Tourist Hotel first XI go back-to-back ahead of untimely bye

Tourist Hotel Cricket Club’s quest to finish the season off the bottom of the first grade ladder received a major boost on Saturday when they secured back-to-back wins for the first time this season with a 95-run victory against Boggabri Colts at Leitch Oval.

The round 13 victory was inspired by skipper Luke Meppem (60*) and vice-captain Hamish Duncan (79), who scored the bulk of their side’s total as they produced a 114-run partnership to guide their team to 8-209 in 40 overs.

Tourist Hotel then knocked over Boggabri for just 114 runs before the team of 10 lost their final wicket in the 31st over of their chase.

The victory was Tourist Hotel’s third of the season and saw them end the weekend on 32 points, just five behind RSL (37) and two behind Boggabri (34).

They will remain last heading into the final round as they sit out with this Saturday’s bye, but they could find themselves playing to get off the bottom of the ladder if results go their way in round 14.

They cannot finish as high as third and qualify for the finals though, given RSL and Boggabri will play against one another in the final round.

It was a red-hot start to the round 13 contest at Leitch Oval for Boggabri as opening bowler Jason Smith found himself on a hat-trick in the first over after knocking over Nick Tomlinson for a second-ball duck and then Lucas Hogan for a golden duck.

That brought Duncan out to the crease, who survived the hat-trick ball and went on to forge a 68-run partnership with opener Kaleb Mowle (28), who was bowled by Nathan Miller in the 17th over.

Meppem then arrived to partner Duncan after Mowle had departed and the duo combined for 114 runs before Duncan was dismissed caught and bowled by Ash Gough for a match-best 79 runs in the 36th over.

The Tourist Hotel batsman smashed three fours and three sixes during that innings, which catapulted him to the top of the NDCA’s leading run-scorer tally as he overtook former leader Matt Bradshaw (201) to finish the weekend 68 clear on 296.

Meppem then anchored the remainder of the innings to finish unbeaten on 60 runs, and the Tourist Hotel men were 5-209 with five deliveries remaining before Gough claimed three wickets in the final over to finish with 4-12 from three overs as Tourist ended the innings at 8-209.

Boggabri’s chase got off to a bright start in the second innings as Jay Urquhart scored 19 runs inside the first four overs to help make the score 0-23.

However, he was then bowled by Duncan from the first delivery of the fifth over before the top-order began to crumble as Duncan caught Millar (3) in the Mowle-bowled sixth over before knocking over Andrew Guest (3) to register his second wicket of the day in the seventh over.

That made the score 3-31, which became 5-56 in the 14th over when David McInnes dismissed Marty Beckett (3) and Rabjir Singh (0) with two consecutive balls before Zee Robards survived the hat-trick delivery.

Boggabri were then 5-69 halfway through the innings at the 20-over mark with just four wickets in hand and a monumental task in front of them.

That task became more difficult when Meppem threw the ball to John Lawlor for the 21st over and he produced a wicket-maiden first-up, with Tomlinson taking a catch to dismiss Robards (3) from Lawlor’s first delivery of the game.

All hope was lost when Lawlor knocked over Matt Avendano (49) one short of a half-century in the 27th over with the assistance of a Meppem catch, and he then wrapped up the innings in the 31st over when he bowled Coen and Ash Gough for ducks to finish with 4-16 from 5.4 overs as Boggabri ended up all out for 114 in 30.4 overs.

The Colts have now lost two on the trot and will be looking to return to winning ways when they challenge the Wilga Hotel Razorbacks at Collins Park this Saturday.

The other round 14 match will see Tatts take on RSL at Hogan Oval, while Tourist Hotel sit out with the bye.