To build a dynasty requires a ruthless streak.
Bollywood High School Old Boys, under Dave Castle, showed exactly that in the opening weekend of Poverty Bay club cricket with a record team total on Saturday.
Twice-straight winners of the triple crown – Premier Grade 40-over Doleman Cup, T15 Walker Shield and D.J. Barry Cup two-day championship – High School Old Boys began their season with a 240 run-win against the David McDonald-coached Gisborne Boys’ High School First XI.
They made a mammoth 388-5 in their Doleman Cup opener, then bowled Gisborne Boys’ High School out for 148 in 35.5 overs on Harry Barker Reserve No 3.
Boys’ High captain Riker Rolls won the toss and opted to bowl.
The students went in without left-handed batter-wicketkeeper Jarrod Ormiston, allrounder twins Akira and Keanu Makiri and Northern Districts age group left-arm pace bowler Johnathon Gray.
Gray’s absence was felt as Pushpinder Kumar made 25 runs off 18 balls at No 1 and first-drop Steve Lamb 42 in 16 balls to set the tone.
The platform having been laid, second-drop Castle struck 118 from 65 balls and leftie Carl Shaw, at five, 87 off 51.
High School Old Boys’ (HSOB) top order struck 12 sixes and 45 fours. Left-arm orthodox spinner Rolls (1-90 from eight overs) had Castle stumped at 316-4 and Shaw, having shared a 196-run partnership with Castle, fell five balls later.
First-change paceman Nathaniel Fearnley (2-103-7) and Caleb Taewa were the students’ best. Fearnley, while expensive, took two wickets while left-armer Taewa bowled the only maiden over of the innings in conceding 46 runs in eight overs – the students’ most economical figures.
Robbie Newlands (1-48-4) and Malsha Mahabalage (1-43-5) got the other wickets for the students.
Jak Rowe, batting at six for HSOB, scored 33 not out and No 7 Daniel Torrie made 35.
Boys’ High bowled 31 wides and eight no balls.
“We were at the top of our game today, pleased to be put in on a great batting track and made the most of it with a huge score,” Castle said.
HSOB left-arm spearhead Rowe (1-36-8), having been clubbed for four by Zyden Worsnop, bowled him for six, four balls into the first over.
Bustling left-armer Keegan Jooste (3-25-8) and Rowe’s new ball partner Connor Starck (3-35-5.5) kept the Boys’ High batters under pressure while Rhys Grogan nabbed 2-20 in seven overs.
Alex Shanks provided the batting highlight of the second innings with an assured 53 off 64 balls at No 4. He put on 63 with debutant François Louw, who knocked the ball about for 23 at a run-a-ball.
Later, 10th man in Jett Whitaker (17 not) and No 11 Taewa (16) put up 37 in a worthy partnership.
Starck closed the innings when he had Taewa caught by HSOB’s third Campion student, wicketkeeper Taye McGuinness.
“Wides and short balls killed us, on top of dropped catches,” said Rolls. “Two of them were difficult chances but the majority should still have been taken. On the plus side, we did put up a team total of roughly 150 to start the season.”
Horouta Te Waka started the season with a well-rounded team win.
The Jagroop Singh-led Waka chased down Coastal Concrete Old Boys’ Rugby’s 212-5 for the loss of only five wickets.
Singh was ecstatic.
“Congratulations to Teghbir on his fiery 50. Unfortunately, Baba Harmanpreet Singh Gill [44 off 46] missed out, but he’ll have many more opportunities.”
Singh won the toss on a grassy wicket, elected to bowl and got his crew off to a rip-roaring start. He sent down a leg-side wide to left-hander Te-Reimana Gray first up and took middle stump out of the ground with an in-swinging yorker next ball.
Gray’s opening partner Karan Solanki (74) and ex-Auckland Ace Cody Andrews (52) staged a superb fightback with a 146 run-partnership for the second wicket.
Andrews fell with the score at 147, caught by wicketkeeper Jass Basra off a top edge from medium-pacer Harmanpreet Singh Gill (1-21-8).
One over and one run later, Solanki was out to the catch of the match by Inderpreet Singh Bassi, low to his left at mid-on.
Second-drop Mana Taumanu made an unbeaten 26 off 53 balls and put on 25 with Tom Garrett (19) to steady the ship.
Jagroop Singh went through Amit Vyas (17) to wrap up the first innings.
In response, Harmanpreet and the dangerous Teghbir Cheema (50 from 20 balls including three sixes and seven fours) revved up for 76 in 8.1 overs at the top of the order.
Both were caught behind by Taumanu.
In the sixth over, Cheema got a dot ball from Andrews but then clouted a four, a six and three boundaries to finish the over.
To restore some semblance of order, Old Boys’ Rugby (OBR) spearhead Jimmy Holden had Cheema nicked off and took 1-21 from five overs.
The good work of the Horouta openers was built upon by batters four to six – Simarjit Singh Basra (27 retired), Viren Patel (28) and Inderpreet Singh Bassi (27).
However, they were tested by both pace and spin – off-spinner Daniel Stewart (1-35-3) holding on to a sharp caught-and-bowled chance to account for Te Waka’s No 3 Himanshu Bhargav (15).
Horouta’s aggressive batting approach from ball one saw them reach their target with 14 overs to spare – Inderpreet Singh Bassi hitting a six to win it.
OBR captain Matthew Cook said: “Karan and Cody both batted well to get 50-plus. It was pleasing to bat our 40 overs and put a decent score on the board. The pitch got better as the day went on and the Horouta batsmen took advantage of that. Our bowlers were too short on what were small boundaries.
“Jimmy and Dan were the pick of them and Mana took three catches.”
