Hawke Cup Defense 28th - 30th January

Posted: Monday, 23 January 2017

Bay Of Plenty To Contest 29th Hawke Cup Direct Challenge At The Bay Oval

In the last decade, Bay of Plenty has become widely regarded as the leading NZ Cricket Minor Association in the country. During that period, the Bay of Plenty Senior Men’s teams has played in eight Hawke Cup Direct Challenge matches, winning six and losing just two encounters and have also won the ND Fergus Hickey Rosebowl on six occasions.

Bay of Plenty will play in their 29th Hawke Cup Direct Challenge on Auckland Anniversary Weekend (28/30 January 2017) against Counties Manukau (Zone One Challenger) at the Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui. The Bay teams have a proud history in Hawke Cup Cricket, which dates back to their first Hawke Cup Direct Challenge in March 1932.

2016 was a vintage year for Bay of Plenty representative cricket, with the BOPCA Senior Men’s side winning the ND Fergus Hickey Rosebowl and Brian Dunning Trophy and then going on to bring the Hawke Cup back to the Bay of Plenty after defeating Hawkes Bay. The icing on the cake was the Bay of Plenty Coastland Senior and Junior representative teams winning their respective ND Age-Group tournaments.

Bay of Plenty Cricket CEO Chris Rapson said “Bay of Plenty Cricket has been at the forefront of player coaching and development programmes over the last decade and a half, with the pathways to playing at the highest levels now being clearly laid out for aspiring players”.

“It is gratifying to note, that at the same time the Bay of Plenty Senior Men’s team were performing so well for their province last season, a number of other players who originated from this region were playing for Northern Districts and New Zealand”.

Bay of Plenty’s representative debut was a Hawke Cup Direct Challenge against South Auckland, in Hamilton in 1932. The Bay of Plenty team played in eight further Hawke Cup Direct Challenges, before winning the NZ Cricket prize for the first time, when they defeated Hawkes Bay 16/18 March 1986.

Two successful defences followed, before Hawkes Bay won back the Hawke Cup in February 1987. However under the Hawke Cup rules - Bay of Plenty were handed the next challenge and regained the NZ Cricket Minor Association trophy from Hawkes Bay, two weeks later. In the last defence of 1987, Southland paid a visit to Blake Park in Mount Maunganui to return home with the Hawke Cup as extra luggage.

The first three days of (1st – 3rd) March 1997 saw Bay of Plenty win the Hawke Cup from Auckland Manukau. The Bay side posted their (then) record score of 553/9, in their win over Central Otago in their first defence, before losing the big prize to Wellington City two weeks later.

The Bay of Plenty golden run in Hawke Cup Direct Challenges commenced when they lifted the trophy from Hamilton 25/27 January 2013. The Bay side simply blasted Hamilton out of the game smashing 701 runs. Brett Hampton (194) and Joe Carter (187) blasted the two highest Bay of Plenty scores eclipsing Simon Winter’s 181 in the Hawke Cup defence against Central Otago.

Four successful defences followed, against Manawatu, Canterbury Country, South Canterbury and Hamilton before Manawatu defeated Bay of Plenty in February 2014.

During March 2016, the Bay of Plenty representative team defeated Hawkes Bay in the last Hawke Cup Direct Challenge of the season, to take the long-time NZ Cricket trophy home, to spend the winter in the Bay of Plenty Cricket trophy cabinet.

NZ Cricket Hawke Cup 2017
28/30 January Bay of Plenty (Holders) v Zone One Winners – Counties Manukau

Bay of Plenty Hawke Cup Direct Challenge Record (1932 – 2016)
Played 28 Won 12 Lost 16

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