Bakers Mini Warriors clinch 2022 Roodepoort Last Man Stands title

Manufacta — All previous wins mean nothing when you still need to cross the final hurdle.

The final four Last Man Stands (LMS) teams in the Roodepoort competition headed to Voortrekker Park looking to put their name on the trophy on April 24. Reigning champions, A & G Dikdorings, fell just short of the semi-final spots, leaving the window open for a new team to be crowned kings of the eight-man slogathon. With the semifinals in the morning before the afternoon final, the creases were busy, the outfield was stodgy and throats were parched.

In the first semi-final, regular season log-toppers Bakers Mini Warriors ended the spirited challenge of fourth-placed finishers, MPH!!!. Next up, 6 or Nix were looking to improve on last year’s semi-final defeat when they took on West Rand Wicket Warriors. Intensely focused, 6 or Nix took advantage of a Wicket Warriors team missing a few key starters, chasing down the target set in quick fashion.

Going into the final, both captains were calm but keen not to give away too much.

“We are feeling good. We have seen how the pitch plays so we know what to do. We are proud of what we have accomplished this season. We have done the hard work, and now we need to be alert, talk to each other and encourage each other,” said Bakers Mini Warriors captain Ryan Liebenberg before the toss.

Shane Brits, 6 or Nix captain was equally confident saying, “To be the best you have to beat the best. We welcome the pressure and we will stay humble and stay in the moment”.

Bakers came out to bat first showing early intent, but any aggression or intensity was matched by the 6 or Nix bowlers. Two wickets in consecutive balls stunted Bakers’ momentum and left Martin Gerber on a hat-trick. The hat-trick ball crashed into the batsman’s pads but the umpire judged the ball to be going down leg side. A runout for the third wicket, a catch in the deep and an outside edge would leave Bakers at 83/5 with six overs to go.

6 or Nix may rue some sloppy fielding and loose bowling toward the end of the innings as two Bakers’ batsmen steadied the ship. Big hitting from Johan Crous and Cameron Oosthuizen helped Bakers add 62 runs at the back end of the innings. Johan scored 51 off 28 and Cameron matched that by throwing the kitchen sink at everything in the final balls to finish with with 36 runs off 23 balls, Bakers setting a competitive target of 146.

The opening partnership for 6 or Nix had been an impenetrable wall for any team to crack this season. To Bakers’ delight, Johan added to his heroics with the bat to bowl Heinrich Sinclair in the first over before Alvin van Wyk took a stunning reflex catch off his own bowling to send the dangerous Ray Venter back to the shed in the second over. On the back foot from there, 6 or Nix never recovered, with suicidal running and Russian Roulette-style big shots ending the innings early, falling 70 runs short.

Special mention goes to Andre Potgieter who came on as a sub for his Bakers teammate who pulled a hamstring and then secured the win with a runout. “In a very big moment he kept his cool and threw a dart at the stumps, making it easy for our keeper. It was cool to have him get that moment as he’s been with us all the games and helping us where he could,” said Ryan.

Basking in the glory of victory, Ryan summed up the season, “The team was very happy with the win as that is what we set out to do, win the final. We all love winning, so I think this has given us a great boost for next season. We love having a target on our backs.”