Cricket: Second Hawke Cup challenge for Taranaki

Another Hawke Cup heavyweight, Canterbury Country, rides into town on Friday to challenge Taranaki for this famous piece of silverware.

They have had their hands on the cup on six occasions since 2000, joining Hawkes Bay and Hamilton as the powerhouse teams in New Zealand provincial cricket.

Canterbury Country arrives as the winners of Zone 3, with comfortable victories over Nelson, Buller, Marlborough and Nelson again in the final.

As with all these strong provincial sides they will certainly test a Taranaki team that has already had a season of high achievement.

Firstly, it was the Furlong Cup, then the Hawke Cup, with one defence against Hamilton out of the way, and most recently with a young crew in Palmerston North, they defeated Manawatu to be placed third in the Chapple Cup.

It is time to be brave and step forward once again.

There has been plenty of positivity amongst the batsmen during the previous two weeks.

Rupert Young, already with 365 red ball runs under his belt, at an average of 45.6, notched up a century at the Chapple Cup, and followed this with 47 in club cricket last weekend.

His red-hot form with the bat and behind the stumps, has seen him selected in the Central Districts ‘A’ team for the first time. It is nice to know that form is recognized, especially if you live in Taranaki.

Trent McGrath, the wristy ‘Sobers-like’ left hander, notched up 55 last weekend to maintain his consistent run of form, whilst Bailey Wisnewski hit a mammoth 133 not out in club cricket, to get his eye in for the big game.

McGrath is second in the red ball runs for Taranaki with 330, including a century, with Wisnewski following on 294, which includes a score of 97.

There were also encouraging innings from skipper Sam Fastier with 46 not out and Liam Muggeridge, who scored nearly half his team’s runs with a 46. Muggeridge also bagged four wickets for 33 runs, demonstrating his all-round talent once again.

This performance follows an exceptional Chapple Cup where he scored 177 runs at an average of 59, including a top score of 83. Also, when given the opportunity with the ball, he quickly snagged three wickets.

He’s got to be smiling heading into the big game.

Taranaki’s batting colossus Dean Robinson, with one century under his belt this season to add to his previous fifteen, looked threatening against Hamilton before each inning was chopped off, and one imagines that in true Geoff Boycott fashion, a big score is just round the corner.

There has been a relatively light workload for the core bowling group since the Hamilton victory. They now need to build up their energy and intensity, and bowl with the same accuracy and guile that they have demonstrated all season.

Pacemen Ryan Watson and Ben Frewin hit top form against Hamilton and will be on the hunt once again.

The leader of the pack, and the leading red ball wicket taker with 22, Watson, has taken on the ‘Ali Jordan’ mantle, sending down fast, consistent balls with an added bit of venom as necessary.

Freakish Ben Frewin has 15 wickets at an amazing 12.13 per wicket, whilst the gritty and gutsy Jordan Gard has notched 20 wickets with his accurate medium pacers.

Gard is fresh from captaining Central Districts ‘A’, where the little magician Liam Carr has also earned a spot.

Carr has 20 wickets at 17.05 with a best of 7-56 and is growing with every game.

The experienced Mattie Thomas, another left arm spinner, rounds off the ‘Big 5’. His main contribution has been to nail the crucial wicket as required, through patience, accuracy and cunning little variations.

Two of the bowlers are also proving to be top of the class in the field as well.

Watson has snatched 12 catches in the field, only four behind wicket-keeper Young, whilst in Palmerston North the ground fielding by Carr saw him create three run outs, and with an athletic double jump and dive, he knocked the ball back into the field of play and dived infield to take an amazing catch.

The overall team fielding this season has been one of the outstanding features of Taranaki’s games.

The final XI to run out against Canterbury Country will be the same as the team that took the field in the challenge against Hawkes Bay and the first defence against Hamilton.

Dean Robinson, Bailey Wisnewski, Sam Fastier ©, Rupert Young, Liam Muggeridge, Trent McGrath, Mattie Thomas, Jordan Gard, Ryan Watson, Ben Frewin, Liam Carr, Jacob Leuthard-Richards.

With one defence now in the ticked box, this 2024/25 squad move ahead of the 1988/89 and 2007/08 teams who lost the cup in defence one, and start heading towards the 1926/27 and 1933/34 squads who both repulsed three challenges before losing in game four.

The 1970-73 squad under Dennis Yardley with 12 successful defences, and the 1993-96 group under skipper Rodney Brown with seven successful defences, are leading the way.

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