First win and a bonus point
After a gutsy debut in the Easterns Premier League, for United Cricket Club, against CBC Old Boys, on Sunday, October 6, the team travelled to Prince George Park on Sunday, October 13, to take on experienced Premier League counterparts Boksburg Cricket Club.
The young team have had their sights set on causing a few upsets this season and achieved just that with their first win, as well as an all-important bonus point in Boksburg.
United’s skipper, Justin Gamble, won the toss and put the opposition in to bat, a bold move considering that the majority of Boksburg’s victories at home have come when they have batted first.
At first the decision seemed to be a bad one, as Boksburg’s experienced opening pair of John Haywood and Fritz Sommer took the young United bowlers to task and were moving the score along nicely.
Gamble, a spin bowler, brought himself on for an over and managed to get the vital breakthrough with the wicket of one of the openers.
Suddenly the game turned in favour of the Brakpan-based team and their bowlers began making inroads into the home side’s batting order.
Boksburg were bowled out in 32.1 overs and United fancied their chances of chasing down the target.
The stand-out bowling figures for United came from Branden Grutter (4/27), Gamble (3/37) and Dylan Rayner (3/39).
Branden Grutter (42) climbed into the Boksburg bowling attack from the outset and when Brendon Frost and Dian Moore’s wickets fell quickly it seemed that the opposition had the upper hand.
After the fall of Grutter and Gamble’s wicket soon after up stepped two of the youngest players in the team, JP Meade (52*) and Aidan Justus (36), who formed an impressive partnership that slowly took the game away from Boksburg.
The Boksburg players, realising that the match was slipping away, started sledging the young batsmen, but they kept their heads and stood firm.
When Justus’s wicket fell Reinhardt Weidemann came to the crease and his 14 runs helped steer the United team to their first Premier League victory after 39.5 overs.
They also secured a bonus point for United after achieving the score within 80 per cent of the overs available to them.
Team manager Des Gamble said the team was really excited about the first Premier League victory.
“We rated Boksburg highly because of their vast experience,” he said.
“Despite the sledging from the opposition our boys managed to play good cricket and get the win.”
