Last weekend, the Powerade Old Selbornians club were crowned the 2015/2016 Premier League cricket champions and they will represent Border at the annual, lucrative SA National Club Championships in Pretoria next month.
During the recently completed season, Old Boys played 18 and won 13 matches, with two finishing with no result due to bad weather. But it was close, desperately close for the club.
They just pipped Bohemians by one point, finishing with 80 points to Bohs’ 79, with Fort Hare coming in third with 75.
“We’ve got a team with experience, as well as some up-and-coming youngsters and as many as seven allrounders in our squad,” former Border fast bowler and Old Boys vice-captain Bryan Voke said.
“Unfortunately, two of our top players from this past season are unavailable to go to club champs. Tim Niemand has taken up a post as a professional at an England club and allrounder Rhett Shaw is unavailable due to work commitments.”
Three batsmen stood out during the season: skipper Royce Muller, who scored 512 runs with four half-centuries; Chris Beard, 432, with two 50s; and Niemand with 333 runs and one half-century.
However, Old Boys’ bowling attack was among the most feared in the competition and three bowlers performed excellently.
Shaw took 23 wickets with an economy rate of four, Voke captured 24 (4.2) and the season’s top wicket-taker was Phillip Badenhorst, who played a lot of his cricket in the Pretoria area. He grabbed 39 poles (5.5).
“We had a humdinger of a match against United,” Voke said. “We needed five off the last possible ball of the match, and it was hit for six.”
Modestly, Voke forgot to add that he was the batsman who managed the feat to grab some valuable log points which in the end made the difference between winning and being runner-up.
Voke said that the squad would practise at the Buffalo Park indoor nets as preparation for the faster pitches upcountry.
He added that the club’s tennis and rugby teams also won their respective Premier League competitions. He wondered if this was unique for a club.
The competition takes place from April 21-27.
Old Selbornians squad: Royce Muller (capt), Bryan Voke (vice-captain), Luke le Marquand, Kyle van Niekerk, Chris Beard, Phillip Badenhorst, Craig Dargie, Crispin Spence, Nathan Leppert, Keith Peinke, Luke Makaleni (wicketkeeper), Brett Osborne, Phumelela Phayi. Manager: Gary Watson.
Champs Old Selbornians eye national club title
During the recently completed season, Old Boys played 18 and won 13 matches, with two finishing with no result due to bad weather. But it was close, desperately close for the club.
They just pipped Bohemians by one point, finishing with 80 points to Bohs’ 79, with Fort Hare coming in third with 75.
“We’ve got a team with experience, as well as some up-and-coming youngsters and as many as seven allrounders in our squad,” former Border fast bowler and Old Boys vice-captain Bryan Voke said.
“Unfortunately, two of our top players from this past season are unavailable to go to club champs. Tim Niemand has taken up a post as a professional at an England club and allrounder Rhett Shaw is unavailable due to work commitments.”
Three batsmen stood out during the season: skipper Royce Muller, who scored 512 runs with four half-centuries; Chris Beard, 432, with two 50s; and Niemand with 333 runs and one half-century.
However, Old Boys’ bowling attack was among the most feared in the competition and three bowlers performed excellently.
Shaw took 23 wickets with an economy rate of four, Voke captured 24 (4.2) and the season’s top wicket-taker was Phillip Badenhorst, who played a lot of his cricket in the Pretoria area. He grabbed 39 poles (5.5).
“We had a humdinger of a match against United,” Voke said. “We needed five off the last possible ball of the match, and it was hit for six.”
Modestly, Voke forgot to add that he was the batsman who managed the feat to grab some valuable log points which in the end made the difference between winning and being runner-up.
Voke said that the squad would practise at the Buffalo Park indoor nets as preparation for the faster pitches upcountry.
He added that the club’s tennis and rugby teams also won their respective Premier League competitions. He wondered if this was unique for a club.
The competition takes place from April 21-27.
Old Selbornians squad: Royce Muller (capt), Bryan Voke (vice-captain), Luke le Marquand, Kyle van Niekerk, Chris Beard, Phillip Badenhorst, Craig Dargie, Crispin Spence, Nathan Leppert, Keith Peinke, Luke Makaleni (wicketkeeper), Brett Osborne, Phumelela Phayi. Manager: Gary Watson.
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