The big prize in Bay of Plenty premier club cricket is up for grabs on Saturday, when the 2021 Versatile Tauranga Williams Cup Championship title will be fought out at the Bay Oval.
This year’s Williams Cup title decider, will see Bond & Co Mount Maunganui and Element IMF Cadets, engage in a head to head battle to lift aloft ‘Old Bill’ in victory.
Williams Cup cricket dates back to the early days of Bay of the Plenty Cricket Association in the 1930’s. The first name engraved on the time-honoured cricket silverware, was the City Cricket Club in the 1932/33 season.
Both contenders have impressive Williams Cup winning credentials. Cadets have won the trophy on eleven occasions, since their first success in 1995, spawned an initial run of five Williams Cup triumphs in a row. The Mount Maunganui name has been engraved on the silverware on six occasions, dating back to 1988.
“Our expectations are to go out there on Saturday and continue our form and momentum, we have built up in this year’s Williams Cup campaign,” says Cadets team captain Andrew Mascall.
“The strength of our side is our batting depth in that we bat right down to number 11. Our team is a young enthusiastic side mixed in with a couple of experienced old heads.”
Like Mascall, the Mount’s counterpart Matt Golding is leading his troops in to Williams Cup battle for the first time.
“We are expecting to put up a strong performance in the final as we have done most of the season,” says Matt. “Our team bats a long way down and our first, second and third change bowlers are very strong in their own rights.
“Experience is a big key for us, with bucket loads of club cricket games in the bank and hopefully we can call on some of that experience in tough times on Saturday.”
Looking at the quality of the opposition the Mount captain said: “Cadets have some serious quality through their side with (Donovan) Deeble, (Jono) Boult, (Tim) Pringle and (Fergus) Lellman, who are four of the best all-rounders in the Bay.
“Any of those four are capable of carrying their side a long way to victory on Saturday.”
Cadets’ team captain Andrew is equally wary of the threat posed by the Mount.
“The Mount are a very well balanced team with a very good seam attack and a strong top order, he says.
“A Williams Cup victory for our club would be massive, as we came into the current season with a new look young side, with which no one gave us a chance of success.
“The lads have put in plenty of work and developed as cricket players and into great blokes”.
Cadets booked their place in the final the hard way by overcoming Central Indians and then beaten major semi-finalists Greerton last Sunday, after the Mount had booked their place in the final by beating Greerton the previous day.
With that in mind Cadets come in with momentum but based on standings the Mount are arguably the favourites.
“The Williams Cup is without doubt the pinnacle of Bay of Plenty Club cricket,” says Mount captain Matt. “I know that it means a lot, especially to some of the older guys in the team. Opportunities to win it are essentially why some of the older guys still play the game. Victory on Saturday would taste sweet out of the ‘Old Bill’.”
The inaugural Versatile Tauranga Williams Cup Plate, will be fought out at the Te Puke Domain, between Flying Mullet Te Puke and Holland Beckett Law Tauranga Boys College.
Last weekend Te Puke beat Papamoa in the semi-finals, while Tauranga Boys won a nail-biter by just four runs, in their encounter with Generation Homes Lake Taupo.
The Versatile Tauranga Williams Cup final between Mount Maunganui and Cadets gets underway from 12pm Saturday, March 27 at the Bay Oval.