After losing their first two matches to start the Bundaberg Cricket Tallon-Giles Division 1 Trophy competition a week earlier, Waves got their T20 title defence right back on track with two crushing victories at Kendall Flat on Saturday.
Waves took just 7.1 overs to thrash Brothers by nine wickets, before turning the tables on their round one conquerors Norths, with an also emphatic 52-run win.
East Bundy Magpies however laid claim to a final berth with two rounds remaining, continuing to sweep all before them, staging a superb run chase in round three to pass Norths’ formidable total of 4-149 with two balls to spare and four wickets in hand, before also again putting Brothers to the sword by 42 runs.
Brothers could manage just 9-87 against Waves for whom captain and spinner Chris Duff was the main destroyer, before Ryan Norton blasted the title holders home with eight fours and four sixes in an unbeaten 59 from a mere 20 balls.
Waves then racked up 6-160 against Norths, before restricting their opponents to 5-108 with a robust team performance.
Norths, who won their two matches on opening day, also continued their great batting form against East, but without their bowling spearhead Nathan Van Eekeren, the Magpies were able to capitalize after the early loss of Lennon Childs, with fellow opener, Queensland Country representative Arden Lankowski continuing his stellar start to the season with 44 from just 32 balls, before big hitting No. 7 Ben Davey put them on the brink of victory with 32 at a strike-rate of 188%.
Ben was bowled by Shannon Smith on the first ball of the last over, leaving four runs required, but Hayden Pope, who had been their most successful bowler with 2-13 from 4 overs, strode to the crease and guided them home with six runs from three balls.
The Magpies then racked up 166 against Brothers before newcomer, former Norths lower grades star Harley Denton claimed 3-18 as they restricted Brothers to 7-124 in reply.
The Magpies are now on 24 points, with Waves and Norths both on 12 points, and Brothers still on 0.
Waves also now have a massive advantage to Norths on Net Run Rate of 1.6070 to -.2557.
The last two rounds will be played on 16th October, with Waves to play Magpies and Brothers respectively, and Norths up against Brothers and Magpies respectively.
RUGBY
West Barbarians emerged as the biggest threat to Fraser Coast Mariners’ quest for a hat-trick of Rugby Bundaberg Elders Insurance Spring Cup titles with a gutsy 24-10 victory over hosts Waves Falcons in their first match of 2021 at the Waves Sports Complex on Saturday.
The Mariners continued on from where they left off the previous week with a 33-3 home victory over fellow first-round winners Turtles Brothers in the return clash of last year’s grand finalists.
But West, who had the first-up bye, were forced to work hard against a Waves side which included four of Barbarians’ stars of last season, player/coach Tom Akers, who was their 2020 Players’ Player, his elder brother John, who was Best Back, Coaches’ Award winner Luke Scully, and Most Improved Player Luke Batten
The Barbars prevailed four tries to one, with four individual try scorers.
Their first-season coach Gary Maroney, who formerly coached Isis Crushers for a few seasons before their disbandment, and one season with East Bundaberg Pythons, and also served as an assistant coach for the Wide Bay Whales rep side, was delighted with their performance.
“I was really pleased and relieved – we wanted a good start – the boys had trained well and to get off to a good start was crucial,” Gary said.
“It was quite an all-round game, but I was mainly pleased to get away with it because of spending so much time defending rather than attacking with the ball in hand, mainly due to the sheer weight of penalties awarded to the opposition unfortunately.
“We spent 70% of the first half defending and it was just an awesome all-round defensive effort.
“If I have got to single out anyone, I would have to say (hooker) Dulo (Aloisia Sebualala), (tight-head prop) Bruce Ikamanu, (second rower) Saul Clough, and Isky Pongi, but the list goes on, but it would be unfair on others to keep going because as a squad, defence won the game – yes the tries we scored were important but the defence by the team won us the game.”
Gary was especially disappointed to “spend 70% of the first half without the ball based purely on penalties”.
“To be very honest I went into the game targeting Falcons’ scrummaging as a weak point because I felt our scrum was awesome, but I could count at least a half-dozen full-arm penalties against us – we outscrummed Falcons but we were not rewarded – we have a terrific front row, second rowers and loose forwards and we searched for full-arm penalties, and we dominated them at scrummage.
“It hugely disappointed me that there were no penalties for us, but I had a chat to the boys after the game, and they were all disappointed, but that’s the game – we also conceded a few soft penalties and rightly so, no qualms about that, but we specifically talked about the scrum, and I would like to see the forward pack rewarded.”
There are no matches this weekend due to the Queen’s Birthday long weekend, with Barbarians to host the next round double-header on Saturday week 9th October.
Here are the scores:
CRICKET BUNDABERG
TALLON-GILES DIVISION 1 T20 CUP
Round 3:
East Bundy Magpies 6/152 (Arden Lankowski 44, Ben Davey 32, Bruce Worthington 2/29) d Norths 4/149(cc) (Chris Napper 40no, Blyton Pendergast 39, Jaden Bond 26, Hayden Pope 2/13).
Waves 1/88 (Ryan Norton 59no) d Brothers 9/87(cc) (Andrew Porter 28, Chris Duff 4/15, Lachlan Modrow 3/12, Michael Loader 2/15).
Round 4:
East Bundy Magpies 166 (Arden Lankowski 25, Lennon Childs 25) d Brothers 7-124 (cc) (Luke Solano 29, Dean Krebs 29, Andrew Porter 28, Harley Denton 3/18).
Waves 6/160 (cc) (Brendan Grills 44, Adam Pozzebon 42, Chris Duff 28no, Bruce Worthington 3/20, Shannon Smith 2/28) d Norths 5/108 (cc) (Josh Winen 47, Shaun Pinney 27no).
TALLON-GILES DIVISION 2 T30
Round 2:
East Bundy Magpies 4/159 (David Bonser 47, Lewis Williams 40, Lennon Childs 25, Rhys Grills 2/21) d Waves 155 (Sam Stuchbery 40, Graham Werner 2/14, Lachlan Donovan 2/22, Lennon Childs 2/28, Reece Sorensen 2/28).
Norths 3/109 (Josh Winen 58no) d Brothers 108 (Lachlan Heycox 31, Craig Fritz 3/10, Michael Penny 3/13).
TALLON-GILES DIVISION 3 T30
Round 2:
YMCA 2/115 (River Felstead 68no) d Waves 111 (Russell Baker 3/26, Lex Webster 2/3, Sam Cavanagh 2/22).
Isis 7/181 (cc) (Paul Sinn 35, Jack Rowan 34no, Dustin Collin 2/27) d Brothers 161 (David Boge 42, Shannan Heycox 35, Patrick Marshman 25, Jackson Rehbein 3/21, Paul Wingfield 2/5, Cooper Rehbein 2/19).
Norths 3/180 (Richie Sharman 80no, John Balaam 59) d East Bundy Magpies 179 (Roderick Jensen 85, Jordan Petersen 42, Garion Gibson 4/43, Michael Penny 2/16).
RUGBY BUNDABERG
ELDERS INSURANCE SPRING CUP
Round 2:
WEST BARBARIANS 24 (Aloisia Sebualala, Make Taliauli, Jake Evans, Toadamu Caudre tries; Mathew Collier 2 conversions) d WAVES FALCONS 10 (Esekaia Mataka try; John Akers conversion & penalty).
FRASER COAST MARINERS 33 (Trent De Vere, Ethan Ballard tries, 3 try scorers names not published; Filipe Koroibola 4 conversions) d TURTLES BROTHERS 3 (Layton Chambers penalty).
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