition with a win over Temuka and on Saturday became the first team to dismiss Celtic this season.
It was a family affair as all the de Joux crew playing in the Roncalli/Celtic lineup had success with bat, ball and in the field as they first restricted Temuka to 119-9 with Ants de Joux taking two wickets, one due to a catch by son Ben. Then Mike (40) and Neil de Joux (24) got the innings off to a solid start, before non-family member Liam Beck scored an unbeaten 42 to go with his 2-16.
In other Friday night T20 matches, Nathan Sew Hoy continued his fine season as a T20 specialist, scoring 60 for Waimate to take him to the top of the batting table and helped his team account for Star at the same time.
Over the weekend there were at least three occasions where the ball struck a player’s head and this pointed to the fact players need to be aware of where the ball is at all times. Sam Porter is sporting a good shiner after a throw from the outfield hit him just below the eye while he was returning to his bowling run-up.
Phil McGregor was hit in the helmet from another fielder’s throw as he dived for the crease while batting, and then the next morning Prabodha Arthavidu was hit first ball, breaking his helmet open with a big hole.
Star would have been disappointed at their performance, coming up 25 runs short with wickets in hand, but Waimate’s opening bowlers choked the life out of any scoring opportunities.
JP Roguski, with 0-5 off four overs, and Alan Reid, with 0-12 in his return to cricket, put Star under pressure at 18-0 after eight overs. Despite Jacques Marais top-scoring again with 39, none of the other batsmen could get going, being forced suddenly to score at 12 an over on arrival at the crease and in fading light it was too much. With Marais’ fellow opener, Phil McGregor, unable to penetrate the field or rotate the strike enough despite scoring an unbeaten 37, Waimate was always in control of the outcome.
In the third Friday night T20 match, Celtic again saw off Timaru, showing their club depth with several players unavailable.
Saturday saw a continuation of the one-day competition, with the seventh round being played.
Roncalli/Celtic’s kudos in being the first team to dismiss Celtic this season was short-lived as they were dismissed in 24 overs for 84 chasing a target of 177 to win.
Celtic had four batsmen dismissed in the 20s and Sam Carlaw top-scored with 35 as they were all out in the 44th over but it was still too good a total for the opposition.
Celtic’s Ben Watson enjoyed his day out, taking a five-wicket bag from his maximum nine overs but for Roncalli/Celtic no-one other than opener Michael Lees, who almost carried his bat, dug in.
Lees was ninth out, with the score at 70, but by then the match was a foregone conclusion.
At Mountainview, Star’s miserable weekend continued despite home ground advantage and asking Timaru to bat first after winning the toss and then having to watch Arthavidu finally find some club form to match his representative form on his way to 94.
He found good support from Josh Dick with 42 as the pair added 121 runs but once they departed Timaru offered little as Alex McDuff continued his fine season with the ball, taking 5-41.
Timaru eventually posted 218-8, a target Star never threatened.
While Phil McGregor top-scored with 31 not out to remain not out for the whole weekend, he had little support as five ducks in the batting column clearly shows, and Star were dismissed for 88 with Arthavidu capping off his day by taking 3-7 with the ball.
In Waimate, Temuka, whose home game it was, played accordingly, dismissing Waimate for 89.
Theo Davidson did the bulk of the scoring, dismissed for 47, and five Temuka bowlers claimed two wickets each.
In reply, Johnny Geddis led Temuka to victory, with 47 not out, as his team reached the target for the loss of two wickets.
Next weekend, clubs play only in Friday night’s T20 competition as the Hawke Cup campaign begins in the weekend.