The Aquinas College Year 7/8 cricket side have had a 2 wicket win against Tauranga Intermediate in a T20 match at Aquinas College.
After losing the toss against a strong Tauranga Intermediate batting line up, our bowlers bowled a demanding line to restrict them to 40 without loss after 10 overs.
Their free flowing batsmen had to work hard for their runs and pleasingly in the final 10 overs we managed to hold onto our catches. By the end of the 20 overs they were 5 wickets down with 93 runs on the board.
In reply Aquinas lost an early wicket but a great partnership between Tayte Marsh and Ben Parlane saw us through to the 10th over 2 wickets down for 55 runs.
With their backs to the wall Tauranga came out fighting in the final 10 overs. A rough few overs saw us reduced from 54/2 to 56/5 and suddenly the game had changed.
When player of the match, Ben Parlane, went with the score on 82, some may have thought the balance had swung back to the Northern Districts champions.
However, two Year 7 boys, Jack Williamson and Jake Bell, played with maturity and composure to see us over the with 2 overs remaining.
As already mentioned, Ben Parlane was Aquinas’ man of the match. His 4 overs at the start of the innings set the tone for a disciplined bowling effort, while his controlled stroke play deserved to see us through at the end. But that wasn’t to be.
The game was part of a two match series between the sides as Tauranga Intermediate prepare for the Active Post finals in Christchurch later this month. The first game, played last week, saw Taurnaga Intermediate comfortably beat Aquinas by 8 wickets.
The Aquinas College team would like to wish the Tauranga Intermediate side all the best as they travel south.
