The Lae Cricket Association T50 Competition is officially underway!

Lae, Morobe Province, PNG– The Lae Cricket Association (LCA) officially launched its A-Grade Men’s 50 Over Competition last weekend, May 17th and 18th, with five teams vying for supremacy in what promises to be a highly competitive season.

Saturday, 17 May: Konepoti CC vs Raukele CC – Unitech 1 Oval

The opening match saw a fiery contest between Konepoti Cricket Club (KCC) and Raukele Cricket Club (RCC), with both sides showcasing a mix of youth and seasoned campaigners. Raukele won the toss and elected to field, sending KCC in to bat first.

KCC’s openers Alfred Amini and Tomtom Ora gave a solid start. Amini was dismissed for 16 (8), smashing four boundaries, while Ora lit up the innings with a blistering 55 off 24 balls, including four 4s and four 6s.

Notable contributions from the middle order came from:

•Captain Tupou Amini Jr – 13 (10)

•Karo Jack – 27 (21)

•Allan Ila – 24 (33)

•Iamo Gure – 27 (27)

Despite the early momentum, KCC’s lower order collapsed, and they were bowled out for 201 in 25 overs.

Raukele’s chase began cautiously but steadily.

Opener Jeremiah Alova scored 30 (28), caught by Tupou Jr off Ora. Devin Pawen managed only 1 (8), falling to Chris Francis.

First drop Velenama Tore anchored the innings with a composed 49 (33) before being caught off Allan Ila.

Young Rupert Karavai chipped in with an unbeaten 26 (46), but it was veteran Samson Tarapia’s explosive unbeaten 76 (27) that sealed the win. Raukele CC chased down the target with seven wickets in hand.

Sunday, 18 May: ROWCC vs Hoods CC – Unitech 1 Oval

ROWCC won the toss and elected to bat, but struggled early as opener Jeremiah Nigani was dismissed on the first ball by Hoods’ Gabriel Kalua. His partner Jackson Varcilli managed 10 (16) before falling to the same bowler.

Middle-order resistance came from:

•Akila – 23 (40) •Suresh Gunarathne – 30 (34)

•Sudesh Waduge – 32 (34) •Buddhika Wijesinha – 10 (15)

•Paul Nigani – 12 (7)

•Rishan Tuwan – 10 (13)

ROWCC was bundled out for 158 in 32 overs.

Hoods CC openers Mukura Pepe and Nabo Manu began the chase. Manu fell for 9 (14), but Pepe remained unbeaten on 69 (81), guiding his side alongside valuable knocks from:

•Veari Taviri – 17 (21)

•Gabriel Kalua – 14 (8)

Hoods CC reached the target in 32 overs, winning by four wickets.

Saturday, 24 May: Hoods CC vs Raukele CC – SG Oval

The weekend’s marquee matchup saw Hoods CC face Raukele CC in Match 2 of Round 1. A delayed start due to field preparation led to a reduction in overs to 45.

Hoods won the toss and sent Raukele in to bat.

Openers George Terry and Joel Lohia started well before both fell to ace bowler Ruma Gini, who struck early and finished with a standout 4/45.

Lohia scored a quick 23 (26), while Terry added 9 (11).

Star performer Velenama Tore dominated with the bat, smashing 68 (50), including 3 boundaries and 6 sixes.

He was eventually caught by Gini off Ben Aiga, who also returned excellent figures of 4/27. Samson Tarapia added 21 (25), and Richard Kwara chipped in with 14 (19) as Raukele was bowled out for 164 in 32.1 overs.

Hoods’ reply began with young Jeremiah Kalua and Gini. Kalua fell for 1 (11), and Gini added 6 (6). Skipper Veari Taviri held anchor with a gritty 42 (60), while Ben Aiga returned with the bat for 26 (26).

Mukura Pepe contributed 32 (42), and Joshua Warika’s quick 18 (14) brought the team within reach. However, a late spell from veteran Samson Tarapia (3/07) saw the Hoods collapse just six runs short.

Raukele sealed a nail-biting win, bowling out Hoods for 158. Velenama Tore was named Man of the Match for his all-round brilliance, a destructive 68 with the bat and bowling figures of 5/28. Kenneth Ila President of Lae Cricket Association said, “A great game that brought a great result.

Plenty of excitement that kept everyone on their feet! Thank you to both teams for the display of true cricketing spirit.” Lae Cricket Association sincerely thanks all participating clubs, match officials, and the major sponsor, CPNG, for the support in getting the season underway.

The Association invites all cricket lovers and the general public to come down and cheer for their local cricket teams and players in the upcoming matches of the LCA 50 Over Competition.

Score card and highlights are available on Cricket PNG website www.cricketpng.org.pg

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For further information, please contact info@cricketpng.org

About Cricket PNG

Cricket PNG (CPNG) is the National Sports Federation responsible for the governance, promotion and development of cricket in Papua New Guinea (PNG). CPNG has been an Associate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1973 and is supported by the ICC East Asia-Pacific (EAP) regional office, and more recently the PNG Olympic Committee.

CPNG currently has about 70 staff in ten (10) regions across PNG with a majority involved in driving entry-level participation through the Schools Kriket Programme and the School Kriket Programme (Malolo Hard-Ball Competition). In 2024, the School Kriket Programme reached over 129,000 students across PNG. Domestically, the Isuzu T20 Smash is our pinnacle event, supported by men’s and women’s Nationals at U19 and Senior levels.

At the high-performance level internationally, our Barramundis (national men) are ranked 20th in T20 and had ODI status until early 2023, our Lewas (national women) are ranked 12th in T20 and currently have ODI status, our Garamuts (U19 boys) and Siales (U19 girls) have historically been the best performed of the ICC EAP U19 member teams.