Day 1
The boys were excited to kick the tournament off against the renowned Bears team.
We lost the toss and got sent in to bat on a fairly green wicket. The boys did extremely well to end up on 176 all out after 47 overs. Archie Tollner made 34 and Archie Williams made 22. The rest of the team contributed with most of the batters reaching double figures.
The boys bowled too short on a slow wicket and allowed Bears to reach 135 after 25 overs. They then pulled it together and bowled Bears out for 176. Ollie white produced a masterclass with 4-44 after 8 overs. Archie Williams with 3-28 after 8. Emile Lewis bowled very well under pressure as the team was relying on him to finish off the tail, he ended up with 2-25 after 6.4 overs.
The fielding was average in the first 25 overs, but some great catches from Ollie and Yumeth lifted the team’s spirit.
The game didn’t end on a good note as one of the Bears’ players had to sit out due to heat stroke. After all the players were bowled out, the coach attempted to bat the player after declaring that he is retired hurt. However, the rules state that retired players need to bat in the original order, therefore, the umpires called the game.
Day 2
The boys had a tough day ahead as they had to play two T20s.
First T20
We lost the toss and Gold Coast sent us in to bat first which was good for us as it looked like a batting wicket.
Cooper Mitchell and Yumeth opened the batting. Cooper played well for his 4 runs but got unlucky as he was run out by a direct hit. Yumeth kept being extremely well and was retired on 26 from 30. Once again it was a great team effort to get to 135 after 20 overs. Ollie White was retired not out for 28 off 30. Archie Tollner put his hand up and made a quick 25 from 23 balls and Harry Smith kept the innings together with 18* from 15.
Emile Lewis and Archie Williams opened the bowling and did a great job to restrict the batting team to 17 runs after 5 overs. Archie Williams picked up 3 wickets for 11 runs off 3 overs. The rest of the bowlers contributed to keep Gold Coast under pressure. Yumeth did a great job with 0 wickets for only 6 runs after 3 overs. Colby Miller finished off the tail enders and ended up with 2 wickets for 19 runs after 2 overs.
It was a great win for the boys as we restricted Gold Coast to 110 runs and 8 wickets down after 20 overs.
Second T20
The boys were confident and was ready to play against Brisbane North Blue.
We won the toss and decided to bat first as it might be the secret recipe for our team.
We were 5 wickets down in our first game which meant that we had to carry on with our batting order in the next game (strange rule but I guess they have their reasons)
We were off to a slow start as we were on 35 after 10 overs. We lost a few wickets which allowed our top order to get a chance to bat again. The pressure was on in the last 10 overs but the players made the most of it and ended up on 112 after 20 overs with 9 wickets down. The standout batsmen were Colby Miller with 16 from 14, he played a few great shots but got bowled as the team had to get a move on. Archie Tollner soaked up the pressure and played a solid innings, he made 19 off 22 and was unlucky to be given out lbw after edging the ball to fine leg with no appeal from the bowler or the fielders. Cooper Mitchell came in with 2 overs left and made it his mission to score quickly. He ended up on 14* from 8 balls.
The boys went in to bowl with confidence and restricted Brisbane to 44 after 10 overs. They played top class cricket in the first half with Emile being the pick of the bowlers, 1 wicket for 6 runs after 3 overs. Harry Smith took the ball after drinks and made a great success out of it with 2 wickets for 11 runs after 3 overs. Lance Klusener then came out to bat for Brisbane and scored quickly, hit big sixes, but got dropped on the boundary on 29 and he then went on to score 50*
The boys’ heads went down as they got hit all over the park. They lost their energy which leaked into their fielding with Brisbane needing 11 to win off 5 overs. They got there comfortably with 4 wickets to spare.
It was a good loss for the team as they can take many positives from the game to improve the way they handle tough situations.
Day 3
The players were ready to bounce back from their loss in the second game yesterday.
We played a 50 over game against Ipswich 2. We lost the toss and got sent in to bat first. The top 6 did extremely well, they built partnerships and was busy at the crease. Cooper Mitchell and Yumeth opened the batting, they got us off to a great start with both batsmen retiring not out but Yumeth came in to face the last ball of the innings and got bowled (Cooper 22 from 40 and Yumeth 32 from 41). Other standouts were Ollie (25 from 40) as he was sick just before going out to bat but put it behind him and did the job for the team. Archie Tollner and Emery McGrath made 35 from 40. Emile Lewis came in at 12 and batted beautifully to end up on 38 from 31 not out. It was a great batting performance which lead us to 270-8.
Emile and Archie Williams kept it tight with their bowling at the start. First change bowlers, Declan and Harry Smith kept the pressure on the batting side. Ipswich were in trouble as they were 84-4 after 25 overs. The scorchers assumed that they’ve won the game already which resulted in sloppy fielding and short bowling. Ipswich kept on fighting but fell short, they finished on 201-9 which is great for our team as we got the win and a whopping 10.3 points which should put us 3rd on the ladder.
Outstanding bowling performances:
Emile Lewis – 2 for 38 after 8 overs
Archie Williams – 3 for 21 after 6
Yumeth – 2 for 17 after 6
Day 4
The players had a tough day ahead as they had to win both T20s to have a chance to be in the final.
First T20
We were facing a tough opposition in our first game which made the boys pretty nervous.
We lost the toss and MSW chose to bowl first. I tried to go for a different batting order with Yumeth and Emery opening but Emery got a great first ball hitting top of off. Ollie came in and stabled the ship with Yumeth (16 off 30 retired not out) and Ollie made 21 off 24. The middle order collapsed but Emile and Declan was up for the challenge. Emile scored a quick 27 off 14 and Declan got 14 off 11. We finished on a mere 110-6.
MSW got off to a good start and kept their run rate up. They lost batsmen through retirement and wickets. MSW needed 14 off the last over but the bowlers were up to the task which got our team a 4 run victory. The pick of the bowlers were Emile with 2 wickets for 10 runs off 3 overs, Archie Williams got 1 wicket for 10 runs off 3 overs, and Yumeth got 1 for 5 runs off 3 overs.
Second T20
It was a must win for the boys and results of other games had to be in our favor.
We played Ipswich 1, won the toss and chose to bowl first for the first time this week.
Ipswich got off to a slow start due to our opening bowlers staying disciplined. The boys let the game go after 10 overs and allowed Ipswich to get 113-5. Most of the bowlers contributed but the standouts were Yumeth (1 wicket for 4 runs off 3 overs), Archie Williams (1 for 6 after 3), and Ollie (1 for 12 after 3).
The players were devastated as the only took 5 wickets which meant we had a chance to miss out on the final.
Their mood dropped and it showed in their batting as we needed 72 from 60 balls. It was a nerve wrecking last 10 overs as we required 9 off the last over. The batsmen were up for the challenge and got us home with 2 balls to spare. The standouts were Ollie (30 from 29 balls) and Yumeth played a gutsy innings with 27 from 30. We needed 7 off the last 3 balls and Cooper Mitchell hit his first 6 ever.
The team was nervous as we did not have a clue what the results were for the other games but after a short wait we found out that we’re playing in the final against Logan tomorrow.
Day 4
The boys were extremely excited and they were in a good headspace before the game.
We lost the toss and had to field first. Logan is a big hitting team so the players had to make sure they stick to the plan and execute. They bowled extremely well and had Logan 44-5 after 10 overs. Our bowlers and fielders kept on applying pressure on restricted Logan to 100-10 after 20 overs. It was a great performance from all bowlers but the standouts were Emile (2 for 10 after 3 overs), Yumeth (2 for 6 after 3), and Ollie (3 for 22 after 3).
The players were confident as they were chasing a lot total. Cooper and Yumeth opened the batting but got off to a slow start which resulted in Cooper being retired. Yumeth kept on fighting along with Ollie and brought the game back with Yumeth scoring 15 off 27 and Ollie made 25 from 30 after being run out. Archie Tollner and Emery McGrath attempted to up the run rate but Archie got run out pushing for a two. The middle order collapsed with 5 overs to go but Declan played a brave innings and made a quick 18 off 12 but got out lbw with 2 overs to spare. We needed 10 runs off the last over. Emery and Colby did their very best to get the team over the line but we were 2 runs short unfortunately.
It was a great week for all players as they developed and enhanced their cricket skills and mindsets. It was a privelege to be apart of the team and we are happy to have been in the final. The team certainly turned heads during the tournament and they have built a reputation for Sunshine Coast Cricket.
