DIVISION 1 & YOUTH 1ST XI FEATURE AGAIN – 17 OCTOBER 2026
The Youth 1st XI again commanded much of the club’s attention, recording another comprehensive victory over Christchurch Boys’ High School. The side celebrated a second consecutive century, this time from Fin Hill, who’s unbeaten 136 was backed by a top bowling performance from Bayley Gardner (5-9) to secure a commanding 224-run win. The 2nd XI couldn’t quite match that success, going down to St Bede’s by 57 runs despite Neil Thakar’s 44 and a useful 4-40 from Benjamin Williams.
The Premier Men posted a competitive 213 after being asked to bat first against East Christchurch Shirley. However, a fine innings from Kenny McClure, who remained unbeaten on 80, has put East Shirley in a strong position to claim first-innings points. The Premier Women found the going tough, with their innings of 165, built around an excellent 62 from Megan Meltzer and 30 from Izzy Fox, proving insufficient against Lancaster Park. The grade’s leading batter, Kate Anderson, struck an unbeaten 86 to guide Park comfortably to their target.
Division 1 continued its impressive start to the season, with Noah Dean’s outstanding 5-27 helping restrict Lancaster Park to just 76. Sydenham responded by taking a 47-run first-innings lead before claiming two inexpensive wickets in Park’s second innings to strengthen their position.
Wet weather again disrupted the programme late in the week, with Division 2, the unlucky morning grade competition, abandoned. However, there was no shortage of drama in the Division 3 derby between the Goats and the Tamil XI, with the Goats snatching victory with just one ball remaining. Both Dinesh Chandran and Joe Taylor scored 75 for their respective sides, with George Wigley made a strong case for Player of the Match with a valuable 52 and an outstanding 4-18.
While the Women’s Championship side went down to defeat, there was an encouraging contribution from new English recruit Sophie Brandom, who top-scored with an unbeaten 27. The other two women’s sides enjoyed better fortunes. Division 2 recorded its first win of the season, beating North West Women by five wickets, with Bronte Fitzhardinge unbeaten on 31. The Social 8 women completed a convincing 77-run win over Lancaster Park, thanks in part to an unbeaten half-century from Katie Emmett and a valuable 38 from Niamh McWhirter.
Some of the photos in this publication are also courtesy of Ash Hart’s Hartland Images.
PREMIER MEN
DAY 1
Sydenham 213 (50 overs)
East Shirley 175-4 (48 overs)
Sydenham’s Premier Men’s match against East Shirley on Sydenham 1 remains finely poised, although the visitors are well placed to secure first-innings points after finishing the opening day on 175-4. Despite late-week rain, play got underway on time, and with some moisture in the wicket, Sydenham were unsurprisingly asked to bat first. Credit must go to the groundsman, as the pitch played well enough from the outset and improved throughout the day, producing some good batting conditions at a time when other matches around the city were struggling for first-innings runs.
Adi Suganthi
East Shirley made the early inroads they were looking for, reducing Sydenham to 10-2 inside the first eight overs. However, debutant opener Adi Suganthi steadied the innings with an important contribution of 46 at almost a run-a-ball, shifting the momentum back towards the home side. When he departed with the score at 66-3, the middle order continued the recovery, with Aarush Bhagwat providing valuable support during Suganthi’s innings before being dismissed for an important 24 from 61 balls. Ryan Wallace and Matt Rowe then added another 51 runs for the fourth wicket, helping Sydenham consolidate before the innings gathered pace in the afternoon.
Matt Rowe Dylan McArdle
At lunch, a decision was made to declare the innings once the 50th over was reached, keeping the match moving and setting the scene for an attacking finish. Wallace led the charge before falling for a valuable 47 from 68 balls, while Rowe contributed 34 from 55. Dylan McArdle then provided a late burst of acceleration, smashing 45 from just 21 deliveries. Both he and Rowe fell to attacking shots with three overs remaining and the score at 208-7, before the tail followed soon after, leaving Sydenham all out for 213 in the 50th over.
East Shirley’s reply began solidly, with Tim Hampton-Matehe and Kenny McClure putting on 42 for the opening wicket before Archie Goodrick made the breakthrough. Goodrick continued to trouble the visitors, claiming the next three wickets to leave East Shirley wobbling at 84-4 and give Sydenham a genuine opportunity to take control.
Archie Goodrick
Unfortunately for the home side, that proved to be the high point of the bowling effort. As the pitch continued to improve, McClure grew increasingly assured, helping East Shirley recover and move into a strong position by stumps. The visitors closed the day on 175-4, with first-innings points firmly in sight.
Goodrick was the pick of the Sydenham attack, finishing with an impressive 4-55 from 16 overs. The remaining bowlers kept things tidy, but Sydenham were unable to find the breakthrough needed to halt East Shirley’s recovery, leaving plenty still to play for when the match resumes.
Full scoreboard: https://live.nvplay.com/nz?tab=m_summary#mefa7ea72-9c89-40b9-bdb4-2d5266624647
PREMIER WOMEN
LOST
Sydenham 165 (41.1 overs)
Lancaster Park 166-3 (36.3 overs)
Match report courtesy of Linda Pettigrew
DIVISION 1 MEN
DAY 1
Lancaster Park 76 (32.4 overs) & 11-2
Sydenham 123 (34.1 Overs)
Match report courtesy of Todd Ward
The third game of the season sees the Div 1 lads away at St Albans Park against Lancaster Park. Fresh off two wins, the luck continues with another toss win and a chance to utilize our bowling attack once again.
Ryan James and Tom Elliot have the pleasure of taking the new ball and it didn’t take Tom long to get his first wicket of the season, in only his third over. After a relentless opening spell and the score going nowhere at 23-1 after 12 overs, Cadell Durdin and Noah Dean are introduced. With Lancaster park starting to build a partnership, Cadell strikes. With the score at 47-2 the pressure continued to pile and now it was time for the Noah Dean show. Lancaster Park had no answer for Noah’s impressive swing bowling and in the space of his 9 overs took 5-27. The wickets continued to frequently fall leaving the Lancaster Park side all out for 76. Tom with 2-20, RJ and Cadell taking a wicket a piece played the perfect supporting act for Noah.
Cadell Durdin
It was our turn to bat, Akshan Gulati and Sam Johns had the tough task of facing the new ball on a wicket that was slowly deteriorating. Aki was the first to fall with the score at 3-1. This brought RJ to the crease. RJ and Sam struggled to find their timing and were soon to be dismissed shortly after. At 27-3, Todd Ward and Brodie Hemingway consolidated nicely until Brodie was dismissed for 33 crucial runs. At drinks and the score at 71-4, there was only one goal in mind and that was to build a commanding lead. However, the drinks break proved costly as Todd was dismissed for 15 in the first over after drinks. Isaac Tutt (13 runs) and Tom Elliot (25 runs) playing in their first game for Div 1 this season, provided crucial runs to get us to 123.
With a lead of 47, we had the luxury of bowling 7 more overs at the Lancaster Park side. RJ took a wicket with the first ball of the innings, followed by another from Tom 3 overs later leaving the score at 11-2. This proves crucial going into next week, having high hopes of getting an outright victory.
Overall, an outstanding day from the Div 1 side yet again with Noah Dean being the star of the day.
Full scoreboard: https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/org/christchurch-metro-cricket-associationcjca/summer-202627/mens-division-1/game-centre/268d56e4
DIVISION 3 TAMIL XI
LOST
Sydenham Tamil XI 225 (40 overs)
Sydenham Goats 228-8 (39.5 overs
Match report courtesy of Arun Ravindranathan
Sydenham Tamil XI kicked off the new season with a hard-fought thrilling encounter against the Sydenham Goats. After winning the toss and electing to bat, the team set a competitive total of 225 runs in their 40 overs. The innings was anchored by a fantastic partnership, highlighted by a brilliant 75 runs from Dinesh and a solid 42 from Chidambaram. Crucial contributions in the death overs, particularly a quick 19 runs from Naveen, pushed the final score to an imposing mark.
Defending 225, the bowling unit faced early pressure as the opponents capitalised on a strong start, reaching 92 for 1 wicket in the first half of their chase. With 134 runs needed from the final 120 balls, the team responded with resilience. Chidambaram led the fightback with a masterful spell, claiming four wickets. Monty provided excellent support, chipping in with two wickets, while Naveen’s sharp fielding kept the pressure on. Despite taking the match down to the final two balls of the innings, the Goats narrowly secured the win.
Gopinath Karuppiah
Congratulations to the Sydenham Goats on a thrilling win, holding their nerve right till the final two balls in a fantastic contest!
It was a highly encouraging performance for Sydenham Tamil XI to build on for the rest of the season.
Full scoreboard: https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/org/christchurch-metro-cricket-associationcjca/summer-202627/mens-division-3/game-centre/91b2bf24
DIVISION 4 GOATS
WON
Sydenham Tamil XI 225 (40 overs)
Sydenham Goats 228-8 (39.5 overs
Match report courtesy of Joe Taylor
After a failed start last week it was great to get back into cricket with a much anticipated local derby unfortunately due to the rain through the week polo 3 was what we had to settle for.
The Tamils won the toss and were quick to bat, a fairly measured start had things poised evenly at the 20 over interval with the Tamils 68/1. However after the drinks break they started to up the ante and runs came fairly freely thanks to the rubber ducky and youth sized boundaries. Once we removed the dangerous opener Dinesh Chandra through a great run out from Dan Laughton for a brilliant 75 we started to regularly pick up wickets, however the runs kept flowing. The Tamils finished the innings all out in the last over for 225. George Wigley the standout after only being used as a part timer picking up 4/18 off 2.5 overs. Also Alex Brailey on his Goats return bowling tidy and economical.
George Wigley
We went off at the break fairly upbeat despite the good total. We knew if we mirrored the approach of the Tamils by keeping wickets in hand that we have the batting order to chase the total comfortable.
A new look opening pair with no Tony. Joe Taylor our normal opener was joined by his new recruit brother Matt. He didn’t last long unfortunately which brought George to join Joe. Together they batted at a beautiful pace despatching the bad balls and rotating in between taking us to drinks at 98/1 well ahead of the Tamils at the respective point. Both continued after drinks positively with both George and Joe bringing up half centuries. George, unfortunately fell not long after, capping a great all round day for him with 52. Jesse was next in and between himself and Joe were cruising towards victory. However with the score at 173 Joe finally mistimed a drive and holed out to long on for a well made 75. Things tightened up and a few more wickets fell it was going to be what team could hold there nerve to take the spoils. Final over, 6 runs required 7 down, we still felt comfortable with ice man Ollie still at the crease. A couple of wides to start made us feel like we had the upper hand until Arjun skied one to the keeper. Enter Alex Brailey with 3 balls left, 2 runs required and he truly believed so much that he was happy to shoulder arms the 1 st delivery- true meaning of believe in the leave. He then promptly smashed the next ball through mid wicket for 4 runs and the win.
Goats get the win 1st up in the derby but also congrats to the Tamils for putting on a great game of cricket 1st game of the season- 453 runs between the 2 teams
Full scoreboard: https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/org/christchurch-metro-cricket-associationcjca/summer-202627/mens-division-3/game-centre/91b2bf24
DIVISION 4 ROYAL CHALLENGERS
LOST
Royal Challengers 129 (36 overs)
Ohoka 130-3 (28.4 overs)
Match report courtesy of Trusharkumar Desai (TK)
It was a challenging game for the Royal Challengers Division 4 . Our Batting – Private (fill in) player1 played a solid innings of 60, supported by Private (fill in) player2 32 runs and Rahu GADA quick 19runs. However, we struggled to build partnerships and were bowled out for 129 in 39.4 overs.
Our bowlers put in a disciplined effort, with Shyam Karuthedath Narayanankutty took 2 wickets and Trusharkumar Desai (TK) picked up 1 wicket. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough runs on the board to defend. We have lost the game.
Full scoreboard: https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/org/christchurch-metro-cricket-associationcjca/summer-202627/mens-division-4/game-centre/4d5a5bfc
DIVISION 5 ALL-STARS
LOST
Sydenham 89 (33.4 overs)
Halswell 90-6 (18 overs)
Match report courtesy of Trevor Cray
The first match of the year saw the All Stars take to the artificial pitch at Warren Park, Halswell, with a fill-in captain and a team missing the majority of its usual stars. What could possibly go wrong?
After the captaincy had been tossed around like a hot potato, Trevor Cray finally stepped up to the plate, took on the mantle of leadership, and promptly lost the toss. A promising start to his captaincy career! The All Stars were sent in to bat on what could only be described as an absolute road of a pitch. Unfortunately, the batting lineup didn’t quite get the memo that conditions were supposedly in our favour.
It didn’t take long for the Berserkers to strike, with the first wicket falling in the opening over. By the fourth over, the All Stars were two down for just five runs. Not quite the explosive start the team were used to! With Tony Danenberg at the crease looking reasonably steady, there was still hope. Sumeda Senarathna joined him, and the pair put together a useful partnership of 19 before Sumeda unfortunately fell for 8 from 24 balls. Enter Trevor at number five, looking to steady the ship, play a captain’s knock, and guide the team safely through to drinks without losing another wicket.
Maybe next time.
Trevor managed just three runs before departing, triggering the classic All Stars middle-order collapse. After the drinks break the All Stars looked at pushing the tempo a bit, unfortunately the next three wickets fell for a grand total of eight runs, leaving the team reeling at 7/41. At this point, the scorebook was beginning to look more like a cry for help than a batting card. With the top and middle order providing moral support from the boundary rope, it was time for the tail to wag. David Te Au came to the crease and found a willing partner in Louis Crocker, with the pair adding a useful 31 run partnership before Louis fell to the opening bowler after attempting a rash shot for 7 runs. The cameo had begun, but the supporting cast was quickly running out. Then came the arrival of the traditional captain, Abe Atherton.
David continued to swing freely, but unfortunately, his innings came to an end after he watched a shot come straight off the middle of Abe’s bat and was left well short of his ground. A cruel end to a promising partnership, and perhaps a reminder that watching cricket is best left to the spectators.
David played a fantastic innings of 28 from 30 balls, finding the boundary four times, including two towering sixes. His knock lifted the All Stars to a more respectable total, with Tony contributing a patient 13 from 53 balls and Abe finishing on 10 not out to preserve his average.
The final batter unfortunately failed to trouble the scorers, leaving the All Stars all out for 89 runs.
Far from ideal, but defendable. At least, that was the theory.
With 89 on the board, the All Stars took to the field looking to defend a modest total. The margin for error was slim, but the team was up for the challenge. Abe opened the bowling with his usual tight lines and good length, immediately putting the Berserkers’ openers under pressure. He picked up his first wicket in the third over and finished with tidy figures of 1/15 from five overs. At the other end, David was hoping to carry his batting heroics into the bowling department. He created a couple of chances, but unfortunately, they either didn’t carry or carried a little too well.
Pressure was building on the Berserkers, and then came a moment of brilliance from the field. A well-timed bullet throw from around 40 metres out saw Abe collect a second dismissal for the innings, running out the other opener off a no-ball. David pulled himself from the attack after three overs, making way for new All Stars recruit Louis Crocker.
Louis wasted absolutely no time making an impression. He struck in his very first over, with a full delivery striking the batters pads and the Umpire agreeing it would have hit the stumps. Louis then followed up with a beautifully directed yorker, sending the new batter back to the boundary rope and giving the All Stars a much-needed boost. He claimed his third wicket in his third over, with David taking a catch while looking directly into the sun — a brave effort that deserves recognition. Louis put together an impressive debut performance and gave the team something to celebrate. Dupinder Saroya also chipped in with a wicket of his own, bringing the Berserkers’ captain to the crease.
With the target still within the All Stars reach, Rishanth and Viki had other ideas and combined well, rotating the strike with quick singles and twos while punishing the occasional loose delivery. Despite the All Stars’ efforts, the pair steadily worked their way towards the target, with the Berserkers eventually chasing down the total in the 18th over.
The result wasn’t what we wanted, but the bowling effort showed plenty of fight, particularly given the small total we had to defend.
While the result didn’t go our way, there were plenty of positives to take from the first outing of the season. The tail provided some late-order fireworks, Louis made an immediate impact with the ball, and the fielding effort showed that the All Stars were never going to make the chase entirely comfortable.
With several key players missing, the team put up a respectable fight and gave the Berserkers a few things to think about along the way.
The good news is that we can only improve from here, and Trevor has now completed his first captaincy assignment — including losing the toss, surviving a batting collapse, and is relishing giving the captains cap back to Abe! We look forward to welcoming the missing stars back into the fold over the coming weeks.
Full scoreboard: https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/org/christchurch-metro-cricket-associationcjca/summer-202627/mens-division-5/game-centre/eab642f7
WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP
LOST
Sydenham 77 (23.4 overs)
OBC 79-2 (17 overs)
Match report courtesy of TBC
DIVISION 2 WOMEN
WON
North West Women 122-8 (22.4 overs)
Sydenham 123-3 (16.5 overs)
Match report courtesy of Jeremy Rutherford
Things were a bit chaotic initially as regular manager/support coach Jeremy Rutherford was not only away, but unreachable, meaning some late, key team notices like “ground change” and “players are needed to play for another team” were sitting unread in the Whats App chat. Parents Suzy Moot and Jane Rutherford picked up on announcements and worked with Linda Pettigrew to ensure that all players ended up where they needed to be.
After winning the toss, Sydenham sent Northwest in to bat, expecting the wet outfield to dry and the artificial pitch to hold up well through the match. An early grace period wicket looked like the start of a batting collapse, however, the Northwest openers took their second chance and dug deep to see out the initial overs. Wickets then fell steadily through the innings with good bowling and equally good impact from the field. Of note was Penny Tonkin making 2 key run-outs from direct hits leaving Northwest all out in the 23rd over. Extras were however a significant contributor to the Northwest total.
As expected, the pitch offered the Northwest bowlers exactly what was served to us. A blistering start saw the first wicket fall at the end of the second over, but with 20 runs already on the board. From here the key to our batting effort was partnerships with the “in batter” being very well supported by their partner at the other end. The runs total was achieved in the 17th over with only three wickets down. Standout batting performances came from Bronte Fitzhardinge (fresh off the plane from an exchange to Japan) who retired at 31 runs, and Bella Maddaford with her new bat “Excalibur” (look it up young players) who also retired with 22 runs.
After the disruptions before the game, our young captains Maeve Adam and Natalia Cook showed excellent leadership and adaptability to rally the team and organise the game, achieving this comfortable 5 wicket win. Big thanks to James Thompson, who is himself a real cricketer, for standing in as game day supervisor and umpire support, and Liz Tonkin for scoring.
Full scoreboard: https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/org/christchurch-metro-cricket-associationcjca/summer-202627/womens-division-2/game-centre/d5845869
SOCIAL WOMEN T20
WON
Sydenham 132-2 (20 overs)
Lancaster Park 55-6 (17.3 overs)
Match report courtesy of Linda Pettigrew
Our Social 8 women had a 77 run win over Lancaster Park at Spreydon Domain with Katie Emmett’s 52 (retired) being the star of the show, including 3 sixes and 7 fours. Other key contributors were Niamh McWhirter’s 38 and Greer Hill’s 24*.
After setting a solid 132-2 with the bat the bowlers stepped up and defended well. Zoe Derry 2-11off 5 (including a caught and bowled) was the best of the bowlers with the other wickets shared 1 a piece by Niamh, Greer, Katie and Emma Barclay.
For the first game of the season the catching was great. Kate Breitmeyer set the standard, picking up a great catch at mid-on off Zoe’s bowling. This was followed up by Zoe’s catch and Ruby Turner, stepping in as wicket keeper, taking a great catch behind stumps. Lancaster park finished up all out for 55.
Thank you to Lancaster Park for being such a fun and friendly opposition.
Full scoreboard: https://www.playhq.com/new-zealand-cricket/org/christchurch-metro-cricket-associationcjca/summer-202627/social-women-twenty20/game-centre/f639bfd8
YOUTH 1ST XI
FIRST DAY
Sydenham 286-8 (50 overs)
CBHS 62 (25 overs)
Match report courtesy of Paul Durdin
The 1st XI headed to Christchurch Boys HS aiming to keep their unbeaten start to the season in tact. Openers Dhruv Arvindkumar (37) and Will Herd (12) made a strong start putting on 33 for the opening wicket. Dhruv then combined with Finlay Hill for an excellent 3rd wicket partnership of 72 before Dhruv was judged LBW. Samuel Wild then joined Finlay and made a swashbuckling 35 from 28 balls. Finlay then took complete control of the game, going on to reach his maiden century, scoring a phenomenal 136 not out from 132 balls. Noah Green (12) was the other batter to reach double figures and also combined nicely for a 53 run partnership with Finlay in the latter part of the innings. Sydenham finished the 50 overs 286 for 8.
Finn Hill
Bayley Gardner tore the heart out of any challenge the Christchurch Boys Development team might have mounted, snaring at sensational 6 for 9 from 6 overs. Bayley was ably supported by opening partner Reuben Williamson who bowled a tight but luckless opening spell. Noah Green, Daniel Barclay, Quinn Helms and Liam Beck were the other bowlers used – each picking up a wicket. Christchurch Boys sent on their way all out for 62.
Bayley Gardner
This was another superb team effort from Sydenham – highlighted by two fantastic individual performances from Finlay and Bayley. The team heads back to Christchurch Boys High next week to take on their 3rd XI.
YOUTH 2ND XI
WON
St Bedes 220 (41.3 overs)
Sydenham 163 (42.5 overs)
Match report courtesy of Jamie Helms
Sydenham 2nds fell short against St Bede’s 2nds, losing by 57 runs after being dismissed for 163 in the 43rd over while chasing 221. Despite the result, there were several strong individual performances and plenty of positives to take into next week’s home fixture.
After winning the toss, Sydenham elected to field following the rain earlier in the week. The pitch at St Bede’s No. 1 looked good, although the large outfield made fielding and boundary prevention important from the outset. Jo Wilke took the new ball in their first match for the 2nds and made an immediate impact, claiming the first wicket in the third over. Will Johns then took the second wicket, with Liam Kinzett completing an excellent forward-diving catch at second slip as St Bede’s reached 31 for 2 after five overs. Zac Nicholson was introduced into the attack and claimed Sydenham’s third wicket in the eighth over. We can improve our fielding after missing several chances during the middle overs, but the bowlers continued to work hard. Soon after drinks, Benji Williams clean-bowled the St Bede’s opener with a superb delivery to make the score 103 for 4. Benji maintained excellent control throughout his spell, bowling 10 consecutive overs and finishing with 4 for 40. Joe returned later in the innings to take two more wickets, and St Bede’s were eventually dismissed for 220 in the 41st over. Joe was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with 3 for 37 from eight overs.
Joe Wilke
Sydenham’s reply began positively, with Liam Kinzett and Eli Helms building a strong opening partnership through low-risk cricket. Eli was dismissed in the ninth over by a ball that kept unusually low, and Jonty Rutherford joined Liam at the crease. Liam was then dismissed in similar fashion. Sydenham continued to lose wickets at regular intervals, with some dismissals resulting from shot selection rather than sustained pressure from the bowling attack. Neil Thakar top-scored with a composed 44 from 59 balls, but Sydenham were eventually bowled out for 163 in the 43rd over.
Although the result did not go our way, the team was competitive and showed encouraging spells with both bat and ball. A sharper fielding performance could have made a significant difference, the bowling group perform well, with Jo & Benji the highlights and Neil’s 44 are all positives to build on. It was great to complete a full day of cricket after the recent rain, and we now look forward to returning home to Sydenham Park for next week’s match.
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