By Goosain Abrahams
The curtain came down on club cricket in the Western Province Premier League with several permutations possible on who the runners-up would be.
In the end it was WPCC who prevailed. They topped the log for most of the second half of the season, but lost their penultimate game to eventual winners Rondebosch .
Going toe to toe with Durbies for the coveted second place, the strong WPCC batting line-up could only post 190/9 in their allotted 50 overs.
Although given a reasonable start by opener Derek Mitchell (26) - top run maker in the League with 953 runs - it was left to Givon Christian (57) and lower-order batter Justin Behrens (40) to steady the innings.
In reply, Durbies were in trouble at 27/3, before being dismissed for 153 with SA Under-19 player Oliver Whitehead (4/31) the pick of the bowlers.
In the other key match, the derby fixture between Claremont and Cape Town saw a vrag runs being scored.
A ton by SA Schools captain Beni Hansen (106) boosted Claremont to an imposing 323/5. Whilst Cape Town put up a decent chase, it was always gonna be a bridge too far. They managed 242, with Kyle Pluke (4/45) doing most of the damage and taking his tally to 38 wickets for the season.
The bonus-point win enabled Claremont to leapfrog Durbies into third place on the log.
In the First Division A competition, there was a dog fight at the bottom of the log to determine who would be relegated.
In the end, that dubious distinction went to Vikings who went down to Tygers over the weekend and UCT who suffered a similar fate against Champs Brackenfell.
Premier Division
Green Point beat Bellville by 7 wickets
Bellville 108: (Courtney Adams 40; Luke Holland 4/23, Michael Moore 3/26, Guy Sheena 2/13)
Green Point 109/3: (Adnaan Lagadien 53, Adam Scher 43*)
Claremont beat Cape Town by 81 runs
Claremont 323/5: (Beni Hansen 106, George Hargrave 70, Josh Breed 58; Lloyd Wingrove 2/53)
Cape Town 242: (Craig Jeffery 69; Kyle Pluke 4/45, Kenan Smith 2/45)
WPCC beat Durbanville by 37 runs
WPCC 190/9: (Givon Christian 57, Justin Behrens 40; Bradley Petersen 3/21, Tashwin Lukas 3/37)
Durbanville 153: (Oliver Whitehead 4/31, Hayden Byrne 2/22)
Bellville beat UWC by 29 runs
Bellville 277/6: (Marcus Fourie 96*, Cody Nieuwoudt 79; Cullan Larkin 3/55)
UWC 248: (Samrique Kayster 48*, Karl Vermeulen 37; Kai Chetty 3/66, Philip Kleynhans 2/21)
First Division
Avendale beat Tygerberg by 22 runs, Pinelands beat Strandfontein by 149 runs, Brackenfell beat UCT by 40 runs, Tygerberg beat Vikings by 39 runs.
Voice Sports Team