Historic win in Gillette Cup
The First XI cricket team’s spectacular win in the Gillette Cup national finals in December 2019, is one of the stand-out sporting achievements in the history of St Andrew’s College. This was the first time St Andrew’s had made it to the national final, the pinnacle of New Zealand Secondary Schools’ one-day cricket, so to go one better, and win the title, was outstanding, says coach, Mike Johnston. “As a coach you always dream of the perfect game, and the last game of the tournament against Hamilton Boys’ High School was the complete game of cricket for us. The boys put on a magnificent display of batting, bowling and fielding, scoring 276/8 in their 50 overs, and bowling the Hamilton side out for 102. Everything aligned.” Star players in the side included Rhys Mariu (named joint Most Valuable Player at the tournament) and Jesse Frew (both then Year 13), who were selected for the New Zealand U19 cricket team this year. Both scored well with the bat, with Jesse achieving an outstanding 103 against Otago Boys’ High School. Jordy Frew’s (then Year 11) off-spin bowling also proved dangerous, securing him 11 wickets for the tournament. Zakary Foulkes (then Year 12) was another century-maker in the team with an impressive 110 runs against Rosmini College. Mike says while the stand-out players performed well, the team’s strength was that it didn’t rely on them, with all 13 team members stepping up and contributing with the bat, ball, or in the field. “Everyone played their role exceptionally well and contributed at crucial stages in the tournament. Our batsmen scored runs when it counted, our pace bowlers had some great spells, and our fielders were superb, and definitely a class above.”
First XI captain, Rhys Mariu (Year 13)
