Winning starts for OBR, Raiders in Poverty Bay Premier club cricket
Josh Bates and Pushpinder Kumar have unfinished business.
Only the toughest judge would regard Bates’ 94 or Kumar’s 97 as misses on the opening day of the 2026-27 Poverty Bay club cricket season last Saturday.
But the veterans who starred with the bat in round 1 of the Premier division’s 40-over Doleman Cup will no doubt want to put up three figures the next time opportunity knocks.
Former Poverty Bay representative Bates’ first club knock in local competition for more than a decade saw him hit 13 boundaries in 104 balls at No 2 for Coastal Concrete OBR. It was a fine effort on a firm Harry Barker Reserve No 1 pitch in excellent conditions.
Classy left-hander Te-Reimana Gray put up 23 in an opening stand of 50 with Bates, the core of OBR’s total of 216-9 in 39 overs.
OBR went on to defeat Kumar’s Gisborne High School Old Boys-Horouta by seven runs, despite a remarkable showing with the ball by seamer Alex Shanks.
Shanks, bowling third change, took five wickets for nine runs in seven overs, including three maidens.
Kumar got 2-36 in seven overs of brisk off-spin.
HSOB were later bowled out seven runs short of the target of 217 despite Kumar’s at-times swashbuckling, 72-ball innings, which included 15 boundaries.
He put on 64 with Shanks for the fifth wicket in a tense, close contest upon which seasoned campaigners stamped their authority.
The OBR and Poverty Bay “Firm” of spearhead Jimmy Holden (5-41-7 with two maidens) and Matt Cook once more took the new ball with great effect.
They were backed up by medium-pacers Gray (2-18-2) and recently returned Jack Faulkner (2-38-5).
Long-serving OBR captain Cook said: “Our boys played well. Josh and Te-Reimana got us off to a great start, with Jack and Dan supporting Josh as he got us over 200.
“HSOB-Horouta were cruising towards our target at 102-3, but Jack and Te-Reimana then picked up big wickets and Jimmy, our silver fox, secured the win with a great final spell. It was a real team performance, with everyone playing a part.”
HSOB-Horouta skipper James Birrell also took positives from a loss of the so near, yet so far variety.
“It was good to get back out there and to see how the new mixed team came together, including the new players Waruna Thilakarathna and Drew Churchwell, who took his first wicket for us,” Birrell said. “There were plenty of runs to be scored, but our last three batsmen got ducks.”
Newcomers step up
The Raiders took a big scalp on opening day.
Poverty Bay cricket’s newest club, under Arun Babu, beat Doleman Cup holders Gisborne Boys’ High School First XI by four wickets.
Many of the Raiders’ players have a passion for the game shared by millions on the subcontinent, and in that spirit they bowled the now Robbie Newlands-led GBHS out for 171 in 35 overs.
All-rounder Caleb Taewa, left-arm spearhead of the Boys’ High pace attack, supplemented their batting effort with a measured 27 from 54 balls at No 8. Alex Langford, as the seventh man in, made a busy 22 off 15, and new skipper Newlands 20 in 28 balls at No 5.
Three starts, three mid-range scores, should give Gisborne Boys’ batting line-up some confidence.
Raiders bowlers Sherin Jose (4-22-7) and Derpak Alachira Gonna Ponnachan (4-23-5) hunted wickets with success.
All-rounder Taewa then took 3-17 off eight overs, and left-arm orthodox spinner Charlie Whitfield, their captain of the last two years, grabbed 2-37-7.
Raiders vice-captain Sarath Prakash played the key innings in a juicy run chase, carrying his bat for an unbeaten 58 from 97 balls.
Aby Thondungal Scaria made 28 at No 5, and talented off-spinner Jibin Jacob an unbeaten 26 from No 8.
The Raiders reached 172 for the loss of six wickets in 35 overs.
Victorious captain Babu was delighted with their first-up victory and described Prakash’s gritty knock as “an amazing innings”.
In round 2 games on Saturday, GBHS face HSOB and the Raiders take on OBR.
SCOREBOARD
Raiders 172-6 in 35 overs (Sarath Pralash 58 not out, Aby Thondungal Scaria 28, Jiblin Jacob 26no; Caleb Taewa 3 wickets for 17 runs off 8 overs with 1 maiden, Charlie Whitfield 2-37-7) def Gisborne Boys’ High School First XI 171 all-out in 35 overs (Taewa 27, Alex Langford 22, Robbie Newlands 20; Sherin Jose (4-22-7, Derpak Alachira Gonna Ponnachan 4-23-5) by 4 wickets.
Coastal Concrete OBR 216-9 in 39 overs (Joshua Bates 94, Daniel Stewart 24, Te-Reimana Gray 23; Alex Shanks 5-9-7-3, Pushpinder Kumar 2-36-7) def Gisborne High School Old Boys/Horouta 209 all-out in 29 overs (Kumar 97, Anthony Boyder 38, Alex Shanks 25; Jimmy Holden 5-41-7-2, Gray 2-18-2, Jack Faulkner 2-38-5) by 7 runs.