A combination of tight bowling, strategic captaincy and dynamic batting took Puk 1 to the title of North West Premier League T20 tournament champions this past weekend.

This tournament saw nine of the best cricket clubs in North West take to the various cricket ovals at the Fanie du Toit Sports Grounds.

Teams took part in knockout matches with the winners moving on to the  final in this fast paced cricket tournament hosted on the Saturday and Sunday. Puk 1 took on Potch Dorp 1 in the  final where Puk 1 won by 9 runs in a tightly contested final where the team with the best discipline and big match temperament would edge out their competitors.

Puk 1 batted first in the final and put on a respectable 152/7 from their 20 overs at the Puk Oval, mainly due to a steady knock from opener Shane Dadswell who scored 70 (57). Potch Dorp’s best bowlers were captain Stefan Gericke with 2/21 and Marcus Fourie taking 2/34. Potch Dorp would have fancied their chances in chasing 153 but they could only muster 143/8 in their reply. Lourén Steenkamp top scored with a valiant 51 before he was needlessly run out. Gericke also hit a number of big shots in his knock of 25 but, when his wicket fell on the dreaded Nelson of 111, Dorp’s winning dominoes came tumbling down.

Pukke vs Potch Dorp Gallery:

JP le Roux (2/19) and Niel Durrow (1/20) were the outstanding bowlers for Puk 1 and their tight bowling and use of yorkers put a halt to any chance of a Potch Dorp victory. The final over was an anti-climax as the tailenders could not put bat to ball and Puk 1 claimed a well-deserved win.

Best batsmen of the North West Premier League T20

1) Andreas Joubert (Vaal Reefs) – 179 runs at an average of 89.5 and strike  rate of 174.

2) Shane Dadswell (Puk 1) – 150 runs at an average of 37.5 and strike rate of 140.

3) Lourén Steenkamp (Potch Dorp) – 113 runs at an average of 56.5 and strike rate of 124.

Best bowlers of the North West Premier League T20

1) Hussein Alli (Potch Dorp) – 9 wickets at an average of 7.9 and with best figures of 5/9.

2) Joster Mosiane (Lichtenburg CC) – 6 wickets at an average of 6.8 with best figures of 3/15

3) Pieter Joubert (Vaal Reefs) – 6 wickets at an average of 10.7 and best figures of 3/20.