A dogged century from wicketkeeper Ryan Carters helped Sydney University to their ninth title in Sydney’s Premier cricket competition – the Belvidere Cup.
The NSW squad member batted for eight hours and 46 minutes to post an unbeaten 110 and force a draw in the three-day grand final against Bankstown at Bankstown Memorial Oval on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
As minor premiers, the Students finished ahead of Bankstown in the competition proper, meaning the hosts had to win the contest to collection the trophy.
And they held sway for most of the three days after winning the toss and electing to bat.
Bankstown reached 6-312 at stumps on Friday, with Philip Wells (95), Kerrod White (83) and Mitch Brown (62) the main contributors.
Number three Wells and No.4 Brown put on a 149-run stand after Bankstown had lost openers Luke Reece (9) and Daniel Solway (15) with just 25 on the board.
Wells also shared a 46-run stand with White before being run out five short of a fourth century for the season.
Bankstown reached a healthy 6-312 at stumps on day one, with White and skipper Jarrad Burke holding the key to their fortunes.
Burke became the first No.6 to post a century in the final of the Belvidere Cup with his unbeaten 100 coming off 156 balls and including 12 picket rattlers. He put on a 90-run stand with Michael Stretton (61 not out) before he declared at 6-441, leaving plenty of time to roll the Students.
Sydney University lost skipper Nick Larkin for three, but opener Ed Cowan and No.3 Carters came to the rescue with a 109-run stand before Cowan departed for 95.
The Steve Waugh Medallist for 2016-17, with 959 runs at 73.76, was in fine touch, hitting 11 boundaries in his 100-ball stay.
The Students lost Damien Mortimer (33) and Greg Mail (8) late on day two, going to stumps at a precarious 4-185.
Day three belonged to Carters, who watched the wickets of Ashton May (1) and Liam Robertson (0) fall as the Students slumped to 6-185.
But he found allies in No.8 Thomas Rogers and No.9 Tim Ley.
Carters and Rogers put on a 97-run stand, with the No.8 posting a patient 56 in a 125-ball occupation.
Ley and Carters then sealed the deal with an unbroken 66-run stand to secure a draw and the title.
Intermittent rain didn’t help Bankstown’s cause on the final day but they were competitive to the end in an epic battle chasing their third consecutive title.
Having played one of the great Belvidere Cup innings, which included seven boundaries and a pair of sixes in a 431-ball stay, Carters was duly awarded the Benaud Medal as Player of the Final.
Scoreboard
Bankstown 6(dec)-441 (Jarrad Burke 100 not out, Philip Wells 95, Kerrod White 83, Michael Stretton 61 not out; Devlin Malone 2-99, Greg Mail 1-12) drew with Sydney University 7-348 (Ryan Carters 110 not out, Ed Cowan 95, Thomas Rogers 56, Damien Mortimer 33, Tim Ley 31 not out; Kerrod White 2-36, Jarrad Burke 2-54) at Bankstown Memorial Oval.
Toss: Bankstown. Batted first: Bankstown. Umpires: Gerard Abood and Greg Davidson.
First Grade squads:
Sydney University: Nicholas Larkin (c), Ed Cowan, Ryan Carters, Damien Mortimer, Gregory Mail, Ashton May, Liam Robertson, Thomas Rogers, Timothy Ley, Devlin Malone, Ben Joy, Hayden Kerr.
Bankstown: Jarrad Burke (c), Daniel Solway, Luke Reece, Philip Wells, Mitch Brown, Kerrod White, Nathan McAndrew, Michael Stretton, Brendan Smith, Thomas Sowden, Mitchell Phelps, Chris Ridley.
