A young and inexperienced Macquarie Coast Stingers enjoyed a memorable three games of Twenty20 cricket in the Plan B Regional Bash held in Coffs Harbour last weekend.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
In a four team round robin featuring games against Northern Inland Bolters, Northern Rivers Rock and Coffs Coast Chargers, the Stingers improved in every game. This confirmed the selectors faith in the youth brigade from the McDonalds Premier League.
Kempsey teams were represented by Jackson Korn from Rovers, and Ben Taylor and Dan Baker from Nulla.
16-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman Korn said he learned just how quickly T-20s can change during the bash.
"One minute you're on top, the next you're losing, you're never out of the game," he said.
"There was some really experienced players, it was good to play against them and get some new ideas about the game."
The Stingers faced the Bolters In game one and batted first, scoring 9/102 with Todd Burley hitting 28 and Jarrod Humphries 27. The Bolters made 3/106 in reply with the standout bowler Nulla captain Ben Taylor with 0/13 from four overs.
For game two against the Rock, Stingers bowled first. Rock managed 123 with the best bowlers Sam Whitbread with 4/32 and Taylor again with 3/25. Stingers put together 5/124 to record a win. Todd Burley belted 45 from 22 and Korn made 21 from 14.
The final game was against the Chargers who batted first, amassing a formidable 9/162. Sam Whitbread took 3/36 and Josh Hyde 2/33. Chasing a sizeable target, the Stingers made their best total of the series with 7/139. Scoot Witchard scored 38.
The Stingers claimed one win from three in the unpredictable and fast-paced format of the game. Captain Josh Hyde said this was a pass mark for a team of youngsters mixed with experience. This all augers well for the Stingers and is testimony to the Premier League for the way it is developing players.