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BOPCA BAYWIDE PREMIER PREVIEW 2023-24

The two Bay of Plenty Cricket premier teams that held aloft Baywide trophies in triumph last season have re-appointed the same team leadership for the 2023-24 season.

Element IMF Cadets won the big prize in Baywide premier cricket, beating Bond & Co  Mount Maunganui by two wickets in the 2022-23 Versatile Williams Cup title decider. Andrew Mascall, will captain the team based at the Tauranga Domain for the fourth year in succession, with Cadets club coach Sam Owen, mentoring the premier troops.

Eves Realty Greerton, have again appointed Anish Desai to the dual role of leading his team on the field and tutoring the finer points of the game in the nets. The 2022-23 season was a vintage year for the Greerton premiers who won both the Bay of Plenty Cup and the Baywide T20 competition.

Consistency over the three Baywide competition was rewarded with the Hart Family Trophy Champion of Champions award, being presented to Bond & Co Mount Maunganui at the annual prize giving.

Current Bay of Plenty Representative team skipper, Ben Pomare, will guide  Mount Maunganui as they endeavour to add to their 11 Hart Family Trophy titles. Experience in spades on the field of play has seen Ben Musgrave move into the premier coach’s role at Blake Park. The new Mount mentor played 64 games in the Bay representative strip including skippering the side for two seasons.

Rotorua Baywide contenders Sandford Wall Lawyers Central Indians finished last season with a flourish. in taking out the Williams Cup Plate. Jeff Simmons returns to the combined premier team to captain and mentor the side which has had little change from last year's representatives.

Long-time Flying Mullet Te Puke coach Pete Swan is sure to have his troops well prepared to build on last season’s solid performances. Te Puke were denied the opportunity to lift aloft the Baywide T20 trophy when rain blighted both the semi-final and title decider. They were awarded second place in the twenty over per team competition after finishing second on the ladder in the regular season play. Mikare Leef and Iman Nahal will co-captain the oldest Bay of Plenty premier club team.

Generation Homes Lake Taupo, who made their Baywide entrance in 2016, will look to build on their first Baywide top four finish, after reaching the Williams Cup semi-finals. Habib Malik retains the captaincy, with Nafis Shaikh and Archie Harrison bringing impressive credentials from Derbyshire in the UK.

Craig's Investment Partners Tauranga Boys College, has provided a springboard of future success for the multitude of graduates of the TBC cricket pathway. New player coach Scott Curtis, is joined by Nina Parmar from Japan and a new batch of First XI players from the TBC pathway. Sebastian Heath has earned the captain's role for the new cricket year.

Papamoa made their first appearance on a top-four competition leader board six months ago, winning two Williams Cup Plate encounters, to meet Central Indians in the final of the competition. The team that call the Alice Johnson Oval in Papamoa home, will be co-captained by Nikhil Vishwanath and Edward Sclater and coached by Simon Herbst.

Craig Investment Partners Geyser City have a policy of promoting and developing young cricket talent in the Rotorua region. There have been few changes from last season's young lineup. Alexander Roy and Ravi Yarwood-Paintal will travel from the UK to join the team. Alexander Roy, who will captain and coach the Geyser City premiers, brings impressive credentials of representing The Netherlands.

The new premier cricket season kicks of with two weeks of the Baywide T20 competition. Players and fans alike will be hoping for better weather than twelve months ago when the semi-finals and the final were rained out, with the title being awarded to Greerton. who finished as the top qualifier in preliminary play.

Bay of Plenty Cricket Premier Team Details 2023-24

Element IMF Cadets

Home Ground: Tauranga Domain

2022/23 Top-Four Baywide Finishes: Williams Cup Champions, 3rd = Baywide T20

2023/24 Captain: Andrew Mascall

Player Gains: Sam Clode, Logan Murray, Sam Clegg, Francios Potgietor

Player Losses: Carson Wills

Coach: Sam Owen

 

Sanford Wall Lawyers Central Indians

Home Ground: Smallbone Park/Boord Park

2022/23 Top-Four Baywide Finishes: Williams Cup Plate Winners.

2023/24 Captain: Jeff Simmons

Player Gains: Ben Holt, Jeff Simmons

Player Losses: Nil

Coach: Jeff Simmons

 

Craigs Investment Partners Geyser City Cricket

Home Ground: Smallbone/Boord Park

2023/24 Captain: Alexander Roy

Player Gains: Alexander Roy (UK) Ravi Yarwood-Paintal (UK) Magan Vashisht (Central Indians)

Player Losses: Tyler McGladdery (UK)

Coach: Alexander Roy

 

Eves Realty Greerton

Home Ground: Pemberton Park

2022/23 Top-Four Baywide Finishes: Bay of Plenty Cup Champions; Baywide T20 Champions, 3rd = Williams Cup Plate

2023/24 Captain: Anish Desai

Player Gains: Loughie Keaney, Andrew Friskney, Billy Syme, Tim Clarke, Josh Espitalier (Tauranga Boys College) Luca Adsett,  Blair McKenzie

Player Losses: Nick O’Sullivan, Brandan Laurenzi, Shane Wineti, Harrsion Perry

Coach: Anish Desai

 

Generation Homes Lake Taupo CC

Home Ground: Owen Delaney Park

2022/23 Top-Four Baywide Finishes: 3rd = Williams Cup

2023/24 Captain: Habib Malik

Player Gains: Nafir Shaikh, Archie Harrison (Derbyshire UK)

 

Bond & Co Mount Maunganui

Home Ground: Blake Park

2022/23 Top-Four Baywide Finishes: Baywide Champion of Champions, Williams Cup runner-up, 3rd = Bay of Plenty Cup, 3rd = Baywide T20

2023/24 Captain: Ben Pomare

Player Gains: Carl Brungar (Auckland A experience)

Player Losses: Kade Smit, Riley Brady, Andrew Halbert

Coach: Ben Musgrave

 

Papamoa

Home Ground: Alice Johnson Oval @ Gordon Spratt Reserve

2022/23 Top-Four Baywide Finishes: Williams Cup Plate runner-up.

2023/24 Co-Captains: Nikhil Vishwanath, Edward Sclater

Player Gains: Kade Smit, Mathew Rees, Allan Arora

Player Losses: Rohit Sardarjoshi, Reece Sheldon

Coach: Simon L Herbst

 

Craigs Investment Partners Tauranga Boys College

Home Ground: Nicholson Field

2022/23 Top-Four Baywide Finishes: Bay of Plenty Cup runner-up, 3rd = Williams Cup Plate

2023/24 Captain: Seb Heath

Player Gains: Scott Curtis (Player/Coach) Nihar Parma (Japan), Jake Stott, Oliver Norwood, Reuben Swanepoel, Billy Ramsden, Sam Cross, Aryan Aryal (TBC Pathway).

Player Losses: Sam Clode, Loughie Keaney, Andrew Friskney, Billy Syme, Josh Espitalier, Luke Spargo, Logan Murray.

Coach: Scott Curtis

 

The Flying Mullet Te Puke

Home Ground: Te Puke Domain

2022/23 Top-Four Baywide Finishes: 3rd = Williams Cup, 3rd = Bay of Plenty Cup, Baywide T20 runner-up.

2023/24 Co-Captains: Mikaere Leef and Iman Nahal

Player Gains: Pip Thickpenny, Fynn Williamson, Sachith Muthukumarana.

Player Losses: Blair McKenzie

Coach: Pete Swan