Beamish ton drives St Andrew’s College to victory over Pearson
St Andrew’s College clinched a 68-run victory over Pearson in their own backyard on Saturday, thanks to a spectacular batting performance by William Beamish.
College posted a formidable total of 310/7, powered by a standout performance from Beamish, who scored an impressive 124 runs off only 117 deliveries. The stalwart opener for the team from Makhanda blasted 14 fours and four sixes during his century.
The hosts finally stemmed the flow of runs when Jordan Collier pouched a misjudged shot by Beamish from a delivery by Sulaymaan Gangat but, by that point, the visitors had already powered their way to 247-3 with 10 overs still to bat.
Murray Wilson made a strong impact, contributing a further 62 as St Andrew’s breached the 300-mark. The only matriculant in their team, Matthew Poole, made sure his final performance in the first side was worth remembering, making 41, with six boundaries.
Despite the scale of the challenge that faced them, Pearson showed promise as they set about the run chase, with Esa Gangat spearheading their batting efforts. He had taken three wickets in the St Andrew’s innings, but it was the bat in hand that he truly impressed.
Scoring 75 at nearly a-run-a-ball, Gangat provided a cornerstone for Pearson to launch a fightback. Around him, though, batsmen came and went.
College’s leading bowler, Laurie Apps, who had already taken three wickets in the match, finally brought Esa’s innings to an end when he caught him off a delivery by Beamish.
Even after losing their top scorer with more than 10 overs to play and left with only a single wicket standing on 187/9, Pearson showed great determination and made St Andrew’s work hard for the win.
Demonstrating stubborn grit, Breydan Andrews and Thomas van Antwerp saw Pearson through to 242 before they were parted. The tailenders smashed nine boundaries between them in nine overs, and Andrews finished unbeaten with 39 from 40 deliveries.
Ultimately, it was not enough though, as St Andrew’s secured the victory with about three overs left in the game.
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Summarised scorecard
St Andrew’s College 310/7 (William Beamish 124, Murray Wilson 62, Matthew Poole 41, Extras 35; Esa Gangat 3/57, Jordan Collier 2/27); Pearson 242 (Esa Gangat 75, Breydan Andrews 39, Jude Septoo 27, Jayden Groenewald 25; Laurie Apps 3/46, William Beamish 2/25, Alastair de Kock 2/57). St Andrew’s College won by 68 runs.
