Gillette Cup cricket finals opens in ideal conditions at new home

Day one of the prestigious 2011 Gillette Cup Cricket Championship has opened in sunny conditions at the New Zealand Cricket (NZC) High Performance Centre (HPC) at Lincoln University and will run until 6 December. In a first for the Gillette Cup all matches scored live on blackcaps.co.nz.

Now in its 22nd year the Gillette Cup finals has bid farewell to Palmerston North’s legendary 21 year regional reign and this year takes place at its new home in Canterbury.

The Gillette Cup is synonymous with secondary school cricket and over 200 schools entered the 2011 competition. The preliminary rounds in the six major cricket associations have each produced regional winners to advance into this year’s finals.

Finalists for 2011 include returning teams from last year: Hutt International Boys’ School, Palmerston North Boys’ High School and last year’s champions King’s College; alongside Tauranga Boys’ High School, Otago Boys’ High School, and, first time finalist, Christ’s College.

Palmerston North Boys’ High School chalk up another year to make it a record 14th tournament appearance. Otago Boys’ High School follows closely with its 10th appearance and King’s College hope to defend its title by adding a 3rd title to its points table.

An integral part of the player development pathway for young New Zealand cricketers, the Gillette Cup has launched over 60 players into first class cricket with 14 graduating into the ranks of the BLACKCAPS.

“The Gillette Cup has proven to be an important part of the player development pathway. We felt that we should be playing the finals at the home of our HPC in Lincoln, where we have outstanding wickets and first class facilities. It really goes with the standing that the tournament already has in New Zealand,” explains Mark Lane, NZC National Development Manager.

The competition will unfold over five days rather than four, with the six finalists initially playing each other in a round-robin format before moving to the final stages of the tournament.

Gillette Cup 2011 scorecards, results and match reports - http://www.blackcaps.co.nz/domestic/gillette-cup/122/schedule.aspx


The draw for the tournament is as follows:

DAY ONE - FRIDAY 2 DECEMBER, 2011
King’s College v Hutt International BS
Tauranga BHS v Christ’s College
Otago BHS v Palmerston North BHS

DAY TWO – SATURDAY 3 DECEMBER, 2011
Christ’s College v King’s College
Otago BHS v Hutt International BS
Tauranga BHS v Palmerston North BHS

DAY THREE – SUNDAY 4 DECEMBER, 2011
Tauranga BHS v King’s College
Palmerston North BHS v Hutt International BS
Christ’s College v Otago BHS

DAY FOUR – MONDAY 5 DECEMBER, 2011
Otago BHS v King’s College
Christ’s College v Palmerston North BHS
Hutt International BS v Tauranga BHS

DAY FIVE – TUESDAY 6 DECEMBER, 2011
Otago BHS v Tauranga BHS
King’s College v Palmerston North BHS
Hutt International BS v Christ’s College