Four Baywide premier cricket teams will start out on a mission on Saturday, March 20 which will end with one side lifting the Versatile Tauranga Williams Cup aloft in victory at the Bay Oval seven days later.
The Williams Cup, is the oldest annual Bay of Plenty Cricket trophy and dates back to the affiliation of the Bay of Plenty Cricket Association to New Zealand Cricket in 1932.
Eves Realty Greerton, emerged from eight rounds of qualifying play in the top spot and will play Bond & Co Mount Maunganui, at Blake Park in the major semi-final. The winner of the top two contest, will progress directly to the Williams Cup Grand Final to be held at the Bay Oval, on Saturday, 27 March.
Greerton lead the head to head record between the two sides this season, two games to one, winning both the Bay of Plenty and Williams Cup encounters. However, Mount Maunganui secured the Baywide T20 Championship, defeating Greerton, in the title decider under lights at the Bay Oval.
The Greerton versus Mount Maunganui playoff is shaping up as classic batsmen versus bowlers contest. Greerton big-hitters in Cameron Neal and Tom MacRury have been in grand form in the Williams Cup preliminary action, with each belting a truckload of runs. Mount Maunganui will have painful memories of their Williams Cup game where Neal blasted 202 not out.
Mount Maunganui, has a well synchronized lineup of pace and spin bowlers, who have done plenty of damage throughout the season. Mount Maunganui pace bowlers Tony Goodin and Chris Atkinson, usually open the Mount bowling attack, with Dale Swan, Peter Drysdale and Nick Smith joining the encounters with their slower action cutters.
Smallbone Park in Rotorua, will host the minor semi-final between Bayleys Central Indians and Element IMF Cadets, who finished in third and fourth spot in the qualifying race. The winner, will play the major semi-final losing side on Sunday, March 21 for the second place in the Bay Oval Final.