Northerns back to winning ways

Northerns bounced back brilliantly from their crushing away defeat to CBC Old Boys the week before, with a fine all-round team effort that contributed to a massive 113-run success.

In their fifth match of the 2013/14 season, home captain Kurt Francis lost the toss, again, and was invited to bat first on a pitch that is slowly starting to resemble something approaching Premier League standard.

The toss generally appears to be all-important in this early stage of the season, as pitches seem to assist the teams that bowl first — and so it proved to be when Northerns found themselves in heaps of trouble at 60 for four.

However, thanks to Ryan Pfeifer, who was promoted from the Promotion XI, skipper Francis and Charl Steyn, who had just returned from a Cape Town holiday and was playing his first match of the season, the Benoni side were able to post a respectable total of 233, their last wicket falling off the final delivery of their allotted 50 overs.

Pfeifer contributed a patient 52, Francis a fiery 55 and Steyn a grafting 42, as their partnerships repaired the earlier damage.

The Northerns bowlers then went about their business, paceman Francis leading from the front with three wickets for 23 runs in seven overs, and Lee Cothill, Shawn Wessels – last season’s leading wicket-taker in the league – and Levon Shields each taking two, as United were knocked over for 120.

“Another toss lost, but luckily our pitch was in better condition than the previous game and the players took more responsibility,” explained BNCC coach Thys van Lingen.

“Even though we were in trouble at a stage, at 60/4, a partnership between Ryan and Kurt helped us to restore our course and, after Ryan departed, a partnership between Kurt and Charl helped to cut off the last tip of the opposition’s wagging tail.

“A respectable total of 233 was posted and our bowlers then took the responsibility to knock over the opposition.”

•  Down the road, at St Dunstan’s College (United’s Promotion League side’s new home ground in an agreement with Eastern Cricket), BNCC’s second XI were cruising along nicely until a certain Divan de Beer arrived to rain on their parade.

Playing with only 10 players, the Benonians had the opposition on the ropes at 87 for seven in the 18th over, but de Beer came in and smashed the bowlers to all parts in an unbeaten 129, off just 135 balls, that took United past the 300-mark (305 after 50 overs).

The BNCC bowlers also didn’t help their own cause by sending down an unacceptable 38 wides and nine no-balls.

The best of the bowlers was Dean von Ruben, who took three for 42 in nine overs, while Liam Oosthuizen took 2/53 in 10.

In reply, Northerns started well thanks to opener and stand-in skipper Vaughn Humphrey, who scored 36 off 33 balls.

But, apart from number seven bat Marlou Moore (32), the rest were poor, as the visitors slumped to 147/9 (all out) in the 33rd over to hand the home side victory by a huge 159 runs.

•  A day earlier, BNCC’s First Saturday side were incredible as they smashed 319 runs in their 35 overs at home to CBCOB, Steyn scoring a brilliant century as Northerns won by close to 200 runs.

•  This Sunday, Benoni’s Premier XI are away to Actonville, and the Promotion XI at home to Kempton Park. The First Saturday side will also host Kempton.