Helpmekaar outplays Kingswood, Holder steers St Andrew’s College to ISCF win
Heinrich Minnaar and Jandré Spangenberg bowled superbly with the new ball to propel Helpmekaar Kollege to a convincing victory over Kingswood College at the Independent Schools Cricket Festival in Pretoria on Friday.
In other matches, Connor Holder carved a delightful half-century to set St Andrew’s College on the path to victory over St David’s Marist Inanda at the Tuks Oval, and Hilton College snatched a nail-biting win over St John’s College (Johannesburg) on the Tuks B Oval.
Minnaar and Spangenberg tore through the Kingswood batting lineup, leading to an emphatic 98-run win for Helpies on Cornwall Hill‘s Landsend Oval.
The Johannesburg school won the toss, chose to bat first, and tallied 179 all out in 43 overs. Kingswood lasted only 29.3 overs in reply, dismissed for only 81.
Minnaar, who finished the match with 4/28 runs from 10 overs, and Spangenberg, who captured 3/14 in six, unleashed a reign of terror on Kingswood in the first seven overs. Between them, the knocked over seven wickets for only seven runs in 6.4 overs to leave the men from Makhanda on a scarcely believable 7/7. Five of their first six partnerships produced no runs.
Kingswood was left not just fighting for their lives, but also for their reputation. Rogan Goliath (44) and Iminathi Ngcese (17) halted the procession of wickets with a 41-run eighth-wicket partnership that saved their side the embarrassment of being bowled out for less than 20 runs. But no other Kingswood batsmen reached double figures.
Earlier in the contest, the consistent Zuan Joubert cruised to 56 from 51 balls to set Helpmekaar on the path to a winning total. Xander Jackson (29*) and Ewald Haasbroek (29) added useful contributions, while David Loudon captured 4/35.
St Andrew’s College vs St David’s Marist Inanda
Connor Holder scored a brisk 50 to set up St Andrew’s College for a 32-run win over St David’s Marist Inanda in their contest at the Tuks Oval.
Rhys Wiblin, the St Andrew’s captain, won the toss, elected to bat first, and scored 29 to help his side to 199 all out in 47 overs. Adrian Gaunt then led the St Andrew’s bowling attack well, snapping up 3/21, as St David’s was skittled for 167 in 45.4 overs in reply.
When Holder arrived at the crease, fourth in the order, St Andrew’s College was on 80/2. He and Ben Scharges (40) constructed a 64-run third-wicket partnership to help the Makhanda men get close to 200 despite a tidy return of 3/19 from Jason Rowles. Apart from Wiblin, Sebastian Steffny (20) also chipped in with a useful innings.
Adrian Gaunt then undermined the St David’s run pursuit, grabbing 3/21 from nine overs to inflict series damage. He also put his fielding skills on display when he combined with Luke Chorley to execute a run-out to dismiss Jonah Gruskin for 37, which was the joint-highest score for St David’s, alongside Sohail Seonath.
Hayden Campbell made 22, and Jason Rowles 20, but James Bronkhorst, Charles Broster, Rhys Wiblin, and Thomas Bussiahn supported Gaunt with a wicket each to see the Eastern Cape side to victory.
St John’s College vs Hilton College
Hilton College’s batsmen pulled together to drag the KwaZulu-Natal team to a thrilling one-wicket win over St John’s when they crossed swords on the Tuks B Oval.
They had last met during the Michaelmas Week in 2023, with St John’s coming out on top in that clash. On Friday, though, the win went to Hilton.
Bowling first, they dismissed St John’s for a modest 111 in 41.5 overs. That proved to be a tough victory target, with the KZN boys needing 45 overs to reach 112/9 and claim victory.
James Peattie (26) and Obakeng Motsepa (20) were the highest contributors in Hilton’s chase, while Ben Wilson (18) and Robert Burman (14) also made it into double figures.
Ethan Robinson kept St John’s in the contest by knocking over 4/28 in 10 overs, and Tapiwa Chikwava, Herman Basson, Juan de Villiers, and Jared Gilmour chipped in with a wicket each.
Sechaba Gude was the pick of the bowlers for Hilton, capturing 3/18 runs in eight overs. Anthony Crossley made an important contribution, nabbing 2/30 in 10, and Sean Burman and Obakeng Motsepa claimed a wicket each.
Nkosana Sibiya, who made a century on day one against Kearsney College, carried his bat against Hilton. Yet that brought him only 28 runs from 53 balls. Connor van der Walt, with 20 from 39, was the second-highest scorer for the Houghton school.
The Independent Schools Cricket Festival hosts a third round of limited-overs matches on Saturday before teams compete in T20s on Sunday, the last day of the event.
Summarised Scorecards
Helpmekaar Kollege 179/10 (Zuan Joubert 56, Xander Jackson 29*, Ewald Haasbroek 29; David Loudon 4/35, Daniel Jakin 2/19). Kingswood College 81/10 (Rogan Goliath 44, Iminathi Goliath 17; Heinrich Minnaar 4/28, Jandré Spangenberg 3/14). Helpmekaar won by 98 runs.
St Andrew’s College 199/10 (Connor Holder 50, Benjamin Scharges 40; Jason Rowles 3/19, Kairav Koobair 2/27). St David’s Marist Inanda 167/10 (Sohail Seonath 37, Jonah Gruskin 37; Adrian Gaunt 3/21, Thomas Bussiahn 1/26). St Andrew’s College won by 32 runs.
St John’s College 111/10 (Nkosana Sibiya 28*, Connor van der Walt 20; Sechaba Gude 3/18, Anthony Crossley 2/30). Hilton College 112/9 (James Peattie 26, Obakeng Motsepa 20; Ethan Robinson 4/28, Jared Gilmour 1/5). Hilton College won by one wicket.
