Gimmies, Saints enter day two of Central Region playoffs unbeaten
Potchefstroom Gimnasium and the defending Central Region champions, St Andrew’s School, made early statements of intent on Friday in Potchefstroom, ending the day as the only unbeaten sides while laying down strong markers as potential finalists in the Switch Schools SA20 Phase 2 event.
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Gimmies and Saints head into the final round-robin matches on Saturday morning with perfect records after back-to-back victories on the opening day.
They meet on the Ibbies Oval at 09:00 in a contest that could prove to be a dress rehearsal before a rematch of the sides in the final.
On the North-West University Oval, Gimmies handed St Patrick’s Christian Brothers College their second defeat of the day. A composed 45 from Ulrich Botha at the top of the order, followed by an unbeaten 56 from Lukas Kotze off just 32 balls, laid the platform for the hosts to post a competitive 165/5 in their 20 overs.
With the ball, Tlhoni Thabatha’s probing line and length proved decisive as he claimed three wickets, which helped to restrict the Kimberley school to 86/8. Kieran Abrahams was the lone bright spark for St Patrick’s, finishing unbeaten on 34 from 39 deliveries in a valiant rearguard effort.
Saints, meanwhile, had to weather a stern examination from Hoërskool Rustenburg’s Thian Labuschagne and their fast bowling spearhead Callie Fryer at the JB Marks Oval.
Fryer, already named as a non-travelling reserve for the SA u19 World Cup squad, strengthened his credentials with a new-ball spell of 3/27, which left the Bloemfontein side in a challenging position on 53/3 after seven overs. Labuschagne then bettered that return by snaring 4/26.
A resilient lower-order batting effort, however, turned the tide. Heindré Serfontein contributed a vital 37 from only 28 balls, supported by 20 from opener, Jonathan Hickley, while 24 extras also boosted the Saints’ total, which finished on 176/9.
Their bowlers then delivered the most clinical collective display of the day. Bohlokwa Leheta was outstanding, returning 3/6 from four overs at a miserly economy rate of 1.5, while FG Botha added 2/31 as the Rusties were restricted to 81/9 in response.
Hoërskool Kalahari’s Janco Noeth claimed the spotlight with the highest individual score of the day in a four-wicket victory over Hoërskool Trio, of Kroonstad. His explosive 63 came from just 27 deliveries and included four sixes and six fours.
Noeth and Myburgh de Klerk (33) also combined for a match-winning 83-run partnership for the fourth wicket, a result that could prove crucial with one round remaining before the semi-finals, with everything still to play for in the short format.
Summarised scorecards
Potchefstroom Gimnasium 165/5 (Lukas Kotze 56, Ulrich Botha 45, Christivan Coetzer 24; Otlwile Diphokoja 2/47); St Patrick’s Christian Brothers College 86/8 (Kieran Abrahams 34*; Tlhoni Tabatha 3/12). Potchefstroom Gimnasium won by 79 runs.
St Andrew’s School 176/9 (Heindré Serfontein 37, Extras 24, Johnathan Hickley 20; Thian Labuschagne 4/26, Carl Fryer 3/27); Hoërskool Rustenburg 81/9 (Andries Fryer 27; Bohlokwa 3/6, FG Botha 2/31). St Andrew’s School won by 95 runs.
Trio 148/7 (Zothile Zwane 32, Robbie van der Vyver 22*, Dylan Young 22, Myburgh Jacobs 20, Extras 20; Carl Thole 2/15, Kabelo Pitsoyakgosi 2/16); Kalahari 149/6 (Janco Noeth 63, Myburgh de Klerk 33; Pedri Wilken 3/25). Kalahari won by four wickets.
