A scintillating 93 not out from vice-captain Mornay Kohl steered Swallows CC from Makhanda to a seven-wicket win over Tiger Titans in a crucial Grahamstown Cricket Board 2nd league fixture at the Hospital Fields on Saturday.
The victory lifted Swallows to the top of the GCB league table.
On a sweltering morning, Titans won the toss and elected to bat to record a total of 187 all out off 32.2 overs.
A momentous occasion was the presence of 12-year-old Aaron Langley who made his debut for the Swallows senior team.
Zukisani Smanga and M Vulindlela walked to the middle to open the batting but wasn’t long before Marco Loutz had the latter caught for 4 while going for a big shot. The partnership had realised 40 with Smanga accumulating most of the runs in his innings of 28 including two fours and three sixes. With Swallows’ tails up, 10 runs later, it was Smanga who holed out from the bowling of Loutz. Madlenkosi Tyonashe was next to go for a 13-run cameo before being caught off the bowling of off-spinner and Swallows captain, Luvane Daniels.
Sihle Ponase and left-hander, Esihle Vutela, posted a 48-run partenership mixing caution with aggression as Swallows’ bowlers tried to effect a breakthrough.
Swallows were also guilty of lapses in the field on many occasions dropping catches that were there for the taking. Wicketkeeper Kohl had an off day behind the stumps dropping at least three catches, while others spilled a few of their own in the outfield. Vutela was next to go after being cleaned up by the experienced LeeGary Sias for 20 after his solid partnership with Ponase. S Veto was next to go out caught off Sias for a duck.
N Nyoka (16) walked in next and he and T Sityolo who scored a quick 31 with 4 sixes and one four before being caught off the bowling of Daniels, took the score to 165/7 with a partnership of 38. Ponase was looking solid at this stage at the crease, before being caught off the bowling of Daniels, for a well played 39 with one six and four fours. The wickets fell in quick procession and Titans were all out for 187 off 32.2 overs. Daniels with 3/35, Benedict Nelson 3/41 and Sias 2/58 were the chief wicket-takers.
Kohl and Nelson opened the innings for Swallows for the half hour before lunch nd went to the break without loss of a wicket. It was Kohl coming off a run of disappointing scores who upped the ante after lunch, scoring 14 boundaries and clearing the rope four times. A feature of this big-hitting was the fact that he only ran 13 singles. Not that it was only out and out slogging, as the vice-captain showed patience in trying to handle the pace of Titans’ Vutela who had built up a head of steam.
On the other end it was Nelson (36) who stuck around to build up a partnership of 38. Fabian Isaacs was next man in but was out early bowled for a duck. Ludwe Ndyumbu made a well- played 35 before being caught to make way for Monray Evans who in a partnership of just over 50 runs with Kohl, took their team to the winning target of 188 runs with the loss of only 3 wickets off 23.2 overs.
Swallows now top the GCB log and with three fixtures left against Port Alfred, Sidbury and Manleys Flat are hoping to keep up the momentum.
Kohl the former Graeme College pupil from the matric class of 2022, who has played club cricket in Scotland, is confident his team can win silverware this season.
“We are confident at the moment and playing well; we are off for two weeks that gives us a chance to get ourselves fully focused on our final three matches,” said Kohl.
“As far as my form is concerned I have not been making scores over the past few matches; and glad I could come to the party and contribute to the team. I was more patient in the beginning of my innings but grew in confidence as the match continued.
“I normally bat No. 4 but took the responsibility to open the batting and glad it worked out.”
Kohl admitted that dropping three catches during the Titans innings behind the wicket was a let-down. “I can’t say keeping on that wicket is difficult; I just had an off day but glad I could make up with the bat.”
The debut by Langley turned heads but Kohl said the youngster who is only 12, was a great prospect. “We were a player short and we had a discussion around that a few days before the game and decided to bring him in.”
He is a very good bowler with potential and we are planning to draft him into the team more regularly as of next season.
- This article was first published in Talk of the Town, January 30, 2025. The newspaper serving the communities of Ndlambe and the Sunshine Coast, with a weekly wrap of Makhanda news, is available at stores from early on Thursdays.
