On 16 and 17 February, Southland Boys’ High School had their traditional interschool against Shirley Boys' High School, contested by First XI and the Junior Colts.

First XI

In the First Xl match Shirley Boys' won the toss and elected to bat first. They slowly went about compiling their runs, aided by some errant bowling from Southland Boys' High School. They had reached 188 for 5 at lunch and were looking strong to post a big first innings. A more disciplined bowling approach from Southland Boys' High School after lunch put the brakes on and eventually, we bowled them out for 235. Wicket takers were shared around, with Hugh Dermody, Travis Mann and Sam Smaill picking up the majority of these. 

In our reply Southland Boys' High School got off to the worst possible start, being 5/2 before Sam Smaill and Jacob Brady slowly went about building our run chase. Both looked unbothered and a big score was on offer for both batsmen. Unfortunately, both batters didn’t kick on with Brady falling in the 30’s, while captain Smaill made it to 60, he would be a little disappointed he couldn’t add his name to the honours board.  

On day 2 the players were greeted with a little rain, this quickly cleared though to allow play to begin on time. Travis Mann showed some nice touches to score at a quick rate, when he departed wickets fell quickly and Southland Boys' High School were bowled out for 180, falling 55 runs short of Shirley Boys' first-innings total. Shirley Boys' then came out with positive intent, looking to score quickly. Building on a couple of strong partnerships, they declared at 146-6, setting Southland Boys' High School a target of 201 in 40 overs. Hugh and Tom were the standout bowlers, each taking two wickets. 

Disaster struck early in the chase, with Southland Boys' High School losing three quick wickets. However, Angus (66) and Travis (26) steadied the innings, keeping hopes alive. With six runs per over required, regular wickets made it difficult to build lasting partnerships. In the end, Southland Boys were bowled out for 144, falling 57 runs short. 

It was a disappointing loss to start the interschool series, but there were positive performances to build on for the next match, which will be against Kings' High School on March the 2nd and 3rd.

Junior Colts 

In the Junior Colts Match, the SBHS Colts won the toss on a beautiful Southland day and decided to bat on a new grass wicket. While several of our batsmen got starts, no one managed to push on for a big score. At 145 for 9, it was left to Konnor Hogg (19) and Jonty Muir (30 not out) to put together a crucial 58-run 10th wicket partnership, lifting the total to 203. 

Konnor Hogg continued his excellent form, taking a wicket with his first delivery. Some wayward bowling allowed Shirley Boys’ to build a solid partnership, and they reached 104 for 4 at tea. After the break, the Colts came out firing. With some great bowling and fielding, we bowled Shirley Boys' out for 140 with just 6 minutes left before stumps. Konnor Hogg was the pick of the bowlers, claiming 4 wickets for 18 runs with some fiery pace and swing.  

The SBHS Colts had a solid start to day two, leading by 63 runs on the first innings thanks to a strong 10th wicket partnership the previous day between Konnor Hogg and Jonty Muir. The openers, Thomas Rutledge and Sam Phillips, then built on that foundation with a brilliant 98-run partnership for the first wicket, effectively taking Shirley Boys’ out of the game. Rutledge and Thomas Miller followed up with an 82-run second wicket partnership, putting SBHS Colts in a dominant position.  

Rutledge played a stunning controlled innings, finishing on 100 not out off 140 balls, including 11 fours. He was well supported by Phillips (30) and Miller (33), allowing SBHS to declare at 206/3. This set Shirley Boys’ a challenging target: either score 270 runs or surviving 58 overs. 

Southland Boys' High School came out strong with an early wicket and continued to apply pressure, picking up wickets at regular intervals. At 103/9, the result seemed inevitable, but a 10th wicket partnership of 38 runs delayed the end before Shirley Boys’ were bowled out for 141 in the 32nd over.  

Konnor Hogg was again the standout bowler, taking 3 wickets for just 10 runs off 4.5 overs. Captain Quinn O'Connor claimed 3 wickets and Jack Ramsey added 2 wickets. 

The team’s fielding and catching was outstanding while Rutledge capped off a great all-round performance with a brilliant direct-hit run-out aiming at just one stump. 

SBHS Colts claimed a commanding 128-run victory.